Tori Beck, the creator of the Christian Advocate, hangs out with us this week on the “Dear God, I’m Sad” Podcast! Tori is a writer, content creator, and advocate. She holds a bachelor's in psychology and a master's in counseling and currently works for social services in mental health. After struggling with anxiety and OCD in a religious context, she has become passionate about mental health advocacy in the Christian space. This passion is one of the factors that led to her creating The Christian Advocate on Instagram. In this place, she strives to have conversations about how we can be better followers of Jesus while also recovering from harm that is too often experienced in church.

In this first part of our conversation, Tori and I talk about her journey with her mental health, her deconstruction process, and an open letter she wrote to all who told her that she was going to Hell. This episode is for those of you who have ever experienced deconstructing your faith and have felt the isolation and alienation that comes with it, been told that you were going to Hell and are not sure how to come back from that, and if you need an advocate.

Favorite Question of the Week: What was your experience with your Christian community when you were first deconstructing and how did you feel or what did you think when you received threats that you were going to Hell? What do you experience when you receive these threats now?

Intro Topic: Habits we've picked up in times of crisis or trauma that no longer serve us.

Content Warning/Trigger Warning: Depression, Anxiety, Suicidal ideation/suicide

Tori’s Instagram (The Christian Advocate): https://www.instagram.com/thechristianadvocate/

Tori’s Website: https://thechristianadvocate.blogspot.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/deargod_imsad/
Merch: https://dear-god-im-sad.square.site/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@_gabswilks_
Podcast: https://deargodimsad.buzzsprout.com
Gabby’s Website: gabriellemwilkinson.com
Email: deargodimsad@gmail.com

Not Always Okay (Coupon Code DGIS15): https://notalwaysokay.company/gabby-wilkinson
We The Believers (Coupon Code DGIS20): https://wethebelieversclothing.com/?ref=J06XSUFI
Elevated Faith (Coupon Code GWilkinson15): https://elevatedfaith.com/?aff=42217

I have the honor of having the intelligent and kind Jenni Johnson join me this week on the “Dear God, I’m Sad” podcast. Jenni is a writer, content creator, and podcast host of “Cageless”. “Cageless” is a self-discovery podcast about experiential wisdom, culture, and personal hope. After stumbling into a platform of over 70k followers on TikTok, Jenni found herself wanting to create a specific space to share, explore, and research tools to educate and liberate us all.

In this episode, Jenni and I talk about her decision to go and eventually leave seminary, her experiences with depression, anxiety, and an eating disorder, and what it means to be truly free. We touch on what it means to be a Christian who suffers from mental illness but who also experiences freedom and how our identity as a Christian can be freeing in and of itself. This is a good one, you don’t want to miss it.

Favorite Question of the Week: Mental illnesses and mental health challenges, such as depression, anxiety, or eating disorders, don’t necessarily ever leave us in totality. There’s always the potential of experiencing another depressive episode or anxiety attack or a relapse in recovery. So, how do you experience freedom from these things while still, to an extent, suffering from them?

Content Warning/Trigger Warning: Depression, Anxiety, Eating Disorder, Self-Harm, Addiction

Jenni’s TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thejennijohnson

Jenni’s Instagram: http://instagram.com/jennijohnson

Jenni’s Website: http://thejennijohnson.com/

Jenni’s email: jennijohnsonproductions@gmail.com

Jenni’s Cageless Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/cageless/id1636005306

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/deargod_imsad/
Merch: https://dear-god-im-sad.square.site/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@_gabswilks_
Podcast: https://deargodimsad.buzzsprout.com
Gabby’s Website: gabriellemwilkinson.com
Email: deargodimsad@gmail.com

Not Always Okay (Coupon Code DGIS15): https://notalwaysokay.company/gabby-wilkinson
We The Believers (Coupon Code DGIS20): https://wethebelieversclothing.com/?ref=J06XSUFI
Elevated Faith (Coupon Code GWilkinson15): https://elevatedfaith.com/?aff=42217

The first (kinda) solo episode of the season is here! In this episode, I start out in the intro giving you a small life update and then we move into listening to a sermon I recently preached on fear. In this sermon, I talk about how we get through moments in our lives when stability and certainty keep us from moving forward into the life that God has for us, how we fight through our fears, how we discern earthly fear from Holy Fear, and how we get to the Promised Good that God has for each of us. In the end, I get you to ask yourself one of the most important questions you'll ever ask yourself in regard to your faith: "Am I brave enough to believe in something better?" Let's find out together.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/deargod_imsad/
Merch: https://dear-god-im-sad.square.site/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@_gabswilks_
Podcast: https://deargodimsad.buzzsprout.com
Gabby’s Website: gabriellemwilkinson.com
Email: deargodimsad@gmail.com

Not Always Okay (Coupon Code DGIS15): https://notalwaysokay.company/gabby-wilkinson
We The Believers (Coupon Code DGIS20): https://wethebelieversclothing.com/?ref=J06XSUFI
Elevated Faith (Coupon Code GWilkinson15): https://elevatedfaith.com/?aff=42217

This week, I hung out with the writer and editor of Anxious Faith, Maddy Scholefield. Anxious Faith is a production of Our Daily Bread Ministries, a ministry that helps millions of people connect with God each day, and was born out of the need to address the growing mental health crisis in Australia. Maddy and I talk about her experiences with depression, self-harm, suicidal thoughts, and life in the church. I chose to name this episode "Dear God, I want to Live" because Maddy’s story is all about her actively and consistently choosing to live into the big and beautiful life that God has given her despite the suffering, pain, and thoughts that made her think that maybe life wasn’t worth living. Listen to our conversation to find encouragement when you're at your lowest, hear firsthand experiences of those who suffer from mental health challenges, and gain reassurance that choosing life is always the right choice.

Favorite Question of the Week: What do you understand about God now that you didn't understand before the onset of your mental health challenges?

Intro Topic: Boundaries and how best to move forward in relationships regarding mental health challenges and, specifically, self-harm.

Content Warning/Trigger Warning: Suicide, depression, anxiety, and self-harming.

Maddy’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/maddygracehope/

Anxious Faith’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anxious_faith/

Maddy’s website: https://www.maddygracehope.com/

Anxious Faith’s Website: https://www.anxiousfaith.org/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/deargod_imsad/
Merch: https://dear-god-im-sad.square.site/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@_gabswilks_
Podcast: https://deargodimsad.buzzsprout.com
Gabby’s Website: gabriellemwilkinson.com
Email: deargodimsad@gmail.com

Not Always Okay (Coupon Code DGIS15): https://notalwaysokay.company/gabby-wilkinson
We The Believers (Coupon Code DGIS20): https://wethebelieversclothing.com/?ref=J06XSUFI
Elevated Faith (Coupon Code GWilkinson15): https://elevatedfaith.com/?aff=42217

Sarah I. Fox joins me this week on the “Dear God, I’m Sad” podcast to talk about her experience living with Bipolar Disorder and hope. Sarah is an alumna of The King’s College with a B.A. in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics with a Pre-Law minor. Sarah currently works as a Case Manager/Transformational Coach at St. Nicks Alliance. She is also the host of the Rough Edges Podcast where she shares educational tools about mental health, anecdotes from her healing journey, and the intersection between faith and mental illness. In this episode, you’ll hear what’s worth putting our hope into and what we hope for as mental illness sufferers, and what it looks like to hope through psychosis, hospitalization, diagnosis, isolation, stigmatization, and alienation.

Favorite Question of the Week: If you could go back in time to the moment you woke up in the hospital after experiencing your psychosis, what would you tell your past self

Intro Topic: Contentment and life satisfaction.

Content Warning/Trigger Warning: Bipolar Disorder, Depression

Rough Edges Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rough.edges.podcast/

Rough Edges Website: http://www.roughedgespodcast.com/

My feature on Rough Edges Podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/roughedgespodcast/episodes/Dear-God--Im-Sad-and-Loved-feat--Gabby-Wilkinson-e1vipro

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/deargod_imsad/
Merch: https://dear-god-im-sad.square.site/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@_gabswilks_
Podcast: https://deargodimsad.buzzsprout.com
Gabby’s Website: gabriellemwilkinson.com
Email: deargodimsad@gmail.com

Not Always Okay (Coupon Code DGIS15): https://notalwaysokay.company/gabby-wilkinson
We The Believers (Coupon Code DGIS20): https://wethebelieversclothing.com/?ref=J06XSUFI
Elevated Faith (Coupon Code GWilkinson15): https://elevatedfaith.com/?aff=42217

Welcome back to “Dear God, I’m Sad”! To kick off season two, I sit down with Daniel Whitehead who serves as the CEO of Sanctuary Mental Health Ministries, a non-profit that exists to equip the Church to support mental health and well-being. He is a Regent College graduate and ordained minister with over ten years of full-time vocational church ministry experience in the UK. In this conversation we talk about the work done at Sanctuary, Daniel’s experiences as both a pastor and a CEO, and our understanding of God’s relationship to our mental health.

Favorite Question of the Week: How has being the CEO of Sanctuary impacted how much you disclose your mental health challenges to others? Are you more inclined to share your challenges or to repress them to make space for those you serve?

Content Warning/Trigger Warning: Suicide, Bipolar Disorder

Sanctuary’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sanctuarymentalhealth/

Sanctuary’s Website: https://sanctuarymentalhealth.org/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/deargod_imsad/
Merch: https://dear-god-im-sad.square.site/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@_gabswilks_
Podcast: https://deargodimsad.buzzsprout.com
Gabby’s Website: gabriellemwilkinson.com
Email: deargodimsad@gmail.com

Not Always Okay (Coupon Code DGIS15): https://notalwaysokay.company/gabby-wilkinson
We The Believers (Coupon Code DGIS20): https://wethebelieversclothing.com/?ref=J06XSUFI
Elevated Faith (Coupon Code GWilkinson15): https://elevatedfaith.com/?aff=42217

Welcome to Season 2 of the "Dear God, I'm Sad" Podcast! Are you ready?

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/deargod_imsad/
Merch: https://dear-god-im-sad.square.site/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@_gabswilks_
Podcast: https://deargodimsad.buzzsprout.com
Gabby’s Website: gabriellemwilkinson.com
Email: deargodimsad@gmail.com

Not Always Okay (Coupon Code DGIS15): https://notalwaysokay.company/gabby-wilkinson
We The Believers (Coupon Code DGIS20): https://wethebelieversclothing.com/?ref=J06XSUFI
Elevated Faith (Coupon Code GWilkinson15): https://elevatedfaith.com/?aff=42217

Reid Bervik has an MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and is a writer, creator, and speaker. In this season finale, I ask Reid about his experiences in deconstructing his faith from his white evangelical background and the trials, tribulations, and triumphs within his story. Listen to hear from a first-hand perspective on the impact deconstructing has on your mental health (the freedom found as well as the difficulty through), how to best come alongside those deconstructing (be a friend!), and how to best take care of yourself through your deconstruction.

Stick around after our conversation to hear me give a departing word for season 1 and don’t forget to follow the DGIS Instagram to stay up to date on season 2 and all things “Dear God, I’m Sad”!

Content Warning/Trigger Warning: Depression, suicidal ideation/suicide, ADHD, abuse

Reid’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reidibervik/?hl=en

Reid’s TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@reidbervik

Reid’s Website: https://www.reidbervik.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/deargod_imsad/
Merch: https://dear-god-im-sad.square.site/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@_gabswilks_
Podcast: https://deargodimsad.buzzsprout.com
Gabby’s Website: gabriellemwilkinson.com
Email: deargodimsad@gmail.com

Not Always Okay (Coupon Code DGIS15): https://notalwaysokay.company/gabby-wilkinson
We The Believers (Coupon Code DGIS20): https://wethebelieversclothing.com/?ref=J06XSUFI
Elevated Faith (Coupon Code GWilkinson15): https://elevatedfaith.com/?aff=42217