I wrote this two years ago for another site. I was recently asked to share it again......

My head hurts, the kind of ache that comes from too much coffee and not enough sleep. I should take advantage of this quiet nap time myself, but there's too much weighing on my heart.  A couple of weeks ago, a mother of two little boys disappeared. Tragically, she was found ten days after her disappearance, dead. She had committed suicide, to the shock of her family. She left her home, so that her husband and little boys wouldn't find her, and took the only escape she saw for herself. It is heart wrenching, disturbing and confusing. Any suicide, but especially that of a mother to little ones, is horrific. As a result, we tend not to talk about it. We whisper a prayer for the poor soul and then continue on to more pleasant things. The result is the pain, the evil, the darkness that so poisons the mind is allowed to fester away in private.

Truth is a powerful sunlight. It is frightening, however, to lay your soul bare, to honestly admit that all's not right in your world. It can lead to hurt on the part of those who love you. "How can you feel so alone? We are here for you." For those who don't struggle with depression, understanding and supporting can be too confusing. Everything seems so good, how can this not be seen and appreciated? Shake it off, buck up, make your peace with God and everything will be fine. Life is full of highs and lows.  If only it was this simple.  Those struggling with depression, already believing they have failed their loving family, keep their pain inside, so not to fail or disappoint further. The result, despite best intentions, is that the darkness and despair continues to fester. The crushing burden increases. 

I sat in the sun, mulling this over the other day. We were at a local theme park and I was watching my older children embark on a water ride. It was a beautiful day, filled with shrieks of laughter. Watching my older son, I remembered that he and his younger brother were the same ages as the little boys who lost their mother. It stabbed my heart. I could still feel the heat of his growing hand in mine. I could see him waving excitedly to me. With a catch in my throat, I thought "it could have been them." They could have been the little boys whose mother was lost to the darkness.  

See, I'm the mom who has thought, often, that my children would be better off without me. I'm the mom who has heard those voices telling me I am failing my children, my husband and all those I love. I'm the mom who felt utterly crushed by what seems like daily life, and I have heard  the voices of despair telling me to quit, it would be better for everyone. I'm the mom who felt like I could never love my children as they deserved. I'm a mom who has warred with the darkness and despair of depression.  And I'm a mom who was given the strength and the grace to seek help. To drown out those voices, and to know that I could not carry this burden myself. For me, my path to light was with medication and counseling. Part of that path was recognizing that what I thought and felt wasn't right, wasn't how it was supposed to be. But it wasn't because I wasn't trying hard enough; it was because my body was out of whack. 

It's sad that it is uncomfortable to speak about this more openly. It's unfortunate that so much gets swept up in the term "mental illness." It seems to me to be an inaccurate term, as depression is often caused by a chemical imbalance. It's the body not working as it should, a state not uncommon for most adults at some point. Sleep, diet and exercise can help, but all of these are often hard for mothers. It wasn't the "real" me that was "failing" my family. It was a distorted view, caused by some out of balance hormones.  Sounds so simple. And yet, this has taken me five days to write. I feel vulnerable, exposed, fragile. I was raised in a private family. We didn't share unpleasant news. We were discreet, which is a habit I truly appreciate in today's age of oversharing. But, there is a time to speak up. There is a time to share. There is a time to say "you are not alone." I struggle with depression. Medications saved me, and my family. 

I refuse to listen to the voices in the darkness that say no one cares and that I am weak. I refuse to listen to the voices of the darkness that say I should be ashamed and that others will think less of me. I refuse to listen to the voices of the darkness. I will speak up. I will stand up and say "there is hope." I will stand beside and say "judge me along with her." I will silence those voices of darkness. Because I heard the Voice of Truth. 

As I sat in the sun, in the middle of a forested area, I thought about the other mom. I watched the light dance off of some leaves, and thought of that other garden, so long ago. The first time the Voice of Truth was drowned out, ignored. Pain and suffering followed. If we are pursuing our vocations, our paths in the Lord's light, it isn't unreasonable to think that we will be attacked along the way. Will the serpent exploit our bodies; use our physical weaknesses to beat us down? Of course he would, any opportunity to twist our view of ourselves. He sees us as weak and worthless. And yet the Voice of Truth says we are fearfully and wonderfully made. All of us. We should be a mirror of the light and an echo of the Voice of Truth, sharing with each other the truth, fighting through the darkness. 

The words of a popular hymn replayed in my mind "But the voice of truth tells me a different story, And the voice of truth says 'Do not be afraid!'.....Out of all the voices calling out to me, I will choose to listen and believe the voice of truth." For the person struggling with depression, it isn't as simple as choosing to believe. But for those of us who are in the light, we should be sharing the truth, encouraging openness and honesty. Starting with ourselves, dispelling the darkness that allows despair to grow.

I was roused from my reverie as my children plunged down a steep drop and created a huge splash. Their faces were split with huge grins. They all yelled "Hi Mom! Did you see us?" And I was grateful, so grateful, that I was there, with them, loving them. Grateful for help, grateful for options, grateful for salvation. And in my gratitude, I resolved to be more open about my own journey so that there will be more mothers in the sun, laughing with their children.  

Rest in peace Jennifer Huston, and all those who were lost in the darkness. May you hear the Voice of Truth whisper in your ear "Come to me all who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest."