Sometimes we feel so much in our hearts and want to just *do something* about it all. For some of us, this can include self-injury or even suicide. Most of us do not go that final step, due to a good support system, the Lord graciously preventing it, or some other such reason. Some of us *DO* go through with some horrible action, however, and then the consequences are felt by all.Kristen Anderson attempted suicide after months of emotional anguish. First her grandmother died, then a close friend killed himself. As if this was not enough for such a young one to handle, she was raped. She began to feel weak, worthless, as if it was her fault what happened, like life is a never-ending crapshoot that never gets better. One day, she decided that if she ever were to kill herself, she would have a train do it.This temptation was powerful for one so gripped by depression, fear, and hopelessness. One day at the park, she simply gave into the urge, the desire to "end all the pain", and she laid down on the tracks in front of an oncoing train. The train rolled over her, and she looked over to see her legs away from her. She had SURVIVED!! Later on, she found out that she had lost eight pints of blood. She should have died after losing a maximum of five pints. As an aside, I was a medic in the Army, and I can say that this is true. She medically should have gone into hypovolemic shock, and died.She did not.After she was released from the hospital, she was shocked when a woman told her that the woman was thankful she did not die in the accident, or she would have gone to Hell. Kristen was stunned. How dare the woman such a thing to her! She began to wonder if it was true though. She had been struggling still with depression and now it was worse, as she wondered about this. What *would* have happened? She realized after a talk with a trusted individual that she *would have* gone to Hell, because she had not accepted Christ as Savior. A short time later, the angels in Heaven rejoiced over her accepting God's gift of eternal life.It would be nice to say that she had no more trials, but she did, but the Lord got her through them all. The rest you can learn about by reading the book.The book is fantastic! I simply can not think of enough praises for it. Having given her life over to the Lord, she is very honest and forthcoming, in order to help others. She has a ministry to help those who, like me and others, struggle with these issues. I admit I do as well, and I appreciate her honesty.The only caveat that I have, and this is a big one, is her attitude towards psychiatry. Or rather her *perceived* attitude towards psychiatry. She realized that the doctors were not right about some of her diagnoses. Her counselor realized this as well. Part of her problem is that she had no consistent psychiatrist for very long. I am thankful and proud of her, that she got off the meds, because her depression was temporary, and no lasting causes were to blame. I know that if she heard my story and others, she would understand that we should not view our meds as a sign of weakness. However, I KNOW that in my cogent, non-spiraling out of control moments. At my less than ideal moments, I think I and others, *could* make the mistake of misinterpreting her as saying such a thing, so we may stop meds we need, or not start them if we need to do so. I have read from other Christians on this topic of depression, and they *always* make the distinction between those who are over medicated, and those who are truly diagnosed correctly, and thus need the medications, as is the case with some people.Miss Anderson does not make this distinction, so I must caution people that if they buy this book for one who is struggling with mental illness, please make the distinction yourself. I believe she simply didn't think of this concern, even though she would agree with these other authors and myself. That is the ONLY reason her book is not receiving a perfect rating from me. It is a phenomenal book, and if you want an inspiring story, want to help those who suffer, or are suffering yourself, I recommend it. Please just understand the one weak point, and do NOT view your meds as a weakness. I don't believe she would say they were either. I just wish she had included the distinction.-----I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishers via their BloggingforBooks program. I am obligated to read it and give a review on my blog and on a commercial web site such as Amazon.com. WaterBrook Multnomah emphasizes their desire for honest reviews, whether positive or negative, in order to help them create a better product. The opinions above are my honest viewpoint. I want to thank WaterBrook Multnomah Publishers for allowing me to review this book, and thank you all for reading this. Disclosure: I received a free ebook copy of 'Life, In Spite of Me' by Kristen Jane Anderson fromBlogging for Books in return for my review. All opinions are 100% my own!We've all been hurt. We've all been depressed at one point or another. Have you ever felt like ending your life, though? In 2007 I was diagnosed with a chronic pain condition at the age of 17. I was severely depressed because I knew I was going to have it for the rest of my life. Did I feel like ending my life? Honestly, at one point yes. Thank God my dear mom did everything in her power to get me the help, mentally and physically, that I needed.When I read Life, In Spite of Me by Kristen Jane Anderson I felt her pain. I understand completely what she was going through, except for the fact that three of her friends had died along with her grandmother in two year and mine was a physical pain that caused me to be depressed.After still dealing with the four deaths, she was raped by a person she thought she could trust. After all the emotional and physical pain she went through, on a January night, at age 17 she decided to lay down on train tracks and wait for the train to come and run over her and end her pain and suffering.But she did not die.At the young age of 17, Kristen became a double amputee. God apparently had other plans for her and she survived being run over. Going through her recovery and new life as am amputee is purely amazing. I absolutely love how Kristen did not hold back. She was honest, even if the details were grimm.The part I love is when Kristen finds God. It was such an amazing part of a book, and definitely one I could connect with her on. Since losing my mom in May (actually exactly 4 months ago today), I found God. Through something terrible happening, both to me and Kristen, we both found love in God.I definitely recommend this book, 100%. Especially anyone contemplating suicide. Kristen doesn't glamorize suicide once, which is the way it should be. Everyone deserves hope when they think they'll never have any again. Kristen is good at doing that. Life is a precious thing and things will get better, no matter how far down you feel you are.After reading this book I did a Google search on Kristen Jane Anderson and found that she has created a non-profit ministry called Reaching You Ministries. You can find out more about Kristen and the ministry by visiting the website and Facebook!
What do You think about Život Napriek Mojej Vôli (2012)?
Truely amazing. I was moved and cried.
—casafornia
