by Nan Jones @NanJonesAuthor
Guest blogger, Carol Heilman @CarolHeilman
I believe Carol Heilman must be the sweetest lady I’ve ever met that I don’t know. Do you know what I mean? We have an online friendship and a close alliance as authors with Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas. Carol is genuine, funny, and full of wisdom. If you are battling depression or love someone who is, this post will help you. If you feel ashamed by the stigma associated with depression, this post will help you. Many, many Christians fight the hounds of depression. It doesn’t mean we are bad people. It doesn’t mean we have little faith. It means we live in a fallen world where bad things happen to good people. Carol and I pray that you will feel encouraged and know that you are not alone in your struggle. God is our Healer, be it through medicine or divine intervention – HE is the One who heals. He holds you in the palm of His hand and cradles you near to His heart.
Welcome Carol!
Have you
ever suffered from depression? I have and here are a few things I have learned
along the way.
like falling into a deep, dark pit filled with quicksand.
can hurt, not only emotionally, but physically.
affect my ability to think clearly.
become restless, unable to sleep, and lose interest in my usual activities. I
may lose hope.
Churchill suffered from clinical depression and called it the “black dog.”
yourself in the clutches of this disease, get help. And do it today. Talk to
someone you trust. You may need to contact a trained professional. You could
have a chemical imbalance, or perhaps you have suffered abuse, rejection, or
feelings of unworthiness and have kept the hurt and anger inside yourself and
it’s eating you alive.
thankful I no longer need medication or counseling, but if I should again, I
would gladly accept whatever it took to help me get well.
so years ago I was depressed and didn’t realize it. My doctor at the time,
bless him, did. I was so ashamed. I didn’t even share with my husband that I had
begun taking medication. Actually, I didn’t tell anyone. What would people
think?
able to handle whatever came my way. I was wrong, on many counts. Because I am
human, I cannot handle anything on my own. The good Lord did not create us to
journey through our earthly lives alone. Now I cry out to Jesus and lean on Him.
He has never failed me.
sometimes will see depression lurking in the shadows ready to pounce. I am most
vulnerable when tired or sick, or even more so when disappointed in
circumstances not unfolding like I had planned. Imagine thinking I am the one
in control. That’s when I pray the hardest and try to give everything over to
the one who knows my every thought and fear and insecurity, yet loves me
anyway. Yes, mess that I am, Jesus loves me. He loves you. That
makes all the difference.
Lord) will rejoice over you with gladness.
will exult over you with loud singing.”
3:17
Heilman, a coal miner’s daughter, married her high school sweetheart, a
farmer’s son. She began writing family stories, especially about her dad’s
Appalachian humor, for newspapers and magazines. One day her mother said,
“We don’t have any secrets any more!”
book, Agnes Hopper Shakes Up Sweetbriar, was inspired by her mother’s
spunky spirit and her dad’s gentle one, as well as both parent’s humor.
husband of fifty-plus years. They love to play cards, go antiquing, hike, and
visit grandsons on the east and west coasts.
Mountains, but Agnes Marie Hopper discovers the high heat isn’t the only thing
causing her blood to boil. After trying to live with her daughter for six
months, she and Betty Jo come to an understanding: neither can tolerate living
with the other. So on a sultry August morning, a week after her seventy-first
birthday, Agnes loads her few belongings into Betty Jo’s shiny, black Buick,
and rides to Sweetbriar’s retirement home, Sweetbriar Manor.
when she learns some of the residents are being robbed, over-medicated, and
denied basic cable and Internet access. When it looks as if the administrator
is behind the facility’s shady dealings, Agnes complains to the local sheriff
but is told she’s a senile old woman who should mind her own business. Could it
be he knows more than he’ll admit?
unscrupulous administrator stop her. Armed with nothing more than seventy-one
years of common sense and a knack for pushing people’s buttons, Agnes sets out
to restore Sweetbriar Manor’s reputation as offering a
“rewarding and enriching lifestyle” – or die trying.
Nan, I give thanks to the good Lord for you. You are a joy and a blessing in my life. May grace and peace be multiplied to you. One day I hope we will meet in person!
I hope so too Carol. I think it would be a hug-fest 🙂 Thank you for sharing your heart with my readers.
Beautiful post, Carol. I've battled with depression myself and you're right, Jesus makes all the difference. Bless you, my dear friend. 🙂
Yes, He does Andrea. What would we do without Him? Thanks for stopping by.