How Were You Treated as a Jehovah's Witness if You Had Depression ?

by flipper 49 Replies latest jw friends

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  Thechickennest

  I have suffered from depression for decades. After becoming a JW at the age of 19 looking back, I became more depressed with all the burdens of service and meetings, and with all the usual expectations from the JW males that were "taking the lead"-God help us.

  Interestingly, a female witness who was a medical doctor diagnosed my depression and treated me with medications at the age of 24. I have been on medications every since, now I am 49. I really did not pay any attention to the dumb asses in the congregation who did not have a clue about depression. Many people I knew including my witness mother-in-law were being treated by janitor male witness with herbs and keniesology-I know that spelling is really wrong-my point is many witnesses were into quackery treatments that in my opinion were of limited value. That was Ok. Seeing a real doctor in thier minds was the wrong thing to do.

  There was a curcuit overseer named Tom Bucher that came around our curcuit in the late 80's. He too suffered from depression and was very helpful to many of the friends. He was very understanding. I think this was a hard pill for the local elders to swallow having this curcuit overseer saying from the platform that is was ok to get professional help and take medication, and that depression was a very real illness.
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  SacrificialLoon

  I was treated for anxiety and depression when I was about 12 or so. My mom took me to a psychologist, and my dad tolerated me going. I was too young to know or care about kingdom hall politics, but I do remember not being invited to the picnics, or other social things outside of the family.
• 

  oompa

  Saw your reply flipper, so are you saying there is REALLY a depressed witness somewhere???????????................oompa
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  Honesty

  Like a leper.
• 

  logic&reason

  Sad story:

  We had a close friend who was very depressed for many years. Her husband thought he was doing the right thing by getting the elders in the middle of it.

  Their advice was to pray more together as a family.

  She would miss a lot of meetings, and one of the elders actually rolled his eyes and told me that she missed meetings because she was "sick"... he made the quote gesture with his fingers... Another time he referred to her as "nutty". (such a loving shepherd)

  It was devastating when she killed herself a few months later.

  It is easy to second guess after the fact, but she really should have been hospitalized before it happened. All of the warning signs were there.
• 

  flipper

  ERANDIR- I'm glad they didn't harass you at least - the elders left you alone. They didn't force shepherding calls on you.
  
  CARLA- I'm sorry your feelings were not acknowledged . It is distressful how insensitive witnesses can be to non-witnesses. But that should never happen with a marriage mate doing that.
  
  WHITE DOVE- I'm so sorry your brother is suicidal . I hope he can keep getting treatment for his depression.
  
  WHA HAPPENED- The elders always try to say going in service more will help depression- but it doesn't hlp. then as you say if you go out more, they don't even notice.
  
  THE CHICKENNEST- Good post ! Thanks . It's good that female witness doctor saw you needed help and got you on medication. That was also great that the circuit overseer encouraged people from the platform to get professional help if they needed it. I bet those elders were upset.
  
  SACRIFICIAL LOON- I'm sorry you were treated that way for just having an illness. It truly is pathetic the witnesses treated you like that.
  
  OOMPA- Yeah ! I'd say pretty much ever JW is depressed- they just don't know it yet. If they aren't depressed - they should be.
  
  HONESTY- I'm sorry you were treated like a leper. I hope you have found some healing since then. Peace out, Mr.Flipper
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  Hortensia

  I was cared for but also treated as "weak." I was advised that pioneering would make me happy. One woman asked why I should be happy - she said, "no one else is." Interesting condemnation of the org., eh?
• 

  JK666

  Flip,

  Yes, I received similar "help" as others mentioned here. Except I had an elder that personally thought he was anointed to help me. His favorite thing to tell me is that he thought I was pathetic, and just needed to become a spiritual man. Oh, what warm fuzzies that gave me! Especially when he started seeing my wife at his apartment with no one else there. I guess rules are just for the "little people" that are pathetic.

  JK
• 

  FlyingHighNow

  When I became so broken physically and emotionally that I could not get out of bed or hardly leave the house. I mean I was low. I couldn't look up and see bottom, let alone touch it. And it lasted months, even more than a year, I lost track.

  They told me to go out in field service more. I remember lying there in a trazadone induced stupor, in agony, thinking, "How can I go to people's doors and recommend a religion that did THIS to me?" Oh yes, I was the poster child for happiness and joy. Oh yeah, people were going to be beating down the doors of the kingdom hall trying to get in to find out how they could be just like me, I'll tell ya.

  On one shepherding call the brother read to me out of a mag. I asked him what mag it was so's I could commenc ta readin' it later. He blushed and reluctantly told me the mag. I looked at it later. It was a danged old article about apostasy. I was stunned. I mean, I had shown a couple of elders an Awake article called YOu Must Assist Those Who Are Weak after the young, cocky PO had told, from the platform: "If you're weak you better get strong. And if you're strong, you better stay away from the weak ones."

  Oh yeah and same cocky PO said average hours were "garbage" hours. Cocky PO got deleted and kicked off the Pio list for trying to put the make on a beautiful, 40 something Pio sister who had bipolar. She was sweet and pure and she turned him in and guess what? The kicked her off the list, too.
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  lisavegas420

  My dad (elder at the time) told me my depression was my own fault. Obviously I had done something terribly wrong and the guilt was eating me up and I was greiving the Holy Spirit.

  Whatever...I found JWD..and little by little the depression left me...completely. booya.

  lisa