We are continuing the series on “Am I Happy?” in youth and I was talking with one of my students after. She was telling me how in the schools they have groups for quitting smoking (which I’ve facilitated), drugs, alcohol, bullying and plenty of other things like that. What they don’t have is a group for students who are suffering from depression.
I know the schools offer services for this but I also know the counselors are overwhelmed and unable to help most of the students that need someone. As I was talking with this young lady I began to see the need for something that doesn’t exist in our community. I don’t know exactly how to make this happen but we will be having some kind of class or group or whatever in the next couple of weeks for depressed teens. I don’t want this to be some kind of group therapy though. We will need some sort of curriculum to teach them how to deal with stress, frustration, anger, and everything else that is related to depression.
I am just now starting to research this but I want to make it happen soon. Anyone have any ideas?
My Time
So they didn’t have a t-shirt cannon, monkey butts, or fluffy bunnies, but they did have hammer time.
Remix Dress Like a Youth Pastor 101
Went to church and a hockey game broke out
Dress like a Youth Pastor: before the outerwear
Wow. That’s a tough one. Maybe you could find someone who has suffered thru depression and could talk to the kids about finding a way out of the darkness.
I think this is a big part of it. Thanks for the advice.
I am not sure if this fits in at all…. But when mom got sick she was depressed. (I know… big age difference here…)
The words that came into my head over and over for helping her is “Everyone needs to be needed…” I really think this was my answer to prayer about how to help her.
I bought crafts for her to do. She made grocery lists. She kept our files straight (she was a file clerk in her youth.) She made crafts for family and scarves for the homeless. As she realized she was still useful, she became happier.
It kind of seems a shame that after all her years of hard work and service, she still needed to be useful… But anyways, my long winded point is that perhaps some of these teens feel depressed because they feel useless and unnecessary. School makes them feel like the world is for the smart, gregarious, or athletic. If one is none of these…
I have no easy answer for how to make them feel useful. It’s not like you could hold a class on usefulness. Just thought I’d share my thoughts.
God bless you.
I think those are some great thoughts. It has me thinking of some important parts of how this whole thing might be formed. Keep em coming
Oh vey! That was a long comment! Sorry. I guess next time, if I can’t edit, I’ll email?
or you could just leave a long comment.
I really like the idea for having a session for depressed teens. I know how it feels and I think it would help not just me but others as well.
I’m looking forward to it, and really need help making this happen (hint hint)
I think it would be a fantastic idea, and to be honest, it’s something the Church completely overlooks. After all, if someone is really struggling in their life and is showing the signs of depression, what do we tell them? Easy, “Oh you just need some joy in your life!” and move right on.
In my own experience (previous bouts and a season right now where I just can’t seem shake those feelings off), it’s not so much of a medical condition that’s keeping us depressed as Life(tm) is giving us a beating, and no one’s there to encourage us and lift us when we need it most. Of course, there are times when it really is a medical condition that needs proper treatment, but I think a ministry that has either responsible peer leaders or some slightly older members of your church just taking some of those troubling students under their wing and making a concerted effort to lift them up through prayer and encouragement would be wonderful.
I very much get where you are coming from. I struggle with many of the same things and have felt frustrated about the way the Church handles depression, but more than the Church, the world does the same thing. They either ignore or enable depression and I feel like we need to be better than that.
I just wish I knew how to make these random thoughts in my head a reality, but I guess that is part of the journey.
We just did the “To Save A Live” Series. It is a movie as well. there were alot of resources on the website about this. tosavealifemovie.com or tosavealifeleaders.com. It is a great movie that is coming out on dvd soon.
I’ve seen quite a few of those resources. It looks great. I’m looking forward to showing the movie on a movie night someday soon.