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Sad all the time? Dysthymia

white knight
Community Champion
Community Champion

It's difficult to describe but if you see and feel sadness in most things in life you could have dysthymia. Constant, uncontrollable crying, thinking often about sad topics.

A proper diagnosis is needed. This illness generally develops prior to adulthood and can be described as a constant low mood depression. You can google "dysthymia mood disorder" to receive a full description.

The disorder makes one feel alone, desperate and unusual. I have a friend I went to school with, he never cried in 35 years I knew him until his father died. He was uncontrollable that funeral day. The next day we chatted. I mentioned that his state the day before was how I felt every second day. He got some idea of the magnitude. Soon after I got the diagnosis

Bipolar2, depression, anxiety and...dysthymia. my psychiatrist discovered that a near drowning of my brother when I was 12yo was the spark, the shock that set it off. I didnt talk for 3 months after that incident and was highly emotional ever since until 2009 when he prescribed medication.

Since then my life has turned around in terms of sadness. If you believe your level of sadness is high, constant and you feel desperate, even suicidal, you might have dysthymia. It effects more women than men, can come about if you have a parent with a mental illness or if you suffered trauma at a young age.

Seek help. The difference to your life will be much more positive.

Tony WK

22 Replies 22

Fairywings
Blue Voices Member
Blue Voices Member
Well done Tony you couldn't be more accurate with how it is. Very well written and will def help others on here xx Venessa

73Bonneville
Community Member

I think this describes how I have been feeling the last couple of years.

This is my first post and I am glad I have found this forum. I am hoping it will help me and maybe what I describe will help others.

I have managed to live with depression with professional help and medication (which I am now slowly reducing) for some time. But the last few years I feel extremely sad and will start to cry if I think about the past. In particular our kids growing up, leaving school, doing their own thing.

When our eldest left high school I was upset for a long time. Our youngest is now in year 12 and I am already sad thinking about her moving on to university. I don't handle change very well and think that everything will stay the same forever. But it doesn't. It never seemed to bother me much in the past, it's only the last couple of years. Another example: we've been going to the same holiday place as a family for years, and just the idea that we will not be doing that anymore will get me down for days on end. And then I feel guilty because it seems so silly to be sad and cry about trivial things like that. Except they are not trivial to me. I don't want to feel this sad everything something changes, at the moment I am looking at techniques to replace the sad feelings with happy ones, but this is not working out yet.

Hi 73, welcome

I'm humbled you have seen one of my threads and identified it to your own sadness.

We are sufferers here that cant diagnose but knowledge of my own illnesses like dysthymia and others that cause such distress like melancholy depression for example that it opens doors to people like you. This raises reason why you are how you are.

Dear 73, you are the very type of person I focus on to help. The reason I'm here writing such threads is to convey to you how different your life can be once effective treatment has been obtained.

"Effective treatment " in several ways- Visit to your GP, treatment from recommended professionals, forum involvement and much reading and many questions, family support, diet and exercise and so on.

So, I've walked these paths and climbed the hurdles of sadness so devastating it was life threatening. ..and made it.

What is "made it". Its when you see events more realistically and logically. When you no longer in the first instance feel emotion instead of reflection, hurt instead of defense. Its a very different frame of mind.

Treat yourself and your family with some professional care.

Post anytime. We are here for you.

Tony WK

Hey Knight 🙂

What an awful way to feel, sorry you do.

I've heard or read actually about dysthymia that can occur in BP (bipolar) too.
It sounds similar to depression but if it was I'm guessing it wouldn't have a separate name.

I've often in BP apart from cyring in depression that you'd know about often had times like you were saying in op about crying all the time. Can't stop aye.
It's a stress release but exhausting in itself isn't it. I said once on different type of forums I feel wrecked after crying apart from the emotional side which is understandable someone replied saying there's a hormone or ? that's discreted in tears which makes ya feel worn out.

What an ordeal with your brother, terrible thing to go through.

Do you see a psych at all?

You've a lot to cope with Knight I read with BP research that type 2 has more depression than type 1. I've been diagnosed as both 1 & 2. (think moreso 2 ).

Do you have days when you're feeling ok, or periods of the day?

I truly believe we can make a huge dent in depression Knight, gotta keep thinking about how & applying. Everything great on paper aye

Thanks for the info you've put up

Take care

Hi DB

My full diagnosis is bp2, depression, dysthymia and anxiety. The anxiety I've licked, its gone.

With correct meds and some maturity with my emotions my dysthymia has drifted but it return occasionally. So I'm feeling much better than say 10 years ago.

It was like emotionally I was immature. At 20yo I was emotionally say 10. At 40 I was say 15. Now 61 I've caught up.

With several illnesses its hard to know what illness causes what but I'm getting there.

Thanks for replying Demon

Tony WK

yw Knight 🙂

Yeah I read in op your other stuff as well, as if one wasn't hard enough aye 🙂

Know what you mean about with maturity emotions become more manageable as we learn & grow, the one thing about ageing I can see as a good.

Fantastic the dsythymia has backed off (still pops in, that's not the fantastic part lol) that could be down to you learning to deal with emotions & as you said more maturity too.

We're at our worst mentally or physically ill, sounds like you've certainly got a lot on your plate.

Glad you're talking too, thankyou for what you do here for others 🙂

Hi 73 & all 🙂

You love your children 🙂 safe bet those feelings are common darl.
Change for many is unsettling. I don't mind it. Stimulating but yeah same's comforting & secure I guess

They're not trivial complaints, it's stuff that pulls you down, this is where we can let it out. Get help support, no judgement. Really good place well run. So vent away 🙂

Yeah when we're depressed it's hard to see good. Dark heavy blanket over our heads & body

My goal is to learn how to work through depression, I'm BP (Bipolar 1 & 2) to control emotions I think every person needs to & gain full confidence.

If we like ourselves, have to be major for confidence aye. Backing ourselves.

Our entire time here's with our own heads, every second

Depression makes us believe we're no good. WRONG! ... believe in something....half way there.
Knight as fairy said that was a VERY well written post. Thanks 🙂

Our turn for control peeps

Cyaz


Hi DB

Thanks for that.

Any following links can be googled.

I've found that to reduce the effects of my depression and even some bipolar issues is a multi pronged approach.

Topic: be radical- beyondblue

That thread us to all the sufferers out there that are too scared to make a move.

Then there is when not to fight your depression

Topic: the timing of motivation- beyondblue

And getting it all in perspective so we can accept our illness

Topic: depression, a ship on the high seas- beyondblue

Yes, its a great forum here, its depth of threads are amazing.

Thanks for your interest

Tony WK

Thanks for all the replies. Melancholy depression, I like that description, I'll have to read up on it more.

I never had this in the past, just some mild depression and anxiety. Some people I talk to can't wait for their kids to move out. I get upset if there is a day we don't have dinner together as a family. I will keep reading these forums and try to post if I see something relevant or some advice I can provide based on my experiences. I am not the best communicator, signing up for these forums is already a big step forward for me.

Cheers all.