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Welcome to my new Blog About Saints! I started off with one of my favorites! 🙂

SAINT DYMPHNA OF GHEEL

If you have anxiety, depression, or any other mental illness, then you know how unpleasant and uncomfortable these feelings truly are. Our mind becomes a battlefield.

Although many of us believe that we are strong enough to battle these feelings on our own, there are times that we just can’t. Sometimes we need someone or something to get us through; to survive; to be and feel “normal”–this could be through medication, art, writing, friends, Netflix, etc. But what we seem to forget is that there is a power that is bigger than all of US.

THIS being God and those who are in connection to God–SAINTS. There are thousands and thousands of Saints that are recognized by the Catholic Church. A countless number of these Saints are believed to be protectors of people or places–a Patron Saint.

With this in mind, the Patron Saint who protects and guides those with mental illnesses (as we discussed previously) is–Saint Dymphna of Gheel.

Dymphna was the daughter of an Irish King (named Damon), as well as a beautiful Catholic mother. At the age of 14, her mother passed away. This grief caused her father to become very angry. When he realized that his daughter looked very much like his late wife, he decided to try and make her his bride.

Not only was Dymphna terrified by this notion, she also took a vow of chastity. As a result, she fled from her father with the priest who baptized her (named Gerebernus) to Belgium. They eventually took refuge within a small community of hermits at Gheel.

Eventually, the king was able to locate both his daughter and Gerebernus. He ordered his men to kill them both. Despite their efforts, they were only able to kill Gerebernus, which angered the king even more. To finish what his men couldn’t do in the first place–he took his own sword and cut off his daughter’s head.

It is believed that many of those who have prayed at St. Dymphna’s grave site have been cured. A church was built and dedicated to Dymphna in 1340 in Gheel (where her relics still remain). Essentially, due to the agony that Dymphna had to endure (because of her father), she became the Patroness of those with mental illnesses. Her feast day is May 15th.

Resource: Gallick, Sarah. The Big Book of Women Saints. HarperCollins, 2007.

Alexa Findlay:

Alexa Findlay is a graduate student pursuing her Masters in English. She has a passion for writing, reading, and crafting. She is obsessed with hagiography and reading about each Saint’s life.