A Little Pill is One of the Ways God Helps Me

This little pill.

Some would call it a sign of weakness.

Some may even call it broken faith.

But this little pill is how God helps me every day.

The chemicals in my brain don’t work like everyone else’s.

Where one thing doesn’t matter to others, my brain turns it into a threat and I play out all these different scenarios in my head of how to face that threat.

Where one person may have a bad day or two, I’ve had a string of bad days where there’s a cloud looming over my head. Nothing would bring me joy or excitement, and I would just want to curl up in my bed.

I have anxiety and I’ve battled depression.

It’s a problem with my brain, not my faith.

It’s a sign of a flawed body, not a broken spirit. 

It’s something that I pray about every day. And it’s something that I take a little, white pill to keep my brain in check. 

There’s no shame in being a Christian who takes medication for a mental illness. God has given doctors and scientists the gift of medicine. You wouldn’t shame someone who has diabetes for taking insulin. And you most likely wouldn’t not take Tylenol if you have a migraine. 

We live in a fallen world with flawed, decomposing bodies that experience everything from illnesses, diseases, cancers, and yes, mental illnesses. God has given us doctors to help with all of these. 

I take this little pill every day because it’s one of the ways God helps me. 

And there’s no shame in that.