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nayellie New here - seeking support - SSRI withdrawal
  • replies: 7

Hi there. I'm not sure what I'm supposed to write here, but I thought I'd introduce myself. I am 30 years old, have been suffering from anxiety, OCD and emetophobia for around 17 years. I am a mum of two beautiful children. I have recently been diagn... View more

Hi there. I'm not sure what I'm supposed to write here, but I thought I'd introduce myself. I am 30 years old, have been suffering from anxiety, OCD and emetophobia for around 17 years. I am a mum of two beautiful children. I have recently been diagnosed with SSRI toxicity and need to come off the antidepressant which I have been on for 15 years on 200mg. I have been trying to search for a place to chat with others who may have been through SSRI withdrawal - I feel alone in all of this

Anroca78 Thankful for Beyondblue
  • replies: 2

Hi, Nearly a week ago I was in a bad place. After 3 months of setbacks, my bipolar brain was struggling worse than ever. Holidays just added to the stress. I was a danger to myself yet still I could not bring my self to reach out for help. I hit my r... View more

Hi, Nearly a week ago I was in a bad place. After 3 months of setbacks, my bipolar brain was struggling worse than ever. Holidays just added to the stress. I was a danger to myself yet still I could not bring my self to reach out for help. I hit my rock bottom. I decided to reach out to Beyondblue. I chose web chat, one on one advice, and thank god I did! They helped me realise there was more help out there, and got me in contact with the mental health team who referred me to my local hospital. I volunteered myself and was admitted to the Psych ward. I always refused hospital treatment because I was worried how my 13yr old son would react( he was fine and relieved I was getting help), it ended being the best decision for me. I spent 5 days getting help from doctors and psych doc and speaking to other bipolar patients really helped as well. I was placed back onto medication which is what I needed. I also have received follow up calls from Mental health team,immediately once I got home to see how I am going. This would not of been all possible if I did not reach out to Beyondblue. So I am saying a BIG Thankyou. You are truly helping people like myself take that first step to getting life back on track, and understand and accept the ups and downs of mental health.

Manda85ballarat Mental Health Plan
  • replies: 2

A quick question regarding mental health plans. The GP referred created a mental health plan for me and referred me to a psychologist on staff at the practice. The problem is she is only works Thursday's and I was told she would contact me I understa... View more

A quick question regarding mental health plans. The GP referred created a mental health plan for me and referred me to a psychologist on staff at the practice. The problem is she is only works Thursday's and I was told she would contact me I understand New Years and Christmas mucked things up but I am feeling extremely anxious and would like to try to get into someone sooner. My question is, is it too late to get referred to someone else? (I am moving from one side of Melbourne to the other this year due to a new job so would probably like to have someone closer to where I'll be living) or do I have to stay with the original psychologist I have been referred to? I went to ask about this and I was seen y a different GP at the same practice. Any insight would be appreciated. Manda

hamington muliple diagnosis fear. Help!
  • replies: 4

I have fought depression for many years but very recently have been diagnosed with bipolar 2, G.A.D, B.P.D and ADHD. Its taken so long to diagnose my conditions because from age 9 I took medications for epilepsy which are also used to treat many ment... View more

I have fought depression for many years but very recently have been diagnosed with bipolar 2, G.A.D, B.P.D and ADHD. Its taken so long to diagnose my conditions because from age 9 I took medications for epilepsy which are also used to treat many mental health issues and from my early 20's I self medicated heavily with drugs. Its only after 12 months clean and a lot of therapy that I've been able to get to the real problems I ran from for so long. I'm feeling positive that there is some hope of getting my "disorders" under control but am also still a bit gobsmacked by it all, I know little about these illnesses and where to link into the right services. whilst my psychologist and interim psychiatrist have been great I'm very fearful that my G.P and new psychiatrist in charge of my medication review and treatments may focus too much on my former substance use and base decisions on that rather than the mental health issues at hand. I realise this may all sound a little paranoid but I live in regional Australia where unfortunately this does happen (it took letters and calls from a psychologist to get my G.P to put me on a basic antidepressant after he refused because I "didn't need more drugs" and needed to "just get moving". Has anybody had similar problems and or know of advocacy groups etc?. This is all rather new to me so any feedback would be much appreciated

clareeezy How effective is antidepressant medication and psychotherapy?
  • replies: 11

Hey guys,First time poster! So, in September of last year I was diagnosed with depression by my local GP. He put me on an antidepressant and referred me to a psychologist. Being skeptical, I neglected to go and see a psychologist because I simply tho... View more

Hey guys,First time poster! So, in September of last year I was diagnosed with depression by my local GP. He put me on an antidepressant and referred me to a psychologist. Being skeptical, I neglected to go and see a psychologist because I simply thought it would be a waste of time, and I was relying on the meds prescribed to me. Not only did I feel like it didn't work but it made me even more tired. I went through one cycle and never renewed my prescription, hoping that time would heal me...It is now January, a new year and I really want to get on top of my depression (and now anxiety) before it consumes the rest of my year/life. So I'm just wondering how effective is antidepressant medication (perhaps I'm on the wrong ones?) and if seeing a psychologist is actually worth it? and if so, what happens during a typical session? Is it dependent on the therapist? Is it expensive/covered by Medicare?Thanks,Clarence

littlelulu Mental Health Assessment for Anxiety
  • replies: 1

Hi I have an appointment tomorrow with my doctor , he wants to do a mental health assessment for anxiety.. can anyone tell me what this will entale please? Im actually a little scared about going Thanls Littlelulu

Hi I have an appointment tomorrow with my doctor , he wants to do a mental health assessment for anxiety.. can anyone tell me what this will entale please? Im actually a little scared about going Thanls Littlelulu

Riss Meds not working
  • replies: 9

Hi I was told I had depression and anxiety about 10 years ago now and was put on an SNRI that worked miracles. But sadly my body became use to the medication, it stopped working and I was already on the highest dose. so my doctor took me off it and p... View more

Hi I was told I had depression and anxiety about 10 years ago now and was put on an SNRI that worked miracles. But sadly my body became use to the medication, it stopped working and I was already on the highest dose. so my doctor took me off it and put me on another. It has been almost 4 months now and I'm almost on the max dose and I feel as bad if not worse then when I started it. I'm scared that medication wont work for me any more and ill feel this way forever. Has any one ever had this happen with meds before and did they find one that worked eventually?? Please help Riss

Loula Why am I on medication
  • replies: 3

I've just started medication for bipolar and I'm not liking it. For starters I can't swallow pills and it tastes like fish! I hate having to get weekly blood tests. I hate hate hate that my husband asks me every day if I'm taking it! I'm not brain de... View more

I've just started medication for bipolar and I'm not liking it. For starters I can't swallow pills and it tastes like fish! I hate having to get weekly blood tests. I hate hate hate that my husband asks me every day if I'm taking it! I'm not brain dead I'm just unwell, I can remember to take my pills! Ive been on it for nearly two weeks and it's just turned me into a crying mess! I cry 3 times a day and I have fear in me now! I'm though taking pain killers everyday to help get me through work and I need to take up to 3 sleeping pills to sleep and I only get 5 hours sleep! I swear it's not working and everyone says give it time. But I'm over giving things time I just want something to work out for once! I'm also on one of my highs and just want to go crazy even though I know everything I do will ruin my life. But then I think mabye I'm meant to go crazy. Mabye if I do these crazy things even though I lose everything I might be happy. i also think mabye my brain is meant to be crazy. Mabye I'm not meant to be normal and healthy. Mabye I shouldn't be married. Mabye I'm meant to be alone. Mabye I'm meant to suck at life. why am I on the pills? I'm not worthy of the normal lifestyle.

ribbonwhite How long did it for medication to work for you
  • replies: 25

Just wanting to see how long it took to notice a change once starting medication? I'm only at day six but I feel like I'm getting worse. All I want to do is sleep because I don't want to be in "reality" the anxiety hasn't died down. I feel like my he... View more

Just wanting to see how long it took to notice a change once starting medication? I'm only at day six but I feel like I'm getting worse. All I want to do is sleep because I don't want to be in "reality" the anxiety hasn't died down. I feel like my heart is about to jump out of my chest, its so bad it hurts. I feel like my whole body is shaking and having "tick" like sensations. I must add this was all here before starting medication.Ive been prescribed two different medications is anyone able to give feed back? Prescribed for helo in treatment for PTSDTIA

EmMay Medication Withdrawal
  • replies: 3

I have never belonged to or posted in a forum (of any nature) but, in the lowest depths of my current psyche, I feel compelled to. Maybe by publicly acknowledging my despair it gives me some sort of power over it? On one hand I know pragmatically tha... View more

I have never belonged to or posted in a forum (of any nature) but, in the lowest depths of my current psyche, I feel compelled to. Maybe by publicly acknowledging my despair it gives me some sort of power over it? On one hand I know pragmatically that how I feel is a biochemical reaction mixed with genetic predisposition. However it is so hard to pull myself out of the black hole of self-loathing, anxiety, hysteria, fury, self-pity, anger and hollowness. I have been dealing with depression and anxiety for 15 years (since diagnosis) but more likely 25 years. And, when in the middle of a relapse (albeit one brought on by severe withdrawal from antidepressant) I can't reconcile the notion that I will ever feel any other way again. I don't know what it's like to live without the feeling of constant pressure and foreboding. Even when my depression and anxiety is "controlled" my perfectionist nature plunges me into a roundabout of constant negativity and disappointment. This, mixed with a sense of shame of having a "mental illness" means I'm never really free. It's something that you can't quite share with anyone, you can't quite articulate how it feels especially in the face of - "look at all the great things in your life" or "just try to snap out of it".