A Supplication Litany for those who struggle with Depression and Anxiety

We live in such tumultuous times indeed. Inspired by the Holy Spirit, I was led to reflect upon the lives of the Saints who struggled with troubles too, and hence this Litany of Supplication came into being. My prayer is that it will help you as it has aided me. These are but some of the many saints whom we can call upon for speedy help to be our buddies to journey with us in our difficult moments.

A Supplication Litany for those who struggle with Depression and Anxiety

(Written by the Grace of God, by Brian Bartholomew Tan)

Opening Prayer

Abba Father, You who made the human heart, body, and mind know most well our weaknesses, limitations, broken-ness, triggers, and propensity to things that displease You. You also know our deepest needs, As the Psalmist says in Psalm 130, “Out of the depths I cry out to You O Lord, hear the voice of my supplications!” and as Baruch 3: 1-3 says, “O Lord God Almighty, God of Israel, the weary and afflicted soul in anguish, the spirits who are dismayed call to you. Hear us, Oh Lord, for You are the God of mercy; and have mercy on us, who have sinned against you: for You are enthroned forever, while we are perishing forever.” Help us to surrender everything to You! Jesus, we surrender everything to You! You take care of everything!

L: Lord have mercy.
R: Lord have mercy.

L: Christ have mercy.
R: Christ have mercy.

L: Lord have mercy.
R: Lord have mercy

For those suffering from Anxiety, Depression, and other mental disorders:

St. Ignatius of Loyola, you who suffered from anxious scrupulosity, perfectionism, unrest, irritability, self-doubt, and suicidal ideation, pray for us.
St. Augustine of Hippo, you who found yourself struggling with passions, anger, mood swings, psychomotor agitation and restlessness, and severe depression, pray for us.
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, you who suffered from deep loneliness, melancholy, grief, troubling financial problems, and the loss of family and friends, pray for us.
St. Jean Marie Vianney, you who did so much good, but struggled with intense low self-esteem and who thought yourself useless and worthless, pray for us.
St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein), you who experienced intense depression and who was scorned and humiliated because of your ethnicity, intellect, cultural heritage; and because you were a woman, pray for us.
St. Therese of Lisieux, you who suffered tremendous anxiety, social anxiety, separation anxiety, and scrupulosity, pray for us.
St. Benedict Joseph Labre, you who suffered the intense loneliness of being an outcast, and you who were considered eccentric and unstable by different monks in different monasteries, pray for us.
St. Christina the Astonishing, you who suffered through seizures, and were considered insane by many, to the point of being jailed twice for your behaviour, pray for us.
St. Drogo, you who blamed yourself for the death of your mother, upon learning that she died at your birth; you who carry the weight of intense guilt, pray for us.
St. Oscar Romero, you who struggled with scrupulosity and who were eventually diagnosed with obsessive compulsive disorder, pray for us.
St. Alphonsa Muttathupadathu, you who lost your mother at a very young age, and suffered from a lifetime of illnesses, followed by trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder, when an intruder broke into your cell, leading to a loss in memory, pray for us.
St. Albert Chmielowski, you who had to amputate your leg due to an exploding grenade in the Polish Insurrection of 1863-1864, and who became an accomplished artist; you who suffered a nervous breakdown and were hospitalised for depression, pray for us.
St. John Henry Newman, you who suffered deep and troubling anxiety, that despite turning to the playing of the violin to relax, you still suffered a nervous breakdown; you who failed to attain to your desired professorship, and were later labelled by your friends as a failure who had wasted your life and your talents, pray for us.
Venerable Rutilio Grande, you who grew up in poverty, and was diagnosed with chronic anxiety, and catatonic schizophrenia, pray for us.
Servant of God, Rose Hawthorne Lathrop, you who suffered from post-partum depression and had your son taken away from you to protect him. Pray for us.

For those suffering from Addiction and Co-dependency:

St. Mark Ji Tianxiang, you who were a doctor of repute, but fell into opium addiction due to a stomach ailment, and who was excommunicated by the Church, yet remained faithful in showing up every day for the Daily Eucharist, and who was eventually made a martyr of the Church, pray for us.
St. Camillus de Lellis, you who were addicted to gambling and was by 1574 rendered penniless, yet received God’s call to ordination, and dedicated your life to the care of the sick, pray for us.
Venerable Matt Talbot, you who were a severe alcoholic and addicted to drink, pray for us.

For those suffering from Chronic Illnesses:

St. Lidwina, you who after your accident lived with gangrenous wounds and paralysis, that were exacerbated by a lifetime of pain and nausea, pray for us.
St. Albert the Great, you who presented with the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease towards the end of your brilliant life, pray for us.
St. Roch, you who were stricken by the plague and received a miraculous recovery, pray for us.
Blessed Chiara Badano, you who suffered from an aggressive bone cancer, osteogenic sarcoma at the age of 16, yet united your pains to the sufferings of Jesus, pray for us.
Blessed Carlos Acutis, you who suffered from leukemia, yet offered your suffering for the Lord, the Pope, and the Church, pray for us.

For those suffering from Estranged Relationships and Family Issues:

St. Eugene de Mazanod, you who grew up with parents who fought constantly amid interference from your grandmother, and a neurotic aunt, and suffered the ramifications of your parents’ divorce in the 18^th century, pray for us.
St. Clare of Assisi, you whose parents and relatives tried to force you into marriage despite your calling to the religious life, and you who struggled with a dysfunctional father who would often vent his frustrations upon you and your sister, Agnes, pray for us.
St. Jane de Chantal, you who were widowed at a very young age and forced to live with your abusive and cruel father-in-law, yet chose to respond in charity and love, pray for us.
St. Gianna Molla, you who were diagnosed with a fibroma in your uterus, but who bravely chose to opt for the option of removing the fibroma with no guarantee of recovery, so as to protect your yet to be born child. You who prioritised family over even your own life and gave birth to your daughter safely, but died soon after, pray for us.
St. Thomas Aquinas, you who desired to join a group of poor friars, and thus shocked your wealthy family so, that your mother sent your brothers after you, to kidnap you, tempt you out of your chastity by sending a prostitute to beguile you (whom you chased away by brandishing a fiery poker brand), and imprison you for more than a year in your family castle, pray for us.
St. Louise de Marillac, you who lost your parents from a very young age and who became an orphan, pray for us.

For those struggling with Being Disappointed/Disappointing Children:

St. Monica, you whose child gave you worry after worry, and heartache after heartache, and whose child was a Gnostic and heretic for many years before his conversion to Catholicism; you who wept daily for your recalcitrant and disappointing child, pray for us.
St. Clotide, you whose children squabbled and fought relentlessly over their inheritance, causing you deep sorrow to the point of being fed up with them and moving away from them from Burgundy to Tours in France, pray for us.

For those struggling with Workplace Conflict:

St. Noel Chabanel, you who were stuck in working conditions that were toxic and who found yourself constantly irritated or judgemental of those you were trying to help, causing you to feel stuck and suffocated, pray for us.
St. Walter of Pontoise, you who were appointed in a position you did not desire in a place that was corrupt and fraught with the lack of discipline, pray for us.
St. Benedict of Nursia, you who were not accepted by the monks you toiled for, and who suffered attempted assassination by these very same monks who put poison in your cup, pray for us.
St. Louis Marie de Montfort, you whose co-workers were jealous of your good work, and who tried to hinder your efforts, to the point of lacing your drink with poison, pray for us.
St. John of the Cross, you who were persecuted countless times by your fellow priests, and even put into prison by them, pray for us.
St. Joan of Arc, you who were unjustly tried as a heretic, pray for us.

For those struggling with their Studies:

St. Therese of Lisieux, you who struggled with school bullies and truly disliked school, pray for us.
St. Joseph Cupertino, you who constantly attained ludicrously low grades, and was terrible at being a student, pray for us.
Blessed Pier Giorgio, you who struggled with school your entire life and had to repeat your academic year; you who joined our Lord two examinations short of your degree, pray for us.

For those suffering from the Ramifications of Abuse and Trauma:

St. Dymphna, you who were 11 years old, when your father was widowed and who began to make sexual advances towards you, yet you stood firm, saying, “It is not what God wants,” causing your father to stab you to death. Yet you forgave him in your last breath. Pray for us.
St. Agatha, you who were tortured by being forced to enter a brothel, and who faced unspeakable abuses of you having your breasts cut off and rolling over hot coals, by the man whose advances you declined, pray for us.
St. Germaine, you who suffered horrible abuse – having boiling water poured over you, and made to eat with the dogs after your father remarried. You who were resented by your own father, and who would overwork you in the fields, and leave you for dead when you had tuberculosis, pray for us.
St. Maria de Goretti, you who were stabbed to death for refusing the sexual assault of another youth, pray for us.

For those suffering from Sexual Struggles:

St. Mary of Egypt, you who were a prostitute as of the age of 12, and who joined a pilgrimage to seek out more sexual clients, yet found conversion with Mother Mary and the true relic of the Cross, pray for us.
St. John, the Long-suffering, you who were tormented by your sexual desires and lust, pray for us.
St. Moses the Ethiopian, you who struggled with the vestiges of your past life as a bandit, and the rage of violent and lustful thoughts, pray for us.

Holy Wounds of Jesus, immerse your sons and daughters struggling with same-sex attractions and desires, with your tender love and mercy.

For those who suffer from Divorce and Single-parenting:

St. Margaret of Cortona, you who experience intense bouts of self-loathing, and who lived as a single mother in wedlock out of an affair as mistress to a nobleman, yet found conversion and healing from the shame of your past, pray for us.
St. Helen of Constantinople, you whose husband divorced you for a more politically advantageous marriage, pray for us.

For those who struggle with/ as Youth and Children-at-risk:

St. Gabriel Possenti, you who were known as a ladies’ man and a partygoer, and who dedicated your life to God after your conversion, even to the point of confronting mercenaries who were attacking a girl at gunpoint, pray for us.

For those who have Re-married and/or live within Step-families:

St. Adelaide of Burgundy, you who remarried into another political family after your husband died, pray for us.
St. Thomas More, you who remarried after your first wife died so as to have a step-mother for your children, pray for us.

For those who struggle with Anger Management Issues:

St. Jerome, you who were a wayward youth, and who lived a life of promiscuity, had an abrasive personality and was easily angered and upset. Pray for us.
St. Francis de Sales, you who struggled with anger when certain jokes were made about you, and took things people said most personally. Pray for us.

Those who struggle with an Attachment to Material Things:

St. Angela of Foligno, you who spent most of your life seeking wealth, material possessions, and bodily pleasure. You who experienced conversion at the age of 40, pray for us.

Those who struggle with Doubt:

St. Theresa of Calcutta, you who suffered a deep dark night of the soul and who could not feel the presence of God in the last years of your life, yet chose to surrender completely to God and thus conquered your doubt, pray for us.
St. Paul of the Cross, you who struggled with a spiritual darkness for over 45 years, and experienced, interior desolation, depression, and great doubt, pray for us.

For those who struggle with Debt, and Difficult Financial Issues:

St. Bernadette, you who were born into an abjectly impoverished and poor family, and struggled financially for 35 years due to illness, pray for us.
St. Charles Borromeo, you who incurred a lifetime of debt so as to feed 60,000 people during the plague of 1576, pray for us.
St. Ignatius of Loyola, you who had to beg for money in order to get a university education, pray for us.
St. John Bosco, you whose father died when you were two, leaving you in poverty, and having at that tender age to help your mother make a living, pray for us.

For Those who struggle with Unemployment and Underemployment:

St. Joseph, holy spouse of Mary, and provider of the Holy Family on earth, you who grappled with major life transitions, job loss – losing your tools and livelihood of carpentry, needing to re-establish yourself in new lands, and to compound the issues, were a political refugee. Pray for us.
Sts. Nicander and Marcian, soldiers for Rome, you who gave up your careers when the imperial edicts were published against Christians, pray for us.
St. Cajetan, you who were placed in less than dignified work conditions, yet provided much employment for many through the amazing things you started, pray for us.
St. Nectarios of Aegina, you who were beaten at your first job, and denied your rightful wages, and later when you were ordained bishop, had your fellow colleagues spread rumours about you, causing you to be demoted, leaving you homeless, jobless, and struggling, pray for us.

For those who struggle with Thievery:

St. Dismas, you are the repentant thief who was crucified alongside with Jesus. Pray for us.

For those who are Caught Up in the Occult:

Blessed Bartolo Longo, you who were raised Catholic but strayed, and entered into a world of the spiritualism, the occult, and unholy ties, yet found repentance and complete ransom in returning to the Catholic faith you forsook, to become a third order Dominican, building orphanages, schools, and charitable organisations, and the Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary, all the while trusting in our Blessed Mother Mary and propagating the rosary. Pray for us.

Closing Prayer:

Heavenly Father, we know that by the experiences of these saints who had pasts like we do, that we are not alone in our struggle. Help us to affix our eyes upon you, and transform us by the Grace of Your Holy Fire and Love. Our past to your forgiveness and mercy, our present to your surprising providence, and our future under your authority. Mother Mary, Undoer of Knots, intercede for us and help us to undo the knots within us, in our hearts and minds. Help us, Mother of Christ and our Mother!

A Supplication Litany for those who struggle with Depression and Anxiety