Immediate support
Immediate support

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.

Start a discussion

FAQ

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

View the FAQ

Forums guidelines

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

View the guidelines
Jump to
Start a discussion

Pinned discussions

BeyondBlue Beyond Burnout webinar- What's next?
  • replies: 17

Hi everyone, You’re probably here because you want to either prevent or recover from burnout, or you’ve just attended Beyond Burnout. We understand that this topic resonates deeply with many of us. Burnout can affect anyone, and discussing it openly ... View more

Hi everyone, You’re probably here because you want to either prevent or recover from burnout, or you’ve just attended Beyond Burnout. We understand that this topic resonates deeply with many of us. Burnout can affect anyone, and discussing it openly is a powerful step toward healing, prevention, and knowing that you’re not alone. If you’re unsure where to start your conversations about burnout, this is the space for you. Whether you want to share your own experiences, ask questions, or simply connect with others who understand what you're going through, you're in the right place. If you're seeking additional support, here are some resources: Burnout and Mental Health: Including our Burnout Check-In Tool and practical tips on how to stay well at work Personal Stories: Read about people’s experiences with burnout We’ll also use this space to post some of the questions and answers from the webinar discussion. Feel free to dive in and keep the conversation going. Our webinar recording is now available to watch: Beyond Burnout Webinar recording Thank you again for joining us — we’re glad you’re here.

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

Start a discussion

Guest_22043504 Worry and anxious
  • replies: 2

Love to know others tips on this. Most times before one of our adult children..still at home will have an important event or go away on a holiday, I stress that there general health will be well eg: no cold/flu etc...so they can enjoy their trip or s... View more

Love to know others tips on this. Most times before one of our adult children..still at home will have an important event or go away on a holiday, I stress that there general health will be well eg: no cold/flu etc...so they can enjoy their trip or special event. I know my mum always said to me 'stay well...if you are not well you won't be able to enjoy yourself as much'. Any help would be great for this mum to break this awful cycle. x

Clara1 Health Crisis
  • replies: 2

My neighbour’s niece is having a health crisis, possibly cancer and is in hospital. I have spoken to my neighbour about this. I have not seen the niece in some months but I worry about her. I know they are not my family but they have always been nice... View more

My neighbour’s niece is having a health crisis, possibly cancer and is in hospital. I have spoken to my neighbour about this. I have not seen the niece in some months but I worry about her. I know they are not my family but they have always been nice to me and I want them to be well. Not sure where to proceed from here.

white knight Finding peace and feeding your mind
  • replies: 2

Some members have sought tranquillity in their lives but simply don't know where to start. If they think camping is the answer I can vouch it certainly is a start. However- it can take time to wind down Eg we headed off with our caravan three days ag... View more

Some members have sought tranquillity in their lives but simply don't know where to start. If they think camping is the answer I can vouch it certainly is a start. However- it can take time to wind down Eg we headed off with our caravan three days ago. First day I vomited, then it intensified and now I'm OK, this happens every trip caused by moving out of my comfort zone sparking anxiety. Now we're settled on a riverbank but for me I need to mentally go much deeper. This might give you my meaning- WHERE A FAMILY USED TO TREAD There's something about Australia that runs a chill up and down ya backWhen we stroll along the rivers where the colonial whips would crack And those same chills would come and go like bushies about to wedLikely the sandy foundations of a shingled hut, where a family use to tread So it's not just a stroll but a magic left behindAnd the ancient owners hunting ground where the river forever windsFor there's that depth of green and gold and the need to build and settleAnd the colonial wife with grit beside a steaming kettle We didn't just build our shacks nor conquer every rocky craggWe plough virgin land behind a determined draughty nagAnd the miners cottages sprang up where Eureka found its wayAnd the swaggies filled every wagon track without a map nor means to pay For this great land of Aussie pride is a gem we embrace with lustLet's remember the gold diggers that dug but only found the dust There's something about Australia that runs a chill up and down your backWhen we stroll along the rivers where the colonial whips would crack TonyWK But we're not all poets. What I'm eluding to could include merely appreciating one breath of air, valuing the sun on your face, and steak on a campfire or the absence of humans those that don't contribute towards your well being "Staying well" also should include "seeking ideal conditions to enable you to be as well as possible then staying well" which is governed by the frequency of your vacations. Sometimes we need to feed our minds to guide it to what is an individuals ultimate peace. What is your method? Do you relate? TonyWK

TrueSeeker Good food for better mood
  • replies: 2

Hello everyone, I think that we all experienced how a good feed can make us feel better but we do need to keep it in healthy levels and that can spoil the good feeling. I'd like to share my experience with food and how we managed to get that great fe... View more

Hello everyone, I think that we all experienced how a good feed can make us feel better but we do need to keep it in healthy levels and that can spoil the good feeling. I'd like to share my experience with food and how we managed to get that great feeling of full stomach from hearty food while keeping our weight under control. Some time ago we started putting on weight due to health issues and just purely from getting old. I've never used to have weight problems while my partner has struggled all his life that by the way never ever bothered me. But I didn't like myself putting on weight and was worried that it could get out of hand and the earlier I'll deal with it, the easier it'll be. So we did some research on how to lose weight while still being able to get a good fix that we both love. We came across intermittent fasting and it sounded really good to us so we thought we give a gowhile adjusting it a little bit to our liking. We needed to lose weight first so had to go a bit hard on it to start with. Our target was one kilo a month, we thought that it was sustainable and not too painful. We didn't want to put ourselves off dieting. So we decided to have one big hearty meal every two days. Anything in between just to have tiny small bites just when the hunger gets too much, it could be anything. We just have a little bit of cheese, some nuts, piece of fruit, slice of bread and sometimes even a glass of water can take the edge of hunger away. It took us a year to get to the weight we were comfortable with. I lost 8 kilos, my partner lost 12 kilos. He always has to be better at everything! haha Now, we just keep our target weight, we do one hearty meal every day and have tiny meals the rest of the day to manage the hunger. When our weight goes up, we have a day off and go back to tiny meals and the weight goes down again. I love how we are able to have a good feed and get that comfortable feeling that everything is ok while keeping our weight under control. Here's couple of more tips:We bought a proper scale and got into habit of weighing ourselves every morning so we can see what food does what. One kilo fluctuation is ok but anything more than that needs to be fixed. We hunted for recipes for food that we really like. Now with the internet it is very easy to find recipes for food that we missed from childhood or anything we felt like eating. We still like our takeaway now and then but not as much as we used to. I think it would be great for everyone to share our stories, food or recipes that make us feel better. PS Please try to watch the weight as it can spoil the fun.

Alikiwi Alone at 70
  • replies: 4

As you can guess I'm 70, but oddly find myself totally alone with no one to talk to. I've lived most of my adult life in NSW, but I have no family in this state by a bizarre twist of fate. Closest I have is a nephew in Melbourne and a daughter in Tas... View more

As you can guess I'm 70, but oddly find myself totally alone with no one to talk to. I've lived most of my adult life in NSW, but I have no family in this state by a bizarre twist of fate. Closest I have is a nephew in Melbourne and a daughter in Tassie who I very rarely hear from. I've also had 5 failed marriages, last one of 10 years ending last year after I packed her off back to the USA. Short version is she stayed in bed 23 hours every day doing nothing, got addicted to painkillers and even after doctors warned her off it and then proved there was nothing physically wrong with her, the GP still wouldn't force her off it. By that stage she had become abusive. I had 1 friend of 8 years in this small town but she passed away last month totally unexpectedly. The only other close friends are in another town, and any contact has to be done by me. So, life is frustrating, and I only see people when I go shopping each week. Have a couple of good neighbours but rarely see them as they work and don't seem to be around much on the weekends either. So, there's my lot, and I'm wondering, why bother? Not sure this is the right place to post, so feel free to move it.

Sooty09 Where to go for help?
  • replies: 3

HiI am in my 50’s and struggling with health issues and my mental health has raised its ugly head again. I need more support to get through a challenging time, I asked 4 weeks ago for a mental health admission. Refused acute care, and only offered a ... View more

HiI am in my 50’s and struggling with health issues and my mental health has raised its ugly head again. I need more support to get through a challenging time, I asked 4 weeks ago for a mental health admission. Refused acute care, and only offered a day programme. I did this a couple of years ago and felt like I was an outsider and didn’t belong there. The organisers didn’t ask how I was doing, and the clients ignored me. I asked again this week as I feel like I am at rock bottom, only offered the day programme again. I contacted Lifeline this week and I got very confused with the conservation. I don’t understand why I am being ignored. Sooty

AndrewP Overcoming Social Anxiety and Developing Self-Love
  • replies: 13

In this western world we live in there comes a lot of social pressures. What you should wear, how you should act, what job you should have, what you should study, where you should be life, and even views that you should have. All of these SHOULDS hav... View more

In this western world we live in there comes a lot of social pressures. What you should wear, how you should act, what job you should have, what you should study, where you should be life, and even views that you should have. All of these SHOULDS have a massive impact on us, so much so that they can take us away from who we really are in essence and create a whole lot of anxiety along the way. Have the courage to take yourself away from the SHOULDS and do what you WANT to do, be who you WANT to be, in fact more to the point be WHO YOU ARE. We have fears which drive our beliefs and affect our behaviours. There are 3 UNIVERSAL FEARS. FEAR OF NOT BEING GOOD ENOUGH/BEING FOUND OUT FEAR OF NOT BELONGING FEAR OF NOT BEING LOVED The fear that comes with being WHO YOU ARE goes something like; "If I were to simply be myself, would I beloved, would I belong, would I be accepted? I can tell you that the answer is YES! When we meet someone who is living authentically and being true to themselves we find that we are drawn to these people because they give off such an energy of certainty if self and confidence. They don't turn it up for anyone or turn it down for anyone, they simply be who they are and are loved for that. One of the main reasons why we are drawn to such people is because it takes courage to put yourself out there and be who you are. I can tell you that once you experience embracing the vulnerability of being who you are you will have significant changes in your life. Some steps to take in moving forward. Ask yourself some great questions like: Who is it that I THINK I NEED to be in this world to be loved, belong and accepted? When I get anxious what is it that I'm actually worried about? (Get specific) Who do I want to be in this world? Who am I? What qualities do I love about others? (you will find you posses some of these qualities yourself) When asking these questions it is important to be 100% honest with yourself, even if you don't like the answer. Don't answer how you'd like it to sound, how you think it should sound, or how you want it to be.. answer it HOW IT IS! Develop Self-Love - look at all the positive qualities about yourself and really love them. Show yourself some compassion and give yourself a break. We are all perfectly imperfect in this world. Develop Self-Trust - Trust who you are and know that you will live true to yourself I have so much more so share guys so please ask questions

white knight The Shangri-La of living with mental health
  • replies: 0

Through my own lived experiences and those of members here and community champions, I've landed in a place that is "manageable in terms of my mental health. On most days that is, we learn that our inground issues never go away but overall I'm in a go... View more

Through my own lived experiences and those of members here and community champions, I've landed in a place that is "manageable in terms of my mental health. On most days that is, we learn that our inground issues never go away but overall I'm in a good space. So what are the key components of that happiness especially the mandatory ones that should be implemented? People management. If we lived in a wold where you were the only living human then your issues would reduce quickly. This is because the world is made up of humans that can be destructive, cruel, over reactive, manipulative, criminal, narcissistic and many other abrasive things that should lead you to create and enforce boundaries. Implementing them can crate more issues with these people but it is a last resort and a self protection mechanism that becomes essential. Without these rules you are lacking self care.Embracing people. When you identify a kind soul that is considerate, empathetic, lacking obligation and non pressured in personality then you can assist your growth by keeping them in your life and that forms a feeling of securityOngoing treatment. It's ok to get to a place like I'm at now and allow treatment to slip away (I'm also 69yo). If your life is under your control including feelings, reactions and you are stable then you're ok. A good gauge is twofold- that people around you are happy and content with your behaviour and your life no longer has a flip flop of regular bad day that leads to adverse actions like self harm and suicidal thoughts. That is when you return to the treatment to set you straight.Fill your life up. Many sufferers have a lot of time on their hands so distractions like a passion and hobbies can be a preventative measure. Passions are rarely crated, they come naturally but hobbies can be picked up. Sport is another interest that can helpSleep. Sounds sleep is underestimated to your mental health. If you snore or a partner told you that you stop breathing for periods of time while asleep then a sleep study is essential - see your GP. I've had 3 and on the 3rd study I was advised to wear a CPAP breathing apparatus at night. It has transformed my alertness during the day and has been pivotal to lowering moodEnvironment. Advantages of a country town are a slower pace lifestyle, less condensity of traffic, shops and people, less crime, friendlier people. Just make sure a town has over 3000 people and less than 8000.Thoughts?TonyWK

Janey_beyond Feeling drained from work
  • replies: 1

Hi everyone.I want to reach out on here and see if anyone is feeling the same way in regards to working full time and sometimes feeling almost ‘burnt out’ on the weekends. I finished school last year and started working full time. The first job I got... View more

Hi everyone.I want to reach out on here and see if anyone is feeling the same way in regards to working full time and sometimes feeling almost ‘burnt out’ on the weekends. I finished school last year and started working full time. The first job I got I was super excited and wanted to use it as an opportunity to gain experience. However, after a few months I really started to hate it and was crying at work, hiding in the bathroom, etc. I started a new job again recently, thinking it would be better, and although in most aspects it is, I think it’s just ‘working’ in general. Neither of these jobs have been necessarily emotionally or physically demanding, but I find on the weekend I am exhausted and depressed.Does anyone else feel like this and if so, how do you cope? It makes me worried about my future career pathway because I’ve realised I hate working a 9-5 ‘corporate’ job and it makes me second guess going to Uni just to enter into a corporate industry. I have also realised when I start to dislike something or when the excitment ends from starting something new, I feel bored and want to jump to the next big thing (this has happened in other areas of my life besides jobs).How do I stay resilient and allow myself to take on feedback from others instead of running the second I feel a problem coming?Any advice or thoughts are appreciated!

Sherpp How do I know if I'm faking a personality disorder?
  • replies: 3

Hai, I'm 16, this is kind of a long vent I guess n some of this probably won't make any sense, and I have no idea if this fits the like forum website guidelines or not either so if ur confused I can probably clarify, and ive tried my best to be as ho... View more

Hai, I'm 16, this is kind of a long vent I guess n some of this probably won't make any sense, and I have no idea if this fits the like forum website guidelines or not either so if ur confused I can probably clarify, and ive tried my best to be as honest and considerate about possible alternatives Usually I'd try to be honest, and I know the things I can do and the way I act can seem outlandish or distressing, but people label me as solely doing or feeling all of those things for some kind of shock purpose? I mean I know I can be cruel sometimes, like since I was basically 7 I used to immediately want to hurt whoever hurt my feelings soo my mum basically just got me tested for whatever neurodivergent stuff she could, and I have ADHD and like a really low thing of autism that barely even counts, and I guess you could argue most of my violent impulse control was just my ADHD or something, but as I kind of got older it felt like I was kind of getting meaner, like I had a dog my aunt had n I used to pull her ears or choke and squeeze her until I heard her screaming... and now that I'm a little older I've had a few run in withs police and been admitted to hospital for mental crisis shit, like I smashed a car window by accident and it cut my arm all up. and besides all of that total psychopath textbook definition stuff I've had like a lot of trouble with work commitments and at school, I got suspended several times at the same school for 'bullying and threatening staff and other students' among just being late to class or skipping n minor uniform infractions, one point they just told me they couldn't have me for the rest of the year unless I had ADHD medication and opted to have me held back... Anyway during this time my aunts dog, the same one I basically tortured had died and my mother had a heart attack so I was moved to a group home until she was physically fit enough to care for me again... anyway the group home I stayed at wasn't really that bad I guess, besides the kid who threatened who stab me to death after I smashed up his tv and started beating him up after he tried to push me over; it was actually just really standard. Even though I ran away in the middle of the night and walked like half way to the other side of the city 3 times, and at one point I just stood on a ledge and said I'd kill myself on a helpline n they called police to drag me down. Actually I ran away when I was living with my mother a lot too, whenever her boyfriend was kinda mean to me I guess, I mean at one point I came up with a story and said that he was abusive and hit me and my brother' I mean he did ACTUALLY hit my brother but honestly I can tell within myself he really wasn't that bad to me..? Or I guess he was that bad to me... so court believed me and had me also moved out of my mothers house, on top of the heart attack shit actually it was like a huge comorbid excuse to disown me... anyway I said he was hitting me and stuff to my counsellor and they took it seriously and my mum was all upset at me driving to court n I had to present there with my brother, who honestly might be more insane than me I guess bcus he used to try and hit my mum and stab us n he stole stuff and took drugs and was always crying over his friend trying to kill themself. He said I tried to drown him in our pool lots growing up though, I cant deny or agree bcus I dont remember. And besides all of that traumatic shit, like my dad also divorcing my mother and having a HUGE custody battle over me and my brother trying to say I was kidnapped n trying to basically deport me I had a weird amount of internet access, like I think I was honestly molested or groomed online but I don't rlly care, like I found communities and met real people and I saw a scary amount of like real car accidents and people being shot to death. Anyway just now that I think about it, how I process it all, even though maybe at one point I was faking a personality disorder or something I GENUINELY think I might have one now, not like It's really distressing to think about or anything, I mean it would b kinda cool to have it like a funny sitcom personality trait, but because Ive been bragging about thinking I have one any actual counsellor I've met already dismisses any kinda conversation I bring up relating it bcus I've "tried to hard to fake one..." like I feel like the more I unravel and learn about myself, and how I just process my own life, other peoples feelings their humanity and everything... I feel like I genuinely maybe do actually have something there... and I also really don't wanna stab someone and go to jail,