Hi im new

[angelkattie]

I think i have depression i havent been to a professional and minor anxiety i have collapsed once overthinking and crying and not being able to breathe for no reason. Im not sure how this forum really works so if someone wanted to help me that would be great

[Croix]

Dear Angelkattie~

Welcome here, don't worry about how the forum works, you are off to a great start.

Without anything to compare it to many people become uncertain if they have depression/anxiety. This is a pity as often an early visit to the doctor and a course of treatment can be pretty effective. Leaving things longer makes it a bit harder

Beyond Blue has a self-test guide. It is not a diagnosis, just an indicator. Your score is looked at and advice given as a result, generally the higher the score the more likely you are experiencing depression and/or anxiety.

You do not have to rely upon this, in fact it often does not harm at all to book an extended appointment with a GP and say what has been happening, the overthinking and crying -and the collapse -sound pretty horrible.

I've had those and in my case it was depression/anxiety. I made a mistake of thinking things would get better by themselves, but as time went on I simply got worse. I only improved when I finally got competent medical help. The not being able to breath - which sounds a bit like a panic attack - was very scary.

Now I'm good.

May I ask if you have someone to support you? A family member or freind perhaps? It does make a deference to be able to speak frankly about how you are to someone that cares. I have my partner.

Please come back and say some more, we are here to understand and help

Croix

[geoff]

Hello Angelkattie, and a warm welcome to the site.

It's not easy to post your first comment because there is some hesitation in what you should write, but you have done it and that's great and can I say that I'm really sorry for how you are feeling.

The self test mentioned by Croix is in the 'The Facts' above and it's called the K-10 test.

What you can do on this forum is to write anything else you want to tell us, although we aren't qualified doctors, we have struggled through our own type of depression/anxiety ourselves and know how awful this illness is and what it can do to us.`

If you can do the K-10 test several times, but not straight after each other, but different times and days until you can book an appointment with your doctor.

Take the K-10 results with you and perhaps write down on some paper what and how you are feeling.

This just helps you when the doctor asks you 'how can I help you', all you need to do is pace what you have done over to them.

Would love to hear back from you, when possible.

Take care.

Geoff.

[angelkattie]

Thankyou for your advice. I took the test a while ago when i thought i was depressed and it reccomended i see a gp but i dont want to tell my family because they react weirdly to mental health because they had it in the past and dont want me to have it so they think if we dont talk about it it wont happen. I have a friend who i talk to it about sometimes but i havent been able to trust her as much lately and everytime i talk about it she goes on about how shes in more pain (her elbow broke once so she always brings it up saying shes the one whos in pain) I text my thoughts to myself just so i can get it out of my system. Thankyou for being welcoming

[angelkattie]

I have taken the test a few times in the past and recently and got high most times. I dont feel comfortable going to my gp because my parents dont like to talk about mental health and i dont want to bother anyone with the hastle of thinking about me. I dont want to ask my year advisor to go to the school councelor because i used to be this very happy kid that would always smile and i feel people would either not believe me if i told them or would be confused and change their image they had of me.

Sorry i went a bit off topic there but thankyou for replying

[Croix]

Dear Angelkattie~

I'm glad you have taken the test, as Geoff recommends more than once is sensible.

I'm not sure it is a matter of your parent's attitudes as it is of dealing with a very real situation. High scores indicate action should be taken. Showing the scores to a doctor and explaining how you are feeling is normally enough to get things started.

I know you may have a reputation for being "this very happy kid that would always smile" however I would be surprised if nobody had noticed when you have had difficulties, crying, difficulty breathing (and as a result difficulty talking), plus a collapse wold have been a real worry.

If you think it is hard to get help just pick up the phone, For those under 25 there is the Kids Help Line (1800 55 1800) where you can talk or web-chat - is a pretty good starting point.

Unlike many such places you can talk to the same person more than once if you want (when they are on shift of course). Thy are experienced and pretty realistic. They understand problems with parents.

If you make my mistake you leave things until they get a lot worse, I don't recommend it!

Croix

[angelkattie]

whats the best way to introduce the conversation with my parents or someone i trust?

[Croix]

Dear Angelkattie~

A good question, one an awful lot of people have asked. Apart from picking the time and place I guess the most important thing is choosing someone that cares about you, enough to get out of their comfort zone.

Beyond Blue has taken this problem quite seriously, I suggest you read:

https://www.beyondblue.org.au/get-support/have-the-conversation/talk-about-it 

This has some pretty fair advice. If you cannot find the page please sing out.

Croix

[geoff]

Hello Angelkattie, as Croix has said a good question.

Just because your parents don't like to talk about mental illness, still doesn't mean that they won't be thinking about it anyway and doesn't necessarily stop them from worrying about you.

They will be concerned about how you are behaving and might say 'you used to be a happy person, but now you're not', that's the key to begin the conversation, maybe start off by talking about a friend first and then say 'that's how I'm feeling'.

Pick out a story in the paper where someone important has backed off from doing what they always loved to do, say a footballer who has taken time off because they're struggling from mental illness.

We can't hide away from any type of mental illness, sure we can pretend, but there will be something you do that's out of the ordinary that will be noticeable.

Pick a time when it's more appropriate and just mention something on the outside that can lead to a discussion.

Best wishes.

Geoff.

[-_Brayden_-]

Hey there! And welcome to Beyondblue.

First of all, you should be very proud of yourself, being able to explain this kind of stuff can be difficult. While doctors might suggest anti-depressants, I suggest you consider trying what I do. Every morning when I hop out of my bed, I get up and say to myself in my head - "You are incredible, you can change the world". Its a little bit of motivation to get me through. Another thing I would suggest is Meditation. It can be pretty scary when you lose your breath, and to be fair it makes sense to panic. When it occurs, I suggest you stop what your doing, sit down anywhere possible and say to yourself "Everything will be alright". Then try to take a deep breath (through your mouth) This can usually occur when you are stressed and concerned about something.

So if this happens, its a pretty good indication that you need to walk away for a bit. I'm assuming your young (Like me) as per your conversation with Geoff and Croix.

Ask your teacher or your school counsellor and talk about it to them if you're a bit shy about talking about it to your parents. As they have been around kids/teens for an amount of time they would understand your situation.

Give me a shout if you need any more help or anything else to talk about!

- Brayden -