oh hey guys. I sat down with my friend Kasey to tell the story of our friendship. We realized as we were talking about this podcast and our friendship that our friendship has a lot of layers to it and we only gave the cliff notes version here. (and it cuts off pretty abruptly at the end and that was not on purpose, but we never got the chance to wrap it up so it just kind of .. ends. lol)
I haven’t really found ways to express how crucial having a friend that sees me has been to my healing process. I didn’t know I needed that and maybe I didn’t really need it. But Kasey is the friend that has helped me to tell the truth to myself. She’s made space for my ugliest thoughts and most gruesome emotions. She’s the only friend I have that has experienced the depths of mental health highs and lows in the same way that I have. Having someone I can release those feelings and thoughts to and have them received and held, not criticized or viewed as spiritual liabilities, has freed me to actually release those things and not hold on to them with fear.
It’s hard for me to trust others inside of Christian friendship. Especially as a woman who loves Jesus deeply and has suffered intensely with issues that are seen as spiritual weaknesses. Kasey has never seen my love for Jesus and my mental health struggles as things that oppose each other. She’s never made me feel like my anxiety was a lack of faith or that my depression was me choosing darkness over light. She’s never made me feel like those things are my fault.
These days, anxiety and depression don’t have a grip on me like they used to and that’s what the story this unfettered series is telling you. But stories aren’t complete without main characters and Kasey is most definitely a main character in my healing story.
So — what you’re about to listen to is really just a conversation between two friends who have been through a lot together. I hope we’ll be able to sit down in the future and have some more focused conversations, but until then, I hope you enjoy listening to our slightly unhinged late night chat!
one of these pictures is a nice picture. the other is … just us. lol.
a conversation with my friend