There are so many who do not need suffer as they do. If anyone would like to share their journey, you never know how it may help them get help or save a life!
Posted at Thu Jan 31 2008 08:51 PM
Tough topic but so many have questions...and many of us have tips and ideas for help...
Posted at Wed Feb 27 2008 06:14 AM
I was devastated by a depression a little over a year ago. Although there were times I was sure nothing could help a few things did.
- Acupuncture - while I don't think this alone was ever going to cure my depression it did work wonders for some of the symptoms. After the first treatment I was able to regain an appetite and eat again. This was after not being able to eat anything for about a week. I mean nothing. Also, it helped me sleep after I didn't sleep for days. Also, after 1 session I had never felt better before. This feeling lasted only until the next morning but it was a great feeling! My acupuncturist was also a very patient, kind and caring man. He listened to me and seemed more concerned and helpful than many doctors who just didn't have the time to listen to all my sadness. One session I spent the entire hour crying and he gave me another session at no charge. Acupuncture also gave me something to look forward to. It was a small ray of hope that I clung onto.
2 - CBT Therapy - This is a really simple thing that really worked wonders for me. During my depression I also suffered from anxiety and panic. I felt like I was in a constant state of panic. Although it varied in degrees of severity it was always there. The basic lesson CBT teaches is not to fear the panic. Once you feel the panic acknowledge it's there and rate it on a scale of 1 to 10. Know panic can't harm you and it will pass. Keep assessing the level of panic and you see that it may have started at a 9 or 10 but now it's only a 7 or 8. See the panic is going away. I know this seems like it wouldn't work but after about 2-3 sessions with my psychologist it just clicked and I didn't fear it much anymore. This is when the depression and panic really started to lift.
- Believe in yourself and keep going - Depression makes it really hard to know and trust yourself. You feel so out of it you can't be sure if your gut feeling is correct about things or if you're just overreacting. Ask questions of the doctor and search for answers on your own too. Give treatments a chance but be willing and firm with your doctor to try new things if it's not working. Doctors don't always know the best way to go so educate yourself. Try everything you can. Sometimes just the hope that the next treatment will work can be enough to give you a lift to get you through the darkness.
Posted at Thu May 15 2008 11:26 PM
I have bipolar disorder. My moods swing from high to low like a pendulum. The higher the high, the lower the low. Before I received the diagnosis, I was miserable and making my family miserable. I had no idea that I had a definable and treatable mental illness.
I have been in treatment on and off for 10 years. I have been getting regular therapy and medication for about 4 years. I have learned about my illness and how to manage it. The medication is absolutely necessary to keep this condition under control. Without it, Im like a diabetic without insulin. My life spins out of control.
I have no doubt that one of the factors in my weight fluctuations is bipolar disorder. When I embark on the latest diet, my mood swings high. I count every calorie and every ounce gained and lost. I am completely obsessed with food. In the end I crash, sink into a deep depression and regain any weight I lost.
I have concluded that I just need to love myself as I am, eat healthy and exercise. Then let the chips fall where they may.
Posted at Fri Jan 30 2009 11:43 PM
I have dealt with depression for years and knew something was wrong. Throughout high school, I fought what I called "inner demons." I always took things so seriously and stupid little things would bother me. I was always a worrier, I worried about everything. As I got older, it got worse and worse. I would literally want to crawl in a hole and hide. I tried telling my parents, who just brushed it off, calling me a worry wort! As an adult, it got much worse. I developed a nervous anxiety that never seemed to go away. I would just be sad, and feel hopeless about things. Things finally got so bad that I kind of had a nervous break down. My husband and I had split up, I was having issues with work, and was so down and out that I never looked forward to things and was never happy. I felt like I was watching myself from above do things....The day that I walked in to Wal Mart and felt like I was watching myself walk in from above was weird, I knew there was a problem. The same night, I was over run with emotion, and made a decision to run my car off the road and try to end my life. I ended up stopping in a ditch just feet away from the pole. And I had never been suicidal in my life! I had started seeing a counselor which would let me talk about all this but wouldnt give me advice or say anything to help. I went to my family doctor, who put me on 10 mg of Lexapro, a depression medication. Within two months....my anxiety started going away, and I was happy. My life was falling back into order. Now, over a year later....I have never felt so happy in my life. I have no worries, and feel carefree. Its amazing how one 10 mg pill can completely change your life. Today, I like sharing what I went through. It has been a lifelong battle. Anyone who is feeling like I did, get help right away. You eventually are not yourself, and do things out of character without knowing it. You will be able to live your life with help....depression is a tough thing...but it can be dealt with for sure.
Posted at Thu Sep 24 2009 04:43 AM
