Marja Bergen

author, mental health advocate, follower of Christ

Category: Christian support (page 10 of 17)

The voices of today’s outcasts

More than anything, people with mental health challenges need to have support from those who will listen to them and learn what their life is like. This is especially true for those living with borderline personality disorder (BPD). As a mental illness it’s probably the most stigmatized of all, causing 10% to die by suicide. […]

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BPD – How to help

Do you remember the story from the  person in Wichita, KS? Here are some more of her thoughts: “My surroundings have left me feeling like there is no hope, because no one wants to help. Not someone like me. Not someone with questionable actions in their past.” “I read The Art of Asking by my […]

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Why talk about BPD?

I believe that by openly talking about an illness to which shame is normally attached, that sense of shame will be greatly reduced.

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BPD – My deep shame

  June 2018    When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. 1 Peter 2:22-23   I had thought I was a good person. I always tried to be. Like other Christians, I tried to follow […]

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BPD – A sense of our humanity

We sense our humanity most fully when we walk with someone through their pain. There’s something about encouraging a troubled person to peel back the layers to find their healthy self again. It’s a privilege to be allowed to accompany them on their journey. We experience our humanity most when we can be a friend […]

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Real people – BPD

They are real people like you and me. Yet they suffer in ways few would be able to comprehend. Please try to imagine what it would be like to be this 26-year-old woman from Wichita, KS. She writes: “I was diagnosed with BPD about seven years ago. When I was told what it was, I […]

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Never Worthy Enough

I know it’s hard for those who don’t have mental illness to understand. I, and many of us, feel small next to our supporters. I don’t think they consciously set themselves above us, yet we feel lower. We feel inferior. For me it was like my supporters were father and mother, me the child. I […]

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BPD and the need for compassion

“Compassion.” We all know the word and we know that—among other things—it’s a description of what Jesus showed the outcasts—those the world had rejected. The Bible tells about his unconditional love, the love he has for each of us, no matter who we are, no matter how good or bad we are. We would like […]

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Equal under God

As a person with mental health challenges, I claim the right to be considered equal. I may be different, but I am equal. Equal under God, the same as everyone else. Many have accepted people with problems like mine, making us part of their church and community. But this doesn’t mean we’re necessarily counted as […]

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BPD – Stigma? Me?

Stigma is like a dirty word to most of us. We would not think of stigmatizing people with mental health problems or people with other disabilities. We don’t want to harm them, but try to follow Jesus by treating them with kindness. We want to help them find healing. And yet, it’s in that very […]

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