Excerpted with permission from Hope for the Anxious and Depressed by Hope A. Blanton and Christine B. Gordon. Copyright 2026, B&H Publishing.
I, (Christine) found myself working as an Intake Coordinator for a large counseling practice. All the therapists on staff were believers, so the practice attracted many Christians seeking help. While people sought treatment for all types of mental illness, depression was a frequent instigator of phone calls to my intake phone. I heard stories of unexpected and tragic loss that left survivors struggling to cope with their pain. I heard about slow, steady slides down the spiral of sadness into a depression that lingered for months. Some had eagerly anticipated the birth of a child and then were confused by their postpartum depression that made it difficult to enjoy their baby. Others felt fine until the darker months of winter seemed to suck away all their energy.
“Yes, but is she a Christian therapist, really?”
“So, will this counselor try to convince my daughter she needs to take medication? Because I don’t think Christians should do that.”
“My faith is important to me. Can that be a part of my therapy?”
“Do your counselors use secular treatments?”
“What if I’m not a Christian? Can I still be seen?”
Maybe you’re in a similar place with similar questions as you seek out help for depression. What’s a believer to do? What tools are available and appropriate for us to use in our fight against depression? As already stated in the previous chapter on anxiety, here comes some good news: there are so many! Again, remember from chapter four that all truth is God’s truth. All true things we discover in the world, whether they be the rules of thermodynamics or the way our neurotransmitters work, are truths that belong to God about things created by God. Unless a method or treatment causes us to sin, we can use the wide array of tools offered in this world to push back against the effects of the Fall and specifically the effect of depression.