Faith and religion
Not everyone has religious beliefs but if you do, you might find that turning to your faith feels helpful when you are struggling. One young person told us that they talk openly to their god and that they wouldn’t be judged, and doing so helped them to get things off their chest.
Visiting a place of worship might provide time to reflect, and a sense of community with others who share your beliefs and who may be a source of emotional support. For some people, a religious leader could be an important source of support too, someone they trust to listen and give advice. Prayer or studying a religious text might provide comfort when you are feeling distressed.
What young people have told us:
'Having found a personal faith. I developed resilience based on the hope of my faith as well as the personal inner strength we believe is divinely given, not a force but a person, a friend who I could tell anything to.'
'Whether it's humanism or Christianity we all need a framework for understanding the world so that we can provide consistent answers. It helps us understand our identity and forms our motivations. Think very deeply about whether faith is worth a search or not. It has changed lives for millennia and continues to do so today'.
'Having found a personal faith I developed resilience based on the hope of my faith as well as the personal inner strength we believe is divinely given, not a force but a person, a friend who I could tell anything to.'
'Because it can help lead to some acceptance, even if we don't understand why things are happening to us, we can feel at peace because God knows us and loves us whatever our weaknesses. They can help us access reserves of inner strength we didn't know we had and give us a new perspective on things.'
There isn’t much academic research in the area of self-care for young people who are living with mental health issues. We are trying to find out more about what works for different people so we can better advise other young people what to try.
If you’ve tried this activity when you were struggling in relation to your mental health, please email us at comms.requests@annafreud.org and let us know if it helped you.
