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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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greykluger Stuggling a bit here
  • replies: 2

So a bit over a month ago I moved down to my inlaws farm to escape the city as the virus ramped up. As much as anything to get out incase SHTF and so the kids had space instead of being cooped up in a suburban block for what was looking at the time l... View more

So a bit over a month ago I moved down to my inlaws farm to escape the city as the virus ramped up. As much as anything to get out incase SHTF and so the kids had space instead of being cooped up in a suburban block for what was looking at the time like being months and months. Anyway, down here now, working from home in a tent (because the study is a walk in robe) - no issue there as i have been wfh for years, and the tent isnt a worry at all, im still pretty well set up. Overall i am completely sick and tired of the overarching family crap. Tried talking to my wife, but she will only talk to me when her mum is around anyway, and to be honest, i am sick to death of her mum. Between the endless reality TV shows, whatever the trending disaster is on facebook and the critisim of everything else. No one can ever have a different opinion than what is on facebook or ScoMo has said on the day. Letter of the law for everyone, yet their son and his wife come around constantly (she is a cop who was on the virus quarantine checking team), had a butcher and his mate here for 3 days, both go to other jobs in town - yet its my kids who will catch and spread the germs or if i go to the supermarket. My wife has asked me several times what is wrong, but i have given up answering - because it just becomes im the one at fault. To be fair i just want to go home. I know this is almost over, but its really pushing me towards a bad winter of sadness, and i am sitting here wondering if i should just get a divorce. I just dont want to hurt my kids. To top things off a good friend committed suicide the other week. Yeah - so things are awesome.

mocha delight Self love
  • replies: 5

Well I’ve kind of not been so great at the self love thing so I’m back. I thought I was coping but I now know I wasn’t as still not doing so well with covid 19 still being in the news constantly, some family issues going on, on a prescription tablet ... View more

Well I’ve kind of not been so great at the self love thing so I’m back. I thought I was coping but I now know I wasn’t as still not doing so well with covid 19 still being in the news constantly, some family issues going on, on a prescription tablet to help me sleep at night and got a an appointment with my skin specialist on the 27th of this month as I’ve got the type of moles most likely to become melanomas (have already had 2 stage one melanomas removed & one heading to stage one as well that was also removed). Not to mention I’ve gone from no bad thoughts/no nightmares with basically not a good way of finishing/not sleeping(well last night at least)/no worrying/no overthinking things to having those being back again. I’ve also not been completely honest with my gp as to how I’m really feeling ect ect ect during the phone appointments with her which I know is not the best thing and also I really think I need to have a appointment with a psychologist.

Kirika_M My mom blames me
  • replies: 10

Hello, my mom and I fight a lot and lately they have been getting worse and worse. One of them is where she said that I'm the reason for her and my entire family to have sleepless nights and that it's my fault for making my parents argue. She said th... View more

Hello, my mom and I fight a lot and lately they have been getting worse and worse. One of them is where she said that I'm the reason for her and my entire family to have sleepless nights and that it's my fault for making my parents argue. She said that everytime I was mentioned, my dad would want to end the conversation leading to another fight making they're relationship worse. She has also said that I am the most problematic child and the biggest disappointment in her life. She said she was lucky that she has 2 perfect children and says it's my fault for making her life so terrible and stressful. I don't know what to say, only that I'm really sad.

Lana1234 Confusion, frustration and mindlessness with my life
  • replies: 6

Hi, I will keep this brief (as much as I can) I first went to my doctor for a different issue I ended up coming out with. I found out I was extremely stressed and anxious, honestly hadn't thought about it but I was constantly worrying, over thinking,... View more

Hi, I will keep this brief (as much as I can) I first went to my doctor for a different issue I ended up coming out with. I found out I was extremely stressed and anxious, honestly hadn't thought about it but I was constantly worrying, over thinking, angry and defensive. However I loved life most days. It has been some time since then and I am now seeing a psychologist. Things have gone down hill very fast and i'm not sure why as I believe the opposite is meant to happen. I have only seen them a couple times, once a fortnight, however when I leave I feel 100 times worse, as I reopen bad memories etc. It takes me about a week to feel anything good again. I am falling to pieces as I fail uni, cant see my friends and wake up instantly thinking about everything terrible in mind that I cant seem to escape. I keep trying to better myself but by the end of the day I physically and mentally cant do anymore. I don't see a future for my self, which upsets me a lot. I will mention that I have had pretty bad depression and anxiety before however this feels a lot different. The psychologist did say I might have ADD or some sort of learning disability which just makes me even more stressed as I try to study and now overthink things even further like if I am getting distracted or if i can read, must say I have found I get very distracted and it takes a lot of effort to sit down and read. I constantly think whats the point which leads me down a dark hole. This probably sounds very weird but I feel like I don't want to be inside my body but be free, like a bird. I am not sure if I have a question to be answered but anything to clear my mind up would be amazing. Thanks

Melissa13 Struggling with isolation
  • replies: 9

I am over living in isolation. Over working from home. Being a single mum. Having my job go from full time to part time. I miss my friends. I miss my family. I have such anxiety and so depressed how do we get through this

I am over living in isolation. Over working from home. Being a single mum. Having my job go from full time to part time. I miss my friends. I miss my family. I have such anxiety and so depressed how do we get through this

IPlay Before.
  • replies: 6

Hilarious. Puntastic even. Energetic and fun to be round. Moving and dancing in the living room for as long as was needed just to get a rise out of someone. Back then, I didn’t realise how happy I was. I’m different now though and I wish I could go b... View more

Hilarious. Puntastic even. Energetic and fun to be round. Moving and dancing in the living room for as long as was needed just to get a rise out of someone. Back then, I didn’t realise how happy I was. I’m different now though and I wish I could go back. Hindsight is a real bitch. That comparison just gets to me, ‘how the hell did I go from that to this?’, I ask. I am way better than I have been in the last four years and even so, I am a fraction of the person I once was. Is this as good as it gets for me now or am I taking the first steps on the road leading to my old self, the real me? Maybe that was the fake me before and this is the real me now? Describing the difference between then and now is difficult. I can do all the things I once did, it’s just … empty, fake, viewed from elsewhere; meaningless actions, moods and behaviours. Now anything I do is not done for its own pleasure but rather to distract from my own thoughts. What if the worst is yet to come?

guest_1242 Grey Shadows
  • replies: 3

My mother sang Mozart's Cradle Song to me when I was small. 'Sleep now, my little boy, oh sleep. Slowly the grey shadows creep...' Even though it was written somewhere around 1700-1800', and it's always been quite ageless, and very soothing to me. To... View more

My mother sang Mozart's Cradle Song to me when I was small. 'Sleep now, my little boy, oh sleep. Slowly the grey shadows creep...' Even though it was written somewhere around 1700-1800', and it's always been quite ageless, and very soothing to me. To countless others as well I imagine. Although I have a mind-blowing collection of co-morbid afflictions, my main 'problem child', the one that makes my body chemistry almost impossible to treat due to instability, is bipolar (type ii, super rapid cycler). I can cycle every couple of days, to 5 times a day, to once a month, and so forth, no pattern or apparent reason. Most often it's on the extreme rapid side though, a couple of times a day. It's probably redundant to say on here that it changes your whole....everything. Body chemistry, mood, desires, goals, mental state etc . And it's almost never the same twice. People weren't designed for that, and like anything, if you bend something back and forth enough, eventually it breaks. And I used to be optimistic. Even though the first two things drilled into me, oh so long ago, were 'You won't ever be "cured", don't live in hope of that', and 'You can't ever be how you were before. Your life can't. So accept your new dynamic and move on as best you can'. And there have been some bad times, some really bad times. But there have also been...some almost not as bad times. I'm not sure I can make claim to good times. But I always stayed...if not optimistic, at least...( Apart from a few times...you know how it goes), at least_mostly_ steadfast. I found lights somehow, and sometimes I learned to make my own, usually for others, and mostly, the darkness kept it's distance. But now... Now.. Mozart's Cradle Song is less comforting. Because he's right , in a sinister way. I've seen them...I _feel_ them. It's getting harder to find the lights, and in my head Mozart's line becomes a haunting prophecy that rings over and over... "Slowly the grey shadows creep." . Hi. I'm Guest, and I'm broken.

JuliaT Getting through
  • replies: 1

Hi everyone, I have recently joined this forum in the hope that I can connect with people who may be going through similar experiences to me. I have a family history of depression/anxiety and it is something that I have dealt with on and off througho... View more

Hi everyone, I have recently joined this forum in the hope that I can connect with people who may be going through similar experiences to me. I have a family history of depression/anxiety and it is something that I have dealt with on and off throughout my life. Depression and anxiety tend to come out in my body through stomach aches, head aches and insomnia, which causes a really tough cycle to break. Recently, I have been very unwell with unexplained headaches that were thought to be a sinus infection, but after about 5 weeks of strong antibiotics in total, nothing seems to be working. This has been really hard to deal with and has greatly impacted by life, putting me in a terrible head space that has caused me to go back on anti depressants. I try really hard by exercising every day, eating well, forcing myself to get out of bed despite the headaches, writing in my journal and talking to my therapist. Despite all my efforts, nothing seems to be working or making much of an impact on how I feel. Even though I know this won't last forever, I can't help but catastrophize the situation and can't see a way out. If anyone has any techniques/thinking strategies for getting through when times are tough or has a similar story, I would really appreciate it.

BDmelody The Roller Coaster Ride
  • replies: 13

Hi All, Sorry if I stuff this up. I recently got diagnosed with a scary condition that I am simply not coping with. I do not understand how I went so long without it being found out. I guess as has been explained to me, a true diagnosis is not achiev... View more

Hi All, Sorry if I stuff this up. I recently got diagnosed with a scary condition that I am simply not coping with. I do not understand how I went so long without it being found out. I guess as has been explained to me, a true diagnosis is not achieved until it escalates. Currently I am still awaiting a full diagnosis as I was told it can be a long process. I have a wonderful partner who is supportive and pushed me to get help after a bad lot of episodes, but he doesn't fully understand and sometimes simply has no idea how to be supportive. I really just wish someone understood. I feel quite alone trying to deal with this, despite the support of my partner. I am scared by the diagnosis and what is occuring. Sorry All, but thanks.

Mak97 I feel Alone
  • replies: 2

I feel like no one understands me and I feel so Alone even know I have heaps of people around me

I feel like no one understands me and I feel so Alone even know I have heaps of people around me