YOU THINK NO ONE UNDERSTANDS YOUR PAIN
You think there is no way anyone understands your feelings and your struggle. You’ve lost all your joy and hope, and you see no reason to do anything. Your most common thought might be something to the effect of “Why bother?” You don’t have any energy and may even see no reason to get out of bed. You feel the darkness surrounding you; it is a heavy, wet blanket, and you can’t get it off no matter how hard you try. You wonder why you even exist. You wonder if it would be better if you were dead. Sometimes you think something like, “I wish God would just take me.” Maybe you have gone so far as to wish for an accident that was someone else’s fault. Unfortunately, far more often than should happen, you may even think about taking your own life.
YOU’VE TRIED TO BE LOVED AND FEEL UNLOVEABLE
You have lived your life trying your best to be loved and wanted. You do everything you know to help the people you love, and you just want them to love you, too. You feel unlovable, though. You feel as if there is some part of you that is deeply flawed, broken beyond repair, and there is no hope for you. You barely exist, getting up each day in the dark, fighting that black fog hovering over your very existence and trying to suffocate you slowly and painfully. You think you are the only one and that no one understands. You think it will never end and that there is no hope. You think you are beyond help and beyond being saved.
DEPRESSION IS AS OLD AS HUMANITY
The truth is, these feelings are as old as humanity itself. You can see it in the third chapter of the first book of the Bible—Genesis 3:8‑19, when Adam and Eve heard God coming and hid themselves because they had disappointed God. Does that sound like you? You struggle and sometimes literally think, “You are a disappointment,” “You let everyone down,” or “You can’t do anything right.” Those thoughts are called negative self‑talk and create a downward spiral that leads to the deep darkness of depression. Depression entered the world when humans chose to distance themselves and betray the trust God placed in them. You are bearing the consequences of humanity’s original fall, as well as the price of ongoing betrayals by those around you.
YOU MAY NOT REALIZE HOW COMMON THESE FEELINGS ARE
Society has reached a point where teenagers group themselves according to their mental‑health struggles and embrace them as lifelong identities. Mental illness has become an identity rather than a problem to grow from and resolve. You may feel content to remain depressed for your entire lifetime—sadly, many do. Yet you may also be thinking, “I don’t want to live that way. I want joy, peace, and contentment.” Happiness is fleeting; contentment, joy, and peace are lasting states that mitigate the mood fluctuations of depression and other emotional difficulties.
THE BOOK OF DEPRESSION
There is an entire book of the Bible that is a lament—Lamentations, believed to be written by the “weeping prophet” Jeremiah. Verse 2 vividly describes the feeling:
“She weeps bitterly in the night, and her tears are on her cheeks; she has none to comfort her among all her lovers. All her friends have dealt treacherously with her; they have become her enemies.”
You may identify with that bitter weeping and the loneliness that fills the night, waking up feeling as if you have been discarded like a meaningless piece of trash.
EVEN JESUS LONGED FOR DEATH
Hebrews 4:15 tells us that Jesus was tempted in every way we are. In the Garden of Gethsemane He prayed, “Not my will, but yours,” and was so distraught that He said, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death” (Mark 14:34, NIV). His disciples fell asleep while He wrestled with that anguish. Jesus understood the severity of depression and the feeling of paying for everyone else’s mistakes.
Other biblical examples of deep sorrow include Elijah after his victory over the prophets of Baal (1 Kings 19) and numerous psalms of lament (e.g., Psalm 42).
THE SCIENCE BEHIND DEPRESSION
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, Text Revision (DSM‑5‑TR) lists criteria for diagnosing depression. No blood test or tissue sample can confirm it; clinicians first rule out medical causes (e.g., thyroid issues, substance use) before making the diagnosis. The criteria include (any five of the following for at least two weeks): depressed mood, loss of interest/pleasure, weight change, sleep disturbance, psychomotor agitation or retardation, fatigue, feelings of worthlessness/guilt, diminished concentration, recurrent thoughts of death or suicide. The diagnosis is made when these symptoms cause clinically significant impairment in social or occupational functioning.
TREATING DEPRESSION
Medication – A prescribing provider may try several antidepressants before finding one that works, often resulting in a “guinea‑pig” experience with side effects and dose adjustments. Medication can be lifesaving, but many people seek to minimize reliance on it. Psychotherapy – Evidence‑based therapies (CBT, ACT, psychodynamic, etc.) help you identify triggers, develop coping skills, and process emotions. The strongest predictor of improvement is the therapeutic relationship, not the specific technique. Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART) – A rapid, eye‑movement‑based treatment that typically requires fewer than ten sessions. It works when you are motivated, can hold a thought, and can move your eyes side‑to‑side. Many clients experience significant relief after only a few sessions. HEALING IS POSSIBLE
You may wonder whether healing is realistic. The work is uncomfortable, but the discomfort of staying where you are becomes far greater than the discomfort of healing. If you are still reading, you are ready to heal.
COST OF ART
Accelerated Resolution Therapy usually takes fewer than ten 50‑minute sessions. At $175 per session, the total cost is approximately $1,750 (or $2,400 for ten 90‑minute sessions). Compared with the ongoing expense of chronic medication management and fragmented symptom‑focused care, ART offers a time‑limited, evidence‑based option.
GET HELP TODAY
I am Vickie, a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in Maryville, TN, and I help people from Knoxville and the surrounding communities heal from trauma and adverse life experiences. TN License Number 579. Verify my license here: https://www.tn.gov/health/health-program-areas/health-professional-boards/pcmft-board.html
You can click the link at the top of the page to schedule a free consultation, or call/text me. I would love to help you move from darkness into light.
SUMMARY Depression is an ancient, universal struggle, but it is not hopeless. Evidence‑based treatments—especially Accelerated Resolution Therapy—combined with a trusting therapeutic relationship can bring lasting relief. As a licensed Christian therapist in Maryville, TN, I am ready to walk with you toward healing.
CITATIONS Genesis 3:8‑19 (English Standard Version). Lamentations 2:2 (ESV). Hebrews 4:15 (ESV). Mark 14:34 (New International Version). American Psychiatric Association. (2022). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, Text Revision (DSM‑5‑TR). American Psychological Association. (2023). Evidence‑Based Treatments for Anxiety and Depression. APA Publishing. Miller, R. J., et al. (2022). Accelerated Resolution Therapy for PTSD: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 35(4), 456‑466. DOI:10.1002/jts.22789.