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BeyondBlue Hello! Read this if you're not sure how to get started
  • replies: 0

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?
  • replies: 9

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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SleepDrifter Some nonsense
  • replies: 5

Living life on the edge Oblivion below To back myself take one step back When cold winds start to blow

Living life on the edge Oblivion below To back myself take one step back When cold winds start to blow

feelingblue97 depressed 23 year old
  • replies: 6

Hi Im a 23 years old guy, feeling depressed and alone. every morning as soon as i wake up my heart pumps faster and i start sweating and the overwhelming feeling of burden and hopelessness creeps on me. I dont look forward to the day at all. I have n... View more

Hi Im a 23 years old guy, feeling depressed and alone. every morning as soon as i wake up my heart pumps faster and i start sweating and the overwhelming feeling of burden and hopelessness creeps on me. I dont look forward to the day at all. I have no friends and dont want to burden anyone w my sadness. I've learnt to mask my feelings and cover it up with jokes but i think my cover is being revealed. i used to be fun and happy with goals and ambitions, with a clear picture of where i wanted to be in the future, i had friends and had no problem making friends. but now i cant even bother and im like to myself what is the point. i used to be proud of myself and now i cant even go without a minute without thinking bad about myself i dont even know what i should do, i just need someone to talk with me, and understand me I feel sorry for myself and guilty at the same time for wasting time. I want to get better, ive been wanting to get better for a long time, but ive always wanted to get better on my own and it hasnt worked. there's a negative stigma of having a mental problem in my family. do u guys think its worth going to see my GP,

James54 depressed loss of love for gf
  • replies: 5

Hi guys, my name is james and i am a 17 year old yr 12 student. I have been with my girlfriend for almost 2 months now but we’ve known each other for much longer before we started dating. Just before the first month of dating when bye, I was in love ... View more

Hi guys, my name is james and i am a 17 year old yr 12 student. I have been with my girlfriend for almost 2 months now but we’ve known each other for much longer before we started dating. Just before the first month of dating when bye, I was in love and loved every minute of time i could spend with her. Then i started getting these feelings and thoughts of saying i don’t love her and i was feeling numb around her. I have struggled and been diagnosed with mild OCD for about 4 years now so i realised it was something to do with that so it eventually past but would come back every so often but i knew it was my mind playing tricks on me. Now i am feeling really depressed and feel like i have no feelings towards her, i don’t get the same feeling when i see her, i keep looking at other girls and i feel so guilty and bad for that because i know i love her but i just don’t feel it i don’t even know. i care so much about her and all i want is to feel the way i used to because she deserves the best, i don’t feel like doing my normal hobbies or getting out of the house either. i just wanted to reach out because i don’t want to lose my gf

imbadwithnames I'm tired
  • replies: 10

Hi! I grew up not being allowed to go to therapy or to the doctor, no matter how bad it got. My family never understood mental health illness, said I was being "emotional" and "hormonal" and to stop being rediculous. As you can imagine, I left my fam... View more

Hi! I grew up not being allowed to go to therapy or to the doctor, no matter how bad it got. My family never understood mental health illness, said I was being "emotional" and "hormonal" and to stop being rediculous. As you can imagine, I left my family when I was very young to go to university elsewhere. After I left them, I went a doctor and he gave me a mental health check, to which he looked me straight in the face and said "You are the most mentally ill person I have ever met" (thanks... doc) I went and saw one therapist for 2 sessions and she diagnosed me with anxiety and depression, but then I stopped seeing her as I ran out of time and exams were coming up and I just didn't care about myself enough anymore. I had a complete mental breakdown last year and went back into therapy (about... 2 years? after my last session). I went to a different therapist, and she additionally diagnosed me with depression, anxiety, but also PTSD from past abuse, a very severe eating disorder, potential autism and dyslexia, even possible Schizophrenia. She retired last last year and I cannot work up the courage to go and dig up all my past again with another therapist. Not yet. It should be noted, BOTH of these therapists told me to go to a doctor and get medication, but I never did. My depression told me I was useless and never going to be anything, so save the medication for someone who isn't going to be a useless lump of flesh. The thing that I needed the medication for prevented me from getting it. I have a very strong "You are a failure" complex that I cannot shake no matter how hard I work. Now, I have graduated and wasn't able to get a job before shutdown. I am living paycheck to paycheck in an extremely toxic evironment with people who hate me for being mentally ill and am terrified of myself and my own thoughts. I'm not sleeping properly, I'm not eating at all (as I write this, has been 24 hours), I need to get out but I cannot afford to. I can't even move back home with my parents (not that that would help, but it would get me out of here) as all of the borders around my state are closed and noone can get in or out due to Covid. I have my online friends (no IRL friends, clinical social anxiety) who love and care for me, I am not fighting for myself anymore, I'm fighting for them. I don't think I am going to do anything drastic but I'm just... so tired, you know? I'm sick of the cliche "It'll get better". I've been suffering for half my life... when?

black_rose Depression.... my old friend...
  • replies: 3

Today I woke up and felt that familiar feeling that many years ago I struggled to survive. The familiar heavy feeling in my body, the mind fog that literally makes me incapable of thinking clearly, the numbness and the exhausting feeling that makes m... View more

Today I woke up and felt that familiar feeling that many years ago I struggled to survive. The familiar heavy feeling in my body, the mind fog that literally makes me incapable of thinking clearly, the numbness and the exhausting feeling that makes me unable to do even the smallest of chores without feeling utterly exhausted half way through and unable to continue. I hate this feeling... Being on the verge of tears, I just wanna scream. I just wanna scream and yell and tell every one around me where to go. I just wanna retreat back into myself, hide in the darkness I feel. Cry myself to sleep and be alone. Some days I'm sick of fighting, sick of doing all I can to keep this monster from emerging again. No one ever gets it, really understands how much I fight to keep it at bay. I pretend it's easy, it's not, it's exhausting...

Nad73 Netflix Beginning to Make Depression Worse
  • replies: 3

Hi Just wondering if what was once a good distraction from the new normal of Covid Iso (Netflix) is now becoming a trigger to worsen depression at times. Watching shows reminds me of everything we used to enjoy. Little things that I didn't even think... View more

Hi Just wondering if what was once a good distraction from the new normal of Covid Iso (Netflix) is now becoming a trigger to worsen depression at times. Watching shows reminds me of everything we used to enjoy. Little things that I didn't even think about until they popped up on a show. I never would have given any of it a second thought viewing a program before. Is anyone else experiencing this? It was one good way of distraction before. Now I am occupying my time with online puzzles more and looking for part time work. Anything to keep busy. Very lonely and helpless feelings a lot of the time.

JRFOXIE So This Is Bipolar
  • replies: 4

My psychiatrist diagnosed me with Bipolar Affective Disorder but he didn't actually tell me until I had to get him to fill out an official form where he had to write my diagnosis and medications. It was a shock but after that settled it began to make... View more

My psychiatrist diagnosed me with Bipolar Affective Disorder but he didn't actually tell me until I had to get him to fill out an official form where he had to write my diagnosis and medications. It was a shock but after that settled it began to make sense. For 30yrs I have suffered from depression. I stopped taking my medications suddenly years ago and experienced a manic episode that lasted a week followed by a deep suicidal depression. I've experienced psychosis on occasion too. I thought it was psychotic depression but obviously it wasn't. Right now I'm confused. It's like four seasons in one day. I wake after only a few hours sleep wired and feeling euphoric , next my usual self followed by depressed then euphoric again and unable to wind down until the early hours of the morning. This has never happened before. It's been going on for two weeks now.

UsTwo Overwhelmed and repetitive
  • replies: 3

My husband and I have been married for 5 years and have two beautiful kiddos girl (2) and boy (4). These kids are a bigger blessing than I could have ever known. At times where I find myself hysterical locked in the bathroom and wanting to end it all... View more

My husband and I have been married for 5 years and have two beautiful kiddos girl (2) and boy (4). These kids are a bigger blessing than I could have ever known. At times where I find myself hysterical locked in the bathroom and wanting to end it all i hear them knocking and calling out for me. They're never upset or scared, just curious why I'm crying, they'll take me in their arms and kiss and cuddle me saying "remember we love you mummy!". Exact echoes of when I find them crying and comfort them. Lately though, I've been wondering if it's enough. I hate myself so thoroughly that I feel like I'm destroying my relationship, life and potentially my children's future emotional security. I see a therapist regularly but I'm still a wreck. My husband also sees a therapist as a result of being my support person. Our relationship is tense and while I know he loves me, as he repeatedly states, and that he wants to be there to support me, I can't stop thinking about the huge financial and emotional burden I am on him. I asked him today how he felt about when I'm having and episode and his response was sad, frustrated and tired of how repetitive it is. He was not intending to be mean or hurtful. Just honest. Which I appreciate since I asked him. But ... I hate that this is something I make him feel more often than when I make him laugh, or smile, or happy. I want to go back to the relaxed, happy and confident woman I was when he met me but so much had changed. I feel so overwhelmed by the extent of my issues that I feel both the damaged it has caused to my relationship and the time it would take to become "normal" is essentially an impossible feat. I don't know where to start or what to do. I've contemplated disappearing. If I don't die then he can't feel guilty. It'll just be another thing I've done After everything I know I can't express this to him so I have no idea what to do. I don't have friends and I am sometimes so desperate for human contact I feel like I'm being torn apart inside. But no one can help me, I know that. So now what? How do I keep going through this overwhelming and repetitive cycle without giving in...?

SleepDrifter Feeling Trapped
  • replies: 2

Hi, I'm not sure what I'm hoping to achieve by writing this. Just gonna rant. I feel trapped. Especially at work. My workplace (tech records in aviation) is toxic. I could go on and on about exactly how and why but the issues are not going anywhere a... View more

Hi, I'm not sure what I'm hoping to achieve by writing this. Just gonna rant. I feel trapped. Especially at work. My workplace (tech records in aviation) is toxic. I could go on and on about exactly how and why but the issues are not going anywhere and I need to get out. I don't have any formal qualifications and with the covid situation, no-one is hiring. I don't think I can keep going like this. It feels hopeless. I'm married and have 2 very young children whom I love dearly. My wife makes me feel a bit trapped as well. If I go anywhere she'll be hasselling me about when I'm coming home, which given the young children is understandable at the moments but has been happening before they were around and I'm sure will continue to happen once they're older. Even if I just stay up a little later than her, she says she can't sleep until I get to bed. It makes me feel like I can't go anywhere or do anything, even within my own house. I do love her but her anxiety makes her very controlling and I guess clingy is the word. I really want to end it all but I don't want to leave my young boys without their father.

Sep Feel sad
  • replies: 2

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