No One Should Struggle Alone

Strengthening Mental Health

I’ve sat with people on some of the hardest days of their lives.

Not on stages. Not in meetings. In living rooms. In hospital rooms. In quiet moments when everything feels like it’s falling apart.

And one thing shows up again and again:

People are carrying more than they can carry on their own.

Sometimes it’s anxiety that won’t let up. Sometimes it’s depression that drains the energy out of everything. Sometimes it’s grief, stress, or burnout that just keeps building.

And too often, people feel like they have to handle it by themselves.

I’m running for Congress because we can’t keep ignoring mental health.

Right now, too many people are struggling without support.

They can’t find a provider nearby. They can’t afford the care they need. Or they wait weeks, sometimes months, just to talk to someone.

So they keep going.

They go to work. They take care of their families. They show up the best they can.

But underneath, they’re worn down.

That’s not sustainable.

And it’s not a personal failure.

It’s a gap in the system.

We treat mental health like it’s separate from everything else, when it touches everything.

It affects how people work. How they parent. How they show up in relationships. How they get through the day.

And when people don’t have support, that pressure builds.

Here’s what needs to change:

• Mental health care needs to be easier to access, especially in rural communities

• It needs to be affordable, so people don’t have to choose between care and their bills

• And it needs to be part of how we think about health, not an afterthought

Because no one should have to wait until things fall apart to get help.

As a pastor, I’ve seen what happens when people finally get the support they need.

The weight starts to lift. Clarity returns. Hope comes back.

Not all at once. But enough to keep going.

And I’ve also seen what happens when that support isn’t there.

People isolate. They withdraw. They try to push through until they can’t anymore.

That’s where we are right now in too many places.

We expect people to carry more than they should have to carry alone.

But it doesn’t have to be that way.

We can build a system where help is actually within reach. Where people don’t have to navigate it alone. Where getting support is normal, not complicated.

Because at the end of the day, this isn’t just about policy.

It’s about people.

And no one should have to struggle alone.