depression

135

Replies

  • TanyaCurtis
    TanyaCurtis Posts: 630
    I don't believe in medication either! Works in the beginning, yeah maybe, but that's not the solution! Plus causes way more serious problems for u eventually! Definitely not worth it! Good for u (:
  • maricash
    maricash Posts: 280 Member
    because many of you are seriously misinformed and callous

    Nothing I said to you was callous or misinformed. My feeling from what I've read here is you think that anyone who disagrees with you or offers another opinion is misinformed. Refusing to accept that ideas other than your own may be helpful isn't going to help you get better any faster. If you are as depressed as you describe in your original post, then you ought to be considering any option that might help and not writing them off before you even explore them.

    There have indeed been some callous and misinformed responses to your original post (I responded to one of them), but you have responded rudely to several people, myself included, who offered your sincere, informed responses, often arising out of their own experiences with depression. Having information different than what you believe isn't the same as having the wrong information. And refusing to "believe" in a fact doesn't make it any less a fact.
  • sandylion
    sandylion Posts: 451 Member
    Anti-depressants don't typically work when used as a sole treatment because they're not treating the cause. The most effective treatment for depression is a conjunctive therapy of exercise, psychotherapy, and pharmacotherapy combined. Aka, go for a walk ever day, talk to a councillor, and go see your doctor and try a med or two. Some work for some people and not for others.

    I have generalized anxiety disorder with depression, so I can relate to feeling anxious, nervous, or mistrustful of doctors, but the thing is that is a symptom of the problem! Pills won't solve your problem, they are simply something you can use to help YOU solve your problem.

    As for not wanting to talk to someone, well, I can't imagine there isn't a single councillor in your radius that does not have what it takes to help you. I went through 4 of them before I found one I could actually talk to and had the right balance of "Mmm, hmm, yes, tell me more" and "Are you kidding? get off your *kitten* and do something".

    Don't let your illness control your life.
  • lieselq
    lieselq Posts: 10 Member
    Hi. I don't use western medications for depression altho i certainly did at one point. i had to find a good alternative doc (chiro/acupuncture) to help me to get off of them. i see a really good therapist as well. (there are plenty of bad ones out there - i think i've found quite a few of those...i'm fortunate to have found a good one.)

    i have been feeling very lonely as well and this morning had to sort of kick myself in the butt. i said, you know, if you're sitting here lonely, what can you do about it? seriously...what am i, at this exact moment, able to realistically do to change the sad feeling inside of myself? (i did come up with some things...one of them I am doing right now.)

    i can tell myself that i am alone and lonely because everyone else is a (insert whatever word here) - or i can take the very hard look at myself and ask, how is it that i've pushed others away? or isolated myself? (trust me, i'd far rather do the blame thing and point my finger at others.) anyway, i came up with that i am too critical of others as well as that i am inwardly competitive with others - i guess they figured it out too and got tired of being around someone like that - hence, loneliness.

    i've been working my butt off at the gym and wishing i had an exercise buddy...someone to say 'attagirl' - a friend - so we can encourage each other. and yet, i chose to take the day off from the gym...so, i have to ask myself, how will i get the exercise buddy if i don't (as they say) suit up and show up? hum...

    anyway, just wanted to respond and say that the sad, lonely, isolation thing is really really hard - there's no miracle fix - i feel your pain.

    take care,
    lq :smile:
  • foxyforce
    foxyforce Posts: 3,078 Member
    because many of you are seriously misinformed and callous

    Nothing I said to you was callous or misinformed. My feeling from what I've read here is you think that anyone who disagrees with you or offers another opinion is misinformed. Refusing to accept that ideas other than your own may be helpful isn't going to help you get better any faster. If you are as depressed as you describe in your original post, then you ought to be considering any option that might help and not writing them off before you even explore them.

    There have indeed been some callous and misinformed responses to your original post (I responded to one of them), but you have responded rudely to several people, myself included, who offered your sincere, informed responses, often arising out of their own experiences with depression. Having information different than what you believe isn't the same as having the wrong information. And refusing to "believe" in a fact doesn't make it any less a fact.

    and i reiterate, mininformed and callous. i am asking for alternatives to medication and "professional" help. if you haven't noticed the many responses saying, "i am going to ignore the rest of the posts", they aren't saying this to be *kitten*, they are saying this in response to the misinformation being a total waste of time.

    many of the arguments that are pro med and proefssional help are really really sparse in information. i know my ****, and i know i don't need meds, and i know that my brain is fine. telling someone their brain is having some issues or whatever is really reductionist. what i am having a problem with is self-serving people and feeling isolated from a really ****ty world. i don't think i am being rude in being honest, it was my original admission.
  • I been there... REALLY at the bottom of the barrel. Chronic Deep depression after a attempt suicide and medication, therapy .. you name it.

    Just like you I didnt want to do meds but then I realize I couldnt do it on my own. In the past I seemed to get depressed here and there but never amounted to anything and always bounced back. I had terrible things happen to me thru out my life to be depressed about and one day I just couldn't go on, my whole life found me and pile up in top and couldnt let go of it... so I decided I needed medication. I only took it for about 6 months and then I decided it was enough it gave me enough push to keep going on my own it wasnt that I wasnt depressed anymore it was the same but found myself wanting to CHANGE! finally I started taking care of myself.. physicaly at least and that helped tremendously. I had my days where I didnt want to do it... like... I had no purpose in life and till this day I only have a small glimpse of what I want for my future its not much but its something.

    Im always up for meeting people but people just dont care enough for me, Im at a point of my life where fake people, backstabing friends just dont mix well with me. Have a couple friends but not close friends or BFF's (I wish I had one but the last one I had had the hot's for my husband) so she had to go!

    The thing I got from therapy its,
    taking care of youreself its a good step in the right direction.
    Writing about it,
    talking to others about it,
    YOU ARE doing the right thing.

    Just know that if you ever feel like you can't go on.. then you DO NEED SOME sort of HELP! and if you know so many people in the field it should be easier to find someone to talk about it not harder. Even it their morons they can still lend a hand and hear your problems just like friends do. Just like we are doing by reading your post! NEVER GIVE UP!

    :flowerforyou: :heart:
  • holly1283
    holly1283 Posts: 741 Member
    I also suffer from depression. I have for many years. Not all health care doctors, therapists are goof balls. Let me ask you this: If it were your liver instead of you brain would you not get treated for that? How about tonsilitis? Just because it is your head(brain) does not mean it can't be treated. Obviously you have not reached your enough to get professional help. Believe me I didn't believe in it either. However, had I not gotten help I would have committed suicide. If your relationship with your SO is not important enough to want to be your best for him, you have chosen to suffer. Keep in mind I am sympathetic but you need to get help somewhere.
  • beckylawrence70
    beckylawrence70 Posts: 752 Member
    You probably need to research the different anti depressant meds that are out there and that DO work, sometimes we can't fix this on our own, it's in our brain, not your fault........
  • kittyhasclaws
    kittyhasclaws Posts: 446 Member
    I'm type II bipolar. My brother was type I. He's now dead because of it. I'm not. I believe in medication. You have to find the right one for it to work. I've had ones that turned me into a zombie. I've had ones that made me unbelievably angry. I've had ones that have had no effect at all. After seven years, I've finally found something that has started to help.

    So, yeah. Don't believe in meds if you don't want to, but I hope it doesn't kill you to go without them. Obviously, this is a very touchy subject for me. Buck up, put your big girl panties on and get help. Whining does you no good. This may seem harsh, but guess what? I no longer have a brother. My sister-in-law no longer has a husband. My niece no longer has a dad. THAT is more screwed up than people taking some pills to feel normal when they have a chemical imbalance or if they're going through a crappy time in life.
  • Sounds like me. I did take medication for a short time but have been off it for almost a year. I have suffered with depression since I was in middle school and sometimes things can get really bad. I have been hospitalized and been in therapy before.

    What helps me. Meditate, exercise, reading books, listening to music, and most of all trying to see the positive of everything. Instead of being angry and depressed about losing my job and independence and moving back home I choose to be grateful to have a loving family who gave me a place to stay when I lost mine. That's just one example. Always look at the glass half full it can change your world really.
  • I totally understand how you feel. I went through a bad depression about a year ago and it had been building for a while, but I finally decided I had to do something. I went to go see a doctor and I was so embarassed about getting on medicine, but it made a world of difference. I feel so much better now.

    About the friends, I feel the same way you do. I will put a lot into a friendship and find out they betrayed me somehow, but then I look around and I see everyone acting like that. I don't understand many people these days. I have found to keep my friendships light and have fun doing stuff, but I only share really personal things with maybe 1 or 2 people other than my husband.

    I know some people say religiion or going to church helps, but I don't like church because I feel that people are fake even there. I know I probably let a few rotten apples ruin that for me, but I just don't feel comfortable. So I do my own "church" at home I guess you could say. I read and talk about the Bible and Jesus with my kids, but most of all I try to spend all my time I can with my family.

    I hope things get better for you soon.
  • hevhoyda
    hevhoyda Posts: 146 Member
    Being a pharmacist I truly recommend seeing your doctor... You may not believe in medication but truth is it does help look into studies performed on antidepressants and if you remain opposed there are other non drug alternatives like talking to a therapist or electrotherapy etc
  • wgn4166
    wgn4166 Posts: 771 Member
    Is there a minister that you trust enough to talk with? Thats what helped me.
  • Crochetluvr
    Crochetluvr Posts: 3,259 Member
    why do so many people get off saying that people with depression "FEEL SORRY FOR THEMSELVES", i don't feel sorry for myself. that is a hoot and a half.

    This I TOTALLY agree with. I have been battling depression for a long time and even when I had my breakdown I wasnt "feeling sorry" for myself. I simply could not deal with my ex's attitude toward what would very quickly become the end of our marriage. I withdrew from everyone and everything. I simply couldnt deal and I couldnt see a way out. It wasnt until after I entered therapy and decided I needed to end the charade that things got better. I still get depressed but its a medical condition...not feeling sorry for myself. My life is actually pretty good. :)
  • foxyforce
    foxyforce Posts: 3,078 Member
    Is there a minister that you trust enough to talk with? Thats what helped me.

    i find religion ridiculously oppressive, or i totally would. i actually was with my dad when he was speaking with his pastor when he was seperating from my mom, and the feedback was beyond what i thought. not at all like in the movies. he had no idea what to say, lacked compassion, etc. i know this isn't always the case, but i don't believe in god anyway. but i do think this might work for many people.
  • maricash
    maricash Posts: 280 Member
    and i reiterate, mininformed and callous. i am asking for alternatives to medication and "professional" help.

    So anyone who has found medication and professional help to work for them is misinformed and callous? In my opinion, saying "I don't believe in medication" is rather misinformed.
    if you haven't noticed the many responses saying, "i am going to ignore the rest of the posts", they aren't saying this to be *kitten*, they are saying this in response to the misinformation being a total waste of time.

    I think they are saying this in response to the handful of people who essentially told you to "snap out of it", not in response to people offering you actual advice.
    many of the arguments that are pro med and proefssional help are really really sparse in information. i know my ****, and i know i don't need meds, and i know that my brain is fine. telling someone their brain is having some issues or whatever is really reductionist. what i am having a problem with is self-serving people and feeling isolated from a really ****ty world. i don't think i am being rude in being honest, it was my original admission.

    You said in your original post that you "suffer from some pretty serious depression." Depression is a mental illness that affects your brain. If you have depression than your brain isn't working properly. And I say that as someone who has suffered through severe depression. Again, if you aren't open to information that contradicts what your already believe, then you aren't going to progress very far in dealing with depression or with life in general.

    Good luck to you.
  • ishtar13
    ishtar13 Posts: 528 Member


    I suffer from some pretty severe depression. I do not take medication, simply because I don't believe in it.

    I have bipolar 2, which means for me depressions are deeper and longer lasting than my manic phases.

    I have been where you are at.

    I tried talk therapy only, meditation, exercise, eating healthier and "toughing it out".

    What worked was medication.

    I hated the idea of taking it. I hated the side effects (until I found the right combo for me).

    I thought I was smarter than than to let myself get so down.

    I wasn't.

    I've gone off the meds enough times and for long enough to know that my life goes to **** almost immediately.

    Meds don't make everything better, but they make it easier to implement the other stuff and get better.
  • mystiedragonfly
    mystiedragonfly Posts: 189 Member
    .... what i am having a problem with is self-serving people and feeling isolated from a really ****ty world. i don't think i am being rude in being honest, it was my original admission.

    What you are saying is that you want people to stop being so selfish and self serving and pay attention to you? No one is showing you the respect and admiration you KNOW you deserve, so you will throw a tantrum. Insulting, mocking, and biting the hand of anyone who offers any sort of help, affection, insight, or advice. Simply because it is not up to your standards?

    Maybe that's why medicine doesn't work for you? You are expecting it to do all the work? That's like taking a shower without water and wondering why the soap won't lather.

    I, too, struggle with friends and acquaintances. It is also hard for me to keep a "normal" job. Constantly wondering why people say or do the cruel things they do. Why did that guy stand me up for a first date? Why did that friend forget we had plans to have dinner together? One of my favorite movies is Fight Club. Lately, this movie's message has been repeating over and over in my head. The main thing I get from this movie is that nobody owes anyone anything. If someone wants something or to do something, they have to go get it themselves. NOBODY will hand it to you. At some point, human beings have to realize they are so much more than their job, clothes, cars, or things they own. All of these things are outside of who you are. That includes other people. It's what got me up and moving and finding ways to help myself.

    Yes, many people of the world really ARE s___ty. I find myself enjoying being alone often when I see just how terrible people can be to each other. I spend a day here or there with a friend or two, but I am mostly a loner. Which is okay. I get to see what movies I like and eat where I want. Many jobs really can be lousy. I've went out on my own. I am poor as dirt and rarely can do extra fun things, but I no longer want to jab my eye out when working.

    I suppose what I am saying is that when it comes down to it, the only person able to get you out of your situation is you. No matter how much advice or attention or coddling people hand to you, the person making the final decision on how to help you... is you.
  • mystiedragonfly
    mystiedragonfly Posts: 189 Member
    Is there a minister that you trust enough to talk with? Thats what helped me.

    i find religion ridiculously oppressive, or i totally would. i actually was with my dad when he was speaking with his pastor when he was seperating from my mom, and the feedback was beyond what i thought. not at all like in the movies. he had no idea what to say, lacked compassion, etc. i know this isn't always the case, but i don't believe in god anyway. but i do think this might work for many people.

    Maybe look into a Pagan Priestess or a Metaphysical/Holistic practitioner. Perhaps even some Reiki. Hell, even an exceptional massage therapist would help some.
  • lovecrescendo
    lovecrescendo Posts: 31 Member
    I became very depressed earlier this year... and I never believed in medication. I just wanted to deal with it myself. I always thought that if I just could get through this bump in the road things would get better, or that I was completely in control of my happiness -- which I do believe is true, for people without a mental illness. But it never got better. I was never happy, no matter how hard I would try. It got worse and worse and I actually had to take the last month of my junior year off to figure out what the hell was going on with me. I broke.

    Finally I went to see a psychiatrist. I told her that i WANTED to graduate high school, I WANTED to be happy, but I just had no motivation. I was just sad all the time. I was suicidal. And I could never quite lift myself up. She put me on medication. I have always been against medication, just like you, as I believe the body is equipped with a natural ability to heal itself. And for the longest time I thought my depression was just a phase, that I wasn't trying hard enough...

    But I went on the medication and I am doing SO MUCH better now, a month or so later. It's not like it makes me happy all the time, but.... things don't bother me like they used to. I handle situations better. I know this because whenever I go off my meds for just two days or something every little thing bothers me (and I also go back to eating everything in sight).

    Perhaps seeking some medical attention could help you too? I know you don't want to, but if it can help you get past this, then why not?
  • AniOnFire
    AniOnFire Posts: 33 Member
    I feel totally comfortable posting this on here because I don't really have anyone to talk to outside of here.

    I suffer from some pretty severe depression. I do not take medication, simply because I don't believe in it. Yesterday I was awake for about 5 hours of the whole day, and did nothing. I recently quit a really ****ty job with the worst micromanager. I have amazing skills and constantly feel underutilized. (p.s. I still work part time at two different jobs, but it is on call and the time between shifts is unbearable). I am engaged to a wonderful man. I have no friends, and it is not like I don't try. I just find people to be totally selfish and I hate putting in so much effort for people that can only talk about themselves, are sexist, racist, and overall to me boring. Although, I still put in effort because I hate being alone and I am a party girl at heart.

    All of this impacts my health. I don't know why I get up in the morning so I don't even know why I exercise or eat healthy. I try, I really do.

    Does anyone else have an issue like this? I am looking for tips at dealing with this and seeing a doctor is not an option (or a counsellor, I work in the mental health field and know way too many people at almost every agency in the surrounding area).

    Thanks for reading, if you did!

    First let me say this:

    I suffer from extreme clinical depression, and if I do not take my meds everyday I can't function, as in I will either lay in bed all day or auto pilot through the day, my day being roughly 8 hours before my body tells me I have to sleep again, I may or may not shower depending on my energy level, my brain does not emit the proper chemicals to wake me up easily, so alarms and such don't work for me, I can sleep for 24 hours easily and have. My depression is so bad I can't hold down a job without medication, and if I don't take my meds while I'm taking classes I go from a 4.0 to a 2.5 super quick, and then there are the crying fits and fits of guilt that can floor me in bed for a day. That is serious depression. You do not have severe depression.

    Now things that might be helpful:

    I know you do not believe in medication or seeing a professional, but there are good ones out there, my Grandmother and my Boyfriend both work in the mental health field, granted my grandmother works in Canada but still. Yes, there are a lot of quacks out there but there are also a lot of people who care and can help you. Depression is not something you can do alone if it's severe.

    My suggestion to you is to try and find a therapist who believes in talk therapy more than medication since you don't believe in it. I know there are a lot of people who feel this way, but as someone who is non-functioning without it, I can tell you it does work if you need it, without it I don't get out of bed, my apartment or house looks like a train wreck and I -can't- motivate myself to do anything about it. I will be on meds for the rest of my life if I want to be a functioning member of society. So they do work.

    But I am going to say this your depression doesn't seem serious, you would probably benefit from saint johns-wort which is a natural herb which can help with mild depression. I know it might seem serious to you but if you can hold down two jobs and you are able to wake up when your alarm goes off then you do not have a serious case of depression, it is mild at best.

    Please don't count out professional help, it might not be for you but that doesn't mean it isn't for everyone or that people who get it are woefully misinformed, my boyfriend was a talk therapy only advocate until he lived with me and witnessed first hand how life could be for those with extreme depression while off of medication. And this is someone who was very much against the standard psychiatry practice of shoveling meds down peoples throats, since he is a Psychologist and there is a huge difference between the two fields.

    As for callous and misinformed, I can assure you I am very well informed on the subject, probably more so than you are. I don't like taking medication, it's why I go off of it from time to time. You feel fake, you feel like people don't actually like -you- but rather the you the meds make you out to be, but if you are truly depressed the alternative is worse and you hop back on the wagon. I was diagnosed at 18 with clinical depression and have been on meds for the last 8 years and will be for the rest of my life.
  • helenoftroy1
    helenoftroy1 Posts: 638 Member
    because many of you are seriously misinformed and callous

    Nothing I said to you was callous or misinformed. My feeling from what I've read here is you think that anyone who disagrees with you or offers another opinion is misinformed. Refusing to accept that ideas other than your own may be helpful isn't going to help you get better any faster. If you are as depressed as you describe in your original post, then you ought to be considering any option that might help and not writing them off before you even explore them.

    There have indeed been some callous and misinformed responses to your original post (I responded to one of them), but you have responded rudely to several people, myself included, who offered your sincere, informed responses, often arising out of their own experiences with depression. Having information different than what you believe isn't the same as having the wrong information. And refusing to "believe" in a fact doesn't make it any less a fact.

    ^^^ this this this!!!

    I haven't had/got depression. I have lived with it though and been affected by it. There has been plenty of good advice being given and my take on it (from someone who has it taken out on them for 8 years!) is medication might help but only if the person wants it and believes it may help. The depressed person needs to recognise they are in fact depressed, recognise the triggers and accept help even if they don't want to hear it knowing that the people around you love and care for you. It is so difficult when someone just suddenly starts treating you as if they don't know you and have an indifference to you but it's harder when you realise it's not the same dad that cuddled you when you fell, grinned when you did something amazing etc. I wish the OP all the very best but maybe pick the time when you're not feeling the mass oncoming of the illness and talk to someone about it when you are of lighter heart and plan the way forward then.
  • lovecrescendo
    lovecrescendo Posts: 31 Member
    I would like to add something to my previous post... I think it's very sad that you came to this forum asking for help and yet you shoot down the help that your peers are trying to give you.

    I have been where you are now. I really have. In better times in my life, I thought that people with 'depression' were just feeling sorry for themselves and if they tried hard enough and got out into the world they could start feeling better. And then when I plunged into this downward spiral of my own I hated myself. I just thought that I was weak. That I was feeling sorry for myself and wasn't trying hard enough to get out of it. But I started realizing that this sadness I was feeling was entirely different than sadness I had had before when I really was just feeling sorry for myself -- like when I would get in a f ight with my dad because he was being unfair, or if a boy rejected me, or I got a bad grade on a test. This was more like... a little voice following me around every day telling me I'm not worth it. Coming home from school every day and crying because I was literally failing all of my classes, despite always being one of the smartest students in my class. I became COMPLETELY unlike myself. And doctors and parents told me that I was making excuses for myself, so I said, okay, I'm going to try harder and keep myself to a schedule and MAKE myself be happy and MAKE myself get good grades. I tried that. It made me want to kill myself. It just seemed like such an impossible task. This was when I really truly was in that 'no excuses, no bull****, stop feeling sorry for yourself, get out there and MAKE IT HAPPEN' mode. And I tried. I tried everything I could to better my situation. But the problem was that I wasn't handling anything better. As always, if I called a friend, and she didn't answer, I would go crazy, sure that she was ignoring me. There was no other possibility in my mind. Walking alone from class to class, there was still that little voice in the back of my head that I could NOT shut out for anything, telling me I was fat, ugly, worthless, a failure, stupid, and that I should just give up. Trying to focus on my schoolwork and lifting myself up did not change how I reacted to things in every day life. I was just so different than I used to be.


    So in return, I became suicidal. Schoolwork became impossible for ME, one of the smartest people in my class, the one my teachers had always loved... and I broke. All this time I had been thinking that I was just not trying hard enough but when I finally had this breakdown I perhaps thought that I might as well see a psychiatrist -- someone who really DOES know what they're talking about and has dealt with HUNDREDS of people like me -- to get her opinion. So I did. The questions she gave me were not situational things that usually make people sad for awhile. They were really more like "Have you lost interest in things you used to love doing?" "Are you unable to focus on previously simple tasks?" "Do you tend to attack yourself and judge yourself over every little thing?" "Do you sleep too much or too little?" "Have you experienced weight gain or loss recently?" "Do you want to die?" These things described me perfectly. And she started to explain to me the difference between sadness and depression. Sadness is usually something that comes out of a bad point in your life -- it's situational. Depression... although circumstances can bring it on and play a part in how you're feeling... it's like a switch in your brain. It becomes NOT just something in your head but a chemical imbalance in your brain. And you react to things differently. So it's less about your situation and more how you react to it -- and you tend to beat yourself up over things and are much more negative than you used to be, I guess.

    So she put me on medication. At this point I was willing to try anything, but still didn't quite believe in 'happy pills'. But what I've discovered after being on these for about a month is that that switch in my brain is starting to go the other way. I don't immediately assume the worst when a friend doesn't pick up. I look back at my school and grades situation and I know it's bad, but I also, instead of looking for a way to get out of it -- death -- I'm looking more toward what I can do this summer and my senior year to fix it. These were things that, in my untreated depression, weren't... clear... to me. These alternatives just weren't options. Everything seemed so much worse. So much worse.

    So medication helped me. I guess that's what I'm trying to say. Maybe you should open your mind a bit.
  • Redbird99ky
    Redbird99ky Posts: 305 Member
    i just got called into work for tonight and i already feel WAY better.

    this is the kind of issue i am having.


    Having suffered from depression for a number of years, but now am clear, I will say that THIS is the best piece of advice / treatment that I could offer you. You have stumbled on to what may work for you...


    You got called in, and already you feel better. You had mentioned in your original post that you had lots of "down" time between your part time gigs, and that was the big stumbling block.

    Others have mentioned that you might consider volunteering, and I would second that. Try focusing on helping others, like what you can do for them, regardless of what they feel they can offer you. I am sure that you have a good amount of experience that can be put to good use.

    I am not telling you to think less of yourself. I am asking you to think of yourself less. If you cannot find structured opportunities to help others (such as the volunteer work at the shelters that you do), consider going out and looking for prospects to help. I find myself looking for opportunities to help others while I am driving down the road. I LOVE being of help to someone, and it takes me out of myself.

    May you find the peace you need. Whether you believe in God or not (I DIDN'T) , know that He loves you.
  • foxyforce
    foxyforce Posts: 3,078 Member
    i said thank you in response to many replies. i am not turning down advice. i said from the getgo i am seeking some self-help and wanting to know what worked for either but not including professional help or meds.
  • foxyforce
    foxyforce Posts: 3,078 Member
    i just got called into work for tonight and i already feel WAY better.

    this is the kind of issue i am having.


    Having suffered from depression for a number of years, but now am clear, I will say that THIS is the best piece of advice / treatment that I could offer you. You have stumbled on to what may work for you...


    You got called in, and already you feel better. You had mentioned in your original post that you had lots of "down" time between your part time gigs, and that was the big stumbling block.

    Others have mentioned that you might consider volunteering, and I would second that. Try focusing on helping others, like what you can do for them, regardless of what they feel they can offer you. I am sure that you have a good amount of experience that can be put to good use.

    I am not telling you to think less of yourself. I am asking you to think of yourself less. If you cannot find structured opportunities to help others (such as the volunteer work at the shelters that you do), consider going out and looking for prospects to help. I find myself looking for opportunities to help others while I am driving down the road. I LOVE being of help to someone, and it takes me out of myself.

    May you find the peace you need. Whether you believe in God or not (I DIDN'T) , know that He loves you.

    i am definitely trying, thanks.
  • Your screenname says it all, love. You are not loathesome. I am currently coming off of all my meds for depression and bipolar because I am tired of feeling like a vegetable. I wish I had some sage advice for you, but I don't. It is hard; really hard.

    I might have a couple of suggestions that could help - find something you like to do. It doesn't have to be exercise, just something to get you out of bed. I keep all my books and my nook and my iPod in the living room so I don't just grab them and go back to bed. I also register my kids for all kinds of stuff that makes me get out of the house. A 5 year old bouncing on your belly and screaming "I am ready for camp!" is real inspiration. Register for a Leisure Learning class if you don't feel up to a college course. It obligates you to get out of the house a couple of times a week.

    In any case, take care of you. If you will friend me, I will check in on you. Maybe we can do this together!
  • fionarama
    fionarama Posts: 788 Member
    Cognitive Therapy would really work for you I think. No medication required. You sound really negative (not being critical) but the human brain can get caught in a negative thought pattern, negative thoughts breed negative thoughts until you are literally suicidal.
    it really works.

    hear what you are saying about your job, I'm in a job I hate and it can really bring you down, unfortunately in these difficult times we don't always have a choice to up and leave.

    good luck!!!!
  • I fought taking medication for years as I didn't want to be on it and doubted it would work . I left a very stressful bullying job in the police force because of my depression . I am trying to come off my medication now as I still don't want to be on it . Also reiterating someone else's post on here . I would not wish that dark place upon anybody .
    Don't think my post has been helpful or made sense just having a bad day and thought I would share my experience
    : (
  • Been there and done that.

    I finally woke up one day and looked outside, and it was a beautiful day, and I sat there and thought to myself; I said " You know, what a pretty day outside, and there are going to be plenty of days out there like that, I can get out and enjoy it or sit here and rot."

    I got out and enjoyed it. You know the old saying it's mind over matter? It really IS. It simply is just that. Change your frame of mind. At one point we all changed our diet, do the same with how you choose to view things.

    I can relate to not having a positive outlook on people in general as well, but it is too easy to get stuck in a negative frame of mind. Refuse to let yourself do that, and refuse to waste another day in bed with the "poor me's " syndrome.

    I totally agree!
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