Depression

Depression affects people in Australia every day. Share your own story and learn about other member’s experiences with 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

All discussions

Stacie85 Feeling sad and lonely
  • replies: 4

Hi, my name is stacie.I'm 37 yrs old and have always felt out of place.For the year and abit ive lived by myself.Which I've never done before because I have always lived with my parents.I've always had helping me with daily tasks or having family doi... View more

Hi, my name is stacie.I'm 37 yrs old and have always felt out of place.For the year and abit ive lived by myself.Which I've never done before because I have always lived with my parents.I've always had helping me with daily tasks or having family doing things for me as I am always worried or scared I will mess up or make a fool of myself or failing at something. Its has always stopped me from growing and exploring anything.Living on my own was fun at first but then my car decided to poop its self. After that I begun to not want to do anything or want to look after myself or change my habits.I think im addicted to junkfood to comfort myself or entertain myself.Its taken a toll on my mental and physical health.

Dazza73 Loneliness
  • replies: 5

How do people deal with loneliness? I had a long distance relationship that went sour in February. Even though I’m passed the grief, the feeling of having some company is growing stronger. I’m not afraid to talk to people. I’ve started reaching out t... View more

How do people deal with loneliness? I had a long distance relationship that went sour in February. Even though I’m passed the grief, the feeling of having some company is growing stronger. I’m not afraid to talk to people. I’ve started reaching out to women on internet dating and they don’t respond. Do I look boring?Are women just afraid to chat online?Like I say in messages “Even if there isn’t a spark, you could still find yourself a good friend “But then they complain there are no good men when it comes to online dating. I’m starting to wonder if I’ll ever meet Miss Right. And that is starting to depress me. I reckon if I sent out 100 messages, I’d be lucky to get one response. At the risk of sounding like an overreaction, it’s starting to make me think I’m unworthy.

Mental_Illness_Innit Working with Bipolar/BPD
  • replies: 8

Hi everyone, This is my first time posting here so I hope I'm doing this right haha. I recently got diagnosed with Bipolar (type 2) and have been diagnosed with BPD since 2020. For reference, I'm 22 years old. I really struggle with mood changes. The... View more

Hi everyone, This is my first time posting here so I hope I'm doing this right haha. I recently got diagnosed with Bipolar (type 2) and have been diagnosed with BPD since 2020. For reference, I'm 22 years old. I really struggle with mood changes. They can be quite jarring and my depressed self tends to suffer as a result of all the things my hypomanic self has committed to. I have struggled with maintaining a consistent work schedule since 2020. I think that covid really messed me around if I'm being honest. I mean I've always struggled but it's gotten to the point where I am constantly calling in sick. I lost a really great job in 2020 because I took on a full-time workload when I shouldn't have, and started calling in sick constantly. I think for my employers it's very confusing. Because when I'm in an 'up' period I'm a really great worker and often receive a lot of praise. But when I'm in a depressed period I all of a sudden lose all motivation to try. I went for a period without work, and then ran out of savings so got a job as a tutor (I am studying teaching at the moment). I only work about 6 hours a week. These hours are spread out over several days so I end up only having an hour a day most days. This does work well for me but lately, I have found myself really struggling to have the motivation to go in and I have been rescheduling a lot of my student's appointments. I feel really bad about myself because I'm struggling even to do this tiny workload. It's like there's this block in my head that's just like "you're going to be stuck there and you don't have the energy and it's gonna suck" ect ect. Even though when I get to the appointment it's never as bad as I think. Does anyone have any tips for how I can get through these low periods where work seems such an effort? I really want to be able to have a career as a teacher in the future. So if anyone has been working with bipolar/depression for years - I'd love your advice. I'm only 22 so I'm at the start of my mental illness journey. And I'm finding it really hard.

2023- Young and Riddled with Anxiety and Depression
  • replies: 9

Hi, new here. Not the type to express my feelings online but, in need of support as I am struggling deeply with anxiety and depression. 22 years old. Female. Was diagnosed with Social Anxiety Disorder when I was 14 years old. Had it ever since and ha... View more

Hi, new here. Not the type to express my feelings online but, in need of support as I am struggling deeply with anxiety and depression. 22 years old. Female. Was diagnosed with Social Anxiety Disorder when I was 14 years old. Had it ever since and have become depressed especially in the last 2 years. In a nutshell, I am feeling so deeply screwed up and stuck in a rut that's gotten worse each day, everything feels pointless to me. I'm severely touch starved and lacking everything I need to even feel that little bit better because I feel I don't deserve to take care of myself. I just can't control my mind. It's that bad I cannot describe it. I've always been alone even though I have a loving family but have not found my people and had a best friend since I was a young kid. My walls are so high and I've never known how to connect with anyone since I became a teen. Just can't handle the loneliness anymore....

TommyOliver Extended & frequent periods where I just feel very little
  • replies: 2

Hi all, this is my first post here so hope this can find the right people.I have never really been very open with my feelings so I felt explaining how I’m feeling through here would be a good first step. For the past year and a half (possibly longer ... View more

Hi all, this is my first post here so hope this can find the right people.I have never really been very open with my feelings so I felt explaining how I’m feeling through here would be a good first step. For the past year and a half (possibly longer but I struggle with dates these days) I have been getting long periods of time where I almost have no succinct feelings, like I just go through the motions but there’s nothing really happening in my mind.In these periods I feel little happiness or joy, don’t get nervous or anxious about anything anymore basically. Even when something bad happens I don’t feel disappointment or sadness, which bugs me even more.I don’t even remember the last time I felt truly and unequivocally happy about my life. There’s nothing really bad happening my life, in fact I’ve got a lot of things going for me at the moment but it doesn’t change how I feel. Another thing I’ve noticed is my drive to pursue relationships, even when I can tell a girl is interested, is basically gone. I could meet the most extraordinary person and have lots of fun, but they wouldn’t cross my mind again unless I forced it. I don’t think I’ve had any form of crush on anyone for a long time. One more thing that’s been plaguing me is just how tired I am all the fucking time, like tired all throughout the day even with a good sleep schedule, diet, and amount of exercise. I don’t know if this is part of whatever I have but it’s another concerning thing for sure. I really hope someone can point me in the right direction, I’m just so sick of feeling this way, I just wanna feel like I did 5 years ago when I was genuinely happy.

Shalom1995 How do I bring it up with my girlfriend?
  • replies: 2

Me and my girlfriend are both Christians. We were at Uni the other day and she pressed me on why I always barley study. I haven't spoken to her about depression but I mentioned that I have ADHD but I got cleared for it awhile ago so I could join the ... View more

Me and my girlfriend are both Christians. We were at Uni the other day and she pressed me on why I always barley study. I haven't spoken to her about depression but I mentioned that I have ADHD but I got cleared for it awhile ago so I could join the military. I think I may still have it cause I always struggle to concentrate, however I'm no doctor or anything. That was what I told her and her advice is to pray about it.Now I do pray, I pray a lot. But I've been praying for a long time, I mean a solid year of praying at every meal, every day. I pray every single night to help. But nothing's happened. I haven't gotten any better.Now I know the first step to helping myself is talking about it to my girlfriend, however she has lived a very sheltered life and I just don't think she understands at all where I am right now.How can I talk to her.I know this is just me been delusional but I'm always scared that if I talk to her and she sees my depression she won't love me anymore.It would be greatly appreciated if someone may have some advice for me.Thank you and kind regards.

Blue0023 Blue
  • replies: 8

I have a loving husband (I’m gay) great home and 2 awesome dogs which I love to death, but the last 6 months I have never felt so alone and isolated. He works late everyday and is always tired on weekends when I want to do things. My best friend of 6... View more

I have a loving husband (I’m gay) great home and 2 awesome dogs which I love to death, but the last 6 months I have never felt so alone and isolated. He works late everyday and is always tired on weekends when I want to do things. My best friend of 6 years no longer talks to me as his boyfriend is threatened by me and only talks if I start the conversation, like all my friends I guess. When did life get so complicated that we have to be the one who always calls or tries to organise catch-ups and events?Lately even the phone calls are left unanswered or brief that there is no one on one anymore. I have lost both my parents, my dad recently and nothing has been able to fill the void that has left. I feel the harder I try the thicker the trees get to the path out.

Patrickj Depressed and Unmotivated - M35
  • replies: 9

Hi everyone, I don't know really what to say here other than I've been feeling so down and unmotivated lately. For context, I live an ideal life - fantastic, supportive spouse, good income, good family. I suppose it stems from my job as a teacher, a ... View more

Hi everyone, I don't know really what to say here other than I've been feeling so down and unmotivated lately. For context, I live an ideal life - fantastic, supportive spouse, good income, good family. I suppose it stems from my job as a teacher, a profession that I feel is treated as a joke among many students and their parents. Some students have no qualms about telling me that my value as a teacher is tied up with my 'low paying salary' (yes, they say this). When I tell them I'm quite a good wage, they'll reply with 'that's not a lot'. Yes, they're kids, but far out... this profession is burning me out. I've been teaching for 10 years and I'm ready to leave. What else gets me down is that I'm 35 and I feel like I'm essentially blocked out of the housing market. It genuinely feels like everyone is better off. I'm beginning to turn to alcohol to cope with a sense of 'I'm not good enough'. However, I know it's all a fallacy. I'd likely feel this way even with a house of my own. Something in me just doesn't feel right anymore. I feel so unmotivated. I used to read 50 books a year. Now I'm lucky to read 1. At this point, I go to sleep, wake up, go to a depressing job, and get more depressed at seeing others buying houses, getting new jobs, starting families. I'm so sorry, guys. This is really a first-world problem post and I should be more thankful. Thanks for listening.

MIB Feeling Nothing
  • replies: 4

I have been on anti anxiety and depression medication for a long time, stems back to been caught up in the 2011 earth quakes in Christchurch NZ, spending that day finding loved ones in the CBD seeing the building crushed knowing there was lost of lif... View more

I have been on anti anxiety and depression medication for a long time, stems back to been caught up in the 2011 earth quakes in Christchurch NZ, spending that day finding loved ones in the CBD seeing the building crushed knowing there was lost of life. five hours of terror, ended with me rescuing my son and wife. Anyway roll a decade and bit forward, living in Queensland married 38 years, Son living close by and happily married this should be a time when I have positive and grateful grasp on life. I feel nothing not happy for more than short periods, most of time just an in between void of just getting through. Throw a game face on. I actually just can’t be bothered and would much rather just curl up and not have to participate. I am seeing my doctor maybe work on how the drugs mask it would seem me feeling anything. I have regressed back and have a fight or flight, finding hard to trust people. Thought I had that part of me under control, seems not.

liv1 So lonely
  • replies: 17

Anyone else feel so lonely? I have no one who understands what it's like to be suffering.

Anyone else feel so lonely? I have no one who understands what it's like to be suffering.