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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.

Chris_B Are you looking to support someone else with depression? PLEASE READ before posting
  • replies: 0

This forum is for people seeking support for their own mental health issues. If you're posting on behalf of someone else with a mental health issue that you're concerned about, please have a look at this section of our forums: Supporting family and f... View more

This forum is for people seeking support for their own mental health issues. If you're posting on behalf of someone else with a mental health issue that you're concerned about, please have a look at this section of our forums: Supporting family and friends with a mental health condition It's full of threads from people who have family members and friends going through anxiety, depression or other related conditions. Have a read through the threads there, and feel free to take part in the discussions. Below are also some helpful beyondblue resources you might want to look through first as well: Supporting someone Have the conversation

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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Now Struggling with depressive symptons
  • replies: 8

How do you cope with symptoms that just hang around? They used to come and go and I'd feel not too bad. I have been working through a lot of issues with my psychologist, so maybe that is why they seem so persistent. Maybe I'm actually dealing with th... View more

How do you cope with symptoms that just hang around? They used to come and go and I'd feel not too bad. I have been working through a lot of issues with my psychologist, so maybe that is why they seem so persistent. Maybe I'm actually dealing with them ? I try to do mindfulness and breathing techniques but even this is hard at the moment. I seem quite agitated and I am so tired I just want to lie down. At a medication review by 2 different psychiatrists I have been told my depression and anxiety are due to my environment, my husband and mother in law, so I have been trying to be assertive and speak up in order to get my needs met, but this isnt really working. I'm told it is my issue, get over it or I hang onto things, things have been like this for years, but I feel I have got to the point where I have nothing left to give. I think about if I left and it feels like a weight is lifting. I just don't know how much more work I can do on trying to be assertive with my husband, mid June it worried me so much that my psychologist and I discussed not looking at the issue for 3 mths, but this hasn't settled me very well, it is constantly on my mind. Deep down I feel nothing is going to change, my marriage is my husband and I and his mother. Maybe I need to address this sooner and talk to my psychologist . I think the thought that I am keeping myself the way I am by staying in my marriage has got to me as well & it is making me feel down. It is hard as I have no family support and a son I need to consider. What if I leave and I make a mistake? To me my marriage was everything good and bad, I've done a lot of giving for 15 yrs and had to support myself with my depression and anxiety, pretend everything was good when I have been unwell. I am confused, overwhelmed and just want things to settle so I can think straight.

a8vision downward spiral
  • replies: 4

For the last few years i have been battling with depression and anxiety problem which have had in impact on me, For a long time i let it run me but after seeking help i managed to get it under control at the start of this year I enjoy cycling which w... View more

For the last few years i have been battling with depression and anxiety problem which have had in impact on me, For a long time i let it run me but after seeking help i managed to get it under control at the start of this year I enjoy cycling which was a good outlet , punishing my body making me feel something else The biggest thing was my job history , have scattered employment of only casual work , a few months here and a few months there . I felt useless a burden to society( useless good for nothing dole bludger , get a job ya lazy bastard) I got some employment in a company which i thought was going to be a long term thing going by their promises , in this time i had my two dogs pass away , one i had to put down due to a tumor the other had a bad heart , they were 14 and 16 so had a good life , but they were my rock i came home to them they were always there to greet me a few weeks ago i lost my job due to a downturn in work , me and 15others got put off , i thought great here we go again , i should be used to it by now , but now came the hurdles of trying to get back onto newstart , which i am still waiting for payments. I was gutted a massive kick in the guts My dad has been suffering with a lot of health problems for a number of years , over the last 18months he was in hospital more frequently, this year he went into hospital in June and never came out , he died a week ago , the last 3 weeks of his life he was in a nursing home a friend of mine who said they were my best friend , wasn't really too concerned , all she cared about was whether i could feed her cats while she went away for the weekend I am trying to stay strong for my mum , I don't want her seeing my breaking , my brother and sister live 2 hours away The other night i went out for a ride on the bike , as in bicycle , I was ready to break down the only thing that kept me grounded was that i came across a pack of kangaroos

Steve_p1 Having to put up with the whole thing with feeling burdened and just struggling with feeling depressed, stressed and this cyber bullying getting to me
  • replies: 1

Just being fairly annoying the cyber bully yep yeah and just completely bothering me to the very core of like just what I am as a person. Like I just cant handle it for any longer just without posting like just anything on here to be completely fair ... View more

Just being fairly annoying the cyber bully yep yeah and just completely bothering me to the very core of like just what I am as a person. Like I just cant handle it for any longer just without posting like just anything on here to be completely fair yep yeah. And also just feeling burdened by the physical health side of things and the depression, stress with like just the effect that has had on my life just for the moment to be completely fair yep yeah

theinbetweener having (and hiding) depression and anxiety in the military
  • replies: 3

To start, I havent been professionally diagnosed with anything, but I strongly suspect that I have major depression + anxiety disorder. The main problem I have is that I feel unable to seek help for these problems, and I feel like I have to explain w... View more

To start, I havent been professionally diagnosed with anything, but I strongly suspect that I have major depression + anxiety disorder. The main problem I have is that I feel unable to seek help for these problems, and I feel like I have to explain what it is like experiencing mental illness in the military. Mental illness is incredibly stigmatised in the military. I’ve been in the navy for about 4 years, and while we are given briefs from senior officers about mental health services that are available and what to do if your experience a mental health crisis, in my experience the military “talk the talk” but don’t “walk the walk”. The majority of psychologists they hire are organisational psychs, not clinical psychs, which is something they don’t advertise. I have been to military psychologists, sometimes by my own volition, and other times I’ve been ordered to by superiors. Both experiences resulted in me feeling incredibly judged and paranoid and like I’d been tricked. The worst part is that I every time I have sought help I have felt like my job was at stake. And so now I don’t see how I can seek help without sacrificing my income and the way I live. if you do nominate yourself in the military as someone with mental health issues, you also automatically get posted to a unit with literally zero job satisfaction. You are “non deployable”, even if you experience something as simple as just having to take a pill once per day, which is what I suspect I have, a hereditary illness. I have wanted to join the navy since I was 14. I have served overseas, I have spent 2 years posted to a warship, I have sacrificed months of my life away from home, sacrificed familial and friend relationships, sacrificed a romantic life, in order to serve and protect. And yet I am utterly alone. I have no one. no one who understands or cares, that I find it hard enough to function each day without wanting to die. I want help, but it’s so stigmatised, particularly in the junior sailor community, that I feel utterly stuck, lost and helpless.

aussiemum32 Hi Depression is hitting me hard this time
  • replies: 4

Hi I don't even know where to start first, I have suffered depression and anxiety before many years ago, in my early 20's, I'm not sure how much to mention or not to mention so I will try not to go into too much detail here. I've been single for alon... View more

Hi I don't even know where to start first, I have suffered depression and anxiety before many years ago, in my early 20's, I'm not sure how much to mention or not to mention so I will try not to go into too much detail here. I've been single for along time, and I am mostly OK with that, but sometimes its nice to have that partner to talk to. I have a great family but I feel like I burden them by lumping this on them. In the past few months issues about my weight, health problems, and other life issues have all just snowballed and without realising it, it hit me all at once, and now I just feel abit not overwhelmed, just flat and I know it will get better, I tell myself that, like last I felt depressed, I cried it out, I felt it all, and then I started to feel better, almost like myself, until it happened again, so this time I wanted to reach out maybe just to get it out of me and share it, I hope soon I can start to feel better . Ok that's it for now.

Jaaaybirdd Was treading the edges of depression - now I’m pulled back under.
  • replies: 1

I was doing better; even though work was hell, I’d push through the day and focus on the positives. But this week is perhaps the worst I have ever had to deal with. This job has been turbulent from the start (November 2018), I went on 2 week stress l... View more

I was doing better; even though work was hell, I’d push through the day and focus on the positives. But this week is perhaps the worst I have ever had to deal with. This job has been turbulent from the start (November 2018), I went on 2 week stress leave due to work place bullying that my TL had said they’d resolve. That was in March. It is now July and it keeps happening. On my birthday, I got stood down from work due to a complaint from my bully, without hearing my side. (I still don’t know the incident I’m trying to defend myself of.) I’m still trying to process this situation, but it’s really thrown me back into that dark place I spent ages trying to drag myself out of. Is there something so wrong with me that I deserve the hatred and ire of another person? Because they’re making it easy to hate/despise myself. I know I shouldn’t, as the wonderful BeyondBlue Support Member I spoke to today had said, but it’s so hard when I’ve had to deal with this since I started this job. The work environment is so hostile, that 8 hours a day, I don’t get spoken too by any of my team members. At all. Not even for work purposes. A lot of people have told me, maybe I should just do my job and not worry about them, keep my chin up and brush off their comments and attitudes. I try, but it weighs heavily after a while of the same atmosphere day in and day out. the worse thing is, my TL said that they understand, as they’ve been in a similar situation- and then ignores or treats me like an idiot like everyone else. I have previously said to my TL that I was thinking of resigning because of my bully - and they came back with how much of a valuable team member I was and how everyone enjoys working with me, that my ideas are welcoming. But I don’t see that. Ever. I have a psychologist appointment tomorrow - hopefully I can stop crying and get over it. i just. I’ve had to pretend to my family that I’m not falling apart. I know they’re supportive and want to help - but, I feel myself shut down and pretend it’s all okay. And it’s not. Its not.

Hopsy Bipolar & Addiction Journey
  • replies: 1

Trying to do life with a broken emotional thermostat, where every feeling is magnified - it is extremely difficult. I understand now exactly where my Bipolar Disorder originated. Family history. I tackled my 20's by riding the moods & the rapid cycli... View more

Trying to do life with a broken emotional thermostat, where every feeling is magnified - it is extremely difficult. I understand now exactly where my Bipolar Disorder originated. Family history. I tackled my 20's by riding the moods & the rapid cycling with substance abuse & gambling. Isn't that normal? Truth was I was suffering & it held me back. My relationships were reflective of my illness & I never..ever let anyone close. The intoxicated me was everyone's best mate then I'd lie in bed for days at a time. So I continue this manic way of life & meet a woman that saw something in me, behind the my erratic behaviour. Happily ever after? Nope. After 5 yrs of marriage & a child I did improve alot but I still battled everyday to keep my head above water. We moved states, I thought a 'fresh start' would help me. I was wrong. The isolation & loneliness was detrimental & along with life pressures I regressed. I gave up. The 13-14 period I lost it. Alcohol abuse, porn addiction, rampant gambling & very grandiose behaviour. I was out of control & also out of the family home. I saw a doctor for the 1st time during this period. I sat and I cried for the whole appt. Broken. As it turned out it took some months of medication changes to land @ Bipolar. It was during this period I gave up. I $30K lost on a 2 day bender. Most would say, what an idiot. But inside my world at that time I didn't care if I lived to see the next day. And that is exactly what happened, I texted my estranged wife to say sorry, ready to end my life. Someone called the police & i was coaxed not to & taken to hospital. I got out after 3 weeks & on day 1 out I tried again. Another month in hospital followed by another month. Time changed me. I kept therapy going, I started to make small changes & looked after my sleep. Accepted & embraced my illness & my treatment plan. Got my family back!! I don't forget the feeling of the policeman talking to me in the back of the ambulance...telling me i can recycle my pain & make it work for me, don't give up & make sure your daughter has a Daddy. I'll never see him again, wouldn't know him if I ran into him - but thank you, i'll never forget. I write this to remind people they aren't alone & to also to encourage others that it is ok to have a voice, don't be ashamed. Also that I am as normal as the next person! Get help early, if you think something is wrong get to a doc. Love yourself. You're so worth it

MikeJames so ummmm i dont know
  • replies: 1

Ok, people look at me and see a well put together person who knows how to live life. I am intelligent, augmentative and imaginative. I help people all the time budgeting, planning and generally make there lives better. But no matter how much i help o... View more

Ok, people look at me and see a well put together person who knows how to live life. I am intelligent, augmentative and imaginative. I help people all the time budgeting, planning and generally make there lives better. But no matter how much i help other people i still feel empty, i still feel like i am hiding. I am always thinking "does this response make me look like an asshole". I'm always making sure i look good in others eyes. I suffer from anxiety as well which makes it harder. Always looking for others approval at work which makes me look weak. Even though im very large(im 186cm and 120kg). I've found the only time i feel normal and happy is when im drinking alcohol and I only drink on a friday night but i would rather feel great all the time. Is this a normal thing? I have tried Anti-Depressants and they all make me feel worse, but i guess I have only tired 3 of them, but i Hate drugs to begin with. I feel like I am rambling with no real point but i seems to be helping me. Thanks all I hope your having a good day :D.

layla09060 Recurring depression
  • replies: 2

I am 22 years old, and have always been ambitious. I've also been struggling with panic attacks and crippling bouts of depression since I was 9, however lately the depression seems so much more pervasive. Lately I've just had this really nagging sens... View more

I am 22 years old, and have always been ambitious. I've also been struggling with panic attacks and crippling bouts of depression since I was 9, however lately the depression seems so much more pervasive. Lately I've just had this really nagging sense of being a failure and a disappointment to others and largely to myself, I quit a job that made me very stressed and unhappy only to have the same feelings at the new job I'm at - I've already found myself taking "sick" days when I just can't get myself to stop crying and get out of bed, which of course just makes me feel worse and exacerbates my suspicions that I am in general a disappointment and burden. The job itself is less stress and the coworkers are lovely people, but I count every minute and am constantly struck with hopelessness and rushes of fear pertaining to my longstanding hypochondria (the past 6 months it has been fear of brain tumour despite having a clear MRI seven months ago). I have been constantly referring to my former aspirations, and almost lamenting my capabilities as they grew to nothing and I've not achieved anything that I am proud of. I also emigrated to Australia from Europe 4 years ago and have yet to form any friendships or relationships, which has been unbelievably embarrassing. Everyday is so awful, and I miss the times in my life where I could just breathe and not constantly feel as if I am working to survive and "get through" - thank you to anyone who read for listening.

Sondera Feeling lost
  • replies: 3

Hi there, I am new to this forum. I don't know where to start. Recently I have been overwhelmed by depression and anxiety. I have just come out of a very stressful job into a new job. Even though this job is much less demanding, I'm having a very har... View more

Hi there, I am new to this forum. I don't know where to start. Recently I have been overwhelmed by depression and anxiety. I have just come out of a very stressful job into a new job. Even though this job is much less demanding, I'm having a very hard time adjusting. I'm not feeling myself. I feel so empty and alone. I feel like I have no one to turn to, and that even if I did, no one would care. I feel alone around friends and family, and even when I am with my partner. I can't talk to anyone. At the start of the year I was so happy, and had so many things to look forward to. Now I feel like everything is an effort and there is no point in even leaving my room. I don't recognise myself anymore and it scares me. How do you cope with these feelings when they get too much? Thanks.