We don't grow in the dark, growth happens in the light.

I'm challenging you to come out of hiding, to shed secrets, to step beyond shame.

I'm challenging you to stand in the light of truth.

Why go to therapy? Because it's defined work.

When you are emotionally healthy, you are more powerful spiritually.

You're now listening to the In the Light podcast hosted by Dr Anita Phillips.

Hey, hey, hey in the light fam. Welcome back.

It is still December of 2021 and we are working our way steadily to the end of this year.

And before we wrap it up completely, it's really important to me to spend some extra time talking to you about mental illness.

In the light is a conversation at the intersection of mental health, faith and culture.

That's how I describe what we do here.

And I'm so excited that the phrase mental health has worked its way into our everyday language pretty well.

There are still places and peoples and circumstances where maybe not as much.

But it has really gained acceptance for us to talk about how we're doing with regard to our mental health.

But the phrase mental illness has not managed to garner the same embrace yet.

And I do not want to contribute to that problem by not offering enough focus on mental illness,

especially after the two years that we've had and especially around the holidays,

where we can slow down enough to observe things that maybe we were overlooking

in our own lives when we gather together with loved ones for the holidays.

Perhaps it is an opportunity for you to observe how your loved one may have changed

in ways that don't seem for the better.

It's a really important time to pay attention.

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