Anxiety is something I have dealt with since a child although I was never diagnosed. I look back and see several red flags. Unfortunately, no one else did. It wasn't until I was 37 and laying on an ER table with my heart beating 240 beats a minute that I knew something had to change. Fortunately, I was blessed with a tender mercy and had what I call my "treadmill epiphany." A commercial about Generalized Anxiety Disorder came on while I was on the treadmill shortly after my heart surgery, and I decided that finally this new direction I would get help.
I now take medicine every day. It is nice to more fully experience joy. While, I know medication is not the answer for everyone, it was the saving grace for me. I also exercise daily and I am on a a gluten free diet.
My anxiety has a strong genetic origin ( I see my dad, siblings, nieces and nephews, and cousins with anxiety traits also). It can also be traced to biological roots (neurotransmitters in my brain are off), psychological trauma (repressed trauma as a child) and environmental stressors. I am pretty much a text book case.
The medicine is not a cure all- I still have my good days and bad days. The worst part of my anxiety is that it disconnects me somewhat socially- I hate this. But I guess we can't have it all, right!
I am grateful for the life that is mine, and I am most grateful for the 2nd chance I have at life. I plan to live it to the fullest- anxiety and all.
Note:
I am including a few notes from my lesson and some great resources I have found as well.
But there is
one who know all of our infirmities – Jesus Christ-
“The more we learn about, have faith in, and emulate Jesus
Christ, the more we come to understand that He is the source of all healing,
peace, and eternal progress.” Relief Society General President
Have someone read
Isaiah 53
3 He
is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and
acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and
we esteemed him not.
4 ¶ Surely, he
hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did
esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
5 But
he was wounded for
our transgressions, he was bruised
for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we
are healed.
What are stripes?
Discussion- Turn to the Bible dictionary
Why and how do I know this?
Why and how am I here today teaching this lesson? Let me tell you what my sign would say ( our
30’s two miscarriages, 5th pregnancy husband commuted to Woodscross,
GAD, Heart issues, Family members across the board suffer from anxiety, victim
of abuse as a child, Husband is self-employed, 4 teenagers, missionary son, son
with chronic pain– share my story 6 years ago this week-The Halloween in two
years I felt peace since the stroke, it was a joyful evening- then November 1st- morning run- heart
rate 240 beats a minute, ER, my heart stopped, begged the doc to save me- 5
small kids at home ambulance to St. George, 3 days in the hospital, ventricular
ablation- idiopathic ventricular tachycardia- I was 37 years old. Why?
“My journey to my treadmill epiphany”
*I
don’t ever want to be on the ER table again.
Ward council story- Stake President has asked that the resource
to Adjusting to Missionary Life be
shared with the entire stake- Take out the word Missionary and it says Adjusting to Life- The youth are being taught this same lesson
today by the bishopbric. The focus of the lesson is Wellness and increasing our
ability to handle stress or at least making us more aware of how stress effects
us and those around us.
As a mother of five and
the one who works with your youth, I felt strongly that everyone be given the
same message- hopefully as to increase conversation. So that all of us can begin to talk about
Mental illnesses and feelings in general-
Have every
fourth person stand up and stay standing
One in four
people in the world will be affected by mental illness at some point in their
lives. More than 16 million U.S. adults had at least one major depressive
episode in the past year.
Let us put
away our preconceived ideas, our judgment of individuals, of therapy, and of
medication
“The world is in need of your help. There are
feet to steady, hands to grasp, minds to encourage, hearts to inspire, and
souls to save.”
What Causes Mental Illness?
Although the exact
cause of most mental illnesses is not known, it is becoming clear through
research that many of these conditions are caused by a combination of genetic,
biological, psychological, and environmental factors -- not personal weakness or a character defect -- and recovery
from a mental illness is not simply a matter of will and self-discipline.
- Heredity (genetics):
Many mental illnesses run in families, suggesting they may be passed on
from parents to children through genes. Genes contain instructions for the
function of each cell in the body and are responsible for how we look,
act, think, etc. However, just because your mother or father may have or
had a mental illness doesn't mean you will have one. Hereditary just means
that you are more likely to get the condition than if you didn't have an
affected family member. Experts believe that many mental conditions are
linked to problems in multiple genes -- not just one, as with many diseases
-- which is why a person inherits a susceptibility to a mental disorder
but doesn't always develop the condition. The disorder itself occurs from
the interaction of these genes and other factors -- such as
psychological trauma and
environmental stressors -- which can influence, or trigger, the illness in
a person who has inherited a susceptibility to it.
- Biology:
Some mental illnesses have been linked to an abnormal balance of brain
chemicals called neurotransmitters. Neurotransmitters help nerve cells in
the brain communicate with each other. If these chemicals are out of
balance or are not working properly, messages may not make it through the
brain correctly, leading to symptoms of mental illness. In addition,
defects in or injury to certain areas of the brain also have been linked
to some mental conditions.
- Psychological trauma:
Some mental illnesses may be triggered by psychological trauma suffered as
a child, such as severe emotional, physical, or sexual abuse; a
significant early loss, such as the loss of a parent; and neglect.
- Environmental stressors: Certain stressors -- such as a death or divorce, a
dysfunctional family life, changing jobs or schools, and substance
abuse -- can trigger a disorder
in a person who may be at risk for developing a mental illness.
Refer to the Booklet
pages 5-10- Read and share highlighted portions
Coach Potter- Read “
What’s wrong with me?” How Steve Young
played through anxiety?”
The Savior loves each of His Father’s children. He fully
comprehends the pain and struggle that many experience as they live with a
broad range of mental health challenges. He suffered “pains and afflictions and
temptations of every kind;
. . . [taking] upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people” (Alma 7:11;
emphasis added). He suffered “the pains of every living creature, both men,
women, and children” (2 Nephi 9:21; see
also Hebrews
4:15–16).
Our thoughts, emotions, behaviors, and relationships can be
severely affected by mental health challenges or mental illness. Elder Jeffrey
R. Holland reminds us: “If you are the one afflicted or a caregiver to such,
try not to be overwhelmed with the size of your task. Don’t assume you can fix
everything, but fix what you can. If those are only small victories, be
grateful for them and be patient” (“Like
a Broken Vessel,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2013,
41).
How can we help? Recognize, educate, talk- DO!
Booklet-
General Principles for Managing Stress
Pages
17-22-
Group
Activity- Breathing exercise page 18
What are some
of the effects if we don’t help our youth with their anxiety?
Addictions-
pornography, vaping, pain meds,
Enabling of
disorder to take over their lives- no scout camp, girls camp, youth conference,
Where
do we go from here? aRE WE GOING TO SIMPLY CATCH A FISH FOR OUR CHILDREN AND
GRANDCHILDREN OR ARE WE GOING TO TEACH THEM HOW TO FISH?
mIGHT i SUGGEST WE HAVE A COPY OF THIS
BOOKLET IN OUR HOME- BY OUR SCRIPTURES- SOMETHING VERY EFFECTIVE IN OUR HOME IS
THAT EACH CHILD HAS HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO PRESENT ONE OF THE REMAINING
SECTIONS FOR fhe- THE TITLES INCLUDE RESOURCES FOR MANAGING PHYSICAL DEMANDS,eMOTIONAL
dEMANDS, sOCIAL dEMANDS, iNTELLECTUAL dEMANDS,AND SPIRITUAL DEMANDS
iN CLOSING HAVE
VOLUNTEERS READ THE FOLLOWING:
3 Nephi 17
7 Have
ye any that are sick among you? Bring them hither. Have ye any that
are lame, or blind, or halt, or maimed, or leprous, or that are withered,
or that are deaf, or that are afflicted in any manner? Bring them hither and I
will healthem, for I have compassion upon you; my bowels are filled with
mercy.
8 For
I perceive that ye desire that I should show unto you what I have done unto your
brethren at Jerusalem, for I see that
your faith is sufficient that I should heal you.
9 And
it came to pass that when he had thus spoken, all the multitude, with one
accord, did go forth with their sick and their afflicted, and their lame, and
with their blind, and with their dumb, and with all them that were
afflicted in any manner; and he did heal them every one as they were brought
forth unto him.
Mosiah 18
8 And
it came to pass that he said unto them: Behold, here are the waters of Mormon
(for thus were they called) and now, as ye are desirous to come into
the fold of God, and to be called his people, and are willing to bear
one another’s burdens, that they may be light;
9 Yea,
and are willing to mourn with those that mourn; yea, and comfort
those that stand in need of comfort, and to stand as witnesses of God
at all times and in all things, and in all places that ye may be in, even until
death, that ye may be redeemed of God, and be numbered with those of
the first resurrection, that ye may have eternal life
Mosiah 4
27 And see that all these things are done in
wisdom and order; for it is not requisite that a man should
run faster than he has strength. And again, it is expedient that he should
be diligent, that thereby he might win the prize; therefore, all things must be
done in order.
Thomas S. Monson.
“Shall I falter, or shall I finish” T
Elder Eyring- “may
we each choose to walk with him as he walks with us.
“Old sailing
ships had periods when the wind did not blow. They were ‘dead in the water.’
But the wind will return. The sails will fill. You will come into port.” Elder
Jeffrey R. Holland
Resource
Booklet- Adjusting to Missionary Life
The Standard
Works
The Living
Christ- The Testimony of the Apostles
Letter- To
those affected by my Anxiety- Letter written by my niece
LDS
Living: 16 tips for Helping Children
suffering from anxiety and depression by Madeline Tolk
Facing
Anxiety by Eric B. Murdock, Church Magazines
LDS Living,
BYU QB Tanner Mangum shares his struggle with anxiety and depression
Article:
“What’s Wrong with me? How Steve Young
played through Anxiety- excerpt from his book Behind the Spiral
LDS Living,
Avoiding Church Won’t Help Your Anxiety by Kari Ferguson
LDS Living,
One Insight That Made all the Difference in My battle Against Depression by
Danielle B. Wagner
Six Ways to
Help a Friend with Anxiety from an article by Lyle J. Burrup, LDS Family Service
That Your
Joy may be full, By Jean B. Bingham, October 2017
Songs Sung
and Unsung, by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, April 2017
Let Him Do
It With Simplicity, by Elder L. Tom Perry
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