Staying well

Support each other to stay well, from mindfulness, sleep, diet and exercise to reducing drug and alcohol use and coping with difficult emotions.

FAQ

Find answers to some of the more frequently asked questions on the Forums.

Forums guidelines

Our guidelines keep the Forums a safe place for people to share and learn information.

Pinned discussions

Just Sara A Bouquet for Pearls - share your appreciation for other members
  • replies: 715

Every now and then, members share a beautiful Pearl of Wisdom. How often do you think to yourself; "OMG that's great! I wish everyone could see this." Presenting someone with a bunch of flowers is a generous way of acknowledging their insightful word... View more

Every now and then, members share a beautiful Pearl of Wisdom. How often do you think to yourself; "OMG that's great! I wish everyone could see this." Presenting someone with a bunch of flowers is a generous way of acknowledging their insightful words. I hope this thread stays active through members giving out praise regularly to people they feel deserving, and therefore keep generosity of spirit alive within the pages of BeyondBlue Forum. My bunch of Red Roses (my choice) goes to Wishful for the following sentence; 'Personally, I see no reason to be praised in me, but I'm learning that seeing through the eyes of others can be more accurate!!' I so hear you Wishful. Just beautiful... Try to keep your leading comments short to focus on 'their' words. Choose specific flowers (or a gift if you like) to present to them. Sign off respectfully and sincerely. I hope this takes off... Spreading the love...Sara

All discussions

loouuiiee loneliness busters ?? 🌸
  • replies: 7

heyy there I need help thinking of ideas to help me not feel so lonely & am open to pretty much any suggestions Im 24, study full time, suffered with depression and anxiety for many years now, struggling financially atm & finding it hard to make frie... View more

heyy there I need help thinking of ideas to help me not feel so lonely & am open to pretty much any suggestions Im 24, study full time, suffered with depression and anxiety for many years now, struggling financially atm & finding it hard to make friends as I have had a few housemates in the past who used me & abused me ... I even had to get an intervention order against one of them! I feel safer living on my own at the moment but I have lived with various boyfriends (now ex-boyfriends) for almost 10ywars now as I was throw out by my parents when I was 15 years old. I am very dependent on my relationships & every time a relationship fails I feel extremely alone i currently do have a boyfriend, but he has family commitments which means he can't move in with me or spend time with me all the time ... and I want to learn to be more self sufficient. Its embarrassing for me to admit how much I let my happiness be dependent on the man in my life. i want to be more independent and not let my loneliness be such a trigger for my anxiety and depression ... but I don't know where to start. please help

Faith_Intent Autogenic Meditation and Mindfulness for Depression and Anxiety
  • replies: 1

Just want to recommend this German approach to meditation and mindfulness. It helped me with anxiety and ADHD...more so than the Eastern forms of meditation that I have practised for many years. I think it's hard to find a trained person but I found ... View more

Just want to recommend this German approach to meditation and mindfulness. It helped me with anxiety and ADHD...more so than the Eastern forms of meditation that I have practised for many years. I think it's hard to find a trained person but I found someone in Sydney and it has made a big difference.

Bookgirl How do people stay positive in a negative world?
  • replies: 3

I often feel overwhelmed by events in my life and the world and struggle to stay positive but my friends who don't suffer from anxiety seem able to cope? How do they achieve this? What am i doing wrong?

I often feel overwhelmed by events in my life and the world and struggle to stay positive but my friends who don't suffer from anxiety seem able to cope? How do they achieve this? What am i doing wrong?

Peppermintbach Dear fellow creatives...tips and tricks on leading a creative life
  • replies: 123

Hi everyone, As the title suggests, this thread is pretty much exactly as per the thread title. In some ways, I feel as though I'm a bit of a creative rut, which is awful when you're a creative person. So I thought that I would try to ask for inspira... View more

Hi everyone, As the title suggests, this thread is pretty much exactly as per the thread title. In some ways, I feel as though I'm a bit of a creative rut, which is awful when you're a creative person. So I thought that I would try to ask for inspiration in terms of ideas and stories from fellow creatives. Hopefully other people also find this thread helpful in terms of reading and sharing. So whether you're a professional or amateur graphic designer, industrial designer, architect, musician, writer, choreographer, dancer, landscaper, etc, etc...I would LOVE to hear your tips and anecdotes on how you inject creativity in your world and how your keep the creative spark alive. Thank you! Pepper

daffodilia Keeping life under control in depressive/anxious episode?
  • replies: 2

I've recently just gone down a dose in my antidepressants due to unwanted side effects, and while adjusting I'm finding myself slipping back into old anxious habits, staring at my computer screen all day and scrolling social media to avoid the things... View more

I've recently just gone down a dose in my antidepressants due to unwanted side effects, and while adjusting I'm finding myself slipping back into old anxious habits, staring at my computer screen all day and scrolling social media to avoid the things I should and need to be doing. What are some ways to deal practically with a depressive/anxious episode? (Most tips I see, like listen to music, meditation, pet animals, go for a walk, are all very helpful for mood, but not when I feel like I'm slowly drowning in undone, overdue errands and don't have time). Letting things slip only makes me feel worse and even more unable to look after myself - I want to be able to keep my life together and under some semblance of control. But how?

white knight Time out from the fast lane
  • replies: 6

What is the "fast lane"?. Humans have developed over a long period but in the last 150 years advancement in technology has resulted in a more complex life. 300 years ago and beyond, prior to the industrial revolution we were not much more than hunter... View more

What is the "fast lane"?. Humans have developed over a long period but in the last 150 years advancement in technology has resulted in a more complex life. 300 years ago and beyond, prior to the industrial revolution we were not much more than hunter gatherers. How can the human mind adapt to change within a short relative time frame? 30 years ago thete were no computers in our homes. If you didnt accept that computers were beneficial and endure the steep learning curve, you were left behind. The "fast lane" is now normal living. You might be a two income family, kids, drop one off at day care, drop one off at school, toletate peak hour traffic, parking fines and abrasive work colleagues but you can still be in the fast lane with none of those things. Even a person not working can feel the pressure. Financial stress, society expectations, class warfare, stigma, feelings of failure...keeping well. To those people...us...we have our own fast lane. Everyone has their own burnout point. That double income two kids family? What if suddenly they lose one income. They base their lifestyle on two incomes, their mortgage, cars etc. Have an injury at home could fracture their resilience And its no different to someone unemployed that has an unexpected bill. The mechanucal car repairs. No car, no chance of work and the despair sets in.. Its just all too hard. It might seem logical that everyone has a certain capacity. Some people are stimulated by challenges whereas some are not. The human brain has developed on various levels of ability to cope with modern life. If you've had trouble coping it isnt a "fault" more so a part of being normal...thats how common it is. When the human brain breaks down we need to take it seriously and not expect to return to our lifestyles previously enjoyed. Tips on this are in- use google Topic: be radical- beyondblue For me I remained in full time employment too long. Eventually after a mental collapse I went part time but it was too late, my capacity to work at all was no longer there. I had no endurance left. Hence this thread, to alarm you in the danger of overload. What can you do to prevent what happened to me? Revamp finances so you have saving ability, resist that new car and extra loan! Take your holidays and make it a holiday. At the end of it plan your next. Any mental illness plan future part time work and.. Return to nature where your brain belongs. Chill out on a river bank and turn off your mobile phone... Tony WK

Guest_128 One thing you did good today
  • replies: 101

On returning my shopping trolley today I was confronted with a lady and two small kids that looked less off than me I suppose. The lady fumbled for a coin and I said here by the kids an ice cream , She looked at me as if I where giving her a 100 , it... View more

On returning my shopping trolley today I was confronted with a lady and two small kids that looked less off than me I suppose. The lady fumbled for a coin and I said here by the kids an ice cream , She looked at me as if I where giving her a 100 , it was $2 BAM I felt so good Later

ScarlettR Any household chores you find fun and mentally stimulating?
  • replies: 10

I believe it's important to keep up with household chores on a daily basis - not only for the house maintenance, but it occupies your mind and you get a mental and physical exercise from it. The household chores I do find fun are laundry, believe it ... View more

I believe it's important to keep up with household chores on a daily basis - not only for the house maintenance, but it occupies your mind and you get a mental and physical exercise from it. The household chores I do find fun are laundry, believe it or not! I'm a bit of a shopaholic and like buying nice clothes to cheer myself up. So to wash nice clothes then hang them up to dry in preparation for a next big day/ night out is really exciting to me. I don't wish to list any households I don't really like doing - just the ones I enjoy.

white knight Finding YOURSELF
  • replies: 6

Its a common question, those with the "fog" of mental illness confess that they dont know who they are. They're lost, feel bland in personality and dont see anything unique in their own character. What can they do to become somebody, like everyone el... View more

Its a common question, those with the "fog" of mental illness confess that they dont know who they are. They're lost, feel bland in personality and dont see anything unique in their own character. What can they do to become somebody, like everyone else in the world?. Well firstly we must face some hard facts.Courage is an element of us all and we need to dig deep to harness it, put it to use. We are all unique. We look different, talk different, act uniquely, so lets accept that we are unique. Most people in childhood develop interests naturally. Hobbies, future professions, whether we like certain foods and as we grow older, slot into certain fields of natural ability. I wanted to be a policeman or pilot, was inventive, loved building cubbies, developed humour but I had an anchor, a part of me didnt develop as quickly as it should have...street wisdom and emotions So, if I had also not developed in other fields, like my character and slotting into various fields of ability, I'd be asking myself ..who am I? Im suggesting that some work needs to be done to discover who you are. Counseling would help here. But daily you can spent time discovering what is already present within you...you! There's no better example than a friend of my wife. Lacking any confidence, failed 30 year marriage, dwelling on her health issues, no obvious unique abilities- to her. She invited us to dinner and was in tears as we walked through the door over thinking her meal would be terrible. She had zero confidence. The meal consisted of steak peas and potato bake, then lemon marangue pie. At the end of the meal I grabbed paper and a pen and gave it to her and asked her to write down the recipe of the potato bake. "Why" she asked. "Because its the best Ive tasted, better that the town cafe, why arent you a cook"? Eventually the same local cafe advertised for a casual cook. She got the job (especially after I told the owner about her skill). Suddenly she had direction a future, a reason to read books on recipes. But what I find amusing is that her ability to cook wasnt seen by her as a unique ability. Some people cant boil water and every chef in the world is trained to be one. But here was a lady that cooked for 33 years for her family which was great training and learned through trial and error. You can find who you are. Be flexible though and positive. I ended up a tinkerer and pi. Not a pilot..so be ready to change direction and change your mind ..thats ok to. Find YOU! Tony WK

Peppermintbach Share your "life lessons" here: the good, bad and the ugly
  • replies: 32

Hi everyone, Please feel free to share your "life lessons" here that you have learnt (or are in the process of learning) along the way This is a place for you to share your lessons learnt from times of joy as well as times of loss and pain (and all t... View more

Hi everyone, Please feel free to share your "life lessons" here that you have learnt (or are in the process of learning) along the way This is a place for you to share your lessons learnt from times of joy as well as times of loss and pain (and all the other emotions in between). I hope this thread becomes a place of collective wisdom and learned experience. May the sharing begin... Love, Pepper xo