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The War Cry | OCTOBER 2014
Insomnia, early-morning
wakefulness, or excessive
sleeping
Irritability, restlessness
Loss of interest in activities
or hobbies once pleasurable,
including sex
Overeating or appetite loss
Persistent aches or pains,
headaches, cramps, or digestive
problems that do not ease after
treatment
Persistent sad, anxious, or
"
empty" feelings
Thoughts of suicide and
suicide attempts
By genuinely caring for those
who might be depressed, we can help
get them the help they need from a
mental health professional, so they
don't spend all their lives running,
like I did.
I walked away from The Salva-
tion Army and from God 46 years
ago. A little over three years ago I
walked into Salvation Army corps
because I thought God wanted me to,
but I thought, "I can't do this --I am
too damaged -- I can't change." The
corps officers kept reaching out to
me, saying: "Wilma, you can't change
yourself, but God can make the
changes necessary if you trust Him."
Trust Him? That was a problem.
I wanted to, but most everybody I had
trusted had abused me or hurt me. I
just couldn't trust anyone, not totally.
I cried. Then I told God, "I don't
want these young people to feel like
I did. I don't want them to feel lost,
alone, unloved and unworthy. Help
me help them, my Lord! Help me
turn control of my life over to you,
to be willing to do your will... What
can I do to serve you?"
And in a very quiet voice I
heard this: "Wilma, this is how you
are serving Me."
Wilma Bradshaw,
a Salvation Army
soldier from the Central Territory, is a
licensed clinical social worker and a PhD
candidate in Psychology.
WITHOUT PEER, AND ONE OF US
A
s the world grieved after Robin Williams' apparent suicide,
many people have come forward to acknowledge that they
have also struggled for many years against depression and the
lure of alcohol and drugs. This brilliant comic pantomimed so well the
absurdity of the human condition, but always with a touch of empathy
for the workings and wonder of the human heart. In his final act he
turned the spotlight on the fact that deep down we all struggle with
the minions of darkness, with forces and circumstances and genetic
dispositions that leave us feeling lonely, without purpose, ashamed
and unworthy. Through this outpouring of sympathy we have learned
that depression is an illness, an affliction, that requires empathy and
treatment, not judgment and ostracism. Bringing it to light is a re-
minder that mankind, once banished from paradise, dwells in a land
of thwarted destiny and false hope until the love of God can break
in to set us free. We can at least, as Dr. Harry Croft says in his book
Treating Your Depression: Finding Light at the End of the Tunnel, "be
ever mindful that depression is a real disease, it is common, it is serious,
but it is treatable, and we have to keep talking about it." May we be
open enough so that those suffering in isolation, those covering their
wounds with denial or success or pleasure or any of the masks used to
hide true feelings, can find acceptance
and compassion when they dare to
reach out for answers.
No one would guess that I
Cut
"Through this outpouring of sympathy we
have learned that depression is an illness,
an affliction, that requires empathy and
treatment, not judgment and ostracism."
Photo Getty Images Entertainment