I've seen how some are so burdened by the fact that they were Witnesses, that literally, every day is a struggle. Are you in need of therapeutic help because you are or were a Jehovah's Witness?
JWs And Ex-JWs--Do You Struggle With Depression Because You Were A JW?
by minimus 43 Replies latest jw friends
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prophecor
YES I AM !!!
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NeonMadman
No; I stopped needing therapeutic help (in the form of daily antidepressant tablets) when I left the organization.
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Markfromcali
I WAS, but I'm not there anymore.
I remember when I first left (walked away), I was pretty depressed for a few years as I was never a very social kid anyway and even amongst the JWs I didn't REALLY have a group to hang around with. Naturally having been in and avoided worldly influences I didn't have any friends when I left. I sought out different types of therapy, including psychotherapy but that was going pretty slow as it often does and it didn't seem like it was doing anything for me, and the other things I was trying just helped my physical health a bit. It wasn't so much that everyday is a struggle for me, but as is the case when you are depressed life is just not enjoyable. And of course, I didn't have a resource like this forum here.
Eventually of course I found my way, and slowly I "broadened out" in life so that I opened to other things which eventually rendered the JW experience a small part in the big picture, basically insignificant. I do think sometimes some kind of therapeutic intervention is appropriate, but through it all I'm sure we'd all agree that some kind of support is helpful. Even though it wasn't so much in the form of close friends, I consider all my post-exit life experiences a support in this regard. Basically what I mean by support here is just support in life, in living.
Even though I no longer need support for this issue, I like being on this forum because there is just such a wide diversity, you have all sorts of different people with all sorts of experiences, maybe most were JWs, but some were never one, but definitely a great representation as you would find in life. To me being here is not so much an interesting discussion even though there are a lot of thoughts offered, but just that open experience of life, as reflected by all these different people's own experience. You have to get specific with therapeutic inteventions, but there is always this richness.
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frankiespeakin
Yes I suffer depression because of it and I think it is only natural given what happened to me being labeled as an apostate by the Governing Body's influence I KNow they used the Service Department and the COs to do it and seperate me from my brother, cousin, stepdaughter, and stepson. And so I think it only natural thing is to be depressed. How you handle pain of being depress how do you go back to work when you are tired,, because you are going through a shamonic brain rewireing. I think that some day soon I will reach some kind of "enlightenment" and regain my strength,, I've kind of blasted my way through this and hope to "Imagine" things better soon.
I think that soon thier will be a class action suit of fraud and pain inflicted without mercy by the GB. Maybe we will all get $1000 or something when they get ALL the money from ALL the different corperations run by the Governing Body.
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prophecor
I have never truly been a regular, even before becoming JW. My story rings familliar with Mark from Cali. When I did make it in, I never really was able to gel with the folks. I didn't have any immediate family in the truth, so even trying to make the initial entrance was complicated. No one but yourself to rely on, getting thru.
I was predisposed to mental illness even before coming to know anything about the truth, so I think it only facillitated the problem. Was seeing a therapist as far back as age 7, though at the time, I never understood why I needed to be there. I only know that I looked forward to getting out of school 2 hours early so I could go talk to the man in the room with all the neat toys.
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codeblue
Yes....I am waiting for the day when the depression is gone and I have found "myself".
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one
jw or not it is a rat race goin nowhere.. in developing countries situation is even worst, merely survival.
If we are very ignorant we go insane for not knowing what is going on.. If we have some knowledge and reasoning power we go insane not knowing the source of human suffering nor the solutions.
No wonder most people are on drugs, from tobbaco and alcohol to (younameit)
The expected 'new world' (by 1975, then before the end of the XX century) was a good mental survival 'tool' which is no longer effective. .
Brain is complex organ, family and social support and a very special supplemental nutritional program can help. But as a jw when the person makes a mistake (according to jw rules), that's when the needed support, at the most critical moment is not there, shunning.
Under stress nutritional requirements increase greatly, mental stress can make you physically sick and to make it worst, a sick body is stressful for the body itself... to eliminate stress resting is ordered, inducing the person to sleep with medication if if neccesary
You'll find that the serum (sp?) commonly inyected to patients (why?) is mainly water with minerals that our body need to heal, nutrients that should be in the food we eat daily. Good and apropriate fuel is a key element for an engine to run smoothly.
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startingover
I suffered with depression quite a bit as a JW. When I left, it left. The fact that you can never be good enough in the borg, no matter what you achieve, that you always need to do more was not healthy for me.
I marvel at the fact that even though I can get down for a few hours, it never seems to last more than that and I am back up again.
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Aude_Sapere
Yes.