The Saints and Depression

I am utterly spent and crushed;  I groan because of the tumult of my heart. 
Lord, all my longing is known to Thee;  my sighing is not hidden from Thee.
       – Psalm 38:8-9

Depression can often have a physiological aspect, which means that an examination by a physician will frequently be a good starting point in addressing the situation and any underlying problems.  Severe, ongoing depression isn't something we should become resigned to or attempt to cope with alone;  professional assistance should generally be obtained, usually after a doctor has ruled out a physical or chemical cause.

But almost everyone suffers from a mild form of depression from time to time, and in such situations, the experiences of some of the saints may be able to help and encourage us.

Is it possible that a saint — someone who has tasted the wonder and richness of divine love far more deeply than the rest of us have — could be troubled by a melancholy, restless spirit? Most definitely.  For instance, the fourteenth-century virgin St. Flora of Beaulieu, after a normal childhood, refused to cooperate with her parents' attempts to find her a husband;  instead, she announced that she was dedicating herself to God and entered a convent.  This, however — even though it was her calling — precipitated an intense and prolonged period of depression, affecting her behavior in a way that greatly irritated the other sisters.  Eventually, with the help of an understanding confessor, Flora weathered this period and made great spiritual progress because of it.

Two seventeenth-century French saints in particular suffered greatly from depression — for very different reasons.  The Jesuit priest St. Noel Chabanel was one of the North American Martyrs;  he worked among the Huron Indians with St. Charles Garnier.  Missionaries often become very sympathetic toward those to whom they minister, but this was not the case for Fr. Noel;  he felt a strong repugnance for the Indians and their customs.  This, along with difficulty in learning their language and similar challenges, caused him a lasting sense of sadness and spiritual suffocation.  How did he respond? By making a solemn vow never to give up or to leave his assignment — a vow that he kept until the day of his martyrdom.

A different form of heroic sanctity was practiced by St. Jane Frances de Chantal.  She was happily married to Baron de Chantal for eight years; when her husband died, her father-in-law — a vain, stubborn old man — forced Jane and her three children to move in with him.  It's not surprising that Jane became very depressed.  What is perhaps surprising (at least to our society, in which people make a high art of complaining and of claiming "victimhood" status) is how Jane responded: she chose to remain cheerful and to respond to the unkindness of her father-in-law with charity and understanding.

Much later in life, even after forming a warm and holy friendship with the great bishop St. Francis de Sales and working with him to establish a religious order for older women, Jane still experienced times of suffering and trial — but she continued to respond by remaining cheerful and active.

Keeping busy also proved to be a lifeline amid the seas of depression for St. Augustine, one of the greatest figures of the Church — and, indeed, of Western Civilization.  His mother, St. Monica, no doubt merited great graces simply by patiently bearing her brilliant son's moodiness and unpredictability. Augustine was searching for truth, but on his own terms, and it was many years before — assisted by his mother's innumerable prayers and his admiration for the great bishop St. Ambrose — he finally surrendered to God and accepted Baptism.  Soon afterward his mother died and then his own son, and during the more than forty years that followed, his powerful personality—sanctified but not erased by divine grace — often manifested itself in a tendency toward both intense anger and severe depression.  St. Augustine rose above these shackles through prayer, sacrifice, and work.  Indeed, his responsibilities as bishop and his writings in defense of the Church kept him very busy.

Another powerful personality — one also given to feelings of deep restlessness and grief — was possessed by St. Ignatius of Loyola.  In his autobiography (written in the third person), Ignatius stated, "The things he saw strengthened him then and always gave him such strength in his faith that he often thought to himself: if there were no Scriptures to teach us of these matters of the Faith, he would be resolved to die for them, only because of what he had seen." This sense of certainty and conviction had not come easily;  after his conversion to the Faith, Ignatius had to struggle with a period of scrupulosity (in which he was tempted to despair of ever being worthy in God's sight), followed by a depression so severe that he actually considered suicide.  Of course, he persevered, and God drew him out of the dark pit of inner suffering, through which he had been prepared to do great things on behalf of Christ and His Church.

St. Ignatius experienced first-hand what he was later to refer to as desolation in his Spiritual Exercises.  Much akin to depression, desolation is a state in which we feel restless, irritated, uncomfortable, unsure of ourselves and our decisions, assailed by doubts, and unable to persevere in our good intentions.  According to Ignatius, God cannot cause desolation, although He may allow it for His own purposes — such as to remind us of our profound need for Him, or to "shake up" a sinner so as to bring about repentance.  Feelings of desolation, Ignatius notes, are often caused or provoked by the evil one, especially after we've taken practical steps to grow in holiness or to discern and follow God's will.  Based in part on his own experience, St. Ignatius of Loyola offers three very important pieces of advice to anyone undergoing desolation:

• Don't change an earlier good resolution, for after you've made a decision that's pleasing to God, the Devil may try to make you have second thoughts.
  
  
• Intensify your religious activities — that is, spend more time in prayer, meditation, and good deeds.  For if Satan's temptations merely cause you to increase your efforts to grow in holiness, he'll have an incentive to leave you alone.
  
  
• Persevere in patience, for the Devil's authority and ability to assault you is strictly limited by God, meaning that you'll be relieved of your spiritual sufferings if only you hold out long enough.

As Ignatius discovered, depression can be a great spiritual challenge — and also a great opportunity for growth.  Let us keep this in mind whenever we suffer from depression and turn to the saints for their intercession.

For Further Reflection

St. Philip Neri, known for his constant cheerfulness, used to pray, "Let me get through today, and I shall not fear tomorrow."

"Refresh yourself with spiritual songs, which have often caused the tempter to cease his wiles; as in the case of Saul, whose evil spirit departed from him when David played upon his harp before the king.25 It is also useful to be actively employed, and that with as much variety as may be, so as to divert the mind from the cause of its sadness." — St. Francis de Sales

Something You Might Try

• Keep things in perspective.  As St. Augustine notes, "Every morning you put on your clothes to cover your nakedness and to protect your body from the inclement weather.  Why don't you also clothe your soul with the garment of Faith? Remember every morning the truths of your creed, and look at yourself in the mirror of your Faith.  Otherwise, your soul will soon be naked with the nakedness of oblivion." In a sense, Augustine is pointing out the importance of beginning the day with prayer.  If this prayer helps us remember that we have received all good things from our loving Father, who also offers us an eternity of joy and fulfillment, it will be easier to fight depression and keep things in proper perspective.
  
  
• Merely identifying your problems can help you feel better about them.  Make a list of all the things that depress you.  Divide the items into two categories: those you can't do anything about and those you can.  Take the former and place them in God's hands; then take the latter and, starting with the easiest one, do something!
  
  
• If you suffer from severe or ongoing depression, contact your doctor or the National Institute of Mental Health.

Further Reading

Proverbs 12:15; Proverbs 15:15; Psalm 77:1-14.

My strength fails;

I feel only weakness, irritation, and depression.

I am tempted to complain and to despair.

What has become of the courage I was so proud of,

and that gave me so much self-confidence?

In addition to my pain, I have to bear the

shame of my fretful feebleness.

Lord, destroy my pride; leave it no resource.

How happy I shall be if You can teach me

by these terrible trials, that I am nothing,

that I can do nothing, and that You are all!