Put Off and Put On
- Jerilyn
- Apr 16, 2019
- 3 min read
Updated: Jun 21, 2019
I haven't posted too much lately because to be honest, I've been in a little bit of a funk. I can't put my finger on anything specific that caused it, but I have just felt blah. I felt like I couldn't come up with anything to write about so I just didn't really post. Sometimes I have moments or a day here or there where I feel down, but this lasted for a while and I really struggled to get myself out of it. During my whole struggle with depression and anxiety, my faith has been important to me in helping me work through everything. That was a tough balance for me to find. At first when my anxiety was really bad, I got very down on myself because I thought, "If I was better at trusting God and having faith, then I wouldn't be anxious." Obviously that was a very flawed way of thinking, but it took me a long time to even go to therapy.
This could be a potentially hot topic, but I'm going to write about it anyway. I know there are people in the world who are extremely religious and against any kind of medication whether for physical or mental health. I know there are also people who don't want to go to therapy because they worry that seeing a psychologist/psychiatrist could be against their faith because they come at things from a scientific standpoint. In my experience, those things are not mutually exclusive. Yes, there are plenty of doctors out there who are atheists or don't want to talk about any kind of faith or religion in treating their patients, but I have been blessed to have encountered multiple psychiatrists/psychologists/therapists who have been very open to incorporating my faith in my therapy sessions.
I have found that many of the concepts used in therapy can blend well with Christianity but can also function independently for people who may not have a strong faith. Two of the main models that I have seen used are Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) and within each of those models are skills that you learn to help with distress tolerance. One general concept that I have really taken from all of the time I have gone to therapy is how much you really have to work on your thought processes and what you allow yourself to think about. For me, this meshes well with my faith and what I read a lot in devotionals and the Bible. Our mind is where the enemy (Satan) attacks us the most and a common phrase that I have heard is "put off and put on". Put off the lies that Satan tells you and put on the truth that you know from God. I tend to be a worst case scenario type person and when I have been mid-meltdown assuming the worst about everything, my therapist will tell me to check the facts. What do I know to be true? Is what I am thinking right know in sync with what facts that I have?
It is not an easy concept to master even though it seems simple. You have to get in the habit of doing it every day, multiple times a day. Whether or not you are a believer, I encourage you to think about the concept of put off and put on and start to apply it to your negative thoughts throughout the day. Here is a list I found with some Bible verses to help you. It's not easy to fight the negative thoughts, but you can do it!

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Mer I thought of you as I was writing this bc I remember you telling me this before! If there's anything I can do, call me ❤
I bookmarked this list to reference! A great tool - thanks Jer! I am walking with and through anxiety/depression and possible dementia with my mom, so following your posts will be helpful 💗