The Mentally ill - an image of God.

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Shoshana:
Well, folks, at about this time, I am considered a mental issue…or tissue…who knows? Psychiatric assessment is not even important! 😃 I guess Fr Groeschel was right…when we enter into ourselves by the grace of god and find out some very ugly things, it ain’t no picnic. Just wish I had someone to talk to…methinks my spiritual director ain’t up to this! Oh well…maybe take a retreat and allow the Lord to pluck every ugly creature that is lurking in the corners. In the meantime, I will hibernate within my own little chapel within my heart and sleep it away. The pain is too much to bear especially if I am not understood…but what do I do with my child crying all the time?

Anyhoo, I can’t speak as well as you guys about all of this but I do wish you a very blessed Lent.
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I have experienced a great deal of healing from the troubled thoughts I used to have. I ended up with a rather strange strategy toward those “ugly creatures” when they show themselves in my thoughts or words or actions; I do not judge them or resist them. That way they think they can escape all by themselves, and often do, without borrowing my speech processing center and picking up a harmful comment along the way!

If I become angry or upset that they are about to get out and wreak havoc, then that challenges them to split forces and let some of it out and leave some in to try again to find the light of day next time they get half an excuse.

It’s mostly about fear and judgment. We are taught to judge all of our thoughts, and this process has become so automatic that ideas we might not have even noticed become a distraction as our “inner judge” is so busy with sentencing requests he can only keep putting the guilty parties “back out on the street.”

I’m writing metaphorically or at least intending to here. If this post makes sense to you, then maybe you should be very careful about admitting it because it does to me too! 😛

Alan
 
quote: AlanFromWitchita
It’s mostly about fear and judgment. We are taught to judge all of our thoughts, and this process has become so automatic that ideas we might not have even noticed become a distraction as our “inner judge” is so busy with sentencing requests he can only keep putting the guilty parties “back out on the street.”

I’m writing metaphorically or at least intending to here. If this post makes sense to you, then maybe you should be very careful about admitting it because it does to me too! 😛
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Uh oh.🤓 This does make sense.

quote: AlanFromWitchita
…as our “inner judge” is so busy with sentencing requests…
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“sentencing requests” 😃

reen
 
quote: Shoshana
Fr Groeschel mentioned a Saint at his conference and I think it is the name sake of our pope…
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If I understand same correctly, Fr. Groeschel chose the
name “Benedict” in honor of St. Benedict Joseph Labre.

I am in reciept of a copy of Labre’s biography, written
by his confessor, Marconi, and translated into English in,
I believe, 1786. The book is an original copy, which I ordered
from a British bookseller.

Am in the process of transcribing same, and will have
this edited work rendered into book form, in “perfect binding.”
[Each one has to be bound, by hand, so it will take a while.]

St. Benedict’s story is a moving one - and one does not have
to look far, in the annals of modern psychiatry, to
at least take a guess, as to what troubled this poor soul.

In any case, Benedict is my favorite saint [when I’m in
my Church mindset].

His story can be found here: :tiphat:

bowdoin.edu/~hholbroo/

reen
 
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reen12:
Here’s a photo of the title page:

Fr. Marconi’s biography of B.J. Labre, English translation
[it is dated 1786]

src=“i10.photobucket.com/albums/a106/reen12/Labrebiotitlepageokedited.jpg”

[Fortunately, my spouse will accomplish the “perfect binding.” :)]

reen
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Hi Reen…thank you for the above link, I am pretty sure I have read quotes from St. Benedict Joseph Labre, but know very little about him. I have had a quick look at the link…

bowdoin.edu/~hholbroo/

and it looks very interesting. Thank you…
St. Benedict’s story is a moving one - and one does not have
to look far, in the annals of modern psychiatry, to
at least take a guess, as to what troubled this poor soul
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Can you elaborate a bit more on ‘what troubled’ St. Benedict Labre?
I know very little about him and would be most interested in your comments…but hey! Reen, if you comment, remember its Barb here and keep the words of one syllable huh?:o
You continue, Reen, as always to astound me with your range of knowledge and of the English language! http://www.smileytown.com/application/content/nerv0002.gif

…Barbhttp://www.smileytown.com/application/content/hapy0001.gif
 
Hi, Barb,

Fifty years ago, I discovered that one could walk into
this building, where you could take out books - free! 🙂
  • :yup:
Framing a reply to, and will post later:

quote: BarbaraTherese
Can you elaborate a bit more on ‘what troubled’ St. Benedict Labre?
I know very little about him…
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Hagiography, being what it is - those who
chronicled the life of St. Benedict chose to depict
his life as wholly chosen asceticism- rather than the
reality -
a human reponse to God, offered through the matrix of
[what I take to be], severe illness - a complex admixture
of a response to grace, expressed through the existenial
reality of illness.

Benedict Labre loved God, and he was so ill.
God made him a saint, through - not despite - his illness
I think.

reen*
 
Thanks Reen for the fill in on St. Benedict. I think you are quite right that if God has permitted one to have an illness and of any kind, mental included, than sanctity and holiness is effected through the illness, not despite it. I am really looking forward to reading the link you gave.

Just to advise too Reen and all that I have not abandoned this thread. I have just spent a while reading back on some Posts and there is just so much in them that it will take a while to post my own comments…but there really is some great stuff being covered in this thread. Let’s pat ourselves on the back all, we have stayed away from the entirely personal and advice exchange and kept objective…and the thread is still open!!!🙂 …we have done well methinks!

I will be back and will try to post my comments in the one Post, though commenting on various Posts.

Some really excellent insights, observations and affirmations - and objectively…well done (I know you needed my approval!😃 )…Barb:)
 
quote: AlanFromWitchita
I have experienced a great deal of healing from the troubled thoughts I used to have. I ended up with a rather strange strategy toward those “ugly creatures” when they show themselves in my thoughts or words or actions; I do not judge them or resist them. That way they think they can escape all by themselves, and often do, without borrowing my speech processing center and picking up a harmful comment along the way
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…without borrowing my speech processing center…
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Gawd, Alan, that’s* perfect*! 😃

And, yes, to:

quote: AlanFromWitchita
I do not judge them or resist them
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This is seen, as well, in Eastern thought.
“All conditioned things rise, exist, and pass away.”

While I may be mistaken, I believe that this is one of the
practical methods employed in Dialectiacal Behavior Therapy
[DBT].

East meets West will be seen, I think, to be one of
the stunning realities -seen in retrospect - of the twentieth century. :tiphat:

I appreciated your observations, Alan. [post# 60]

reen

[The interesting thing about “arise, exist, pass away” is
the expression, of same, in Gestalt psychology - in the sense that “exist” literally means: “to stand out from” the ‘background,’
to emerge - thereby forming a gestalt.]
 
I’ve always thought that Francis Thompson’s poem:“The Hound of Heaven” contained lines of especial interest, for some who are ill.

THE HOUND OF HEAVEN

I fled Him, down the nights and down the days;
I fled Him, down the arches of the years;
I fled Him, down the labyrinthine ways
Of my own mind; and in the mist of tears
I hid from Him, and under running laughter.
Up vistaed hopes, I sped;
And shot, precipitated
Adown Titanic glooms of chasmed fears,

…I laughed in the morning’s eyes.
I triumphed and I saddened with all weather,
Heaven and I wept together,
…But not by that, by that, was eased my human smart.
In vain my tears were wet on Heaven’s grey cheek.
For ah! we know not what each other says,
These things and I…

…I stand amid the dust o’ the mounded years -
My mangled youth lies dead beneath the heap.
My days have crackled and gone up in smoke,
Have puffed and burst as sun-starts on a stream.
Yea, faileth now even dream
The dreamer…
Ah! is Thy love indeed
A weed, albeit an amaranthine weed,
Suffering no flowers except its own to mount?
Ah! must -
Designer infinite! -
Ah! must Thou char the wood ere Thou canst limn with it?

“Strange, piteous, futile thing!
…All which I took from thee I did but take,
Not for thy harms,
But just that thou might’st seek it in My arms.
All which thy child’s mistake
Fancies as lost, I have stored for thee at home:
Rise, clasp My hand, and come.”
Ah! must Thou char the wood ere Thou canst limn with it?

Whence comes the phrase, I think, the wounded healer.

And those who are touched by illness surely know what
it is, to be charred. Yet, in their illness, many are capable
of reaching out to others.

And what God takes, with one Hand, He gives back with
the other. Illness, in His right hand, understanding and
mercy toward others and their weaknesses, in the other.

For, you see, Francis Thompson, the poet, had been an addict
[surely ill, with drugs the traitorous anodyne?]
And yet, out of this harrowing experience, he was able to write of
“Christ, walking on the Thames.”

What God took away from Francis, charred, enabled him
to limn some of the finest poems in the English language.

“Ah, fondest, blindest, weakest,
It is I Whom thou seekest…”

And Francis found Him, “walking on the Thames.”

reen12
 
Here is a prayer/reflection, that I wrote, that might speak to some human beings who experience mental illness [biologically based] or psychological illness.
“I let you experience anxiety, so you could move among and be with the anxious…”

“I let you fall into sin, so that you would be merciful to the sinner…”

“I let you know weakness and depression, so that you would would look only to Me, ultimately, for strength and good cheer, yea, even to the end of life.”

“I let you know pride…so that you would see how hollow that is, how empty - the boasts of man.”

“I took away one you loved so dearly, so that you would learn lessons - still unknown to you - yet known by Me.”

“I let you experience limitation and all kinds of loss, so that you would seek My strength, and trust My promise to restore to you all people and things that you loved, in Me, in eternity.”

reen12
 
The pain is too much to bear especially if I am not understood…but what do I do with my child crying all the time?

Let her cry. God created crying and designed it to work just as it does. At first, the crying doesn’t appear to be healing. And it goes on and on and on and on. I know, Shoshana, believe me, I know. My crying has stopped, but it went on and on and on and on and on. One day, I felt better after crying, like I did when I was a little girl. “All better!” That’s the way God designed crying, but we have buried the healing properties of tears beneath a lot of ego defenses that we have to abandon bit by bit. This is what happens in repeated crying, until, one day, we discover that we have gone through all our defenses and are at the bottom, at the place where the pristine and holy tears appear and begin to truly heal. They are healing the whole time, of course, but we don’t feel it. In short, we need to reach “rock bottom” in our defense of pain and wholly, totally, and utter completely abandon ourselves and our very souls to the pain. After all, Shoshana, where is that pain? It’s in Christ, and we must accept the pain, just as He did. From doing that comes our rebirth. So, don’t seek an end to the crying – give yourself over to the work that you must do and when you reach bottom, you will see Him outstretching His hands to you and you will feel that the journey was well worth it.

I was helped by excellent psychotherapy with the journey, and I’d recommend it. It can definitely assist in the process.
 
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This thread is now closed. After much thought, the moderation and administrative staff have decided not to allow solicitation on the forums of people with mental health concerns. While well-intentioned, it is not possible for such support to be given over the Internet and could, potentially, be dangerous. People experiencing mental-health concerns should seek a referral to a mental health professional from their physician or pastor. Thanks to all who participated in the discussion.
 
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