Welcome and Orientation

Pinned discussions

Meet your community champions!

replies: 12

Hi everyone, We wanted to share with you the way that our wonderful Community Champions are here to support you. You may have noticed that a few of our Forums members are labelled ‘Community Champion’. Community Champions are volunteers within the Beyond Blue Forums who: have the time, skills and empathy to support other members regularly; help to welcome new members; are actively engaged members that help set the tone of our community. Our Community Champions are regular contributors to many conversations across the forums. They are a consistent and friendly voice that have committed to sharing their experience and expertise with this community. They are not health care professionals or clinicians. Like you, they have an experience with a mental health challenge or diagnosis – either for themselves or someone they care for. This forum is for people who understand what it feels like and have a lived and living experience of mental health challenges. Our Community Champions help everyone feel comfortable and confident by demonstrating what excellent peer support is all about. Click here to find out more about how you can become a Community Champion! This incredible team are excited to introduce themselves below, and we are sure you’ll see them around the forums in conversations important to you.

HELP..Am I posting in the right section?

replies: 10

Welcome to those who are considering posting for the very first time, welcome. Thought I would repost part of the words that Chris B posted awhile ago, (2014) as I can hear that people are unsure if they are posting in the right section or worried that they are posting "the wrong thing". 1.A good title makes the difference Just like a headline in a newspaper, when scanning the dozens of threads to click into, it’s only natural that people will choose the ones that resonate with them most. A title that entices the reader, or asks a question, is likely to get a better result than something non-descriptive like “Depression” or “I don't know what to do”. If you think you’re not good at choosing titles, leave it till last. Spend time writing your post, then perhaps choose a sentence from what you’ve written as the title. 2.Join in threads that have already been posted We all have our own unique stories, but part of the reason for joining a forum like this one is because you know that you will have a lot in common with others who are posting. Before starting a new thread, have a look through the current topics being discussed and see if there’s a conversation you can join in with. It can be quite common to have a handful of very similar threads happening at any one time, with members seemingly unaware that there are others right there who are going through the same thing. Talking to other members on their threads is a great way of getting yourself known so that when you post a thread of your own, people may respond quicker because they recognize your name. 3.Choose the most appropriate section for your post Many people browse the forums looking for stories specifically to do with pregnancy and parenting, employment, grief, loss, separation etc. Going straight for the “Depression” section may seem like the easiest option, but this section is often the busiest, so your post is more likely to get lost among the threads. Making good use of the different forum sections not only helps keep the forum relevant, but you’re more likely to find others who are going through the same experiences as you. Also, if you're wanting to discuss issues of trauma, abuse, suicidal thoughts or self-harm, it's really important you post in the designated section to avoid triggering others who may not wish to read about these topics. Mostly..just come and chat, we are here for you. Our amazing wizards in the background will see your message ends up in the right spot. Sarah

All discussions

Sorted by:

Start a conversation

Changing Display Name

replies: 2

Hi! I just joined today, and would like to change my display name. The FAQ says to contact the team offline. But I have no idea how to do that. I was going to email, but it says that that will connect you to a counsellor. Same with the online chat. I... View more

Dealing with grief

replies: 4

I lost my husband and best friend in January to Pancreatic cancer. We had been together for 40 years. He was only diagnosed 10 weeks before. It has been so hard without him and although I have two sons near I do not want to burden them with my grief,... View more

Gaslighting & Blame

replies: 2

I have recently been gaslighting by someone I considered to be my own daughter, I have been in her life for 20 yrs. Things have been a little off for about 18mths but recently she asked to visit & stay in my home with my partner who also felt close to her. She bought her 16 year old son who has been like our grandson also. They stayed for 2 days but mainly stayed engaged with their phones and mucking around with other like 2 teenagers she is 37.The night before they were to leave she rang her husband but they both went into another room to talk which was out of character. She came back out and said she would be leaving at 5.30am the next morning which again was out of character normally she would leave around 10am, when I asked why so early we were told she had to go home and do washing (it was a public holiday). We went to bed said good night to them and nothing more was said. We woke at 7am the next morning and they had left, no note, no message on messenger, just gone we didn't even hear the car leave & we are not heavy sleepers. When I confronted her about it and how it made us both feel (gutted & bewildered) she turned it around to being our fault for not making an effort to get up to see them off & that she had made a lot of noise that should have woken us up but we just didn't want to say goodbye. She even told us to "go f#$k ourselves when I wouldn't accept her excuses and telling her how hurt we both were with her actions. We have now both been blocked on social media. We are both now in a spiral of anxiety, questioning ourselves, no confidence and so rattled. How do you get through something like this, we don't understand why we were treated like this by 2 people that we have always been so supportive of

I am a bag of rabid cats all set to rip world apart...

replies: 33

Hi all, Umm, this is major leap for me, I don't talk about myself to anyone very easily. I am waiting for my appointment on Wednesday (29 Jan 2025), but need to talk to anyone, anyone else. So here goes... I am 41 years old now, living in one of, by my opinion, the most beautiful locations in the far north QLD & the world, Cairns. My wife & I moved here for a better, more relaxed life after living in Sydney for 10 years & other major metropolises around the world, the rat race essentially. But, the relocation and living here has been anything but wonderful... We fight, argue, bicker about pretty much everything. And I always just give up eventually, no matter rightly or wrongly because it's just easier. Because I "always" do this, or "always" do that. We were travelling over Xmas & it all just got too much, I popped, I'd had enough, & I told her I wanted a divorce, not once, tour times over a span of 6 weeks, the most recent been a week ago. To give some context, up until a week ago, I had been taking some herbal adrenal support supplements for the last 18 months, to manage my stress & aggressive responses, which was working, until I changed brands because I couldn't get my chosen 'working' one. The last two months I had gone from been thoughtful & loving, to 'the world is ending', 'what is the point of everything'. So I am sure you can agree, that all things seem to be pointing to the meds... nope, off the meds, feeling normal...ish, but the realisations that this women is not a match for me, & now without my mind under the control of some 'thing' I have never been clearer. I am asking myself questions that I did ask when I was first about to get married, but ignored, my problem is now explaining to her, outside of all the discoveries that have been in the last week about how I seem to part of a small percentage of people that ashwaghanda does not play nice with, that my feelings now, are what they have always been, but I was too much a coward & peacekeeper to admit it to myself or anyone else, that she is not & was never the one. The fact is, in her words "always do...", or not do, this or that, so basically I am bag of rapid cats ready to rip the world apart, "I must get meds from a psychiatrist". I am at my end, I need figure out how to just move on, as she seems to think I will 'get better' & love her again, I am only hoping that Wednesday will give me the tools I need. This is small part of my mind, thanks for reading/listening.

January Facing the Day

replies: 9

Hi I’m a 48 yr old with a family but difficulty managing the all encompassing anxiety that has kept me from functioning or moving through what I have which is a good life. I have depression and recurring thoughts of not being safe in the world and so I isolate and am stuck in my thoughts. I’d like to be able to keep doing what I love- yoga, reading, loving the people who are family and friends. I hate being so stuck and want to connect with others who get it .. let’s be brave and try together

Bored and Lonely in life

replies: 2

Hi there. I'm new here so hope I'm doing the right thing. I've been feeling pretty bored and lonely in my life at the moment. I have only one close friend who has been my best friend for many years who lives nearly 3 hours away from me but has a job and a family. I on the other hand, have no job, no girlfriend and no local friends to hang out with so I spend most days at home either studying or watching TV. I am very close to my family who I live with but I would just like to do something different every once in a while but I don't know where to start.

Darren

replies: 3

Hi guys.... never posted before so give me a break on the msg... I'm 51 and have had anxiety and depression now for 20 years... it's been a tough road, but I go to work every day ( most days) and just accept that I have anxiety.... I've been on aropax for the whole time, which I'm sure has helped... However the last few months has been really tough..... went to my doctor and he's just started me on medication..... I'm on day 7 and really not sure what to think....... First 3 days I felt mentally better, but the last 4 days I've been having a bit of a relapse into negative thoughts and feelings... It's really getting me down.....has anyone else had this????..... Not sure whether to continue or go back to just existing......PS...if you're reading this post, you are obviously struggling as well. Keep your chin up and just do what you can... don't overthink everything like me.....I hope you have a better day tomorrow than you did today

Psychologist and social worker not helping": what next?

replies: 3

Hello all. I'm new here. I've been seeing a psychologist but 6 sessions have ended. They were very helpful with day to day strategies in dealing with trauma, loss and ongoing anxiety. Also seeing social worker. But over last several weeks, a serious problem is emerging: it's become totally hands off, no follow ups, no proactive assistance, no advocacy, no thinking outside the box, and absolutely no urgency given what I'm facing. I live in a rural/regional town I describe as a 'service desert'. I didn't move here by choice but to be close to my son, but in 2023 he moved again 200 kms away. This place has become very toxic to my mental health. Since Covid I've come to really hate this place. For good reasons. I engaged the social worker out of desperation. But after 12 months I've noticed very troubling things - they dismiss and ignore the underlying causes of anxiety and depression; days pass into weeks and weeks become a month and nothing has changed: there's no plan, no goals, no practical help, and that's why I sought their help in the first place. But now I'm panicking because my real fear is that they know there's no solutions, but just allow the situation to drag on without any outcome. Eg I told them a month ago I desperately need to see my son, so I'll get on the only bus south. As i'm on low income I can't pay for any accommodation. They've known this for over a year. I expressed my very real fear of sleeping rough, that it was unsafe and potentially dangerous. That much was obvious. I explained this over and over again, asked them if they could use their contacts, back channels, link up with support agencies down there, shelters etc. But there was no response to this. They sent me a link to private rentals on Domain. Totally inappropriate. This has been on ongoing pattern. I now believe that this relationship/arrangement is making my mental health issues much worse. But I now have nowhere and no one to talk to about this. This is a small town. All the health professionals know each other, and I'm scared of raising this at the risk of being cancelled. I desperately need to move from here to a major city, but have no resources to do this. I'm hoping someone here knows what I'm talking about and open up a discussion on this that would be helpful, thank you for reading

New member

replies: 6

Hey, I am a new person in the forum. I'm not really sure where to start but I have been suffering pretty bad of late with depression and anxiety to the point where I haven't been able to even go to work. It just feels like every thing snow balls into this massive overwhelming feelings and pressure that I cant seen to break free of. I have just had my first session with a therapist and she had mentioned this site, so I thought it would be a good start in my recovery to come and see what this forum is like. I was just wondering what sort of self care does every one do? Its part of my "homework" and I cant even begin to start to think about what it is that I like doing any more. I have signed up to a gym in the hopes that I can improve my mood that way but I am just a bit suck on what else I can do. Thank you for taking the time to read my post.

Doing the work of two

replies: 1

The company I work for is reluctant to replace those who leave, many leave due to dissatisfaction and stress. The result is huge increase in (unpaid) overtime just to keep head above water, which is not sustainable. I am often teary, distracted, disrupted sleep and fighting waves of fatigue daily.Have raised my concerns to be met with token and insipid response. Would like to leave but feel too exhausted to look for alternatives and go through interview processes. How have others worked through this.Ironically I work in worker’s compensation which is also a double edged sword.

Meet your community champions! replies: 12

HELP..Am I posting in the right section? replies: 10

Changing Display Name replies: 2

Dealing with grief replies: 4

Gaslighting & Blame replies: 2

I am a bag of rabid cats all set to rip world apart... replies: 33

January Facing the Day replies: 9

Bored and Lonely in life replies: 2

Darren replies: 3

Psychologist and social worker not helping": what next? replies: 3

New member replies: 6

Doing the work of two replies: 1