Treatment resistant depression

[Corrinne]

I am at the stage where it feels like none of the meds work anymore. Have been on anti-dep meds for 30 years. Have recently had some improvement and took steps to try to re-engage with life. The positive change has not been sustained. How does one get through the day and try to connect with life when your mood is very low? My natural inclination is to just lie on my bed

[blondguy]

Dear Corrinne

A warm welcome to the forums and thankyou for posting with us. I know it takes great courage to post as I was the same 2 years ago when I joined Beyond Blue with severe depression......and its a dark place to be in for sure

30 years is a long time Corrinne and I understand your pain. This is my 36th year with mental illness that started with chronic anxiety followed by depression and been on AD's for 22 years now.

Getting through the day is hard work. I hear you. I avoided frequent counseling for over a decade and my anxiety morphed into depression. May I ask you if you have a person or two for support?.....and if you have a GP that is supportive of your condition?

My apologies for the questions Corrinne....I only ask so we can help support you more effectively 🙂

Just a note if thats okay....The forums are a safe and judgement free place where you can post. I really hope you can post back when its convenient for you

You are not alone.....there are many gentle people on the forums that can be here for you Corrinne

My kind thoughts

Paul

[Peppermintbach]

Hi Corrinne,

I hope you don’t mind if I offer another warm welcome to the forums. It has clearly been a very long and drawn out struggle with mental health issues for you. 30 years, as Paul said, is a very long time.

The low mood sounds very debilitating and frustrating. I can relate to that and feel for you...

Good on you for trying to take steps to re-engage with life even if it was not sustained...

I feel, in addition to professional support, a lot of it is about creating a new routine and getting “back to basics” like making sure I eat breakfast everyday, light exercise most days, not completely isolating myself from other people, etc. I feel it’s also about taking things slowly and not pressuring yourself to do more than you’re ready. Gentle and easy does it...

For example, if motivation is very low, maybe you might like to just sit outside for 5 minutes each day. Then maybe if you start getting comfortable with the 5 minutes, you could extend that time or go for a short walk or even do some light gardening (if you have a yard).

I suppose what I’m suggesting is just being gentle on yourself and starting with something “do-able”, and gradually doing more over time . A slow and gentle “back to basics” approach. Granted, I don’t know if this is helpful but I figured that I would just share my suggestion anyway.

Please know you’re always most welcome to use this space to continue talking, asking questions, venting, etc if you feel like it...

Kind and caring thoughts,

Pepper