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Kristen.NewCreation and FreeinChrist
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I don't feel like I'm the only one that is dealing with all of this. I have spoken to a lot of people who have dealt with a lot of things that I have. I know I'm not the only one and I have some close friends that continue to remind me of that.... but still I feel incredibly lonely. I've shut myself off from everyone. I feel like I have to do this alone and I don't know why. I don't understand why I feel that way. The second I step out and try to let people in, its like I go to war with myself. Something holds me back. I don't understand why. I don't get why I can't just smash my walls and allow people in. I want to... I'm tired of being alone but I don't know how.
Johnnz- The cutting is mainly a release. I get so stressed and angry but it temporarily goes away with causing myself pain. Although as sick as it is I prefer to draw blood because I can visibly see a release. It has been 39 days since I have cut myself and I plan to continue adding to that. I don't want to start that back at 0 again. It was a lot of work to just get it this high.
The thing about the demonic dreams is I can never see my attacker. I feel them physically though, hear their voice and sense an evil presence but just as I do when I am awake calling on God isn't the first thing I do. I fight on my own. Like I said earlier I wake up and find bruises on my body. Half of them could be from me but I know I couldn't make some of the dark hand print bruises across my stomach or back. There have been occasions where I have dreams of tight chains holding me back and I have awoken to see bruises in the design of a chain all over my body. I'm pretty convinced that this is one of the ways satan is keeping a hold on me. He's toying with me because he knows my fears and weaknesses. secretshadows.
You are a great young woman
The unworthiness is definetly me. I have some majore selfworth issues. I never really thought of fear holding me back but I guess in a way it does. I don't fear closeness I just fear losing people I care about. I do everything to take care of those I love and protect them. My best friend calls it 'body gaurd syndrome' as a joke.Abuse most often leads to personal isolation for several reasons - unworthiness, fear, habit after holding it in for so long, not wanting further rejection. So, don't beat up on yourself because you are a bit of a loner. But don't accept that as a permanent condition either.
Any demonic forces will latch onto your negativity about yourself. The key to ending their hold is to be confident in the life and authority of Jesus the Lord of all other powers, spiritual and earthly. Darkness feeds off and exploits our self doubts - you are too weak, you are not good enough etc. That's untrue of course, as it is Jesus, not us who can deal with them.
If you can get your head around the confidence you can have in Jesus and His willingness to act on your behalf, then maybe several of us can sort of co-ordinate over one day and really pray about that?
a) Thank you, I find it pretty hard to accept compliments. I don't exactly see the good everyone else sees.
b)The unworthiness is definetly me. I have some majore selfworth issues. I never really thought of fear holding me back but I guess in a way it does. I don't fear closeness I just fear losing people I care about. I do everything to take care of those I love and protect them. My best friend calls it 'body gaurd syndrome' as a joke.The weird thing about this withdrawn personality is that normally I'm an extremly outgoing person. I used to love being around people but now not so much... I don't plan on keeping up this withdrawn personality. I'll crack the mask I made eventually
c) I've known all along that the answer to everything was to not just fall on my knees crying out to God but fall on my face. I know He's the answer to everything. I know if I were to put this in His hands He would take care of it. Last summer my relationship with God was excellent but last summer I had been ignoring the most horrible thing that had happened to me. I did everything to block it out of my memory. I lied and faked a happy face so much I even fooled myself. But over the school year God was convicting me of some things. Telling me that Him and I could be closer if I would just hand over everything to Him. I guess I got angry at Him for even asking me to open up that old wound. I wanted to forget about it completely. To live as if it never happened. God had a different plan. I may have reacted badly towards where he was leading me but his conviction planted something in my heart that wouldn't go away so in Janurary I finally for the first time ever confided my secret in my best friend. I guess part of me is angry with God still. Even though I know it was for the best and I know there was a reason for not only my horrible past but also God getting me to open up about it. My relationship with God is strained but only by my own stubbornness and choice.
That sounds like a plan. I'm working on gaining confidence...
Thank you for taking the time to check up on me and reply to my posts.
Secretshadows
Hi again. Some quick comments
re a) That's why you find it so hard to accept that God loves and accepts you too. You are pretty waterproof when it come to accepting something good about yourself. You can do that by changing your response. Instead of brushing it off, allow yourself to accept it. Say "Thank you" to the person.
re b) Abuse undermined your sense of self worth - that happens to most abused people. Here you must foocus on the fact that God does not see you negatively. You can think like and abused person or you can think from God's perspective. It's the latter that will allow changes in your life.
re c) You have the wrong end of the stick. It's God's hold on you that is important. It's not a matter of falling flat on your face. Instead, you should be snuggling into His embrace of you. He is your friend, your Saviour, your life, your comfort, etc, etc
Here is another verse.
Col 3:3 For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.
Two questions.
i) What does "you died" mean?
ii) What does the second part mean?
John
NZ
John-
I feel weird accepting something like that if I don't believe it. I know its rude not to accept a compliment but I still feel weird accepting it so I'll work on it
For your first question: It means dying unto myself. Humbling myself. Handing over ever single aspect of my life to God.
Second Question: I'm just taking a stab at this one... I think it means that Christ is living in me, so my life before being a believer doesn't matter. I guess not really that it doesn't matter but more that Christ has taken care of it. Most of the time we think that its just the sins he washes away but he wants to take away the hurt too but just like we had to hand over our sins to Him, we have to give him all our pain too.
Both of those I was kind of guessing but I think thats right. I don't think that there really is a wrong answer but I'm sure there was a specific point you were getting at.
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