Question about St. Dymphna's patronage

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LuciaPacifici

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I really like St. Dymphna and many people speak of how powerful her intercession is. I am confused about the origin of her patronage as the patron of people with mental and nervous disorders.

Her father became mentally unstable after losing his wife, and wanted to marry Dymphna. Obviously he was extremely unwell mentally and emotionally, so it makes sense her patronage would partly come from the fact that she dealt with him.

I had always thought that her patronage also came from the notion that anyone in a similar situation to hers might themselves also have anxiety and be nervous. I am not saying she didn’t trust in God, but that logically most people would feel anxious in her shoes.

I thought the whole point of her patronage was that she is supposed to understand what people are going through.

Then I read somewhere that she is only helpful with mental disorders because of her father’s mental illness. It made me sad and feel like it was unfair to people struggling with nervous problems, because most of them are nothing like Dymphna’s dad. It seemed kind of insulting too, as if mentally ill people could never be saintly, but only crazy, and the Saint is only there to help.

I have no idea where I read this and hope it was just someone’s opinion.

I am still confused about the official reason, although myself I have decided that my original theory is correct, that she truly understands.
 
Not sure why you are questioning the Church’s decision.
She’s the Patroness of those with mental issues.
She prays for those who ask for her intercession.
 
LuciaPacifici said:
I really like St. Dymphna and many people speak of how powerful her intercession is. I am confused about the origin of her patronage as the patron of people with mental and nervous disorders.

Her father became mentally unstable after losing his wife, and wanted to marry Dymphna. Obviously he was extremely unwell mentally and emotionally, so it makes sense her patronage would partly come from the fact that she dealt with him.

I had always thought that her patronage also came from the notion that anyone in a similar situation to hers might themselves also have anxiety and be nervous. I am not saying she didn’t trust in God, but that logically most people would feel anxious in her shoes.

I thought the whole point of her patronage was that she is supposed to understand what people are going through.

Then I read somewhere that she is only helpful with mental disorders because of her father’s mental illness. It made me sad and feel like it was unfair to people struggling with nervous problems, because most of them are nothing like Dymphna’s dad. It seemed kind of insulting too, as if mentally ill people could never be saintly, but only crazy, and the Saint is only there to help.

I have no idea where I read this and hope it was just someone’s opinion.

I am still confused about the official reason, although myself I have decided that my original theory is correct, that she truly understands.
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Yes she does, she was killed by her own father. I’m sure she prayed for her father even while he was killing her. A Saint’s intersession is there for everyone. Let’s don’t get nitty picky over these things. God Bless, Memaw
 
pianistclare said:
Not sure why you are questioning the Church’s decision.
She’s the Patroness of those with mental issues.
She prays for those who ask for her intercession.
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I never questioned the church’s decision and I’m not doing that now. I know what she is the patroness of as I said in my post. I am asking about some details as to the origin of how this patronage came about.
 
Memaw said:
Yes she does, she was killed by her own father. I’m sure she prayed for her father even while he was killing her. A Saint’s intersession is there for everyone. Let’s don’t get nitty picky over these things. God Bless, Memaw
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I am not being nit picky, I am genuinely interested in hagiography and the details matter a lot to me, because I am interested. Also, for people with mental disorders, it does make a difference whether or not Dymphna experienced anything with anxiety herself.

I don’t think I implied anywhere that her intercession would not be there for everyone.
 
LuciaPacifici said:
I never questioned the church’s decision and I’m not doing that now. I know what she is the patroness of as I said in my post. I am asking about some details as to the origin of how this patronage came about.
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Her father wanted to commit incest with her.
Do you not think that is personal enough? :confused:
From your post it appears you know what she went though.
 
pianistclare said:
Her father wanted to commit incest with her.
Do you not think that is personal enough? :confused:
From your post it appears you know what she went though.
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Maybe I wasn’t clear in my original post.

I was trying to understand if the takeaway from her life story is, “Dymphna’s dad was crazy and that’s why she’s the patron of mental disorders–because her dad had a mental disorder,”

or

“Dymphna’s dad was crazy and also she (or at least MOST people in her situation) may have felt anxiety, given everything, and those two things are why she is the patron of mental disorders.”

Maybe most people will think that doesn’t matter at all, but people who struggle with anxiety or mental disorders might perceive a big difference between the two.

In the first instance, the emphasis is on the mentally ill father, who does some really horrible things. Most people with mental disorders do not like being compared to this type of person because they don’t behave in this way.

In the second instance, there is the fact of how much St. Dyphna can empathize with the mental illness sufferer. I think that it makes a big difference.

Maybe I am the only person to overthink this very much. But it matters to me. I will probably just have to pray about it and figure it out for myself.

Also for the record I love St. Dymphna and she is a powerful intercessor.
 
LuciaPacifici said:
I am not being nit picky, I am genuinely interested in hagiography and the details matter a lot to me, because I am interested. Also, for people with mental disorders, it does make a difference whether or not Dymphna experienced anything with anxiety herself.

I don’t think I implied anywhere that her intercession would not be there for everyone.
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She was anxious enough over her father trying to force her to marry him that she escaped to another country but he followed her there and killed her. I would call that extreme anxiety. God Bless, Memaw
 
Memaw said:
She was anxious enough over her father trying to force her to marry him that she escaped to another country but he followed her there and killed her. I would call that extreme anxiety. God Bless, Memaw
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Thank you ! !

That is exactly the answer I was trying to find. I didn’t know that she traveled that far but it makes a lot of sense now.
 
Memaw said:
She was anxious enough over her father trying to force her to marry him that she escaped to another country but he followed her there and killed her. I would call that extreme anxiety. God Bless, Memaw
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Yes.
 
LuciaPacifici, You need to know that the Church moves very slowly in keeping up with social norms. For centuries, epileptics and the mentally ill were seen as ‘‘possessed.’’ In His time, Jesus had to correct his disciples who mistook a malady for possession.

In more recent times, mental illness was seen as a defect, a weakness. It was only in this century that it was revealed that St. Therese of Liseaux, the Little Flower, suffered a ‘‘nervous breakdown’’ what today we would call a psychotic break, after the death of her mother.

St. Dymphna was the object of an incestuous lust. The writers of the time, trying to promote the cause for her canonization, would have left out how she suffered from feelings of guilt and shame choosing to focus instead on her virtue. After gathering the strength to leave her abuser, she was martyred by his narcissistic rage like so many victims of domestic abuse.

The lives of the saints like the Bible, needs more than a superficial literal sense. It also must be read for the morals it teaches us, the connection to Jesus saving act and how this story repeats what Jesus did to get us everlasting life.

Jesus did not go out in a blaze of glory. He was scorned mocked ridiculed, flogged, beat, stripped naked, fell many times before dying on the cross. I see in the true lives of the saints like Therese, Dymphna and Bakita a much closer relationship to the story of the cross then the fru fru stories we read all our lives.

St Dymphna not only lived with her fathers’ mental illness, but suffered her own as a result of being victimized. But what makes her a saint is the love of God that shown through, the strength with which she bore her injuries and pain. She never let the pain get in the way of her relationship with God.

God luck. Prayers.
 
Antegin said:
LuciaPacifici, You need to know that the Church moves very slowly in keeping up with social norms. For centuries, epileptics and the mentally ill were seen as ‘‘possessed.’’ In His time, Jesus had to correct his disciples who mistook a malady for possession.

In more recent times, mental illness was seen as a defect, a weakness. It was only in this century that it was revealed that St. Therese of Liseaux, the Little Flower, suffered a ‘‘nervous breakdown’’ what today we would call a psychotic break, after the death of her mother.

St. Dymphna was the object of an incestuous lust. The writers of the time, trying to promote the cause for her canonization, would have left out how she suffered from feelings of guilt and shame choosing to focus instead on her virtue. After gathering the strength to leave her abuser, she was martyred by his narcissistic rage like so many victims of domestic abuse.

The lives of the saints like the Bible, needs more than a superficial literal sense. It also must be read for the morals it teaches us, the connection to Jesus saving act and how this story repeats what Jesus did to get us everlasting life.

Jesus did not go out in a blaze of glory. He was scorned mocked ridiculed, flogged, beat, stripped naked, fell many times before dying on the cross. I see in the true lives of the saints like Therese, Dymphna and Bakita a much closer relationship to the story of the cross then the fru fru stories we read all our lives.

St Dymphna not only lived with her fathers’ mental illness, but suffered her own as a result of being victimized. But what makes her a saint is the love of God that shown through, the strength with which she bore her injuries and pain. She never let the pain get in the way of her relationship with God.

God luck. Prayers.
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This is awesome, thank you for explaining in such detail. It answers my question.

I agree that understanding the Saints in a very real way is important, we should really learn about the full human being.
 
LuciaPacifici said:
Maybe I wasn’t clear in my original post.

I was trying to understand if the takeaway from her life story is, “Dymphna’s dad was crazy and that’s why she’s the patron of mental disorders–because her dad had a mental disorder,”

or

“Dymphna’s dad was crazy and also she (or at least MOST people in her situation) may have felt anxiety, given everything, and those two things are why she is the patron of mental disorders.”

Maybe most people will think that doesn’t matter at all, but people who struggle with anxiety or mental disorders might perceive a big difference between the two.

In the first instance, the emphasis is on the mentally ill father, who does some really horrible things. Most people with mental disorders do not like being compared to this type of person because they don’t behave in this way.

In the second instance, there is the fact of how much St. Dyphna can empathize with the mental illness sufferer. I think that it makes a big difference.

Maybe I am the only person to overthink this very much. But it matters to me. I will probably just have to pray about it and figure it out for myself.

Also for the record I love St. Dymphna and she is a powerful intercessor.
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She is my confirmation Saint, and I admire her so much. She has guided me and offered me protection in many ways. I’ve suffered from depression/illness, and I know her patronage and guidance gave me what little strength and comfort that I had. I’m now confronting another issue beyond depression, and I pray that she will be with me as I do so.

And for me…I try to remember that the emphasis is not on a person/Saint, but on God, and how that person served Him. 🙂
 
ccmcmg said:
She is my confirmation Saint, and I admire her so much. She has guided me and offered me protection in many ways. I’ve suffered from depression/illness, and I know her patronage and guidance gave me what little strength and comfort that I had. I’m now confronting another issue beyond depression, and I pray that she will be with me as I do so.

And for me…I try to remember that the emphasis is not on a person/Saint, but on God, and how that person served Him. 🙂
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Thank you for sharing this, I’m sorry you have suffered and so glad St. Dymphna’s intercession helps you and brings you closer to God. Praise Jesus.
 
LuciaPacifici said:
Thank you for sharing this, I’m sorry you have suffered and so glad St. Dymphna’s intercession helps you and brings you closer to God. Praise Jesus.
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Amen, amen, amen.

My suffering is nothing compared to others’ suffering, but yes, it is and has been difficult. I know it’s through her intercession and our loving Lord that I am here today. I pray that others do not suffer as I have, nor worse, and that she remain close to them as well.

Thanks for your kind words. I’m so thankful for her, and for our Lord and Savior.

I, too, am praying for the shrine.
 
To the OP: I know and understand what and why this is important to you. Having such a. Saint who has gone through the same struggles we experience is different than a saint who experienced mental illness secondhand. Others explained St Dymphna’s situation better than I ever could but I do want to say that mental illness in and of itself is not a sin. Having anxiety, panic attacks, or depressive episodes do not occur because of a lack of faith. I believe many are mistaken about this which leads to blaming the victim. The etiology of, for example, anxiety is very complex. Anxiety and panic are autonomic responses of the nervous system. Not to say you can’t also have a lack of faith: indeed, a person may lack faith and have anxiety (correlation does NOT equal causation). My point is that having anxiety does not mean there automatically a corresponding lack of faith.

I personally am so grateful for the examples of Saints like Dymphna and Faustina and Blessed Mother Theresa. Their testimonies encourage my heart so often.
 
According to her legend: those who were mentally ill, epileptic, or even demon possessed were miraculously healed at the site of her tomb. saint-mike.org/dymphna/dymphna.html

natlshrinestdymphna.org/site/?page_id=11

She is also the patron saint of people with Alzheimer’s Disease and dementia, and various other causes such as victims of rape and incest, runaways, etc.

St. Dymphna is my heroine. Ever since I discovered her “accidentally” more than 30 years ago, I’ve loved her and even took on her name at my baptism. In times like these, her intercession is surely needed now more than ever.

May God Bless you and give you His healing and peace. :signofcross:

P.S. Here is another site you may like: catholiccompany.com/getfed/mental-illness-patron-saints/
 
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