Raise your hand if you have never failed anything.

If you raised your hand, this blog isn’t for you.

For the rest of us, dealing with setbacks is one of the toughest aspects of mental health recovery. When things seem to be going well, a setback feels almost inevitable. It’s like I am anticipating a crash back to earth.

What then? Should I pack it in? Is the fight pointless? Maybe many of us are cynical because we have tried to implement steps and have found ourselves failing miserably.

Good news. A setback is just that, a setback. It’s a bump in the road. That’s all it is. You can relax.

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I think we tend to have an unrealistic idea of what recovery looks like. We think that once I know what I need to do, everything should be peaches and cream. That would be nice if it were realistic, but sadly, it rarely is.

When I first learned to ride a bike, I was not Lance Armstrong (still not but regardless). I fell off the bike. If it weren’t for the countless pads my mom stuffed me in, it’s likely I would not be here to write this. I needed those because I was building a totally new habit.

When we are developing healthy cognitive strategies, we are quite literally rewiring our brain. Not only are you learning something new, but you are unlearning something that came naturally. It’s quite difficult.

You are going to fail in implementing these strategies. That’s okay!

When you fail, you are not back at square one.

Give yourself grace. God does. Look at Paul’s mindset while he was in prison (pretty significant setback from his perspective).

but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead…

Paul wasn’t dwelling on his deep failures of the past. He wasn’t even viewing his troubling circumstances in the present. He knew he was dearly loved and looked after. His mindset was to keep moving forward. To keep striving toward the goal of knowing the God who loved Him in a deep way.

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You were designed to live mentally healthy. You are not condemned to spend the rest of your life wallowing in your OCD, depression or anxiety. God wants so dearly for you to experience the “life to the full” that Christ promised.

The road to the full life comes with many hinderances. Do not give up. In fact, if you are facing failure, that probably means you tried something new. That is faith. “God is a rewarder of those who seek Him.” He is so proud of you for fighting and clinging to Him. And like the weary prodigal, He longs to welcome you stumbling into His loving embrace.

Embrace the setbacks as part of the journey, but also know that you are even closer to your goal.