LIVE CHAT EVENT FOR MENTAL HEALTH WEEK: Thursday 8 October at 1pm - A GP's tips on staying mentally healthy

[Chris_B]

Hi everyone,

As part of Mental Health Week, we will be hosting another live chat here on Thursday 8 October, 1-2pm with Dr Stephen Carbone, beyondblue’s Policy, Evaluation and Research Leader.

Stephen worked for many years as a General Practitioner. A few years ago, Stephen decided to hang up his stethoscope and to move into the area of mental health promotion. He is now working at beyondblue where he is working with others to find ways to promote mental wellbeing, prevent depression, anxiety and suicide and ensure people affected with these mental health conditions have the opportunity to get the supports and services that are right for them - at the right time.

Our live chat will be focussed on tips for staying mentally healthy, and also how you can get the best out of your relationship with your doctor.

See also the BB resource What are my options?

PLEASE NOTE as per our community rules, Stephen won't be able to answer questions about medications, these are best discussed offline directly with your mental health professional. 

So bookmark this thread, get your questions ready, and we'll see you back here next Thursday afternoon when this thread will be unlocked and Stephen will be here to chat.

[Chris_B]

Hi everyone, Dr Steve is here and our chat is now open.

I'll start off with the first question - thinking back to seeing patients, what would you do in consultations to check that people you saw were looking after their mental health as well as their physical health?

[geoff]

dear Stephen, I want to thank you for giving us the time to be able to do this, it's a great initiative by Beyond Blue.

I am sorry but I have asked a a few questions.

You must have had a great deal of patients who were depressed for you to decide to change, but I don't want to get too involved in this.

My first question is that I seemed to changed 360 degrees to be able to overcome my depression, so did I do this by choice or was it because my old life wasn't what I wanted to go to, actually that's the same question, however it's very difficult when talking to someone on the forum that they need to change direction, they don't believe me or don't want to, so if they don't want to then their depression is not going to improve, unless they get enormous help to do so.

Why do people who have relapses like I have, last for only a couple of weeks or days rather another person who still struggles with it for a long time, and is it because I have changed 360 to them that haven't.

However by changing direction I have to start all over again, because my depression was not a place where I wanted to be, so my principles, values in life and what I do have all changed, but then could be open to a new set up to new ways of getting depressed, because I have never been there before.

[Dr_Steve]

Dear Chris, thanks for your question.

For me, mental health is just as important as physical health and I think as a GP I like to make sure that I encourage people to look after their mental health.  Some of the steps people can take relate to their lifestyle, regular physical activity, healthy diet, and getting enough sound sleep are just as helpful for mental wellbeing as they are for physical wellbeing.  There's also various other things we can talk about during this chat that can promote mental wellbeing.

When someone comes to me, I like to ask them generally how things are going, check on their mood, and check if they feel that they're coping well.

[geoff]

Why is it that when we reply to a lot of people same reply back wanting
help and accepting what any of us have said to them that could help them
in their situation, while there is a large group that never replies
back.

Is it that many feel embarrassed posting their comment and
only just want a feedback, or do they feel silly in posting a comment,
or actually scared that someone they know will pick up their post and
then relate it back to them, even though the site is anonymous.


Do you agree that the doctor and the psych should stay in contact with each other.

[Dr_Steve]

Dear Geoff, thanks very much for your questions.

I think everyone's journey through depression and recovery is going to be different, as are the circumstances that led to their condition in the first place.  We know that there's no one single factor that causes depression and/or anxiety, but rather a mix of individual and environmental factors that contribute.  For some people, they may feel they need to change their life quite substantially, for others it's about fine tuning and learning new relaxation and coping skills, as well as understanding their condition and seeing it for what it is - a health condition rather than a personal flaw or failing.

You're quite right, some people experience one episode and are well from then on, but others may have symptoms on and off, or more enduring. Everyone's different, and treatment needs to be tailored to the individual's preferences, needs and circumstances.

[trustlife]

Hi Dr Steve

Interesting move from a GP to promoting mental health. Can you think back and pinpoint the main driver for the change?

[jadealaB]

Hi.  I have PTSD, & wondering if its normal to wake up in the morning some times feeling like you have been crying for a week? Like your head feels like it & your eyes & nose & throat feel like that.  Please get back to me. 

Jadeala

[romantic_thi3f]

Hi Dr Steve,

Thanks for joining us and coming on during Mental Health Week.

One of the questions that I find we get asked a lot is 'can depression or anxiety be cured'?  My initial thought was that we couldn't cure it yet but we could find ways to manage it and get it under control.  What are your thoughts?

[Dr_Steve]

Dear Geoff, thanks again! 

Beyondblue encourages everyone who is interested to get involved in the forums. We know that people use them in different ways. Some people like to read what others have to say, which helps them, others want to post comments and get involved. We want people to do what works best for them.  It's a bit like general practice, people will have their own preference with how often they come to see a doctor, how much they are willing to say about their situation. We make sure the door is always open, so people come and talk to us at their own pace.

With regard to your second question, I couldn't agree more, I think it's important that there is good communication between the person, their family (if that's what the person wants), and any health professional or other professional providing assistance. That way everyone's on the same page, there's less confusion, and we're doing what the person is wanting from us.