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Depression

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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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Hayley Depression: You Suck
  • replies: 5

My depression is starting to take a turn south feeling like crap again and keep thinking those thoughts of falling asleep and not waking up or whatever scenario runs through my head at the time. Just thinking I have to get through another day as sure... View more

My depression is starting to take a turn south feeling like crap again and keep thinking those thoughts of falling asleep and not waking up or whatever scenario runs through my head at the time. Just thinking I have to get through another day as sure as the sun rises another day will come time stops for no one. My frustration triggers these thoughts you try this med that med this therapy that therapy no meds no therapy, your doctor your psychologist, your psychiatrist, your friends your family your partner, religion, spirituality, lifestyle changes, the nurse, the hospital, the emergency department, those numbers you ring and there is a stranger on the other end, the internet nothing f*** works. People say to you everything will be ok you will get through this all you have to do is...this What? oh right no I've tried that, done that, doing that What else ya got? When you loose hope you loose everything. I have lost hope. I know there is no magic pill I know there is no quick fix I know I haven't got a broken leg Ive got a broken psyche I know I have to be patient be positive how can I do that when I cant get out of bed.

Katieb30 At a time of need
  • replies: 3

Hi all, I'm a 30yo woman and have had depression for as long as I can remember. I've been on medication since I was about 15yo. On Wednesday I went away with my partner for a few days to help him out for work. I forgot to pack my medication and there... View more

Hi all, I'm a 30yo woman and have had depression for as long as I can remember. I've been on medication since I was about 15yo. On Wednesday I went away with my partner for a few days to help him out for work. I forgot to pack my medication and therefore hasn't taken it since Tuesday.. The effects of not having my meds are physically and emotionally draining. Physically I have been feeling myself suffer the withdrawals from the medication and can only describe what happens as some sort of electrical impulse that goes right through my head and the rest of my body. It's an awful feeling and not one I hope to feel again. emotionally I have not been able to stop crying. My life is great. I have no reason to cry but alas am fighting back tears as I type this. i wanted to come on to this forum to see whether anyone out there living with depression and anxiety believes it is possible to manage these illnesses without being on medication? I think it's wrong that one would go through such physical and emotional trauma simply from not taking a tablet!! Am wondering if anyone out there has had success from just CBT and leading a healthy lifestyle? Thanks in advance!!

ONM Am I depressed or just being pathetic?
  • replies: 3

I feel like I'm a happy person but over the past two years I have been getting sadder and sadder and find that sometimes I lose my shit I cry and actually feel physically ill for what exactly I can't put my finger on. W maybe behind in bill payments ... View more

I feel like I'm a happy person but over the past two years I have been getting sadder and sadder and find that sometimes I lose my shit I cry and actually feel physically ill for what exactly I can't put my finger on. W maybe behind in bill payments or my daughter may be being naughty or I look in the mirror and I can't stand what I see, I feel like a failure and I have a lot of guilt of the situation we are in. I maybe be fine one week then super crazy sad the next. I'm up and down all the time. I've just started to tell my husband how I'm feeling, he wants me to get help he is very loving and caring and even putting him through this makes me sick. I feel embarrassed of the way I feel and what is am putting my family through......how hard is it to do the next step and get professional help....do I need it? Or am I just being silly? Please help me.

Marley Feel tired
  • replies: 2

I suffer depression and anxiety but doing ok (I think). I just quit my job and had to go there today to handover. After leaving I have no regrets and wonder how I lasted so long. I feel an immense sense of freedom from this. I am not thinking about a... View more

I suffer depression and anxiety but doing ok (I think). I just quit my job and had to go there today to handover. After leaving I have no regrets and wonder how I lasted so long. I feel an immense sense of freedom from this. I am not thinking about another job yet, too hard too confronting. I'm taking some me time. My only problem is I still feel rather unmotivated at times and feel tired by 12.30, feeling I need some rest time before collecting kids. Is this making lazy habits laying on my bed just resting - I rarely sleep. It feels like a time waster but Is sooooo peaceful.

Claudio Please help, i cant figure out if i have anxiety or depression or if im just being pathetic
  • replies: 1

Hi, im new the forums and i really hope you can help me. It has been going on for quite sometime now, about 7 - 8 months but has gotten worse over the past 3 months. Now i feel very edgy, like someone could say or do one tiny thing and i can go from ... View more

Hi, im new the forums and i really hope you can help me. It has been going on for quite sometime now, about 7 - 8 months but has gotten worse over the past 3 months. Now i feel very edgy, like someone could say or do one tiny thing and i can go from being happy to wanting to punch the first thing i see. Its like i have years of anger just waiting to be unleashed. But its not only the people around me that can change that, i can also just go from being happy to angry in a matter of minutes. I also just feel very sad, like i could cry and cry for days but i try not to because i dont think there is a reason so i would be crying over what, nothing. For some reason i feel like there is nothing to look forward to in life, i have no drive or ambition to do anything anymore. I have gotten lazier and lazier and just lost all life in me. Also, a couple of times, not to often i have questioned myself asking if what im doing is actually what im doing, like im dreaming or something for a couple of minutes, and sometimes for those couple of minutes my perception of time screws with me. Sometimes if i am out, with parents or infront of friends parents i worry that im gonna do something weird and make an ass of myself. One last thing, im in a long distance relationship, she only lives about an hour away but i only get to see her on weekends, sometimes not for two weeks, i just thought i'de mention that just incase it is a factor. Please, any help will be greatly appreciated, Thank You

shay2 I feel like I'm drowning but everyone around me can breath
  • replies: 5

Help I am 13 years old and a female. I think I am suffering from depression but I cant be sure, all I know is that I don't remember what it feels like to be truly happy and I have to fake smile everyday day. I started self harming last year but stopp... View more

Help I am 13 years old and a female. I think I am suffering from depression but I cant be sure, all I know is that I don't remember what it feels like to be truly happy and I have to fake smile everyday day. I started self harming last year but stopped after being threatened with therapy, I have now started up again and don't know how to stop or how to control these feelings. I have suicidal thoughts every day and night and they are getting stronger so I don't even trust myself to be alone sometimes. I am too afraid to tell anyone or ask for help so here I am asking anyone professional or non professional to give me some advice or even tell me some good ways to seek help because I cant anymore I am so sick and tired of crying myself to sleep every night. -Yours truly, broken xx

Mark_098 Thanks for your time-New user
  • replies: 6

I have suffered depression (and anxiety) on and off but mostly on since my brother took his life in October 2006. It has been a struggle to have a real-time connection with myself ever since. Sometimes I know who I am and even dare I say "I like who ... View more

I have suffered depression (and anxiety) on and off but mostly on since my brother took his life in October 2006. It has been a struggle to have a real-time connection with myself ever since. Sometimes I know who I am and even dare I say "I like who I am" and then there are times I think "I don't like who I am" or "I have no real friends" or when I'm out of work, it must be because "I am not good enough" There are days where I feel great; for example when I start a new job and things are going well, or when I have had a lovely day with my girlfriend. Then there are days when I feel worthless. This happens whenever I am without work as I currently am and have been for around a month. I can't help feel like sometimes my life is an opportunity for me to watch everybody enjoy their life and move forward whilst I struggle to make sense of my life and how I'm going to get where I want to go. I don't want to come across as someone who is generally ungrateful for what I have, because I am not. I appreciate everything that is great about my life, I really do. I just think when one's mind decides to attack itself in a moment of "opportunity" that it can be very hard not to listen a little to the hurtful things it says, given the chance. I always think (and sometimes say) LG "life's good" as I have a lot of evidence to suggest this. My girlfriend has been very understanding and supportive of me and my "trying times" as she knows all that I have been through and is extremely supportive in all that she does for me. I am currently studying through correspondence, which has given me new hopes and i'm really enjoying it. When I lost my brother, I lost both my parents as well. Ever since they have not been the same (I don't expect them to either) but it has been really hard because the people who I used to feel I could talk to about something(s) bothering me, now I don't dare trouble with because I can't rely on them for any psychological support. My mother has a notorious ability to bring things back to her life or to be indifferent in her advice or "airy fairy" about things. Yes this is because they both suffer depression as well. They are seeing psychologists and I should too. I have found 1 but it is a strictly 9-5 practice which is a pain because I can only see him when i'm not working which is hardly Ideal. Its a shame too because he is the only one so far that I feel I have made a real connection/understanding with. This is really hard to come by. I know, it's a no-brainer, I need to find someone who is open after hrs for the working population so that when I get work I will be able to continue seeing them. I guess I don't want to see him because I'm just going to have to change and start again when I find work. Frustrating. It is always nice to go for a walk when I feel low or burnt-out or have anxiety about something on my mind. Exercise is the best alleviater of symptoms for me but I wish they would stay gone... Depression is a nasty thing that poisons your mind when you have an outbreak and makes you sick. It sounds like an illness that be default, should come with a medicated treatment of some type but this isn't the way I want to tackle it. My brother was taking an antidepressant in the year and a half leading up to his death and I do believe there was a link. I will say it wasn't the deciding factor but it did, I feel, play a small part. I'm not necessarily looking for advice, I just wanted to get my thoughts off my chest. Thanks for reading and feel free to reply if you like.

a_long_time_lost Today I let it be known.
  • replies: 5

Today I came out and revealed to my mother that I have severe depression/anxiety. I tried to broach this subject with her a couple of weeks ago because she couldn't understand why I never want to do anything. I told her at that time I was depressed a... View more

Today I came out and revealed to my mother that I have severe depression/anxiety. I tried to broach this subject with her a couple of weeks ago because she couldn't understand why I never want to do anything. I told her at that time I was depressed and her reply was "what in the world do you have to be depressed about?" You see I have become a very fine actress over many years, I can put on the brightest smile, have an intelligent conversation , be funny and present the most perfect manners, so in fact NO ONE has any idea who I really am. Let me tell you it is such hard work, it is like being two different people in one! So back to my mum... she asked me to a girls lucheon and I declined as usual, she tells me "you know they all think you are making excuses why you don't want to come." Well today I could not take it anymore.. I told her to tell them all I am depressed, on medication and seeing a psychiatrist... she was speechless! Honestly she didn't know what to say but she has finally heard my words. Could any of you please tell me once you let the truth be known, do you suddenly feel like you are seen in a different light? The people that do know about my health issues seem to have changed toward me. It is not an imagined change, it is a truly noticeable one. I feel as though I have a contagious disease, why???? I may cry a little more than others, be more sensitive but I still love, care and have all the same feelings that I always did. What happened????

571Anon What is my next step please?
  • replies: 1

I am a 33 yr old married mum of 3. I have suffered from depression since the age of 14. Possibly earlier. The reason I know I had it at 14 is because that is when I began to self-harm. At the time I didn't know what depression was - why I just wanted... View more

I am a 33 yr old married mum of 3. I have suffered from depression since the age of 14. Possibly earlier. The reason I know I had it at 14 is because that is when I began to self-harm. At the time I didn't know what depression was - why I just wanted to stop existing. It wasn't until I reached about 20 that I discovered there was such a thing as depression and possibly I had it. I have worked very hard to try and 'fix' myself. Everything except take medication. I have tried eating well, sleeping well, going to counselling, making myself get out there and amongst the people, joining teams, becoming involved in my childrens' school, I even enrolled and was accepted to uni (which I have nearly completed now). I am at the point where I am tired of fighting this disease which I have had for more than half of my life. I have been fearful of anti-depressants because my older sister tried them and ended up committed for a time. I don't want to be locked up. I am scared I will go even more crazy - I don't know what will happen to my brain. I don't want to live in a fog, drugged to exist. My father suffers/ed a mental illness, unsure what but I know he did take massive pills for it. My eldest sister I have spoken about. My brother is a heroine addict. My little sister has had over 10 suicide attempts (that I know about). Simply, I come from a background of 'crazy'. Lately it seems to be getting worse (does this happen if left untreated/unmanaged for so long?). About two years ago I experienced a wonderful 3mths - thought I was getting better - turns out it was a mild 'up' - since then I have swung more between up and down, it's like a roller coaster. I am in a severe down at the moment, waiting for the up to kick in before I give up on life completely. I also feel more destinct 'personalities' forming. This is a little scary as I am not sure what is happening to me. So, the time has come for me to give meds a go, as the alternative is that I depart this life. I am in rural nsw and the medical services are shit. I don't know what my next step is - can anyone tell me where I can go, and I will endeavour to find the services I need. I am also scared that if people find out how crazy I am they will take my kids away (even though I would never harm them or myself in front of them), and it may jeopordise the line of work I am trying to work towards. I am also secretly fearful that after 6 yrs at uni, slogging my guts out, I will not be able to engage in full time work. I struggle to complete the responsibilities I already have.

a_long_time_lost Hello, I'm new and in a dark place.
  • replies: 5

Hello.. I am not sure how I got to this point. I think back and see events in my life which have all contributed to the place where I now live. It is dark and lonely here and I feel invisible to the people around me. They are unsure how to act in my ... View more

Hello.. I am not sure how I got to this point. I think back and see events in my life which have all contributed to the place where I now live. It is dark and lonely here and I feel invisible to the people around me. They are unsure how to act in my presence and I constantly feel as though I irritate them and therefore they display annoyance and lack of patience with me. Inside I am filled with guilt, unbearable emotional pain, despair, hopelessness and deep anxiety that I may be like this for the rest of my life. At this time I visit a therapist whom does not seem to be taking me anywhere, I am also on antidepressants and yet still all my emotions and feelings about situtions remain the same. I am fighting a losing battle and lack any mtoivation whatsoever to help myself when those I thought would help me haven't. Yes.. I too have suicidal thoughts but I'm not quite at the point of carrying them out, my son is the only one that stops me right now. I feel like I am going crazy so here I am, I just want to feel like I belong somewhere as I have no friends. My husband says he has had enough and I realise where this train of thought is heading. I need a lifeline and I believe that this forum may just be that place. Thank you, I appreciate the opportunity to finally be myself without being judged.