What is depression? Webster’s Dictionary says it is “the act of pressing down; a low state. A hollow place, a sinking of the spirits; dejection; a state of sadness; lack of courage or strength.”
People who are depressed lose interest in things they previously enjoyed, and they often experience changes in sleep or eating habits. They may feel worthless or be unable to concentrate. They may feel lonely and hopeless. I think the feeling of depression is one of the worst feelings there is. I can honestly say that if I had a choice between the emotional pain of depression or some type of physical pain, I would prefer physical pain.
The Bible does not use the term “depression,” but instead refers to the feeling as being “downcast.” Depression is a feeling, and this book is geared toward teaching how to control our feelings rather than allowing them to control us. Can we control depression? I believe the answer is yes. I don’t think anyone has to permanently live with depression. All of us experience a low-mood day now and then. Sometimes it is because of a disappointment or a loss, but at other times we really don’t know why we feel the way we do. If it’s just a day here and there, I don’t think there is much to be concerned about. We are complex beings with many intricate parts that all have to work well together for optimum health. Some days we just don’t feel well physically or emotionally, and it is usually best to not worry about it, get some rest, and we will probably feel better the next day.
In this chapter I would like to look at two kinds of depression. The first type, “medical depression,” is caused by something physical that we cannot control. The second type is “situational depression.” That is depression caused by our response to circumstances in life. There is help available for both, but the treatment is different for each type.
I am not a doctor, but I do know it’s common knowledge that hormone imbalances, neurotransmitter imbalances, and thyroid disorders are at the top of the list of root causes of depression that has a medical source. Various brain disorders or cardiac conditions can also cause depression. At one point I began to notice that I was feeling sad and down each morning for about two hours, and then I seemed to get over it for the remainder of the day. I thought I was just tired or thinking negatively and needed to “cheer up,” but when I went to the doctor for my regular checkup, he noticed that my thyroid was borderline low. He said that because the levels were in the acceptable range, it would normally not be treated, but because I had told him I was experiencing low moods, he put me on a very low dose of natural thyroid. I can honestly say that when I took the first pill, the mild feeling of depression I had experienced disappeared and has not returned.
Because of the stress that most people live under today, many have neurotransmitter imbalances that may cause low serotonin levels in the blood. Serotonin is referred to as the happy hormone, and if we don’t have enough of it, we are likely to simply not feel happy. Serotonin levels can be altered through medicine, but it is wise to try to correct them naturally if we can. Eliminating excessive stress, as well as eating a proper diet and exercising, can help immensely to balance the brain chemicals.
Many women experience depression after giving birth or during their monthly cycle simply because of hormonal changes in their bodies. These changes may be temporary or they might require some medical attention. The point I want to make is that not all depression can be cured without medical attention, and I don’t want anyone to feel condemned if they have to take medicine for depression. On the other hand, I believe that some doctors, including psychiatrists, often hand out pills too quickly without even searching for other medical conditions that may be causing the depression. I also want to encourage people who do have to take medicine to realize they may not always have to take it.
I know a woman who was going through a very stressful time in her life and began to have panic attacks. She went to her doctor, who encouraged her to take a medicine for anxiety, and it did help her almost immediately. She not only took medicine but she made some lifestyle changes to help reduce stress and made a decision not to worry about things she had no control over. After about six months the woman wanted to see if she could get off the medicine. She slowly cut it down until she was able to get off it completely and has been fine ever since.
Even if depression is caused by medical reasons, the things I am going to share about situational depression will help people confront the feelings of a low mood for any reason. Recovering from depression usually requires a well-rounded treatment program that includes things like learning to think differently, laughing more, and worrying less. As I said, I am not a doctor, but I have been teaching the Bible for more than thirty years, and I am certain that we do not have to let our situations and circumstances in life depress us.
When God gave us the ability to control our thoughts, He gave us a wonderful ability. We have the ability to cheer ourselves up no matter what our circumstances are.
Most people who experience trouble, disappointment, or tragedy are tempted to sink into depression. Because our moods are directly linked to our thoughts and words, when our thoughts descend into negative territory, our moods tend to follow. We can easily depress ourselves merely by thinking and talking about everything that is wrong in our lives and the world in general. When God gave us the ability to control our thoughts, He gave us a wonderful ability. We have the ability to cheer ourselves up no matter what our circumstances are. Sadly, a lot of people don’t know this wonderful truth. It is easy to go through life with a victim mentality, simply believing that you can do nothing about the way you feel, especially if you have encountered a major disappointment in life.
Here is one simple solution the Bible gives for depression: Put on the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness (see Isa. 61:3). What God offers us is greater than anything the enemy offers. Praise will neutralize sadness, but we must remember that we are instructed to “put on” praise. We cannot be passive and merely hope the sad feeling goes away.
I have been reading a Christian classic by Hannah Whitehall Smith titled The Christian’s Secret to a Happy Life. I was amazed and encouraged when I read that, despite the difficulties she encountered in her life, she made a decision that she would always believe God—with or without feelings, in good times and in bad.
Hannah married Robert Smith when she was nineteen years old. He seemed to be a very devout and romantic young man who managed a family-owned business. However, it soon became clear that he was impulsive and emotional. He was also inclined to make rash and unwise decisions, in both his business and his personal life. Robert bankrupted the business. After having had a strong encounter with God, Robert began to preach the Gospel. His preaching ministry was abruptly ended by accusations of sexual misconduct. His health deteriorated and he eventually had a nervous breakdown. Through all these difficulties, Hannah continued to trust God and frequently said, as did Job, “Even though He slay me, yet will I trust Him.”
Hannah and Robert had seven children, but four of them died. One daughter was stillborn. Her oldest son, Frank, died at the age of eighteen from typhoid fever. Her daughter Nellie died at the age of five from bronchitis. On Hannah’s birthday, February 7, her eleven-year-old Rachel died of scarlet fever. But Hannah clung to her faith tenaciously through all these difficulties.
She became a trusted and sought-after Bible teacher and preacher. She experienced a real crisis in her faith when she diligently sought evidence of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit or, as it was often called in those days, the second blessing. Many people she knew, including Robert, had glorious experiences, but she never did. Filled with self-doubt about her faith until it almost drove her to despair, she made the decision to receive the fullness of the Holy Spirit by faith alone and to never doubt God again. Hannah learned in her life that her own effort to achieve holiness was useless and that she must depend wholly on God to do the work in her. This complete dependence became the bedrock of her faith.
Robert died in unbelief and her adult children lost their faith. In 1911 she died peacefully at the age of seventy-nine. Throughout her life she never lost her faith or dishonored God. Hannah was able to say, “I have given my best and could do no more.” Although writing was a labor of love for her and not something she really enjoyed, The Christian’s Secret of a Happy Life has been in print for 125 years and has sold millions of copies.
I hesitated to tell Hannah’s story because I don’t want to leave the impression that the Christian life is one that is filled with only tragedy and sorrow because it isn’t that way at all. But I do want to strongly make the point that even though her circumstances were tragic, God led her through it all, used her mightily, and she apparently was quite happy during most of her life—happy enough to write a book on happiness! Hannah’s joy was in Jesus, not her circumstances.
Most of us won’t experience the degree of difficulties that Hannah did, although some may, and the reasons why must be left in the hands of God.
When I realize I am in a bad mood, I often have a chat with myself. I say, “Joyce, what’s your problem? Look at how blessed you are, Joyce, and stop feeling sorry for yourself. Get your mind on something that will cheer you up and try doing something nice for someone else.” It is amazing what good results I get just from reasoning with myself; you should try it!
The psalmist David asked himself a question when he was feeling downcast. He said, “Why are you cast down, O my inner self? And why should you moan over me and be disquieted within me? Hope in God and wait expectantly for Him, for I shall yet praise Him, my Help and my God” (Psalm 42:5; also see 42:11; 43:5). David’s solution for depression was to hope in God and expect something good to happen. He told himself to put on praise while he was waiting for a change in his circumstances.
This is certainly a great example of someone not letting his feelings manage him. David made a decision that had nothing to do with how he felt.
There are other places in Scripture where David describes feeling very low and discouraged, and with good reason. He had many enemies, and God did not always deliver him from them quickly. David was anointed to be king of Israel twenty years before he actually wore the crown. Because of his jealousy and fear, the king in power at the time, Saul, tried multiple times to kill him. David literally hid in caves for many years, waiting for God to do something. No wonder he had to chat with himself often and make a decision not to let his emotions control him. He looked beyond how he felt to the God he knew to be faithful.
You can fight the feelings of depression by reminding yourself of blessings in your life. You can listen to music or sing. Even getting your mind off yourself by doing something kind for someone else will help immensely. Don’t forget that our moods are connected to our thoughts; therefore, I urge you to take notice of what you’re thinking about when you feel depressed. You may find the source of your problem.
Talking about past victories in your life can also be a way to cheer yourself up. Fight the good fight of faith and do everything you can to help yourself. Compared to eternity, our days on earth are short, and we want to enjoy each one of them. Depression and joy simply can’t dwell in the same heart, so I urge you to find so many things to be happy about that there is no room left for depression.
Situational depression always has a root source. Quite often it is disappointment. When expectations are defeated or desire is frustrated, we usually feel disappointed, and it is understandable to feel that way. If I put a lot of effort into a thing and it bears no fruit, then I feel that I wasted my time and start to feel discouraged. I am sure a farmer would feel that way if he did all he could to ensure a good crop and right before harvest time a storm came and destroyed it.
Dashed expectations lead to disappointment. We expect certain things and behaviors from people and yet we don’t always get what we expect. Sometimes the way people behave shocks us and leaves us disappointed. We also expect certain things from ourselves and then let ourselves down. We expect things from God, and for reasons known only to Him, He doesn’t do what we expect. The best thing to do when we feel disappointed is to get reappointed. Shake off the disappointment and get a new dream, vision, goal, or plan. Often, the best medicine for a woman who has had a miscarriage is to get pregnant again as soon as it is safe for her health. The same principle will work for you anytime you get disappointed. In God, there is always a place of new beginnings. It is never too late to begin again! Each morning when the sun rises it declares, “It is a new day; let’s start over.”
Discouragement is another root of depression. The discouraged person is disheartened; she feels like quitting or giving up; she has lost hope and feels no courage to keep going. When we are deeply discouraged, everything about us feels down. Discouragement can come from being disappointed, or you might feel that you’re in a season when life seems hard to deal with, or there seems to be trouble everywhere you turn.
I mentioned earlier that I am having some back problems right now, and one of the things that irritates the pain is excessive sitting. I can’t write standing up, so I could get discouraged. I need to meet a deadline, so I need to do the writing now. Instead of getting into a spirit of discouragement, I am adapting and getting up frequently to stretch, using ice to combat the inflammation and taking plenty of acetaminophen. Naturally I’ve thought, Why does this have to happen now, of all times? I didn’t get an answer, which is normally the case when we ask, “Why, God, why?”
Several people have remarked that I have a good attitude about this situation. It would not be cool if I were writing a book about not letting our emotions control us at the same time I was letting mine control me! I think it is important for you to realize that everyone has challenges, including me, and they are never convenient.
Sometimes we see the prosperity of the wicked and that discourages us. As children of God, we expect to be blessed more than those who are not serving God. We might paraphrase a portion of Psalm 73 this way: “It looked to me as if the wicked were better off than the righteous, until I realized God’s patience does run out and He will deal with them.”
It is a serious mistake to look at what other people have and compare it to what you have. God has an individual and unique plan for each of us, and comparison only tends to be a source of discouragement or pride. If we feel we are better off than others, we may become prideful (thinking more highly of ourselves than we should); if we feel they are better off than us, we may become discouraged and even depressed.
The Bible emphatically states that the wicked in the end will be cut off, but the righteous shall inherit the land. I don’t think “the end” necessarily means the end of the world or the end of our lives. I think it means when all is said and done, in due time (God’s time), the blessings of the child of God will surpass those of the wicked. The Word of God says in Galatians 6:9 that if we refuse to become weary in well doing, in due time we shall reap if we don’t faint.
Another root source of depression and discouragement is feeling bad about yourself. Feeling ashamed of who you are or suffering from abnormal guilt can easily make you depressed. If you don’t like yourself, the bad feelings you have inside will be a continual source of inner pain. It is vital that you learn to accept and respect the person God made you to be. All of our behavior may be far from what it needs to be, but if we are willing to change, God will keep working with us, and every day we will get better and better in every way. Don’t despise yourself because of your imperfections; instead, learn to celebrate your successes, even small ones.
If you are depressed, try to determine what the root source is. Is it medical? Have you been deeply disappointed? Are you discouraged? Have you experienced a loss in your life? Do you compare yourself with others? Do you feel a lot of shame or guilt because of past mistakes or being hurt by other people? Do you get enough rest? Do you maintain balance in your life? What are your eating habits? Are you deep in debt? Do you have good friends whom you enjoy? Understanding the source of depression may help you overcome it.
Have you ever felt true despair? It is a place of total hopelessness. The person in despair feels that there is no way out of his or her situation. The psalmist David said that he would have despaired had he not believed that he would see the goodness of God in the land of the living. He knew that if he allowed himself to become totally hopeless, despair would ensue. He avoided getting to that place by continuing to believe that something good was going to happen (see Psalm 27:13). In his classic My Utmost for His Highest, Oswald Chambers pointed out that when Jesus said, “Let not your heart be troubled,” He was affirming that we do have control over how we will react to our circumstances. “God will not keep your heart from being troubled,” Chambers said. “It is a command—‘Let not…’ Haul yourself up a hundred and one times a day in order to do it, until you get into the habit of putting God first and calculating with Him in view.”
Even if you have a difficult time saying that you truly believe something good will happen, start by saying it out loud again and again, and soon you will start believing it.
Suicides are increasing rapidly. One national hotline that takes calls 24-7 reported that in April 2007, 38,114 people called the hotline. In April 2009 the same hotline received 51,465 calls. That is an alarming increase that I believe has a lot to do with world conditions and negative media.
Four out of every 10 callers reported financial stress as one of their problems. A downturn in the economy can affect our attitudes and create fear and depression if we do not keep our hope in God rather than in the world system.
A Charlotte Observer story provides some startling statistics about suicide attempts in North Carolina. Charlotte police reported a 55 percent increase in suicide attempts over the previous year. A county suicide hotline fielded three thousand more calls in March 2009 than in March 2008, and a local hospital saw a 9 percent increase in patients who’d attempted or considered suicide. Dr. Paula Clayton, medical director for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, stated that for every suicide, there are probably one hundred attempts.
Most of us have at some time or another in life felt that we just could not go on and momentarily wished we were dead or thought of putting an end to it all. Even the great prophet Elijah told God that if he was going to constantly have enemies after him, he would rather be dead. It is one thing to have a momentary, fleeting thought of suicide; it is quite another to either attempt or be successful at committing it. How tragic when someone is in such despair that they would rather be dead than go on living. Jesus died so we could have and enjoy a wonderful, powerful, prosperous life, but we must resist every attempt the devil makes to steal it from us.
Depression and discouragement can become responsive habits for some people. It is the way they respond to disappointment or trials of any kind. I had a habit of feeling sorry for myself when I didn’t get my way, but I broke that habit with God’s help and have formed the better habit of choosing to be happy whether I get my way or not. I try to trust God to help me acquire what He wants me to have, not merely what I want to have. It may sound overly simplified for me to say, “Break the habit of depression.” But for some people, it could be just that simple. You may have had a parent who was depressed and you grew up thinking it was just the way to be, so your habit became the same as theirs. My father was very negative and I became just like him, until I learned that I could choose to be positive.
I strongly encourage you to begin managing depression or any other related moods. Life is too precious a gift to waste any of it living in the black, empty hole of depression.
Decision and confession: Depression and discouragement will not control me. I will be happy and enjoy my life.