Today we will be discussing emotional health. Some people would say I am an expert on this subject and some would say I haven’t got a clue about it at all. The reason there is such a wide range of views on my relationship with emotional health is because of the years I have struggled with chronic and from mild to severe depression.
I did not want to write this column today mainly because the more severe aspect of depression crept in on me during the last twenty four hours or so. During these times forcing me to do anything at all is a very difficult task, and as the pain is on the inside, it is very difficult for those who are on the outside to understand why I do the things I do. The world has very little patience or sympathy for depressed people. The world thinks it is something that can be pushed through, and for some people it is, but not for all.
I think there are really two types of emotional difficulties, one is the possibility that these issues are genetic and can be cured with medication. The other is the type born out of life situations. There is a third as well and that is a mixture of being born with the chemical malfunction and having a rough, possibly abusive life added to the mix. All can be worked out to some degree, and life can become better, but as we discussed yesterday, it is a team effort and no one can cure themselves.
I don’t have any real words of wisdom in attaining emotional health. I haven’t solved the problem for myself yet. I do know that having a good doctor a good therapist and a good psychiatrist is important to begin the journey. You also need good friends that will hang in there with you, when you get ugly, and you will. Your pharmacist is also invaluable because he or she will know about the drugs you are taking and help guide you through different issues and side effects. I am very grateful for my pharmacist whose name is Ralph. We talk; he encourages me as well as instructs me. He and his co-workers have even had to fight for me to get insurance to pay for medications. Your total health depends on having a great team.
For those of you that realize that your spiritual side is just as important as all the other aspects of your life, than add to the team a good Pastor or priest, one who gets that the issues you are going through have a multi-dimensional aspect to them. I have been blessed with such a pastor in Eric Kohler of Valley Point Church in Glen Mills PA. Eric gets it, as does the rest of the church staff and the elders of the church, in particularly Lee White, who lead men’s ministry. Without their constant pushes toward and God and toward my finding the right doctor and meds, I would not have come as far as I did.
I can only tell you what you need to put together in order to begin the road toward mental health. I can also tell you to get started on that road. What it will look like for you and what you will go through will not be easy. But I can say that I believe in Happy Endings. But you only get a happy ending if you are willing to make a start.