maleahstar

I tried to report him to salt lake and they didn't do anything. my case was severe where i was severely depressed and suicidal all the time and it scared people in the ward. my doctor gave me an estrogen pill which fixed the depression, but that doesn't take away the emotional trauma that happened.

The stake president told people to not talk to me because I was diagnosed with pms.

I have been hurt by so many people at church that I dont want to go back.

I am very hurt and angry at the church and hold a lot of resentment towards how I was treated. I have been to other churches and was treated a lot better even though they knew what was going on. Heck when I was in a psyche ward one time I called my bishop and he refused to come and i called the pastor of the unity church and she was there almost instantly hugging me and trying to comfort me. A church is a hospital for sick souls not about politics and rules. There are boundaries, but tht does not mean that we should view people as a pestilence with their issues. We should recgonize the divinity in each person and honor and respect it. Thats how unity church views people.

I just feel that they discriminated me because I have a mental illness and rufused me my right to practice my religion at the time.

no he made it quite clear i wish i could file a lawsuit but i don't have the finances to do so

It's still not fair what happened. I know Jesus himself would have resolved the situation with total love and compassion with best interests for all parties involved. Jesus doesn't turn away people who are in desperate need and god has told me that the bishop and stake president will get to experience the tears and the heartaches i shed as if it was their own when they cross over someday.

I don't believe that a loving God would kick people out of his church because someone has a mental illness.

I have cried so much because I thought my ward was my family and now people in the church treat me like i am the enemy and the stake president was acting as jesus himself. i have cried because i am not allowed to talk to my friends in the church nor talk to the bishop whom i became good friends with. no one stook up for me. i lost so many friends through this....the people in the church rumored that i was having an affair with the bishop when i was only looking for pastoral guidance. even my therapists said they can't offer that to me that i had to go to my bishop for help for spiritual matters. i did what they asked and my local church leaders cut me off because i have a mental illness?

I was trying to get pastoral guidance from the bishop along with my cbt therapy i was getting for my depression and the stake president said it was innappropriate what i was doing. i told him it was what my doctor reccomenned for my health, but the stake president didn't listen to me. the stake president asked me some very personal questions about my mental health that i didn't feel comfortable answering because he was not my doctor nor my therapist. I said I don't feel comfortable answering your questions and he said that I shouldn't have any contact with anyone in the church because I have mental illness. I told him he could talk to my doctor and discuss the situation with him, but then he said i am not allowed to have contact with anyone in the church because i would not answer his questions. i was only enforcing my right as a human being to set appropriate boundaries between the stake president and i.

after the run in with my bishop and stake president and after for being shunned and kicked out for being diagnosed with mental illness i've decided to join the unity church and become a minister there. the people are very kind and open there. they don't treat me the way the stake president did.

Hi everyone...i have recently been asked by my stake president not to have contact with anyone at church because i have been diagnosed with a mental illness. i don't think this is right or fair. i am very hurt and angry. i filed a complaint with salt lake. no one at church seems to show pity or compassion for me. i have never felt so hurt and alone.

hi i was receiving pastoral counseling four times a month from my bishop because thats what my therapist asked me to do. the stake president put a halt to my pastoral counseling because i was seeing the bishop too much. i explained to the stake president that i was diagnosed with a mental illness and my therapist said i needed pastoral counseling along with my therapy because i was having spiritual problems. he said i cant do that and he and my bishop cant help me...that i need professional help instead. he also said i cant have contact with the anyone in the church except the stake president because i have mental illness. i have tried to negotiate peacefully with him and he is being stubborn. i was preparing to be baptized and havent been to church since. i am very hurt and angry at what happened. was what he did right? should i file a complaint aganst him??

A friend of my father is an immigrant from egypt and has invited me to a coptic orthodox christmas service. (They celebrate christmas on January 6th) I am very fascinated an interested and will be going tomorrow. They have strict rules like women must wear a veil, everyone must not wear their shoes in the church, and the men must stand on the right while the women stand on the left. I just want to go to experience a different culture of things and to experience this. Lots of incense will be used and I think a lot of Arabic will be spoken. The service will be 3-4 hours! I have no interest in joining this church, but thought it was kind my fathers friend invited me. This should be an interesting experience!

I am bisexual (but I do not act upon it) and have felt that for some reason it is best for me to remain single and celibate. Many people I have confided in say oh you are still young and will change your mind someday, but I get this strong feeling that in order to complete my personal mission here on earth that it is best to remain single and celibate. I want to learn how to love people in a more christlike way and not in a romantic or lustful way while still remaining celibate. Jesus was not married as far as we know...yet why do people single me out or judge me for not desiring not to be married? I can understand the plan of happiness and that eternal marriage is viewed as one of the highest goals in life. There is a passage in scripture that really comes to my mind when I say all of this...it's in the new testament. 1 Corinthians 7:34 I want to make a promise to the lord to serve him with all my heart and soul. To be able to get to that higher spiritual level to the point where i have that christlike love that i can have that unconditional love for everybody. I have spoken to my bishop about my feelings on this subject, but he strongly disagrees with me. I dream of someday serving the poor and offering comfort to the hopeless and depressed people because of what I have been through. I want to be able to give all of myself without having to worry about a husband and children. I sense a great sense of freedom and sacredness to my choice. I understand what some people will say oh you can find a husband that shares your goals, but to be honest I want to look at christ as symbolically as my spouse. I am not attacking any church doctrine here, but just wanted to share my feelings. My peers pressure me to go to the single's ward and date young men my age, but something doesn't feel right about it. If it were possible I would love to be sealed to christ as my husband for all eternity, but know that is not possible. he would make the greatest spouse ever ladies. :) Please understand I come from an orthodox christian background and this is how I we were taught lol. Anyone else feel this way?

i really like the adivice of having my therapist being able to communicate with my bishop and having a home teacher to come when the bishop is too busy. If there is a lot of contention between my stake president, my bishop, and i should i get a fresh start and go to a new ward and stake or try to persist with the ones i already have,? (my current ones are not being yeilding and compliant with my needs) thanks for the advice and support everyone. pple in my local area have not been this supportive i need all the prayers i can get!

I called the local branch of lds family services today. I spoke to them about my situation. They said that they can offer psycholgical counseling, but they cannot offer spiritual/ pastoral counseling. They said only my bishop can do the pastoral counseling. I already have a doctor and getting a new therapist since I am changing insurances. My stake president still won't allow me to see my bishop because they think they are not qualified to help me with my issues, but my doctors and therapists said that i need pastoral counseling alongside my therapy and treatment or else my treatment cannot be complete.. What do I do? Do I try to have a doctor's note explaining to the stake president what I need or find another ward and stake that will offer me what I need? What can I do in this situation. At the moment I am not on good terms with them due to the tension with the misunderstanding. I hope the 3 of us can reconcile and find a way how to fill in this gap. The doctor and therapy is not enough I need a pastoral counselor...

The stake president told me I was seeing him too much and taking up too much of my bishop's time and that there are other people that need him too, but the doctors insist I need pastoral counseling 4 times a month at least or else I cannot recover from the spiritual aspect of my depression. It got so bad I had to be hospitalized 3 times in a month. I am lost on what to do. Been feeling so separated from God for 2 years. It seemed like the stake president and the bishop didn't understand what I needed no matter how much I tried to explain to them what the doctors told me I needed from them.

Hello everyone. I have been trying to get rebaptized into the church since april. Recently I was diagnosed with depression and my doctors and therapists asked me to go to my church for pastoral counseling because many of my spiritual problems are contributing to my depression. They said it is a very important part of my treatment. I understand that this forum cannot offer medical advice I am only seeking advice for the spiritual aspect of my problem. The doctors and therapists feel ethically it is not appropriate for them to offer spiritual counsel and I need to see a pastoral counselor alongside with a doctor, therapist, and possible a social worker to assist in my care. It was advised that for proper treatment of my condition that I be allowed to see the leader of my church more than once a month. I was going to my bishop a few times a month for my spiritual problems and he was ok with it. Then the stake president said that I can no longer see the bishop and that they cannot help me because I have psychiatric problems. My doctors and therapists have suggested finding another church denomination that will comply with my needs, but I really want to stay in the church. I told my stake president what I needed and what my doctors said and he turned me away. I do have professional help, but a huge part of my treatment is missing. The spiritual counseling. It is not enough to just go to church, keep the commandments, say my prayers, and do all the good stuff. Since I lack the family support I need a pastoral counselor or else my treatment cannot be complete. Should I try moving to another stake and possibly get a letter from my doctor explaining what I need them to do? Does anyone have any advice? I am not rebaptized yet and did counsel with my bishop until I was told I wasn't allowed to see him anymore. Please pray for me.