It’s no longer winter
If you were to ask me, I’d tell you the best thing about winter is when it’s over. I despise the cold, I hate that the sun spends so much time hiding, and I do not enjoy being stuck at home when it snows or the roads are icy. These are all signs of Seasonal Affective Disorder which I have battled for as long as I can remember. Some years I feel it worse than others but I can almost guarantee that once the time changes in the fall, I’m going to start experiencing some signs of depression. As someone who has walked through many seasons of various depths of depression, I’ve learned a few things about how I can manage it with a little more grace and not let the battle in my mind steal my joy. I’d like to share with you what I’ve found helps get me through these times…
Psalms to Read: For Anxiety & Depression
I recently saw something, and it made me stop in my tracks. The quote had been posted on a video via social media and said something to the effect that men use their trauma to build. Whereas women become destroyed by their trauma.” Was that true? The fact was, I had seen both men and women destroyed by their trauma, and I had also seen men and women grow stronger through their trauma. When I began to research, the National Center for PTSD stated, “The lifetime prevalence of PTSD for women is 10-12%, compared to 5-6% for men.”
So, as women, we do hold onto our trauma longer. However, we are more likely to experience the kinds of traumatic events that have a higher incident rate for PTSD, and we are more likely to seek help through therapy and antidepressants. It may be that we just reached out for help sooner…
Here are some psalms that can speak to your depression and anxiety.