Am I depressed?

[Ibby]

Hi,

New here. How do you know if you suffer from depression? I've done the Beyond Blue questionnaires etc which say 'yes, you are' but I'm scared about going down a path I maybe can't back out of (eg medication, counselling etc)

I have felt for a while that I may suffer from depression and/or anxiety. It seems to come and go, especially the depression (very 'event based' if something goes wrong) - this usually manifests as feeling physically ill in the stomach, castrophising things, becoming very tired and irritable etc. But sometimes I feel perfectly fine.

All in all, I have been not sleeping well recently, have been irritable at my partner, eating poorly, and have zero sex drive - so I feel like something is wrong. I just don't know if a doctor will be able to help, or if I'm wasting their time.

Anxiety-wise as well, I'm panicking about talking to a doctor because I don't know what to say, or if it will help, or if I'll end up being medicated forever and feel like I'm not 'me'.

Does anyone else go through this? And/or have any tips?

[Candombera]

Hi Ibby,

Welcome to the forums. It's a great place to start asking for help.

I think that you already know that you have depression/anxiety because of so many things that are not right.
I understand how you're feeling because I've been there myself. And I got through it.

It's really important that you book an appointment to see a doctor, as this will be the first step on your recovery journey. You need treatment and perhaps medication. It's not going to be forever, but if you want t get better, this is the way. Depression and anxiety are not things that come and go. If you don't treat them, they will for sure come back, so better to deal with them on the early stages.

You don't need fancy words to talk to a doctor about your feelings. Just go with the symptoms as you described here. They will understand. They know. It's more common than what we think. The problem is that people don't talk about mental health issues enough, but if you start talking... you might find there are a lot of people experiencing the same as you.

I hope that you start feeling better soon. With the right treatment, there is a way out. You just need to find yours.
Please come back and let us know how you go. We're here to help.

[geoff]

hi Ibby, you say that the questionnaires have indicated that you could be suffering from depression/anxiety, that's the aim of these to ask you different questions to gain a sense of how you are feeling, and certainly the symptoms you mention indicate that you might be, although we aren't qualified to diagnose you, if you were my sister and she said exactly the same to me then I would say that she does have depression, but you really need to have a doctor's opinion.
Depression and anxiety both happen together, however there maybe times when one is more dominant than the other, but it's not uncommon for you to be able to enjoy the company of friends, but that's only a temporary feeling, because as soon as they go, back you go into depression.
I was able to do this, have some fun when friends were around, although we were drinking alcohol, but as soon as they left back I would go, this can be confusing for your family, partner or spouse, because as soon as you are showing signs of happiness they believe that our depression has gone, but disappointed when we want to crawl under the doona and hide away.
All you have to say to your doctor is what you have told us, so print it out, if that's possible and then hand it over to them, and any medication they suggest will start on a low dose, just to see how your body copes with them, and there maybe a time when you are able to stop taking them, however I've been taking them for 20 odd years and will have to continue, because if for any reason I don't take them, then back I go into the black hole, but as soon as I take my dose, I'm back to feeling good.
Never be afraid to talk with your doctor, you need help to overcome this, and hope you can get back to us. Geoff.

[Jimny]

I can probably relate to query, and concern about seeking health. I was exactly in the same boat as you a couple of years ago. I had this sense, that things were not right, and I found my self investigating what this thing "depression" was like you are doing right now. There is no harm in seeing your doctor and getting some advice.

If counseling or medications are advised, do your homework if you have the energy. Find a therapist you get along with and understand what medications can (and can't) do for you. Nothing is forced on you, you must initiate your own recovery.

One fiendish trait of depression, is that each episode of depression makes you more likely to experience another, and another, and so on. The sooner you find successful help, the better. I found therapy, behavior modification (limit alcohol, good sleep, lots of exercises, etc.), changing my environment, and SSRI medication to be work for me. I now beginning to become more social, before this I was essentially a recluse for several years. Keep a mood journal, which may help find triggers.

I wish you the very best in finding the treatment that works for you.

[demonblaster]

Hi Ibby 🙂

I suggest as well that you do seek medical assistance, honestly they can help a lot and because you're aware somethings not right it's the right thing for you to do for yourself.

Not for everyone fair enough but sometimes it is hard to express how we're feeling, do you think maybe putting it in writing could help. That way there's no interruptions either when you're talking and the mind blocks or forgets too. Often I think just in normal convo oh forgot to say such and such.

Be interested to hear how you go

Best

[Ibby]

Hi all

belated thank you for the responses. Unfortunately I haven’t taken action yet but with a few things happening in life at the moment, it reminded me of this thread I started a year ago, and now I’m just trying to work up the courage to talk to my doctor.

Again, a big thank you for your responses, they have been helpful 🙂

[geoff]

Hello Ibby, whether you come back late or not isn't really the issue here, just as long as feel comfortable talking to us, then that's more important.

At the moment can I suggest that you write down what is concerning yourself, now and in the past, all of these matters are what keep coming back to constantly affect your life, jot them down on a piece of paper, perhaps photocopy so you can add onto it if needed.

Pass this over to your doctor, then they will know exactly what's troubling you.

It gets you over this hurdle you are afraid of having to face.

Hope this helps you.

Geoff.

[Ibby]

Will do, thanks Geoff. My biggest thing now is working past my anxiety to actually talk to my doctor. I basically need to be air dropped in with no warning so I can’t back out of it 🙂