Welcome and Orientation

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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

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A little intro from an anxious newbie

replies: 2

Hi Everyone, I've found myself lurking on here for a couple of weeks. It's been nice to see and read that I'm not alone in the world when it comes to my anxiety. I got diagnosed with anxiety and depression in March of 2017 but the reality is I've been suffering through them for years. Honestly, the best thing I've done was to go see my doctor about it. He started me on some meds and got me onto a mental health plan where I was able to go and talk to someone every fortnight. Just being encouraged to talk was great. I came to understand that my brain isn't always my friend. I now recognise when my brain is being an pest. My last bout of depression lasted a solid eight months. I remember, this time last year, feeling great, confident, assertive and self-assured. All feelings I hadn't felt in a long while. It was really nice to not be constantly flat and defeated. Those feelings seemed to continue for the last twelve months. It seems now that my depression is back. The last couple of days have been hard. My brain is going off the charts telling me I'm not good enough and worrying unnecessarily about things. I know it's my brain just being an a**hole but I'm having trouble quieting it. Just here to chat to anyone going through anything similar. The idea of support from other people going through the same things is really appealing and I'd love to share my thoughts, techniques with anyone who needs an ear. Thanks for taking the time to read my intro.

struggle street....

replies: 2

This is my first post and I’m a bit nervous and have no idea how to put my thoughts into words…but Ill try…. My husband suffers from severe depression and anxiety, he is also an alcoholic and smokes weed. Financially we are a mess and struggle each week to survive. We spend about $500 a week on beer, pot & smokes. I have just stopped smoking recently and asked my hubby to try and drink/smoke less but the less I do, the more he does. We are taking 2 steps forward and 5 back. This deepens his depression even more. I can’t talk to him about how I feel for him, I’m not even sure I want to be together anymore as his mental health has taken a huge toll on me. I need to be ok for the kids and if we continue the life we are living I’m not sure how long I can do it. I suffer from very mild depression and anxiety but I feel its gradually getting worse. I want to tell him how I feel but I think he will do something stupid if I leave him and I cant live with that. He is on medication but the weed and beer seem to cancel it out. I don’t know anymore. I feel like my whole life is suffering. I worry about the kids, my son (7) also has depression, emotional disregulation and anxiety. He needs contact emotional support. I worry about work. I worry about how I will get by each week and how many lies I will tell when people ask me about hubby. I worry about paying bills and often lie to these companies to get a payment extension. I cant help but lie in bed every night, just worrying and crying myself to sleep.

Hello!

replies: 2

hi people reading this im new here and just dropping by to say hi

Hi everyone

replies: 2

Good morning all, not too sure what to say but hopefully this is the start of a happier healthy me. Does not seem to be right crying on a lovely day like today. Just learning to look after myself again. Thank you

Hey

replies: 2

Hey Im new here, and kinda have no idea how to do introductions, to people who read this. Guess a bit of a background would help; I'm 24, male, have autism (aspergers syndrome), depression, anxiety, and possibly ptsd (self diagnosed). Don't know what... View more

Hello

replies: 2

Hello, been looking through people's posts for a while and decided to try it myself. Mainly just here to get things of chest and see if I can get anything out of it (and seeing how nice the people on here when it comes to these things seems like I will). Bit of background, 16, Have countless issues both mentally and physically, but major ones being autism (which is a benefit for my as it has always helped me excel in school), bipolar, doctors say I have high levels of anxiety but don't really know as its what i'm used to, and bit of depression here and there mainly linked to bipolar. Then the major issue which is a eating disorder not such of anorexic or bulimic but rather ties in with autism and for me I can't eat certain foods (well most of them, brain just says nope when I try and it makes me have panic attacks). This is probably my biggest issue as it affects both physically and socially. The reason i'm really here is because for me i'm used to how I live (like bad thoughts and high levels of stress (mainly just thinking into things people say and/or things i see)) and i'm starting to realize its not what is normal. This never really bothered me as I don't really like talking to people in social situations mainly because I stress about how they perceive me and I rather being alone. But recently its not been possible with group projects at school and I have been trying to talk to other people outside of my social group. But my key issue is social signs and body language people give, lately this girl has been talking to me for about 5 months and her friend recently told me she liked me, but I don't really know social ques and such, and so I find it hard to talk with her face to face. So my issue is really how do I become better with talking and getting out of comfort zone. Thanks for reading anyway, don't need reply just getting things of my chest.

What does it feel like to wake up each day?

replies: 3

I think I have depression. And now I am starting to believe I may have had it for years. What does it feel like when you wake up in the morning? I feel mad and resentful. I don’t want to go to work, but I do. I am great at my job and I feel like I put on a great show. People seem to like me. They find me relatable. But it’s all fake. I hate being there. There are some things I enjoy about my job. I feel like there is a certain amount of prestige in my work, people see me as intelligent, and I get respect from my job. I have people look up to me. Am I just a narcissist? I am married and we have a daughter. I love my daughter, but I am not motherly. I can be impatient. I feel like buying her toys and things she wants is the best way to make her happy. I want her to have everything but I know it’s probably not the right thing. I struggle to believe my husband loves me. He says he does but I don’t know if it’s true. If I hold his hand, he’ll be the one the let go. He will push away from me if I try to embrace him. I feel he prioritizes his job before me. He says he sees people in his work that have left their family pursuing their careers and he doesn’t understand that, yet it seems like we are. I don’t have meaningful friendships. My friends are whoever I spend the most time physically with, not by choice, but because we are both in the same place at the same time. Work colleagues. Once my schedule changes, I’ll get new “friends”. We do get on. But it’s superficial. It’s temporary. Why does it bother me now? It was fine like this for years.

New to the forum

replies: 6

Hi All, I am new to this forum seeking some support. Having depression and anxiety has been very self crushing for the last 10+ years. Work is had as well as life. Any guidance, thanks.

Heya

replies: 2

Hey, My name is Carter. I have anxiety, depression, bulimia, autism, gender dysphoria, and lately a lot of suicidal ideation. I suck at introductions, but I just wanted to say hi and thanks for having me. See you around

Hello! Newbie here. When did you reach your limit of faking it?

replies: 3

Hi everyone! Just looking for someone who understands what i'm going through. I have Anxiety and i think i may have depression also but i have not been medically diagnosed with depression. Every day is a struggle. I'm too scared to do most things. I panic about almost everything. It's exhausting. But somehow i get out of bed in the morning. I don't want to let anyone down and make them upset by seeing me down but when is it enough? The 'happy' face i put on most of the time is exhausting. And i can only do it for so long before i start to get frustrated and crash. Sometimes i don't want to be the one who cares so much or the one who makes everyone laugh or the one who has to fix everything. Sometimes i just want to be me and lay in bed and not think about anything. I go through these stages where I'm happy and motivated and so energetic and i get a job and accomplish so much for a few months and then i crash. I get so down and stop everything because i can't deal with it. I stop working and studying and it's almost like everything around me doesn't exist, like i'm an outsider in this world and i'm just watching everything pass me by with no connection at all. And then a few months later im back to being happy and energetic. It's all so exhausting.

Meet your community champions! replies: 10

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

A little intro from an anxious newbie replies: 2

struggle street.... replies: 2

Hello! replies: 2

Hi everyone replies: 2

Hey replies: 2

Hello replies: 2

What does it feel like to wake up each day? replies: 3

New to the forum replies: 6

Heya replies: 2

Hello! Newbie here. When did you reach your limit of faking it? replies: 3