Week Two | When There’s No Choice
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Week Two | Get Out of Your Head Online Book Study
Reading Assignments – Ch. 4, 5 & 6
Listen to the Audio version | Read time 7-minutes
What do you do when there’s no choice? What about when no truth declaration I focused on, or happy
replacement-thought I tried to distract myself with touched the brakes on the nauseating spiral whirling
in my throbbing head?
My body hurt as if every cell was burning and my heart was beating so hard and so fast that I was sure it would break a rib. My throat was raw from the hours of gut-wrenching sobs as I cried out to God. I turned to the Comforter Himself praying with everything in me, seeking His peace, comfort, and strength, but… I felt no relief.
“There are seasons when we need help in the form of counseling and medicine.”
jennie Allen, get out of your head (pg. 33)
For many years I felt ashamed and guilty like I failed as a Christian because I have an anxiety disorder.
There were moments as I read the reading assignment for this week that I felt that guilt try and creep up again… that I must not have enough faith, since sometimes a choice to stop my anxiety attack just isn’t an option, and I have to take medicine and schedule an extra appointment with my psychologist.
I’m thankful Jennie included her “Important Note” in chapter 4 and addressed the realness and severity of mental illnesses. I will say I wish she would have mentioned it more throughout the chapters that followed.
I caught myself holding my breath as she seemed to simplify anxiety and state so confidently that she had a choice and could interrupt the spiral. At one point I closed the book and eventually remembered to exhale. I even choked back tears, feeling angry and really upset by this. More often than not there is absolutely nothing simple or quick about anxiety.
Oh, sweet friend, there are times when there really isn’t a choice.
“I just want you to know- please, lean in close and hear this- that throughout this book, whenever I talk about God giving us a choice about how we think, I am not suggesting that you can think your way out of mental illness. I am not.”
Jennie Allen | Get out of your head (Pg. 33)
Mental illnesses are not something we can take lightly and there are times when they require many forms of intense treatment. And that is okay. It’s okay to need help.
In no way shape or form does having mental illness make you less of God’s beautiful daughter.
Maybe, you have also been holding your breath trying to read these chapters without feeling frustrated or guilty, you’re not alone. We’ll get through this together.
If God feels quiet and distant, I’m here to reassure you, that He hears your cries, and He hasn’t left you to fend for yourself.
“For He has not turned away from the suffering of the one in pain or trouble. He has not hidden His face from him (her). But He has heard his (her) cry for help.”
Psalm 22:24, NLV
September is suicide prevention and awareness month and I don’t want to miss this opportunity to extend loving compassion and understanding to you if you have struggled with self-harm and suicidal thoughts.
Sweet friend, if you are currently in a battle against these types of thoughts I encourage you to please keep fighting, and it’s okay to get the help you need.
Below I’ve listed a few numbers with 24-hour professionals available to talk with you.
Here at Intentional Filling, we are not licensed therapists or ordained ministers, but we are loving and caring friends who will come alongside you, pray with you, and lend listening ears and helping hands in as many ways as we possibly can.
Even when there’s no choice to stop the spiral, know without a doubt that God is still with you, and you, dear friend, are important and very loved.
COMMUNITY CHAT
Now that you’ve heard a little of my story, we’d love to hear from you!
Identify – In this week’s reading assignment, Jennie explains how she learned to alter her thought pattern by choosing to think differently and focus on Truths in God’s Word and through prayer.
Join the Discussion – What do you think about Jennie’s revelation of having a choice? If you are struggling and feel like you do not have a choice in stopping negative thoughts and you would like some prayers and someone to listen, please let us know. We can about you and are here for you.
Thank you for sharing your heart and mind, Gloria. That was very brave of you. I pray for healing over your thoughts ( fears and anxieties).
I definitely think you can alter your thought pattern. Personally, I have had to stop negative thoughts from flooding my brain. It is not easy. Satan consistently wants to knock us down with the very thing that we don’t like about ourselves or thing we most fear or are anxious about. I have found reading God’s truth has helped me in these times. When I say his truths out loud, I feel
a lot more calm and that I can face anything. Saying his truth out loud helps me really hear it and not be bombarded with untruths.
For six years, I worked on several inpatient psych units with teens and children. My eyes were openly widely to the field of mental health. Many of the patients I work with were struggling with depression, suicidal thoughts, suicide attempts, and many different mental health concerns. There was real darkness on these units that I had never felt before. But, there was also light. Even though it was hard watching patients come back over and over again, they needed intense counseling and/ or medications. Overall, what they really needed was God. Don’t we all.:) Mental health is a growing real concern in our world and is not going away. People don’t usually just get better. It takes work and pressing through difficult places to get to a better place. It is a choice to want to get better and a choice to do the hard work.
Choice. I do think we make choices each day how we react/ handle situations and how we rise above them. Some choices we personally make and others are made for us. However, I do think we can make choices to not feed into our negative thoughts ( sometimes we might need counseling and/ or medications) to help.
When I worked in the hospital, I would ask the patients what they would do for fun or to take their minds off of their negative thoughts. Many times I heard, watch scary movies, read scary books, hang out in negative relationships, sit alone in the dark, etc. None of these choices seemed to help with negative thoughts. I wonder why? God built us for much more. We have a choice to move forward ( to try to improve our situations) even if the past wasn’t kind to us. God said he would never leave us ( this includes at very difficult times in our lives). This is one truth that will never never change. Anything is possible with him.
Thank you for sharing your heart and mind, Gloria. That was very brave of you. I pray for healing over your thoughts ( fears and anxieties).
I definitely think you can alter your thought pattern. Personally, I have had to stop negative thoughts from flooding my brain. It is not easy. Satan consistently wants to knock us down with the very thing that we don’t like about ourselves or thing we most fear or are anxious about. I have found reading God’s truth has helped me in these times. When I say his truths out loud, I feel
a lot more calm and that I can face anything. Saying his truth out loud helps me really hear it and not be bombarded with untruths.
For six years, I worked on several inpatient psych units with teens and children. My eyes were openly widely to the field of mental health. Many of the patients I work with were struggling with depression, suicidal thoughts, suicide attempts, and many different mental health concerns. There was real darkness on these units that I had never felt before. But, there was also light. Even though it was hard watching patients come back over and over again, they needed intense counseling and/ or medications. Overall, what they really needed was God. Don’t we all.:) Mental health is a growing real concern in our world and is not going away. People don’t usually just get better. It takes work and pressing through difficult places to get to a better place. It is a choice to want to get better and a choice to do the hard work.
Choice. I do think we make choices each day how we react/ handle situations and how we rise above them. Some choices we personally make and others are made for us. However, I do think we can make choices to not feed into our negative thoughts ( sometimes we might need counseling and/ or medications) to help.
When I worked in the hospital, I would ask the patients what they would do for fun or to take their minds off of their negative thoughts. Many times I heard, watch scary movies, read scary books, hang out in negative relationships, sit alone in the dark, etc. None of these choices seemed to help with negative thoughts. I wonder why? God built us for much more. We have a choice to move forward ( to try to improve our situations) even if the past wasn’t kind to us. God said he would never leave us ( this includes at very difficult times in our lives). This is one truth that will never never change. Anything is possible with him.