@Roadkill_Spatula@xanga - Very true. This is interesting because so far it's been both sudden and gradual.

@Andrea_TheNerd@xanga - I think it's hard because some do not even allow the thought that God will heal them. I'm not saying that it will always happen the same way, but I think the first step is considering/believing in the possibility that He might want to heal us.

@MetallMaus@xanga - I am sorry this makes you uncomfortable. I am not suggesting that anyone has OCD because of a lack of faith or that they should stop taking medication or anything else.

I also have Crohn's Disease. If God healed me of that and I blogged about it, I wouldn't expect other Crohn's patients to stop taking their medicine. It would be my testimony, as this is.

I am grateful for what God has done for me, and I believe He wants me to share it, just as I would for a physical healing.

@lifeofdory@xanga -  i do the same thing, i talk about the stigma as much as possible. besides ocd i also have a form of schizophrenia and i've had similar encounters with people. i even had a pastor tell me that if i got of my medication i would have a closer relationship with God, and at another church, my illness was used as a scapegoat, i worked with the youth for 2 years, and the board was trying to get rid of the youth pastor, and since i was friends with him i was the first to go and i was told people didn't want me around their kids because of my illness. after two years of knowing these kids and being attached to them and them to me, and that's how i was treated. they never would've done that to my mom when she had cancer.

@misspoppy - I didn't mean to make you feel stigmatized... I am joyful at your healing!!  And I know that God can and does heal.

I think this conversation reveals something: we have all had interesting experiences regarding mental illness and church... and we all would have benefitted from a greater amount of sensitivity in all aspects of this often-complex issue.

I have been known to tell people that my dramatic improvement back in high school was due to a LOT of prayer and a little bit of Prozac.  I think that God has healed me in a way that isn't what many people expect.  I still experience depressive episodes and panic attacks.  But I am able to take them in stride.  And everything has been part of the process of making me who I am now... and has been integral in my walk with the Lord.

Again, I am so thrilled that God has worked in you as He has done... and I'm glad you can tell others about it

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This is very encouraging, not only because you bring an optimistic light to your "condition," but because you bring light to how anxiety is brought out in so many different forms, for example, OCD. Everyone worries, everyone has concerns, especially what to expect in the near future. It's really humbling to hear someone admit that.

I'm glad God brought healing into your life, and some sort of peace. I think he really used you as you wrote about your experience, of how you witnessed of His power and existence in your life. Something was broken, but God placed a miracle to heal and mend.

Satan will never stop bothering christians, but the more we struggle to fight him, the closer we become to God and the more we learn and understand about how rough it must be for Him to protect us.

You and I, we're just two among a bajillion christians, but we're among a bajillion christians who share the same brokenness that draws us closer to God.

God bless, and thanks for the encouraging post. =)
I hope that your relationship with God will grow stronger and stronger everyday.

@misspoppy -  i wasn't trying to make you feel bad, i was trying to say that maybe some of the wording could be misunderstood. i'm glad that God has touched you in such an intimate way.

@misspoppy -  that's awesome :) thank you for sharing.

Does it sound too shallow to say only after the fact that I was praying for something like this when I read your first post?

I have found that having faith in God is crucial in coping with any illness. I disagree with the notion that having

In our small group there have been many mental/emotional healings and a couple of physical ones.  In fact, we found out the physical ones were rooted in emotional traumas that hadn't been resolved.

The two main physical healings were of scoliosis and asthma.  It was the one who was healed who told us what he was healed of.  In the case of the scoliosis it was visible and obvious.  In the case of the asthma there were demonic influences that needed to be dealt with along with lies that had been believed.  The two were very closely connected.  The healed one was instructed directly by our Father to resist going for the inhaler the next time he felt an attact coming on and to go to Him instead.  He only had to do that once.

Many times folk asked for prayer for aches and pains and found out they were rooted in believed lies.  For instance, one time I asked for prayer for my back which had been hurting for weeks without the usual initial strain that throws one to the floor.  The word I got was to reject the self-hate messages that ran regularly through my head at the first opportunity, and to start confessing the truth about my identity according to my Definer.  It took only two days of this to see major improvement in my back.  Of course, I have to continue this for the rest of my life, but what's wrong with dismissing lies and embracing truth on a regular basis?