Why Sound Mind?

Welcome! I’m so glad you’re here. Let me start by introducing myself. I’m Hailey and I’m 21 years old. I live in my hometown with my family, work at a local coffee shop, study communications, and serve in youth ministry. Other than that , I am an enneagram 7, I love spending time with my family and friends. I love playing sports, reading, dance parties and long walks with my parents and my puppers. My favorite place is anywhere by the water and if I could only eat one food for the rest of my life it would be (dairy free) ice cream.  Right now, life is really good.

But as you can imagine, it hasn’t been really good in every moment. In fact, I have just come out of one of the scariest and darkest seasons of my life. Which is probably why the season I’m in really does feel like a slice of paradise. I’ll spare you the details, but my darkest season included a mental health crisis. It was tough for me - obviously - but it affected my loved ones as well. Especially my closest family and friends. It’s been almost a year now since the worst of it, and every day presents it’s challenges; some days are tougher than others. In all honesty, I have been feeling really good for only about two months. 

What keeps me going is acknowledging how far I have come. There was a point in my recovery where I could barely read and write. The fact that I am writing this article right now is a miracle on it’s own. Thank you, Jesus!! I could not be more thankful for the restoration I’ve experienced in my life. God has truly restored everything I lost in that time period and restored it more abundantly than before. 

It has been a long road, one that I am still navigating. I am just blessed to be in a place where I feel the Lord’s peace in my life and I understand my worth and my value is in who He is, not in my experience. I am grateful for the lows because they make the highs even more miraculous. Every day I am reminded of God's grace and mercy over me in my toughest time. 

I don’t know what your story is or what your darkest season has held. I do know you’re a child of God, you’re worthy of healing and you’re so SO loved. I know that you have not been given a spirit of fear, but of power, love and sound mind. (2 Timothy 1:7)  When “sound mind” is translated into its original Greek it means “ a mind that is saved”. This implies that no matter what we may feel like, no matter how much we have “lost our minds”, our minds are saved,  delivered, restored and protected by God himself. This verse shows us that fear is not from Him. And we already have power, love and a sound mind accessible to us. 

This verse took on a whole new meaning in my life after I had an experience where according to the world and those around me I had “lost my mind” or “gone cray-cray”. Although my brain was not functioning properly, I knew Jesus had me when the only prayer I could cry out was “Jesus”. I did not know what was going on or what the future held, yet my spirit understood He had already delivered me. Now that I am healthy, I believe I have full access to a sound mind and want to help others live their lives according to a sound mind in Him as well. 

That’s why Sound Mind Society exists. To educate, encourage, and empower. To bring stories to the light and to make a difference for those who have experienced mental health crises themselves or through the eyes of a loved one. 

My hope and prayer is that if you are in a rough place right now, you feel encouraged and that you may see the light at the end of your tunnel. There is hope and healing for you. There is life and life more abundant for you.  (John 10:10) If you’re in a good place, I hope you would be empowered to share your story and encourage others to keep fighting for themselves. If you’re an expert in the field or someone with experience I pray that you would use your voice to educate. 

So let’s start the conversation, let us not be ashamed of our stories, no matter how dark. Let us not be ashamed of our brokenness, our flaws and our faults. Let us live knowing our God has already overcome the world. (John 16:33)  Let us walk in faith and know that we already have a spirit of power, love and sound mind. And may we never forget, perfect love casts out fear. (1 John 4:18)

This is only the beginning!

xx,

Hailey