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Before I start this takeover, if you have a question you want to ask anonymously, send a DM and I'll answer it to the best of my ability. Otherwise feel free to ask here about any general questions you have for me!
My main focus today is the question: “How do you cope with the Church’s work ethic focus while dealing with mental illness?”
But first, I want to address those that don't struggle with mental illness first, to at least try to give you a sense of what's going on in our heads. This obviously doesn't apply to everyone!
Depression can be felt as apathy, deep-seated sadness, or any combination of those. It also can be characterized by internalizing negative feelings about yourself, usually that you're not good enough one way or another.
Anxiety feels like your fight-or-flight response can't be switched off. It can be brought on or exacerbated by a plethora of factors that are unique to each person.
OCD is another common one that I don’t personally have experience with, but it is much more than “haha yeah I need everything neat and straightened.” It involves compulsive actions that have to be repeated excessively to address obsessive and intrusive thoughts.
Church, and religion in general, can be extremely difficult for people who deal with these things. They can often feel like they're not doing enough or that they're doing something wrong. They might have trouble interacting with other people.
(For example, I haven't done an endowment session in over two years because they make me feel trapped. If I'm feeling particularly bad, there's no way for me to leave. When I go to church I sit in the back row so I can exit unobtrusively.)
There's often pressure to have a happy face, which when you're feeling bad, is extremely hard to do. So avoiding church or going and sitting in places where you're unlikely to be interacted with is the best solution.
Everyone is different and handles things differently. There are obviously cultural things that could be different that could make things easier for people with mental illness, but I'm not proposing broad changes today
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