I remember the look of shock on her face when I mentioned in passing that I was on an antidepressant. She was like, “But you’re a Christian counselor!” “Yea,” I said, “but it’s not like oncologists never get cancer.” She looked at me, startled, “Oh, I never thought about it that way before.”

Now don’t anyone go hating on my friend in the comments. (If you’re reading this, friend, we’re good. We are so good.) Her tone wasn’t judgmental. She was just boxed in by this false belief floating around that there are certain people who don’t get mental illness, Christian mental health professionals making the list. But the truth is, any of us can get a mental illness, just like any of us can get the flu.

So, when it happens to you, go see a counselor. Get on some meds if you need to. It’ll be OK. It’s just one of the things we humans have to deal with in this broken world. And if you’re looking for help you can pick up and flip through, my favorite is by pastor David Murray: Christians Get Depressed Too;(. It’s short, compassionate, practical. I love that it’s short. In his opinion, depressed people shouldn’t be made to read long books. Oh my gosh, he totally gets it.