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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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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

Garfield2020 Feeling emotionless and in a daze
  • replies: 15

Shit went down recently for me (lost someone. No one died). I was distraught for a couple of days. Crying a lot. Absolutely shattered. And then I started feeling emotionless even though I know I would and should be feeling emotions. I feel dazed and ... View more

Shit went down recently for me (lost someone. No one died). I was distraught for a couple of days. Crying a lot. Absolutely shattered. And then I started feeling emotionless even though I know I would and should be feeling emotions. I feel dazed and trance like. Like a haze. I stare at things but I'm not zoning out or actually staring. I don't feel anything. I don't feel love, despair, hope, sadness, no empathy. Sometimes I get closer to feeling things but I just can't. I'm edging on feeling emotions. When I do my evening walks, it's extra weird because I just walk like a zombie staring up ahead but not at anything and I just mindlessly walk. Completely emotionless. I've had experienced this a lot before. I'm only just talking about it know because me feeling nothing right now is really weird. I just want to feel something. And I want to care. But I can't make myself feel anything or care. (btw I don't self harm, never have.) The only thing that showed I still felt anything was my back pain and shoulder pain which is caused by things like anxiety or stress. But that's also gone. I used to be scared I was a psychopath or something because I never felt anything at all. No empathy, no care ect. I told a friend about this and they said that it sounded like disassociation but honestly I have no clue. But It could also be depression? Is it grief? I don't know. I just want to feel something so badly. I also worry that it means I don't care about what happened or the person I've lost.

lemontime HI need of help
  • replies: 5

Hi imma just come all out here since it's all confidential, I'm 21 just been through the run of my life.. The end of February I got told I was gonna be a dad & i didn't take it well at all, I said some shit that I shouldn't of said & my gf broke up w... View more

Hi imma just come all out here since it's all confidential, I'm 21 just been through the run of my life.. The end of February I got told I was gonna be a dad & i didn't take it well at all, I said some shit that I shouldn't of said & my gf broke up with me, we then we're going through the idea of being single parents that I didn't want, I kinda felt like I got used for sex & other stuff.. We kinda talked on and off after the break up, I was at work a few weeks ago & got a text saying she had a miscarriage, I didn't even find out much about what's happened & it kind of destroyed me as i ended up coming to terms with having a kid & then everything got taken away, we are still split up & I've been trying to battle this on my own.. Sorry if some parts don't make sense, any help would be greatly appreciated!

Daysinthesun I have been feeling strange
  • replies: 1

I had a really hard time last year. I moved to Australia to study and struggled a lot. There were days when I was so lifeless and didn't want to get out of bed. I had trouble falling asleep but once I did, I didn't used to wake up long hours. I used ... View more

I had a really hard time last year. I moved to Australia to study and struggled a lot. There were days when I was so lifeless and didn't want to get out of bed. I had trouble falling asleep but once I did, I didn't used to wake up long hours. I used to sleep till 18 hours. I didn't think there was a point to keep going. I also had moments where I was feeling so good that I felt everything was fine. I was crazy energised and I used to sleep really really less and didn't feel tired. I also spend a lot of money (a lot) and regretted that so much. I didn't think too much. I just thought I was feeling this way because of moving away. Anyways I went home and everything was super normal. The problem is that when I came back go Australia after a few months, this started happening again. The only difference is that now I am living with my friends. They said that I seem really strange and I should see someone as I might have the bipolar disorder after I told what had happened last year. I got really scared when I heard that. I looked up a lot of articles online and saw that usually when someone has the bipolar disorder the mania symptoms last usually for a few days. When I tried to think about mine, I couldn't remember anything clearly from last year. I have no idea about how long the highs lasted. The highs were super less compared to the lows. I only had one high episode after coming back (it's been a few weeks) where I was super happy but it only lasted a few hours. Could this be bipolar disorder? I want to add that the depressed time always lasts for at least a few days if not weeks.

Feelingcascade What to do
  • replies: 2

What do people do when it all becomes too much and outlets are not working or you can't do them? BP2 and being stuck at home and losing all my previous outlets to help manage my depression has me losing my mind. I can't go to gym and can't easily go ... View more

What do people do when it all becomes too much and outlets are not working or you can't do them? BP2 and being stuck at home and losing all my previous outlets to help manage my depression has me losing my mind. I can't go to gym and can't easily go outdoors and exercise cause i have 4 young kids. If I can manage it it only temporarily helps. I can't go see friends and try talk to them frequently but it's not the same. I can't do anything for my self care as everything is closed. I was managing well before now with routines and things to do and it's really affecting me. I'm feeling so worthless and have no motivation for anything and just cry randomly all the time with thoughts of self harm creeping back in. I'm also becoming so anxious and paranoid and jumpy and just can't shake the 'funk'. I've chatted to lifeline and it helped voicing how trapped I'm feeling but again it only helped temporarily. Visited the GP to touch base and he's added a medication to try of a night. But I need ideas or sources/resources of what I can do during the day to get passed this because i can feel the mini crisis slowly unravelling more

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