Welcome and Orientation

Pinned discussions

Cyclone Alfred - Mental Health Support

replies: 1

Hey everyone, We acknowledge that many of our Forums members here are currently facing the impacts of Cyclone Alfred and might be feeling uncertain, afraid and overwhelmed. We wanted to create a separate post here to come together during what may be a distressing time for many of us to support one another. Recognising that the impacts of a natural disaster can occur both before, during and after, we have prepared some resources which we hope can be helpful: From the Queensland Government, Useful information to help you get ready for a cyclone:Home | Get Ready Queensland Emotional Preparedness: Prepare your mind | Australian Red Cross Three-steps-to-emotionally-prepare-for-the-disaster-season.pdf What now? Coping after the event: Coping after a crisis | Australian Red Cross Maintaining wellbeing in the face of long-term stress | Australian Red Cross Emergency preparedness guide | Australian Red Cross As always, if you wish to speak to a counsellor, the Beyond Blue Support Service is available via phone 24/7 on 1300 22 4636 or via beyondblue.org.au/get-support for online chat. Stay safe, everyone, and take good care of yourself during what can be a deeply challenging time. Kind regards Sophie M

Meet your community champions!

replies: 10

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 discussion

Moved to a new town and really alone

replies: 55

Hi, I'm in my early 60s and not well off, I recently made a big move to an inland town from the coast and am finding it cliquey and really hard to get to know anyone. I live alone with my dog who has separation anxiety so it is hard to leave him alone at home for long, which limits what I can do. I am really homesick for the easy-going lifestyle near the sea but thought a cooler climate would suit me better as I don't cope with heat well, but it's been really hot here and bad drought. I didn't expect such heat but everyone tells me it's got worse in the last couple of years and I don't have aircon, so am stuck inside the house alone a lot. I am in public housing so it's an old fibro place with no insulation. I have friends who live a long way away but as soon as I mention to them I am feeling lonely they don't want to talk and I feel very let down, as one of them had a lot of family problems and I always let her talk a long time and tried to give her some support, now I need it there is none back. I've tried joining things like a choir and a book club but only met once before they finished for the Christmas/New Year and don't go back until February. Due to the dog's anxiety I try not to leave him alone during the day, we walk in the park a lot but you don't run into the same people often - this town is quite big, where I lived before was very small and you had a lot of acquaintances as you kept running into the same people. Anyway I feel like I've made a huge mistake, I thought there would be more for me to do here than where I lived before but in fact it's worse, I have no family, and no friends to talk to. Hoping there is some support here as I feel lonely enough to curl up on the floor - I don't have the money to move back and anyway the wait for Housing would be years. Feel like I've made a huge mess of my life and my poor little dog seems depressed and lonely too. Thanks for any support.

Newbie (introduction).

replies: 2

Greetings brothers and sisters, and nonbinary persons. I have had several diagnoses attributed to me over the many years, however, the current conditions that I am treated for are schizoaffective disorder (bipolar type) and social phobia/anxiety. I have always dealt with my conditions publicly with a wild eccentric sense of humour, however, when I am alone at home, the psychological demons can be a lot more than I wish to bare. I am a man of faith, and while it does help with me carry the burden to a certain degree, this year has been particularly hard for me. And so I have decided to join a support forum for mental health.

A hard year

replies: 4

Hi all, Didn’t think I’d ever get to the point of posting here though I guess I thought I’d be feeling better by this point in the year. I was properly diagnosed with anxiety at the start of 2019 and have had periods of depression as well. I’m trying to do everything in my power to help and make it better and yet twelve months down the track I’m here unable to sleep because my brain won’t stop. There’s a lot of positives from 2019 but I can only hope things are easier soon. It’s hard to focus on progress and enjoyment when you’re having a million thoughts at once. I guess I’m here to just exist in a space where I’m understood for a bit. I’m anxious at making phone calls at the best of times although I’ve used the Lifeline text service before. Anyway I’m not going to do anything right now just hopefully sleep having let this out. Thanks G

Hello, I'm new here

replies: 1

Hello, I thought I would give this a try. I was diagnosed as having bi-polar disorder thirteen years ago. Mostly, I manage. I take my meds regularly and I've been sober since 2003. I'm a single mother, although both of my children are now adults and have moved out of home. Due to a Family Court ruling, I have remained in a small country town where my former partner and I shared custody of the children. I once was fairly involved in the community. My former partner and his now wife were "high profile", very active, involved so I just found it easier to stay at home rather than risk running into them. It was just easier, but now of course I don't have friends in town. I have acquaintances but no one that I socialise with. I realise that this is of my own doing. Anyway, I'm alone for Christmas and I'm hoping that there will be some kind of online support available. My son lives 400km away and is working. My daughter has made other arrangements with friends; if I'm honest I'm hurting that she didn't ask if I had any plans, even though I tried to work something out a few months back. I don't have any family close by. I have difficulty asking for support, so the anonymity of this forum - I hope - will work for me. Thank you

Tired of the same cycle and needing to break it

replies: 1

Hi, I’m a 33yr old man and I struggle daily with self image problems. I can’t stand to look at myself physically in the mirror and this leads on then to feeling anxiety and low self worth. I have been to a psychologist and found this not very effective. I also tried hypnotherapy. This made me worse and very angry for about a week then it actually worked, for about 3-4 months. Now I have relapsed and want to learn to love myself before I end up ruining my relationships. Any help or opinions that can point me in the right, or at least some direction, is greatly appreciated. Thanks for having me.

A new member, a brief intro

replies: 1

As it gets closer to Xmas, U find it hard to deal with my grief, and anxiety. And try to smile for my family.. I do go to psychologist, not getting to the heart of things. I've been crying but at same time it's a good thibg to connect

Just Diagnosed

replies: 2

I can't believe it. I contracted chicken pox as an adult and recently had a bad (bad, as in, just like chicken pox) bout of shingles. Afterwards I couldn't walk - so back on the walking stick again after being so active, fit and healthy from a fibromyalgia diagnosis in 2007. I worked so hard to get my life back after fibro - and now, this is something else again. I can testify that these conditions present completely differently - but is there anybody out there who has both, like me? I can't believe it.

Hello all - new user here

replies: 2

Hello everyone! I feel very happy to have found this site and to have briefly read some of the posts so far. I hope to post here to share my experiences and help other people with what I've learned along my journey so far. I have much experience with growing up in a dysfunctional family, my mother trying to force me on medication as a teenager, depersonalization, anxiety, depression, HPPD, and more. I think I can heal myself and benefit some people by posting my thoughts on other people's stories. I'll start with a short introduction which I will probably update later. Right now I'm a man in my 30s who has moved very far from home and completely broken contact with my parents for the first time in my life (for an extended period). I have had many nightmares, panic attacks, tightness in my whole body, and disassociation very intensely these first few months (especially with Christmas coming up). One of my mother's go-to patterns of abuse is when she is jealous/upset/or feeling like I might abandon her she'll call me when we're both alone and tear into me like a monster. She will attack every wound, use tears and shouting, try to inflict maximum guilt, and jump from topic to topic when I try to calmly defend myself. It sounds crazy, but she sounds possessed by a demon. Then like clockwork she runs to my dad (whom she completely controls) like a wounded victim and gets him to come after me. Deep down he knows she is putting on a show. Even after I can finally convince him that its all lies he immediately shifts to "well what do you want me to do? your mother loves you so much and you want to hold onto this forever". If we could just once and for all address this pattern of abuse I would be so happy to move on. Instead I resent him for never standing up for me and basically using me as a shield because if she's mad at me he doesn't have to deal with it. A year prior to this last episode my mother and I went to therapy where she admitted to doing this for the first time and also admitted to some lies that she kept up for over a decade. Lies that she tried so hard to gaslight me on even though they happened right in front of me. So I know she is aware of what she's doing. I told her that all of these times I've wanted to break contact with her, but didn't because I was trying to make things right. I said if she goes back to it I will break contact next time. I warned them many times, but I left and they will never acknowledge or apologize for a single thing

I am new to this site, I am really hoping it will be a big help.

replies: 2

Good morning! I am new here but I have read through some posts and really connected with some of them and I have gone to post a few times but never followed through. My main goal is connecting with others around me who are going through the same things, my doctor thought finding a forum or a group I could chat with would help with my recovery. So here is a little something about myself -I am married to a pretty amazing man, we have been together for 8 yrs and married 7 yrs, I had 6 children when we met and had 2 children together. I myself have gotten back into studying graphic design and half way through that. I am a stay at home mum at this point and hoping I can get back into some type of job next year after I finish my studies. A few months ago I was diagnosed with BD1 (Bipolar Disorder 1) Rapid cycling, PTSD and some tendencies of other things. I have heard about Bipolar and PTSD before as I had been told a few time over the years that I should see someone for it and be treated for it but I had always ignored this information, now I look back I realise this was stupid of me to ignore but here I am. Growing up I never thought that I was the problem, I always thought it was everyone else, I was higher then life and wanted to enjoy everything all at once and everyone wanted to hold me down, there were the rare times I was so low that I really struggled to be involved with life, there were other times I could not explain why I did things or wanted to do things. I always put it back down to the way I grew up and because life was not easy. I had a bad childhood and up bringing so I just assumed my behaviour, changes and feeling were a product of a stressful situations. Anyway here I am things got so out of control the last 2yrs and I was forced to get help. I am now on medication that is working for me though I struggle every day with taking it and understanding the changes. I struggle with the lack of energy that is a major change to my system. There is much more I have to learn and struggle through, I feel like just to stay normal I have to stay sedated. I don't know its a lot of changes to adapt too and I am hoping that with this site and having other that hopefully understand what I am going through will help me with some answers or ways to get through everyday life. I have so many questions and things to say but all in good time I suppose.

Hey I'm new too

replies: 2

So seen as though I dont have a girl as a friend I feel the need to be here. I have 3 children. Eldest a teen has Aspergers. My middle a tween is nurotypical then desided to have a baby with my new partner so shes 15months and since she was 2weeks iv... View more

Cyclone Alfred - Mental Health Support replies: 1

Meet your community champions! replies: 10

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

Moved to a new town and really alone replies: 55

Newbie (introduction). replies: 2

A hard year replies: 4

Hello, I'm new here replies: 1

Tired of the same cycle and needing to break it replies: 1

A new member, a brief intro replies: 1

Just Diagnosed replies: 2

Hello all - new user here replies: 2

I am new to this site, I am really hoping it will be a big help. replies: 2

Hey I'm new too replies: 2