Silent Souls Weeping

Silent Souls Weeping: Depression—Sharing Stories, Finding Hope by Jane Clayson Johnson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was a beautiful and important first step in addressing depression and other mental illnesses in the church, and in society. I appreciated her analogy of someone having cancer and someone struggling with mental illness, how we know how to support and help the former, but often times ignore the second because we don't understand it, or don't know how to help. I especially appreciate the fact that when a person is depressed that they have trouble feeling the spirit, since this was my experience, and to know that I was not alone in this was especially helpful. I think more needs to be examined in how to help others, how best to share experiences, how to create a network for finding therapists and doctors in the area (LDS social services usually is not helpful), and ways to help prevent or mitigate depression specifically in the church. I appreciated that she talked about missionaries and new mothers, but I think stay at home mothers need ideas to help connect with each other, receive validation, and encourage creativity or accomplishments.

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“Depression,” Dr. Jorgensen says, “leads to a tripping of our circuit breakers. So the power’s still trying to get through. God does not stop talking to us, but we can’t feel it because our breakers have shut down.”

I need highlights and shadows to be a whole person.”

Motherhood, we remind each other, is next to divinity. That couches within it the expectation that moms can be like God.

We find that oftentimes the journey of suicide is one of a narrowing of focus and a narrowing of possibilities, and it’s kind of a tunnel vision where people don’t see out of that little tunnel that they get caught in.

I couldn’t feel any hope; it was like a dead tree that had been cut off, but I knew the roots were there and at some point some life would come back.’