There was a time when Pastor Seth Perry of Elim Lutheran Church in Scandia, MN, didn’t talk about his past and the 14 years he spent failing to manage an addiction and a bipolar diagnosis.
“I tried alcohol and drugs at age 15,” Perry recalls. “It was the number one escape from all of my issues. If I was being bullied at school or if I was having issues with my parents who were arguing and moving towards divorce or, if I had issues with a girl, I could drown my sorrows.”
That’s exactly what Perry did until things got really bad. “I was spending $100 a day on my drug of choice and had four stays in the hospital. That’s how low I got.”
Finding and helping others at their low is the motivation behind “The Mental Health Faith Forum” on May 3 in Stillwater as well as a docuseries and podcast titled “Our Stigma” launching in May. Both are hosted by Perry who believes connection can help people struggling with addiction and mental health challenges. He says his life turned around when he decided to reach out.
“I was so physically ill I felt like I was going to die and that’s not something that a 29-year-old should be facing.” Perry got into recovery and it spoke to him. “It’s 15 years later and I am still clean and sober.”
Eight years after getting sober Perry finished his master’s degree in theology and became a pastor. He took on the new role keeping quiet about his past. “I realized the whole time that I had been in church, in school, in seminary, in my internship site as a pastor, I had not shared with anyone that I had bipolar disorder. I thought that people would judge me.”
The silence from stigma worsened Perry’s mental health condition but also opened his eyes to a big problem in faith communities: addiction and mental health aren’t talked about in church. “I think the biggest thing in Christian faith communities is that we are told to take everything to God. But honestly, for myself, I know that God created psychiatrists, God created counselors and God created medical intervention for me to stay well.”
As Perry spoke up about his struggles, he started getting approached by congregations looking to improve communication on addiction and mental health in their own faith communities. Perry decided to create a podcast and applied for funding through the Washington County Opioid Settlement Council and was approved. On May 1, Perry’s docuseries podcast and study resource titled “Our Stigma” will debut. Two days later, on Saturday, May 3, Perry is hosting “The Mental Health Faith Forum,” a large-scale event at Trinity Lutheran Church in Stillwater that brings together county and state officials, faith leaders and diverse community representatives, including Native American, African American, rural American, Somali, and Hmong groups.
“Diversity was key to me.” Perry recognizes the racial and cultural disparities in mental health and addiction treatment. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently reported that
nearly 5,000 more people of color died from overdoses in 2023 than in 2021, while deaths among white people dropped by more than 6,000.
“Faith communities need to hear about it, think about it and reckon with it and with their faith and then come together and discuss why this is happening and what we can do,” Perry added.
The keynote speaker for “The Mental Health Faith Forum” on May 3 is Kody Green, a mental health advocate, influencer, and author. Green, who grew up in the rural Midwest, lives with schizophrenia, is a recovering addict and was formerly incarcerated. Green brings a powerful perspective on resilience and recovery.
“The Mental Health Faith Forum” takes place at Trinity Lutheran Church in Stillwater from 9 a.m. to 12:30 a.m. Register here: https://spas-elca.org/event/mental-health-faith-forum/
Check out the trailer to Pastor Perry’s docuseries, podcast and study resource “Our Stigma” at: https://youtu.be/ISoTvy2fHf4