It is great that we can now freely talk about Mental Health. You can see if someone has broken their arm, that’s visible, they get the sympathy vote, and in my day, you could write on their stookie. However, when someone is suffering in their heads we can’t see it, and they don’t get the same understanding. Again, in the bad old days, you were told there was no such thing as depression you just had to get on with it.

Fortunately, that is no longer the case, we can now talk about it, without shame or embarrassment, and talking is what is needed most of all.  In HMP Barlinnie, where I am the full-time chaplain, most of my day is filled with just sitting and listening to many who are struggling with their mental health. For many my time listening to them can be the first time anyone has ever just listened with no judgment, nor to give them a prescription, genuinely just to listen, and my goodness what a relief it is to many.

From that time just listening makes them feel that they are understood, it helps them get rid of some of the pain they have inside, the shame, and the thoughts of the past, and it clears a little bit of their head space to be able to cope with what faces them in the day to day. Which is being locked up, awaiting sentencing, and wondering what the future will hold for them.

It would be unacceptable of me not to pretend that a lot of the mental health issues that the men in our care have been on account of some of their lifestyle choices, and drug and alcohol misuse, but we know that by the grace of God, they can be healed and overcome their addictions, if of course they want to.

When we become Christians it doesn’t mean though that all our problems disappear and I am clear with many of the men in our care about that. But being a Christian means that we have one that will help us carry our burdens. Someone who will help us through the storms and one who knows us gets us, and truly understands us.

Talking to one another is good, talking to professionals is necessary, being honest about how we are feeling, listening to our moods and feelings, all of that is important but we have one who is there to always listen, 24/7, Jesus Christ our Lord. One who gets our pain, one who went through it himself, one who went down into the darkness but rose from death to give each one of us new life. How blessed are we.

The men in our care often self-medicate to get rid of the pain of the past and never seem to get out of the cycle. So, we need to just keep on listening, keep on being non-judgemental, and above all, keep loving and praying for them.  I hope you will join me.