Depression

Depression affects people in Australia every day. Share your own story and learn about other member’s experiences with depression.

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BeyondBlue Hello! Read this if you're not sure how to get started
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Welcome This section of the Beyond Blue Forums is for talking about our experiences with depression. There are lots of chats about how it makes us feel, what it’s like to live with depression and what has worked to help in these times. Thank you for ... View more

Welcome This section of the Beyond Blue Forums is for talking about our experiences with depression. There are lots of chats about how it makes us feel, what it’s like to live with depression and what has worked to help in these times. Thank you for coming this far, we know it can be really hard to take these steps if depression is in your life - we see you and think this is a great step. To get the most out of this space we have a few tips: Get involved. The Forums work best for you when you get active and post where you can. Now, we know that can be really hard, especially when you are experiencing depression. So, if you can post something supportive to someone else here, that would be an incredible start. Speak from the heart. This community wants to know how YOU feel and what has worked for YOU. We trust that you have something unique to say and we can’t wait to hear it. Check in. Lots of the discussions in this section of the Forums have been going for years and they are some of the richest conversations we have. Keep checking in to get new ideas and offer your support. We know it can be tough to start, but when you are ready we want to hear your thoughts. If you need some time to get to know the community, that's okay! Have a look around and see where you want to get involved. Thank you for being here! Beyond Blue

Jeriava How do I talk to my doctor?
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I’ve been struggling with my life for the past 7-8 years but I finally made an appointment with a doctor. I feel really scared though because I don’t ever go to the doctor for anything, and I havent seen this doctor for so many years that I’m really ... View more

I’ve been struggling with my life for the past 7-8 years but I finally made an appointment with a doctor. I feel really scared though because I don’t ever go to the doctor for anything, and I havent seen this doctor for so many years that I’m really scared that they’ll judge me or won’t believe anything I say. I’m really anti social so I feel like I won’t be able to say what I wanna say or I’ll say the wrong thing causing them to just dismiss me and move me along without helping. I’m just tired of feeling alone, depressed and just worthless but I’m really scared to talk to them.

AGrace SELF HELP TIPS FOR MANAGING DEPRESSION
  • replies: 132

Hi Everyone, Here are some ideas you might like to try for managing symptoms of depression. Of course everyone's different, so let us know what works for you, and please feel free to add to the list... Mindfulness – through breathing or engaging the ... View more

Hi Everyone, Here are some ideas you might like to try for managing symptoms of depression. Of course everyone's different, so let us know what works for you, and please feel free to add to the list... Mindfulness – through breathing or engaging the 5 senses Distress Tolerance – Accepting Emotions and Self Soothing Distraction – Put the thoughts/feelings aside and come back to them when you are ready to deal with them Positive Affirmations – Have some affirmations written down repeat them to yourself daily Sleep/Exercise/Diet – All 3 aspects of our lifestyle can impact the way we think/feel Increasing Pleasurable Activities – Engage in at least one pleasurable activity per day

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Guest_4593 Numb or feeling everything
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I feel so drained, so over everything. I woke this morning feeling nothing and i was ok. Now everything is just flooding my mind. Why cant my mind just stay numb its easier. People get concerned when i say i don't feel anything im numb and empty .GET... View more

I feel so drained, so over everything. I woke this morning feeling nothing and i was ok. Now everything is just flooding my mind. Why cant my mind just stay numb its easier. People get concerned when i say i don't feel anything im numb and empty .GET HELP.. i would rather find help to stay numb its easier

waluiginose how do i get self esteem
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hello, i am a little bit confused because i hate myself. i think i am scum and that the community i live in would've been a better place if i had not have been born. and not to get all edgy or anything, but i do sometimes ideate suicide (like, i thin... View more

hello, i am a little bit confused because i hate myself. i think i am scum and that the community i live in would've been a better place if i had not have been born. and not to get all edgy or anything, but i do sometimes ideate suicide (like, i think about it but i'm completely safe, dw) and think i'm better off dead because i'm stupid and embarrassing and useless and whatever. but i had a good childhood? granted i can't remember much of it, but the memories i have of it are all positive. why would i hate myself? is it just cause i've let the self critical voice living in my head take over? how do i stop it? i just want to be able to think of myself as someone worthy of breathing. should i just get therapy? lol thanks

Daisy245 He took he's proposal back 😭
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Please don't judge I've gotten into contact with an ex for closure. it's been 14 years since I've seen him and 8 since I don't live in the same country. Living different lives I've got kids ,he does not. he's single, I'm not. My marriage has been fai... View more

Please don't judge I've gotten into contact with an ex for closure. it's been 14 years since I've seen him and 8 since I don't live in the same country. Living different lives I've got kids ,he does not. he's single, I'm not. My marriage has been failing for years were basically in it for the kids but not having any family here is probably the only reason why we're still married besides the kids of cause. last year I got in contact with ex,he was and probably still is the love of my life. I needed closure,all these years I've been hurting ,I've missed him ,I've hated him.i just needed to know what happened. Honestly things were going great. We cleared some things ,asked and gave forgiveness. fast forward 8 months , we're still speaking it's was so nice having him as my friend. And things got serious, telling me he can't be without me,he loves me,wants me have a child together. I was shocked Ive wanted all these things my whole life and here he's telling me that it can happen. I asked if he's sure this is what he wants,yes. Do you want children,yes definitely. I have children ,you can't have me without them you have to be okay with that, yes I know Im 200% sure of this. so of cause my heart is racing ,I get to be with the man Ive always loved and he's okay with my children. My mind was racing, I'm over the moon, I get to be happy again with someone I never stopped loving. Sometime goes by and he's acting weird and he tells me this is not going to work. I'm shocked ,what do you mean.what changed ?? He had time to think and felt that he couldn't "wait" for me to come home (mind you I go home in 3 months). Says it's not the kids ,that this isn't good for us. And that was he's last words.he blocked me. Just like that. Blocked me. Left me . Didn't have any decency to have a proper conversation with me. Just like that,this isn't good for us. I'm beyond heartbroken. I believed him and once again he's hurt me. I've only ever felt this pain once before and it was by him and I've been through a lot , but this pain is so bad that my depression has gotten so much worse. It took me years to be okay from that first heartbreak, I was a complete mess, i did things that I should be ashame of but I won't because it got me through the tough times and I had to go through that all in my own. But now I'm older,I should be wiser,I have children that needs me, and I have no idea how I'm going to get through this. I have not stopped crying. I just want the pain to go away

Oizys I can barely keep my head above water.
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In the next fortnight, I have a lot of big responsibilities I have to undertake. I have to socialise in a professional capacity for the first time in 8 years. Im not suicidal, that is not something I would ever consider. I just want to go to bed and ... View more

In the next fortnight, I have a lot of big responsibilities I have to undertake. I have to socialise in a professional capacity for the first time in 8 years. Im not suicidal, that is not something I would ever consider. I just want to go to bed and stay there is all. I've lost an important person in my life, they are still living but will never be the same due to what they are going through at the moment. I'm very much grieving them. It's like they have died and been replaced. My relationship feels like it's in its death throws. I feel like a single parent. I have no friends I can really talk to about the big things. The only people I have are family members. My life at the moment is making sure my kids have all their needs met, and then just pulling myself through the rest of the day to do it all over again. I just needed to vent. I feel overwhelmed. I will make it through it like all the times before but it doesn't make it any easier.

Baap Tested positive for Covid 19
  • replies: 1

I live with my fiancé’s family and the whole house hold including myself got tested for covid 19 the other day because I was feeling symptoms. Everybody in the house was uneasy and fighting with each other and placing blame. Finally everyone got thei... View more

I live with my fiancé’s family and the whole house hold including myself got tested for covid 19 the other day because I was feeling symptoms. Everybody in the house was uneasy and fighting with each other and placing blame. Finally everyone got their results and they were all negative but I was still waiting for mine for the next 6 hours. Finally after so much anxiety and wondering what my results are, I got the dreaded positive message. I spiralled and started crying and couldn’t even talk properly because I knew I would have to isolate in a small bedroom all by myself for 2 weeks. I am not used to being alone for such long periods of time so I got really scared that I would feel so isolated and lonely and away from everyone and everything. Not only that but I didn’t want everyone to be mad at me and blame me that now everyone else has to isolate as well. I barely slept 4 hours last night and woke up crying again. Everytime my partner pops his head in the room to see how I’m going I just start crying and I can’t talk. I hardly ever cry and I can’t even pin point what’s wrong with me but I’m just feeling so alone and deprived of physical touch and it’s not even been one day yet. I just want a hug or to talk to someone but I feel like no one understands. I’m trying to watch movies but my mind can’t even follow, I just keeping thinking about how lonely I feel.

fred2018 Anger and Irritablity and Self Service Checkouts
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Kinda funny kinda not but today got a display of my low frustration tolerance, ha I find those self service machines at the supermarket a pain, I seem to put my shopping in the wrong area and then someones gotta come over and fix it, but i was thinki... View more

Kinda funny kinda not but today got a display of my low frustration tolerance, ha I find those self service machines at the supermarket a pain, I seem to put my shopping in the wrong area and then someones gotta come over and fix it, but i was thinking these have annoyed me for a while but I gotta learn to slow down and learn the process its probably the supermarket environment aswell not always great for people with anxiety at times. Anyone else share this grievance haha ? I''ll be practising my mindfullness with the machines or just using the old style checkout.

Baileybasil How do I want to get better
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All I want to do is waste away and avoid everything I’m afraid of. I’m too anxious to see my friends and family, to talk to a professional in any way, too depressed to get out of bed and make any changes. even something as simple as practicing mindfu... View more

All I want to do is waste away and avoid everything I’m afraid of. I’m too anxious to see my friends and family, to talk to a professional in any way, too depressed to get out of bed and make any changes. even something as simple as practicing mindfulness is impossible for me because I stop myself. how do I find drive to make any step forward?

Azhurestar I need HELP with my daughter
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I could use some help/advise with the following: My daughter is 20 years old. She has always been very emotional person. I have tried over the years to always be there for her whenever she needed somebody to talk to. I have always said to her that if... View more

I could use some help/advise with the following: My daughter is 20 years old. She has always been very emotional person. I have tried over the years to always be there for her whenever she needed somebody to talk to. I have always said to her that if she ever needed somebody to listen I am here no matter the issue. But she never felt like she can and whenever I felt something was off, I would have to work extra hard to get it out her. I am sorry to say many of those times it left us fighting even though I tried my best to stay calm and understanding. Few months ago she finally admitted that she needs help because she is a dark space but refused my or her fathers help in finding a psychologist for her. She even refused financial help. It took her months of pushing for her to book one telehealth app. ( to be honest I don't believe she kept it). Now she is saying she can book another app whenever she wants and she will do it but again nothing is happening. I don't know how to proceed. She is an adult and I can't force her to keep seeing somebody and I can't force her to talk to me. She is insisting she is fine and that she can handle things on her own. She still lives with us and knows we are there for her but she is not talking. I am afraid because depression does not just go away and it might get much worse.

Azhurestar Lost and alone
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Hello everybody This might be a long post but this might be the only place where I can talk about my thoughts. I feel so lost and so lonely. I feel lost in my life, my work,my family. I am so unhappy and I feel guilty for feeling unhappy. I have thre... View more

Hello everybody This might be a long post but this might be the only place where I can talk about my thoughts. I feel so lost and so lonely. I feel lost in my life, my work,my family. I am so unhappy and I feel guilty for feeling unhappy. I have three amazing children that I am so proud of, but for the last year/year and a half I have been feeling so sad and unhappy. I wonder why I am here, what have done to make my presence here worth it. I am 38 this year, and I hate that I feel as I have wasted my life away and sometimes I say to myself: what is wrong with you, you acting as if you are 80 not 38, get up, harden up and do something that will make you feel worthy? But that's not happening. I start something and not long after that it goes down because I cant see the point of it anymore. I don't know even how to write whats inside my head right now. I have changed so much over the last 5-6 years. I have become so different than my husband that now I dont know what we are to each other anymore. I have started to resent what he says, what he does, we cant seem to agree on anything and its making me angry . And on the end all of this is making me guilty for feelining any of it. Two years ago I ended up in hospital with subarachnoid haemorrhage due to a aneurysm and every day I wish I didn't wake up from it. Finding out that when I went into surgery my husband when home was like a trigger that has taking me to this dark place that I cant get out from. I mean what person that tells you he loves you and that you are the most important thing for him, goes home when you go into a life threatening surgery because it was gonna take hours. I am hurt. On top of that he didn't even see how much that upset me when we spoke about it. I can't write anymore, I am at work and I have started to cry and it will not look good with the customers.

user9463728 Why do I change my entire personality so often?
  • replies: 5

No idea where to post this lol. I've never told anyone I do this but I've noticed that I've done this since I was very young. When I was younger it didn't occur as often but I feel like it's getting more frequent. One that I clearly remember was when... View more

No idea where to post this lol. I've never told anyone I do this but I've noticed that I've done this since I was very young. When I was younger it didn't occur as often but I feel like it's getting more frequent. One that I clearly remember was when I was around 10, I took dancing lessons and there was this girl who always caught my eye. I copied the way she acted and when she and her mum weren’t in the room, I'd go to her bag write down the labels of everything in her bag. I even started to crack my knuckles just because she did. I tried smiling the way she did and dancing the same way. When my dance teacher didn't give me the same opportunities or treated me the same I would get pissed off and wouldn't dance how they wanted me to. I even faked injuries to sit out and watch the girl. (I tried to make sure I wasn't being really creepy lol) After I watched her for a while, I would be so excited to go to school the next day and try everything the girl did with her friends to my school friends. I even tried hugging them more because that's what she did. Nowadays I still do this but the person I choose to mimic will be anyone, for example, someone in a tv show, or someone I see at school. I have lots of friends and get plenty of attention too, so I think I've come to realise that the reason I do this is probably because I see what those people get from other people and I want it too. I get so focused and kind of "obsessed" with the person I choose that it becomes very frustrating and I can't do anything without thinking about them. I find it very hard to get work done without getting the urge to spend hours researching everything I can find about them. I'll be feeling like my whole life revolves around acting like them then I'll wake up the next day bored and just choose someone else to mimic. I have a bunch of other things I do that I feel are kinda odd.Some of my friends also jokingly mention how I seem to hate them one day than love them the next, which I honestly feel is true. If they all suddenly disappeared, I really wouldn’t care.I'm aware that I sound like a shitty friend, but I honestly couldn't care less. Went to the doctors for something unrelated and she asked if I was depressed or anxious but I really dont think I am. My parents are also concerned because all I do is stay in my room.I enjoy it.Its not because Im sad or anxious around people, its just that I find them very boring and it's exhausting around them. Do you think this is this normal?