Helping a friend with depression

Everyday Ministry

It’s been called the ‘disease of the 21st century’. Depression is on the increase, but with ignorance about the disease still widespread, it can be difficult to know how to help a friend who is suffering from it. In this honest article, an anonymous Briefing reader offers some advice.

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A silent grief: Pastoral reflections on infertility

Everyday Ministry

When a couple marries, they pray for the gift of children. What happens when the answer to that prayer is ‘no’? How do we cope with the disappointments of infertility? And to what extent is today’s biotechnology causing more problems than it solves?

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Sam’s story

Life

I am happily married, a mother of two healthy little people and I suffer depression.

In hindsight, I realize I have always had more ups and downs than most people. When my second child was three weeks old, I became extremely anxious and depressed. There was one moment when, because of its sudden severity, I am aware that it started. It was two years before I had a day free of it.

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Interview: Comprehending the darkness

Life

A black and white view across La Perouse Bay on a gloomy evening, the sea vast and incomprehensible, the shoreline harsh. The old photo on Professor Philip Mitchell’s wall in his office at the School of Psychiatry, Prince Henry Hospital in Sydney, reflects something of the experience of being depressed. The future seems bleak, dark, vast and unreachable; the situation seems hopeless; loneliness presses in.

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Warren’s story

Life

In September 1992, I scribbled on a piece of paper, “It’s so difficult to hang in there. I’ve lost control of my life. It’s impossible to think positively. Will things ever change for the better? I’m not sure I’m able to continue, to keep going. I’m lonely, unhappy, scared, guilt-ridden, a failure. What can I do to change the situation? It’s hard to see where God is involved. What else do I have to lose? I’m sure I’m gradually giving up. It has been such a long time.”

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Depression and suicide

Life

Suicidal thoughts often accompany depression. But how do we cope when those thoughts become reality?

Derek Hopgood was a lovely, humble Christian man. He was a good husband to his wife in every way and a caring father to his two teenaged girls. He was also an excellent deacon of our congregation. One of his hobbies was photography and often we have used his photographs in the pages of Evangelicals Now.

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