Sanctuary Mental Health Podcast Sanctuary Mental Health

July 24 is designated Self-Care Day by the World Health Organization as part of Self-Care Month (June 24 - July 24). This symbolic day (24/7) was chosen because "self-care can be practiced 24 hours a day, 7 days a week." As an encouragement to practice self-care, we at Sanctuary are happy to offer this new meditation from registered psychologist, author, and Sanctuary Ambassador Hillary McBride, PhD.

Self-care can take many forms depending on the individual. In The Sanctuary Course, self-care is defined as any activity that we do deliberately in order to take care of our mental, emotional, and physical health (this definition comes from Elizabeth Scott’s “5 Self-Care Practices for Every Area of Your Life,” published by Verwell Mind). In session seven of The Sanctuary Course, you can find more information about self-care and practices that support mental health and wellbeing.

We encourage you to take ten minutes of quiet space to listen to this guided meditation, which includes a breathing and imaginative exercise to focus your mind and body. Meditation is a practice that can be beneficial for reducing stress and promoting mental and emotional health, as well as having other positive effects. Christians in particular have practiced meditation for centuries as a way of drawing closer to God. We encourage you to listen to this meditation as a way of reconnecting with yourself and with God, who created breath and light—and you.

So often we wrestle with deep-seated questions of “Why me? What’s wrong with me? What am I being punished for? What did I do wrong?” The answer is nothing.

Millions of Canadians—one in five, in fact—experience a mental health issue in their lifetime. And it’s not their fault. It’s just another part of existence that brings both suffering and insight; challenge and care, depending on the day.

I absolutely loved this conversation with mental health advocate, mother, podcaster, and writer, Shaley Hoogendoorn, who continues to share her story of living with bipolar 2 in as many ways as she can, to as many audiences as are out there. And she took me through her process of diagnosis, wrestling, and acceptance. She is a witty, powerful, fiercely intelligent woman of faith and action, with firsthand experience of what life can be like once you learn to accept all of who you are, in all its wild and wonderful complexity.

You can also find Shaley’s blog post about stigmatizing language, “Words Matter”, on The Sanctuary Blog.

Nobody’s perfect, but we often want our leaders to be. What happens when a pastor reckons with brokenness, wrestles with a mental illness, and then redefines a ministry and calling where lived experience is as valuable and needed as credentials and a lengthy resumé? What if leadership looked like radical honesty and knowing one’s own capacity to serve?

Pastor Wally Nickel shares his journey through a mental health crisis, living with anxiety and depression, and how it has shaped his faith and work.

A Note of Caution: This episode of The Sanctuary Podcast deals with sensitive subjects such as trauma, abduction, and abuse, so please use your discretion about whether listening feels safe for you at this time. If you’re unsure, consider listening with a trusted friend.

There are many challenges specific to ministry and leadership, particularly when one is struggling with mental health. It can be hard to know where to access help and support, as well as finding safe spaces to unburden oneself.

Counsellor, researcher, and writer Dr. Hillary McBride reflects on some of the ways in which we leave our bodies, ourselves, and our brokenness out of the conversation around mental health and faith. She shares her journey and offers insight into ways that we can begin to weave our work and our wounds together with threads of healing and hope.

Note: This episode of The Sanctuary Podcast was recorded before the COVID-19 pandemic or physical distancing restrictions.

Start Mental Health Awareness Month with a grounding exercise by Sanctuary Ambassador Hillary McBride. Find a calm place physically, mentally, and emotionally with this guided meditation.

Sanctuary’s UK National Director, Corin Pilling, shares the gifts and challenges he’s experienced in lockdown, particularly as a single person living in the centre of London. He highlights practical ways to maintain mental wellbeing amidst busy city life; what led him to his role at Sanctuary; and how churches can re-model and re-imagine community during COVID-19.