Depression

[Chicken Chaser]

Faz50 said:

Thanks, the good bit being that it’s all done and dusted.

I’ve found exercise and talking helps massively. I’m still working my way through the thread and it’s great to see how others have coped.

I developed anxiety after a series of life events, which in contrast with yours were trivial but the mind does do sneaky things without you necessarily realising it until its too late.

Talking to people, being open and honest is a good way of coping. You're not alone in having depression/low mood/anxiety but there's a lot of people who think they are and thats when the problem becomes much, much worse.

Exercise for me is without doubt, the best way to break out of that feeling. Much of that is probably due to being outside in the natural environment. Whether it be walking in the countryside or an urban park, cycling, playing golf etc, its an excellent way for a switch off or a focus on another part of life. Thanks for sharing your story Faz, and good luck with putting the worst behind you.

[anonymous-user]

It is amazing how much being outside helps. Until I had issues I took it for granted having spent large parts of my early life walking, climbing and other outdoor pursuits but it’s something I’ve started to look at again.

[oldbanger]

Chicken Chaser said:

Faz50 said:

Thanks, the good bit being that it’s all done and dusted.

I’ve found exercise and talking helps massively. I’m still working my way through the thread and it’s great to see how others have coped.

I developed anxiety after a series of life events, which in contrast with yours were trivial but the mind does do sneaky things without you necessarily realising it until its too late.

Talking to people, being open and honest is a good way of coping. You're not alone in having depression/low mood/anxiety but there's a lot of people who think they are and thats when the problem becomes much, much worse.

Exercise for me is without doubt, the best way to break out of that feeling. Much of that is probably due to being outside in the natural environment. Whether it be walking in the countryside or an urban park, cycling, playing golf etc, its an excellent way for a switch off or a focus on another part of life. Thanks for sharing your story Faz, and good luck with putting the worst behind you.

Yes, good luck Faz .. and you too Chicken Chaser

I find exercise and being outdoors also helps massively too. In fact, when things are at a low ebb, stopping too long is massively dangerous - a little too much inaction, and the inevitable rumination which comes with it, and I'm under, sunk.

I am another one who "smashes through stuff", but as I've found, if you're not careful to also look out for yourself, all that does is store a load of rubbish up for later.

[oldbanger]

Ruskie said:

This thread is undoublty my best contribution (in a small way) to PH. If it helps people then it’s definitely a good thing. Here is my latest thought on my depression.

https://howfootballruinedmylife.wordpress.com/2017...

Ruskie I am glad you're still here. Do you have anyone "in real life"? Depression can be so isolating, and I'm sorry it seems like you've hit a wall right now. Can any of us help?

I've encountered a few "off the wall" treatments which actually seem to work for some people. e.g. Havening therapy (no research as yet but I know of one organisation for trauma sufferers which is working with the GMC on a controlled study). Or another one is EMDR. If the conventional stuff isn't helping, are they worth a try?

[Ruskie]

I’m ok OB. Thank you tho.



So I thought I would post this counter up as I’m very proud of the reach the blog has had. Over 23k views and nearly 9k visitors. Thank you if you took the time to read.

[SturdyHSV]

Ruskie said:

I’m ok OB. Thank you tho.



So I thought I would post this counter up as I’m very proud of the reach the blog has had. Over 23k views and nearly 9k visitors. Thank you if you took the time to read.

Just earlier today I read your last 3 posts one after another, and to see the stark contrast of the ups and downs pulled together so closely was very affecting.

You're having one hell of a battle, I hope today was one of the better ones

[oldbanger]

I have to admit, I am in the middle of a depressive episode, at least a couple of weeks in. Anything further would be TMI but hopefully I can ride it out. Keep moving, OB!

[Cabrony]

I'm 30 and have been depressed as f*ck since my very early childhood.
I've had 3 or 4 really bad periods where I've hit utter rock bottom and the thought of killing myself filled every waking moment. Even at the best of times suicide is a constant fantasy in the back of my mind.

I'm incapable of deriving pleasure from anything and find life to be a nonsensical series of irrelevant events with death the only true release.
It's ruled over and ruined my life; a black hole robbing me of hope or future.

I've seen a number of therapists and taken nearly every AD in the book but nothing's worked for any meaninful period of time.

There's no reason for my depression, no underlying reason, no traumatic experience; I'm just depressed.

The point I'm trying to make is that to myself, Doctors, my parents, etc I've never been anything but depressed; however I think a psychologist I've been seeing has finally hit the nail on the head; I suffer from Bipolar type 2.

I would implore anyone who has been suffering from depression for a long period of time or for seemingly no reason to read "Why am I still depressed".

Basically there's a Bipolar spectrum from Bipolar type 1 (classic bipolar) to 'normal'. Bipolar type 2 is somewhere in the middle. The manic highs of Bipolar type 1 present themselves as normal moods in type 2; I.e if you're having an ok day for once and are able to function and socialise and generally "feel like you've joined the human race" you are experiencing a Bipolar type 2 high.

It's not particularly well understood hence despite seeing health professionals for 15 odd years not one has previously mentioned it.

Anyway I hope this helps someone.

[Potatoes]

interesting, my wife was diagnosed with bipolar a few years back but definitely shows similar symptoms to you. I'll talk to her about this, have you been given any coping strategies or advise on how to manage it?

[227bhp]

oldbanger said:

I have to admit, I am in the middle of a depressive episode, at least a couple of weeks in. Anything further would be TMI but hopefully I can ride it out. Keep moving, OB!

To do with the time of year perhaps?

[xjay1337]

Headed to session 7 of the CBT therapy soon.

Not gonna lie, I can't be bothered. I am sure that I understand the means and theory behind it but not sure it strictly applies.

[oldbanger]

227bhp said:

To do with the time of year perhaps?

Yes, that’s undoubtedly part of it, plus just life.

[Cabrony]

Potatoes said:

interesting, my wife was diagnosed with bipolar a few years back but definitely shows similar symptoms to you. I'll talk to her about this, have you been given any coping strategies or advise on how to manage it?

Not as of yet, I'm still in the process of trying to get my medication changed. Being diagnosed bipolar type 2 opens you up to a whole world of different medication designed to stabalise moods as opposed to boost them. The list includes things like anti convulsant drugs (for example lamotrigine) used in the treatment of epilepsy.

I would highly recommend you or your wife reading "why am I still depressed" by James Phelps, it'll probably answer any questions you have and may help cement a diagnosis in your head.

Having tried NLP, CBT etc I'm a big believer that if your depressed for no apparent reason that must means it's purely a chemical imbalance which only medication is going to address.

[Potatoes]

Thanks, super helpful mate, I'll get that book ordered and we'll give it a read.

[Cabrony]

Potatoes said:

Thanks, super helpful mate, I'll get that book ordered and we'll give it a read.

No problem at all, hope it helps

[tim0409]

I've suffered from depression for years, and roughly two years ago was prescribed Sertraline after a particularly bad episode. It worked, but the side effects were difficult to deal with; initially I felt really sick but that passed within a few weeks of starting although the longer terms side effects have been a pain. In my case these have been regular night sweats (really bad, to the extent that I would either have to move to a different bedroom, or change bedclothes), loss of sex drive, tiredness, and bizarrely a lack of clarity in my speech which is a recognised side effect. A positive aspect is that I stopped drinking (not that I drank much), and have not had a single drop of alcohol for two years.

Around six weeks ago I decided to reduce my dose with a view to stopping, and hopefully replacing the positive effects of SSRI with exercise (swimming/cycling). This was a brave if not stupid move as November is the worst time of year for me but I decided I needed to try....I tapered the dose down from 100mg to 75mg, 50mg, 25mg and 12.5mg without too many issues, but the last week has been hell (from what I have read the last bit is the commonly the worst). I'm suffering from severe nausea and constant headaches; I know this will pass but it's really not pleasant. Combine this with the fact that it's also making me grumpy/angry, and it's not a great combo! Thankfully I am self employed which means I can work around it, but I hope it passes soon. I know I should be exercising but I feel so physically rough that it will have to wait for a week or so.

I would be interested in other people's experiences of stopping SSRI's and how it went?

Cheers

Tim

Edited by tim0409 on Thursday 23 November 15:48

[MellowshipSlinky]

I’m at the other end to you - I had my first tablet this morning and not looking forward to potential side effects at all.

[tim0409]

MellowshipSlinky said:

I’m at the other end to you - I had my first tablet this morning and not looking forward to potential side effects at all.

Persevere as they do work (for most people) in terms of lifting the depression, and the side effects seem to be random in terms of what you get so you could well be lucky. I started on 50mg then after a few weeks increased to 100mg which seemed to be a good strategy.

[weeboot]

Removing yourself from medication prematurely, without doctors guidance, generally doesn't work too well.

I tried it, a couple of times, it had relatively bad results each time. The trouble is, you feel fine, so begin to think "I don't need these any more". Taper your dosage over a few weeks to a month and carry on.
The trouble is, they generally take about 6 weeks to start having an effect and any changes need to be persisted for that sort of period to observe their impacts.

I'm back on 40mg fluoxetine and still having fun in adjustment!

[weeboot]

MellowshipSlinky said:

I’m at the other end to you - I had my first tablet this morning and not looking forward to potential side effects at all.

Sorry to see that your other thread disappeared. It was well written. Look a couple of pages back for my writing. Sometimes you need a catalyst to help you write, sometimes that writing is cathartic.