The month of May has been designated as “Mental Health Awareness Month” since 1949 in the United States. It was orignially named as such by the National Association for Mental Health (now known as Mental Health America or MHA). The original leading promoter of this cause was Clifford Whittingham Beers (1876-1943), an author and mental health patient himself. Beers spearheaded mental health care and advocacy out of his own horrific personal experiences with treatment.
Today, thankfully, mental health is a topic that has shed much (though not all) of its former stigma. People are more willing to talk about their mental health than in years past, with celebrity and name-recognized people like Michael Phelps and Simone Biles from the Olympic athletic realm, joined by entertainers like Lady Gaga, Ryan Reynolds and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. Each have openly discussed their own experiences with mental health issues and in doing so promoted greater understanding.
However, my guess is that you don’t have to go looking for famous persons to have a personal connection to mental health. Many of us have family members, friends, co-workers, or neighbors who put a face on the mental health topic for us. And, many of us have our own personal stories of mental health.
I come to the topic from my own experience, and from the vocational roles of pastoral ministry and chaplaincy. The hospital where I serve as a part-time chaplain often states that we are interested in patient’s whole health experience – physical, mental and spiritual. Chaplains are part of the team to deal most directly with the spiritual, although the three facets of wholeness in health are very much interrelated.
As a pastor I have long been aware of the commonness of mental health challenges among congregants. There are many in our pews who deal with some type of mental health challenge today. Among them are pastors themselves. Did you know that 25% of pastors admit to personally struggling with some facet of mental health? This might include anything from depression to another clincal diagnosis. When you factor in additional mental health stressors common in pastoral ministry, like extreme stress, burnout, and profound isolation, the percentage of those impacted increases dramatically. As many as 65% of pastors report frequent feelings of loneliness.
That may surprise those who are not pastors. People see the vocation as being “people oriented” or “people saturated”. After all, clergy are in the midst of people all the time. We “congregate” with people, extend relational and pastoral care to people, meet with people, counsel people, pray with people, preach to and teach people. It’s a people business! But . . . you can still be lonely even in the midst of all the people. And, truth be told, the position itself often creates distance from people, who are reluctant to form friendships, cross professional boundaries, or enter into meaningful “no strings attached” relationship. Hence, the 65% statistic.
I can relate to these reports. I have had times in my ministry career when I dealt with depressoin. I also have known loneliness. And, I’ve known many colleagues who would likewise affirm this reality. Thankfully, I find myself in a different and healthier place today. This may be the result of not being in a full-time pastoral position, but rather engaging with a variety of “free-lance” roles in ministry. Or, perhaps it is due to a better self-care regiment, including a better diet and greater attention to exercise. But, mostly, I think it’s due to being in the presence of my own support network of family and friends who are for me difference makers when it comes to mental health.
I discovered, a few years ago now, that I was really bad at trying to do life alone. (Most of us are.) It was a funny discovery because I’ve always been an introvert and enjoyed alone times. I still do. I like quiet mornings spent in reading or study, or writing and learning. My choices of exercise (cycling and walking) have always been alone ventures for the most part. But even introverts need their people. That was my painful discovery as I attempted to engage in some stressful ministry situations all by myself. It didn’t work and as a result I broke – broke down, burned out, went “off the deep end”, suffered anxiety and panic attacks – whatever label one wants to put on it.
What followed the crash was a months’ long introspection into the “why” of it all. But the healing came because I left the alone and rejoined my people, my family, my support network and thus rediscovered community. These were and are people who didn’t want anything from me, but me. This, I think, is what so many men and women in pastoral ministry long for – authentic, genuine relationships with others just for the sake of relationship. No one is calling for a “wise word” or a “prayer” or a “sermon” or “study” or “fix”. The people who love you for the real you are able to accept you as you are, not as they need you to be.
So, as this mental health awareness month draws to a close, I think of and pray for all the clergy who are in pastoral ministry situations that are good, or not good. I pray especially for those who are in spaces where life is lonely or stressful, or unrealistic, or isolated and demanding. May these men and women who proclaim the Good News and seek to live as a Christ leader amidst a community of Christ followers be seen for the persons they are and not just the office they hold.
Please pray for your pastor and pastors whom you know. Offer them the kindness of personal concern and care, maybe even friendship if it’s possible and appropriate. See them as “real” people, and recognize the stress under which they often operate. Don’t pity them, but love them and support them. Their health, along with those with whom they partner in ministry, will be the better for it.
danielcash 