Don’t Say I Didn’t Warn You!

Many times there are so many individuals that are battling with mental health challenges that often give clear indicators that they are crying out for help. It is a sure sign that they are on the edge of doing something drastic to gain relief for their prolonged suffering. What magnifies their pain even more is when they feel that the signs they are giving to those in their personal circle are often being ignored and the response is an overspiritualized or religious platitude that minimizes on their part the intensity of their experience. But when we lack sensitivity to this delicate condition and judge everyone’s life on a “performance basis,” as it relates to behavior, the cry for help can go right over our heads. We have to listen to what individuals are saying as well as what they are not saying and exercise our intuition to connect the dots or read between the lines. We have to get rid of our elitist and self-righteous mindsets thinking that some people are deliberate in how they behave when in actuality they are walking an “emotional tightrope” for the fight of their lives with no safety net to catch them if they fall.

When you discover individuals that that are constantly vacillating from one school of thought to another when grappling with making a decision and you see outer expressions of inner conflict, you need to pay close attention! Don’t wait until a person commits suicide, abruptly leaves home for an extended period of time, have an emotional meltdown, displays fits of rage or finally tries to explain to you what’s going on inside their head before you wake up! Then you will have to wrestle with the guilt of not being able to recognize the signs and it makes it even more painful for you moving forward after a person’s death or helping them to recover from serious injury that could be self-afflicted.

We should prayerfully desire to be on the preventative end of helping others with optimal mental health rather than working through the corrective end of the process. If you have been insensitive to the mental health needs of others please express your apologies and find ways to be more gracious and kind and less judgmental and condemnatory for behaviors you do not understand.

We do should do our best to help monitor each other’s mental health whether it be a spouse, child, colleague or a leader in your community. There are so many individuals that are having internal battles in ways we cannot fathom. So lend a listening ear, an understanding heart, and open mind and help those you love get on the pathway to healing! Don’t Say I Didn’t Warn You!