Emotional pain + failure of our mental health system = Tragedy.
Who could see this video below and not know that Pastor Rick Warren is correct, we need to revamp the system?
Just wanted to be sure you saw this from Piers Morgan CNN last night:
Rick Warren on his late son: "Matthew was not afraid to die...he was afraid of pain."
http://piersmorgan.blogs.cnn.com/2013/09/17/rick-warren-on-his-late-son-matthew-was-not-afraid-to-die-he-was-afraid-of-pain/?hpt=pm_t1
Less than six months ago, Christian pastor Rick Warren lost his son to a self-inflicted gunshot wound, an emotional and heartbreaking end to a life defined by battles with mental health. Joined by his wife Kay, this evening Warren joins "Piers Morgan Live" for the couple's first media appearance since Matthew's passing, describing in great detail the demons their son battled: "Matthew was not afraid to die. He was afraid of pain. I remember 10 years ago, when he was 17, he came to me sobbing," reveals Warren, offering an absolutely heart-wrenching story about his late son.
"He said, 'daddy,' he said, 'it's really clear, I'm not going to get any better. You know, we've gone to the best doctors, the best hospitals, the best treatment therapists. Everything ... prayer, everything you could imagine ... good support.' And he says, 'it's real clear I'm not going to get any better, so why can't I just die.'"
Asked by the host for Warren's reaction to his son at that time, the senior pastor of Saddleback Church shared his message: "I said, 'Matthew, the reason why, is there is a purpose, even in our pain. And I am not willing to just give up and say that the solution isn't there. You might give up, but as your father, as your mother, we're not ever giving up, that we won't find the solution,'" he explains to Piers Morgan. "I really believe Matthew could have been a great advocate for children in the world. He was an amazingly compassionate kid." Watch the above clip as Warren goes on to explain the ways in which Matthew often sought out others struggling, hoping to help ease their pain.
(Rick's original July 26 statement on the state of the mental health system is at http://saddleback.com/blogs/newsandviews/news--views-72613/)
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