Any support groups I can join?

[danielrvo]

I have been dealing with depression and anxiety for 20 years now. Most of the time I have it under control, but my situation has changed since last august 2022 (3 months ago) when I moved to a one bedroom apartment. I felt ok at first but now I feel lonely. I had some health issues but when I saw my gp and examined me, she didn’t find anything. I am always scared that I could have a serious disease and the check ups I have are normal. My whole family is overseas and I’m terrified no one would be by my side if I become severely ill. I’m going to see a specialist this Wednesday but I was wondering if there are any support groups that I can join and share my experience with other people. It’s so hard to be like this. Sometimes I feel like I’m the only one suffering of this.

Thank you.

[Sophie_M]

Hello danielrvo,.

Thank you very much for choosing to join us here in the community forums. We do hope you will gain as much from being here as we will from having you! Anxiety around health, especially when far from loved ones and home, must be a really heavy experience, and we are saddened you are going through this. 

Do you have any social froups through study or work that put on events? We wonder if it would be supportive for you to have more socially time generally, as well as support groups specifically? Nevertheless we would love to help out, and we do have a referral base we could look up for you, so please reach out anytime on 1300 22 4636, or click here to start a webchat.

No doubt many of our community members will also have recommendations, so please keep reaching out and letting us know how you are. We have our fingers crossed for you for wednesday!

Sincerely,

Sophie M.

[yggdrasil]

Hi danielrvo,

Thank you so much for posting on here. There are indeed peer support groups you can join to talk about these issues. There are two in Victoria I know of called ARCVic and ADAVIC - they also do phone and online counselling those in other states can access. If you contact these orgs they may help you find groups in your area. I participated in such groups for years and believe it really helped me see how common these problems are, and that I wasn't a "loser" for going through them. All kinds of people experience these issues.

As Sophie_M said, joining some social groups more generally can also be helpful - I have found that when I'm in a depressed/anxious state, joining groups that focus on a well defined activity, where conversation is optional, help ease me into socialising when the depression/anxiety is shouting at me to stay completely isolated. In the past I have participated in weekly board game groups - these are great because you can just focus on the game if you don't want to socialise, or have light fun chats on the side when you feel like it. Other people I met from depression support groups have used similar strategies - such as joining cryptic crossword groups, or choirs. These days I go to skateparks almost every day - these are great cos I can just skate and keep to myself if I'm not feeling social, but when I am there's always someone I know at the parks to chat to. Even when you're not chatting with others you are sort of socialising indirectly when people cheer each other on etc. Also remember there's nothing wrong with being introverted!

Thanks again for posting on here, and please feel free to tell us more, or let us know if you find any helpful support groups. All the best,

yggdrasil