Lenten Observances For Those Who Suffer From Mental Illness

Maybe it's just me, but whenever Lent comes around, I always seem to fail at my plans and sacrifices, and later feel like I set myself up for failure. This time of year is always pretty hard for me, I know that it is for other people, so I thought I might make a list of Lenten observances that are ideal for those who suffer from mental illness(es). Feel free to comment with your own on this post or on the Facebook page!

1. Start praying on your morning commute. 
Brandon Vogt shared 6 ways to make your morning commute into a retreat.

2. Pray a novena. 
Some suggestions are St. Dymphna, the patron of those who suffer from mental illness, St. Therese of Lisieux, who is believed to have struggled with mental illness herself, and Our Lady, Undoer of Knots. This is by no means an exhaustive list!

3. Spend time cultivating good and solid relationships. 
Open up to your family and friends about your struggles (while recognizing their boundaries), pray with and for them, and spend quality time with them.

4. Try Lectio Divina 

5. Spread hope and love through your witness. 
Think about submitting your story of hope, healing and journey with mental illness here (I'm always looking for guest bloggers, too)!

6. Unfollow/unfriend anyone you don't need/want in your life.
If someone is a roadblock in your journey with Christ, maybe now is the time to stop following them on social media. Think of this way: is this a person that you see/want to see outside of your phone screen. If no, why do you want to see them ON the screen?

7. Take up prayer journaling.

8. Begin the practice of positive affirmations. 
I LOVE the app ThinkUp . It lets you record your own voice saying the affirmation of your choice. You can enter your own, or they also give you suggestions. They don't have any faith-based affirmations on the app, so I'm super glad they give you the option to enter your own. The Littlest Way has some great reflections on the power of affirmations and some ideas for biblical-based affirmations. 

8. Pray the Rosary daily. 
This page on Facebook is encouraging folk to pray the Rosary daily using the Sorrowful Mysteries for those who are affected by mental illness, if you want a specific intention.

9. Read a spiritual book that will positively impact your life! 
Right now, I'm reading The Way of Serenity and I Believe in Love. Both of them are changing my life and utterly spectacular.

10. Give counseling a shot.
If you aren't going to counseling, see if you can find someone you like. If you already regularly go, continue to go regularly!

11. Take time daily/weekly to pamper yourself! 
Self care is so so important, and if you begin to treat yourself well, you will inevitably begin to think higher of yourself, too.

12. Fast from isolating yourself. 
Try to spend time with at least one person each day.

13. Cultivate a grateful heart.
Write down three things your grateful for every night, and thank God for those things.

14. Fast from comparing yourself to others. 
Theodore Roosevelt once said that "comparison is the thief of joy", and the more I've reflected on it, the more I've found it to be true. There are no two people out there that can be compared. We are our own people with our own struggles, backgrounds, and stories.

15. Fast from watching TV during the week. 
Jane the Virgin can wait till Sunday.

16. Donate to a charity. 
Don't just discard of your old items, go out and choose new items to donate to a homeless shelter, unwed mothers' home, or other organization that helps those who need a little extra.

17. Pray for the people in your life. 
And tell them that you're praying for them via a text, or even (**gasp**) snail mail!

18. Fast from social media at specific times, certain social media, or social media as a whole. 
Instead of scrolling through Instagram or Facebook the first time you wake up, how about praying a rosary or reading the daily readings? Even sending a friend a text to say good morning would be an improvement!

19. Use your talents to make something and donate it to someone. 
You can crochet a blanket for a friend, make baby hats for the local hospital, or even make dinner for a grieving family in your community.

20. Begin the practice of regularly praying the St. Michael Prayer. 
It is so powerful.

21. Try at least one new positive coping skill. 
(check out this cool "adult" coloring book with beautiful bible verses to color in!)

22. Start (or continue!) doing daily devotions. 
For women, I love Blessed is She and She Reads Truth.

23. Stop by a church just to pray at least once a week.

24. Fast from negative thinking. 
Towards yourself and others.

25. Use social media as a way to evangelize! 
Post quotes, pictures, links, etc. about the Church and God's Love.

26. Volunteer at a soup kitchen or homeless shelter helping the less fortunate. 
You will be able to see and love God's forgotten people face to face, and helping others can also increase your self-esteem and lessen depression and anxiety.

27. Spend at least 15 minutes exercising every day.
Go on a walk, run, jog, do yoga, lift, whatever. Exercise is extremely beneficial for those of us with mental illnesses, and if you start treating your temple with kindness and love, you will have an increase of feelings of self-worth, too! I love using Sworkit, an app that lets you choose different types of exercises for different lengths of time.

28. Go to adoration. 
Bask in the savior's love for you!

29. Give up using technology in bed. 
Pray the rosary while trying to sleep instead of scrolling through Instagram.

30. Drink at least 8 cups of water daily. 
Did you know that dehydration can cause anxiety?

31. Get to know the saints! 
You can choose a saint every week, or just focus on one saint for the entirety of the season. Ask them to pray for you!

32. Consecrate yourself to the Blessed Mother! 
I've used 33 Days to Morning Glory and loved it. If you want to consecrate yourself on Easter, start on February 23rd.

33. Bask in the mercy of God! 
It's the year of mercy, read The Diary of St. Faustina, pray the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, go to the Sacrament of Reconciliation, ask for God's help in forgiving someone who wronged you, forgive yourself.

34. Do 46 "random" acts of kindness.
One for each day (including Sundays!) of Lent.

35. Fast from negative self talk.

*NOTE
do not try to attempt all of these at once! Choose one or two, and go for it! Have a blessed Lent!

The Sorrow in Joy.

Joy. This word has been on my heart since I went on medical leave from school almost three months ago. What is joy? What makes it different from happiness? How do you get it?

These questions have all been partially answered in different ways, but in a big way through praying the Joyful Mysteries of the rosaries. While praying, I've noticed something: as joyful as these mysteries are, there's also sorrow in them, especially the fourth and fifth mysteries.

Joy is accompanied by sorrow.

My sister told me that she liked to pray about how Mary felt after Jesus went missing in the Temple. Ya'll... she literally lost God. She didn't know where He was.

She felt the same way we feel when we feel like God isn't there.

And she searched, and she searched, and she worried, and joy prevailed.

Years before, when she and Joseph presented the baby Jesus at the Temple, Simeon told her that her heart would be pierced by a sword. Mary must have felt so frightened, so troubled by this news. But yet, this event in Jesus' life is not seen as sorrowful, rather as joyful.

In our own lives, there are times when life is just so freaking unfair. Everything seems to be going wrong. We could be the young girl who is given news that could have her killed and shunned from society, or the girl who can't find a place to rest and give birth, and so she delivers her son among animals. These are troubling things. But Mary is an example to us: she chose the joy in these events rather than the sorrowful and troubling.

Will you choose the joyful? It has to be a conscious decision. There will be times when we're going to have to search high and low for it.

But it's there.

We just have to stop staring at the shadows and look to the sun behind them.

Guest Post - A Letter to My Future Therapist

To my future therapist,

Hello. To answer the question I know you will inevitably ask, I honestly have no idea how you can help me.

I do not that I need help and I'm hopeful that you can be a part of that. I know that I need healing and I need to know what is within me. I know a diagnosis won't fix everything, if anything, but all that I know isn't helpful if I am trying to face the unknown. I have seen its outline, and I have felt its presence for so long that it seems like forever, but I don't know what it is. I know I can't control what happens in my head or heart or whatever body part houses the darkest parts of our being, but I can shine light on it.

Right now, I am hiding from it just as much as it may be hiding within me. I know with time, I can work to understand it and live with it. It is a part of me, and no matter how much I may dislike myself at times, I love myself more. But right now, I don't know where to start.

I would start from the beginning, but by now, everything seems to be smeared together. There have been moments in my life that stand out, but I don't know what came first anymore. I can't tell you whether the events happened and then I started feeling the way I do, or vice versa. How do I feel? Well, that is another complicated question. The best, and most honest, answer I can give you is, I don't know. I have been too afraid to address that question with an open heart and mind. Being honest is scary. Being honest with something like this, that is terrifying.

This isn't my first counseling session ever; however, it is the first I feel strong enough (well, determined enough) to be as honest as I can about everything. I have lied to myself and others for so long that I almost started believing the lies. I lie(d) because I thought it would be easier to lie than face the truth. That in itself was a lie. Although, my theory may have been true in the moment, I now know it only hurts as it continues on.

I don't want to be ashamed of myself or my past anymore. I refuse to allow darkness to be my identity, but it is a part of me, and I am now choosing to address it and be my true self again. I have no idea if I am truly "ready" to face all of this, but I'm going to anyway because I doubt I'll ever be fully ready for such a thing.

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Stephanie Townsend is a 22 year old who has traveled a path of her own, which eventually lead her to God. She received the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation, and First Communion in April 2015. Stephanie believes wholeheartedly in God's mercy and love, and strives every day to show others the beauty God places in the lives of all. Life has proven to be a day to day struggle for her; however, focusing on the beauty all around and maintaing hope even when it seems gone is how she is able to continue the path God has created for her.

"No matter the difficulties in life, God will always be there to carry you, love you, and show you just how priceless you are."