When I entered college over thirty years ago, I was confident about my future plans. Despite the deep pain of a troubled childhood, I believed I was on my way to becoming a doctor, maybe even a missionary doctor someday.
But before the end of my freshman year, it all came crashing down. The depression I had experienced since childhood manifested in more extreme symptoms and behaviors that ultimately led to multiple psychiatric hospitalizations.
By the grace of God, and with the support of a devoted therapist, I graduated from college with degrees in psychology and religion. But I continued living in a desperate state of mind. I had no hope. I felt like my life was a total waste.
Then one day in 1996, God interrupted me in the midst of a terrible plot to end my life and sent a very special person to let me know that life could be different, that recovery is possible. You can read more about that chance encounter in my book, From Shattered to Restored.
That meeting ultimately led me to attending the recovery class at her church where a flicker of light entered the darkness that engulfed me. It was there that I learned how to hope again, to recognize God’s purpose in all things, and to apply the principles of God’s Word in order to live my life built on what I refer to as the wisdom of wellness.
It is because God took ME out of such a deep, dark place and taught me how to live well that I have such great hope for YOU. I’m confident that there is hope and purpose for you and those you love in the midst of whatever difficulties, trials, and struggles you’re experiencing.
Since that divine turning point in my life, I have over 20 years of lived experience with personal recovery and whole health wellness. What’s more, none of those years of darkness have gone to waste. Through my work in Illinois’ public mental health system, I have spent the past 20 years teaching individuals and organizations how to utilize whole health approaches for wellness.
