“Sharing My Faith with My Therapist,” For the Strength of Youth, Feb. 2022.
The Theme and Me
Youth share how they are living the words of the Young Women and Aaronic Priesthood Quorum Themes
Sharing My Faith with My Therapist
“I will help prepare the world for the Savior’s return by inviting all to come unto Christ and receive the blessings of His Atonement.”
Photograph courtesy of Ethan Trujillo
I have anxiety, so I go to therapy every week. In the first few sessions, I avoided talking to my therapist about my beliefs. I’ve been bullied for being different, and I was afraid of being vulnerable again.
Last January, though, my dad traveled from California, USA, to New Mexico, USA, to ordain me to the office of a teacher. My parents are divorced, so my therapist wondered why my dad would come 1,000 miles to see me and my brothers for only a couple of days.
I thought, “OK, here it goes!” I explained that my dad ordained me to the priesthood and how special that is.
That opened up the floodgates! We started talking more openly about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I found out she has relatives who are members of the Church. She told me that hearing my beliefs and experiences helps her understand the Church better.
There’s no amazing conversion story that’s come out of this. My therapist isn’t interested in joining the Church. But it’s big for me—talking with my therapist has given me the confidence to not stay quiet about what I believe.
I used to be afraid of talking about religion, but with lots of practice, I can just jump straight into it. I have no doubt that Heavenly Father has a work for me to do. My work may be different from what other people are doing, but who else can share the gospel with the people I know, like my therapist? That’s my work.
We were all placed on this earth to learn and to grow. We can be Heavenly Father’s hands as we love other people and plant little gospel seeds in their hearts. So, whenever a missionary opportunity comes up, I take it because I feel the Spirit with me—and I love every minute of it.
The author lives in New Mexico, USA.