Mental Illness -Mental Malfunction + Mental Anguish

I would define mental illness as a combination of mental malfunction with mental anguish.  Mental malfunction is a physical problem that prevents the body from processing thought or emotion.  Sometimes because of the thought processes being blocked by circumstance, uncontrollable due to chemical malfunction, or manipulated by things from outside the body, it makes mental bodily function not happen the way it should. It’s kind of like we have this wonderful computing system called the brain and electrical wiring to the rest of our bodies called the nerves and we have hormones that help the brain to send out signals to the nerves.  If something physically happens that impairs the mental processes inside our brain and nerves it is possible that we are experiencing mental illness.  When mental illness occurs, our bodily systems can become depressed (or slowed down), overwhelmed with too many thought processing tasks, or make the nerves react by stress or anxiety by over-circuiting.  We can also get electrical shorts which make us feel a little loony or numb.

Now, with that said, mental anguish can happen as a result of mental malfunction. Mental anguish is a problem within the spiritual realm and produces feelings of grief, nervousness, overwhelming sadness, insecurity, moodiness, anger, etc.  Sometimes mental anguish occurs by hard life circumstances, unmet expectations, painful experiences, the spirit being suppressed too often through sin or misunderstandings. Sometimes it is caused simply by emotional problems (hormone issues) or sometimes it happens because of sorrowing for those around you.

Whether you have or are experiencing mental malfunction or mental anguish, or both, there are solutions.  You are not alone and you are not left helpless and without choice.  God does not leave us without either one at any given moment.. for you see, God gave us gifts.  The gift of prayer, the gift of the holy ghost, and the gift of love. He beckons us to come to him so we have our basic needs met first.  Making the choice to take that first step of faith (trusting God that he listens, cares, and answers) allows us to begin speaking to the one who created us and knows our bodies perfectly and the one who knows exactly what we need.  Once we pray, we can listen, be still and feel.  He then gives us comfort through the holy spirit and the feeling of pure love will be put into the body.  That allows us to step out of the deep and into the realm of hope.  Because of this hope placed within your own body by a loving God, I have seen very mentally ill people be able to learn how to process information and not be so overwhelmed and rather optimistic and I have seen people experiencing mental anguish come into the light be able to feel at peace and then find solutions, making the thing of grief come to not.  I have experienced both parts of mental illness  as well and understand there is a way to be healed, physically and spiritually.  Literally, through Jesus Christ.

Mental illness sometimes needs to be treated like any illness with a prescription to get better.  Some mental illness is temporary and needs only temporary treatment, such as post-partum depression (though it can extend for a longer period of time and be rather serious).  Some is long-term and needs lifetime treatment such as schizophrenia. Only Christ can help us have enough hope, strength and intelligence to get to the root of the illness and make it better.  It is important to recognize what part or parts of mental illness we may be experiencing in order to heal completely. Once we recognize the cause or causes, through the spirit of truth we can know if medication, counseling, spiritual uplift, priesthood blessings, physical changes in diet/physical activity, journaling, change in mental perspective by reading books or words from God or listening to good music, as some examples, are the solutions for our mental challenges.  Most likely several changes must be made to have full joy return to us again.

I write these thoughts to let you know that there is much joy to be had and is possible again.  We have been blessed with the abundance of knowlege, medicines and resources to help us be perfectly complete, even as our father is.  Where we lack he will strengthen us.  Eventually after the trial of our faith and the hope placed within us, we will be filled with the power of Christ’s love (defined as charity).  Because of actually knowing his pure love, then pure joy replaces our grief, and happiness our  sorrows.  “And now, verily I say unto you, and what I say unto one I say unto all, be of good cheer, little children; for I am in your midst, and I have not forsaken you.”  Believe him and live.

P.S.- Mental illness has nothing to do with ingratitude. Many a time I have felt grateful yet mentally ill at the same time.  Gratitude lists help after you are on your way up, but not on your way down.  However, sometimes when God zooms us out to his perspective and helps us remember who we were and are inside, we can start to feel a change happen inside of us that is rather miraculous.  Our life begins to be purposeful again and we see what we really are made of.  Our spiritual eyes can be opened to see all the amazing things that spark our desire and ability to feel joy again.