While you were a JW, were you generally feeling ill? ------Did you know of persons that were initially pretty healthy but got depressed and sick because they never felt they could do enough???
WERE YOU A SICK WITNESS???
by minimus 22 Replies latest jw friends
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Gill
I was ill constantly as a JW!
At one point I was seeing four different hospital consultants for different conditions.
Since leaving the Watchtower I've been to the doctor for an illness on one occassion. That is one occassion in four years!!!!
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undercover
Depression seems to be a common thing among many JWs...except they just don't know it. They attribute it to "Satan's old wicked system" bringing them down and they do little about it.
I used to think that JWs were the most mentally healthy people around...but then I was mentally stunted at that time myself. Looking back, even a layman like myself can see the signs of depression in so many of the dubs who struggle with the daily grind of being a JW, avoiding the "world", doing more and more in service, raising kids to be indoctrinated into the same beliefs...
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minimus
And then the elders constantly are telling you to "do more".
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done4good
How true! JWs have conditions many, if not most people never even heard of, like CFS. Depression and illness, (usually psychosomatic), are very big problems in the dubs.
j
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lovelylil
Stress is a major factor in people's general well being and the heavy burdens placed on the jdubs certainly can make a person feel physically sick. I too experienced this many times and was on antidepressants for many years. I'm glad to say I am now medication free, lilly
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blondie
My illness was not caused by being a JW but it was not helped either. I still have my illness.
Blondie
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Roger
On the topic of mental illness, we had a lot of people in the congregation who were 'bad with their nerves' (not sure if this is a British or north-eastern expression), which generally meant they were anxious, depressed or both. These people would often come to the Hall with the classic triad of neck collar, dark glasses and walking stick, which nearly always implies a psychosomatic component to their physical symptoms. In retrospect, we had a lot of quite seriously (mentally) ill too, schizophrenics and bipolar plus a whole range of other problems. I never worked out though, how much of this was induced, how much inherited and also how many ill people were attracted to the witnesses, or actually encouraged to the hall as vulnerable 'interested' ones, people who just needed some support.
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JH
I'm the nervous type, and they made things way worse. If I knew I had a talk, even weeks ahead of time, It made me nervous. If I had to read at the book study, I was so relieved once it was over.
I'm glad that's behind me now.