Does anyone else here suffer from severe depression/anxiety?

[Quiet]

It's a very serious disorder. While people do pull out of it you have to be so careful about it. My cousin thought he was free of it and stopped taking his meds, results were tragic. If you decide to stop taking them on that doctors advice make sure you are being monitored closely.

[DiRTyBuNNy]

I just wanted revive this thread again because I'm having problems again with all the stuff that I had stated a long time ago but I've got an HMO now that doesn't seem to care and won't put me on anything so I'm having to really rough it right now. It's been really tough for me, I know I'm strong but some days I just feel like I'm going to crack and it's just really hard living under that kind of stress..

[Miscue]

Have you been to the doctor lately? It might be a good idea to check all your levels and stuff... glucose particularly. There could be something physiological that could be contributing to it somewhat.

Keep track of your eating and sleeping habits. Are you sleeping too much, or too little, or at different times? Do you feel rested when you get up? On a good day, try to think about what is different that day... maybe you can find some things to think about - perhaps find that certain things need to happen for the day to go well.

Have you tried exercising and all that? This can be helpful... Maybe do some more things regularly in the week that you look forward to or you have found to be helpful...

Beyond the aid of medication, all I can suggest is to brainstorm correlations between events and how you are feeling... and research and learn more about it to maybe give you some ideas on what to do. You might not be able to find a way to get rid of it, but rather alleviate it some... which I think is worth an effort.

[deathstalker]

After about 15 years, I finally started getting help at the beginning of this year. I currently am on Paxil for the depression and Ativan for anxiety and they've been a tremendous help. Unfortunately, I've used up all my insurance benefits and need to pay for my visits on my own now.

You really do need to see someone if you're having problems. I let anxiety and depression rule my daily life for too long and am still taking steps to improve myself. The medication really helped how I feel on a daily basis, so now I have to work on changing my behavior. The toughest has been social interaction - I used to avoid it like the plague, but I'm taking small steps to get out more and do things with other people. I used to go to a field by myself to play rec and I would hardly speak to anyone else there.

Be certain that your HMO doesn't cover mental health benefits. If they don't, start calling professionals in your area because most of them will work with you to charge you what you can afford or at least set up a payment plan. I didn't find out my insurance ran out until I had racked up about $600 worth of charges and I worked out a plan with my therapist to pay her back what I already owe and get a reduced rate on all my regular appointments.

[EsPo]

I don't have much experience with such things as severe depression, but one of my friends (sisters ex-boyfriend) seems to suffer very badly from it. I'd say there are a few good ways to deal with it judging from what I HAVE seen. He has mentioned that he probably would no longer be with us if it wasn't for his friends. The point here is stick with your really close buddies, I'm sure they will help you out and make you happy, and most people are very very happy with their close friends. Also, writing in a diary or journal always helped him (as well as me) get my feeling out to someone (or something), and not keeping them bottled up.

[cphilip]

Well that sucks Bunny. You must have proper medication. Does your HMO not realize this is a Medical Condition not a mental one? Somehow you must find the right doctor in the system who does. Keep changing them until you find one that listens. Can you recover any of your old records and find the diagnosis?

[graycie]

sorry phil, i had no idea

I went through mild depression for a good part of last year, at the time I didn't feel I needed to be on any medication but looking back now I think I should of. When I sat down to think about it I think I was depressed long before last year but didn't realize I was. I was never to the point of any harm to myself, but I'm sure I wasn't very pleasant to be around. My close friends really helped me through it, and are to this day the only people I confide in. Everyday stress became overwhelming sometimes along with the anxiety, which I am slowly conquering. As far as dealing with the stress, everyone has a different way to unwind it all so I can't say my method is better than anyone elses.

[Miscue]

Re: sorry phil, i had no idea

Originally posted by graycie
As far as dealing with the stress, everyone has a different way to unwind it all so I can't say my method is better than anyone elses.

Yeah, everyone has their individual case... and need different things to happen to resolve it. Sometimes you can be on your own when trying to help yourself... because you're the only one that really knows how to.

[Fastkid]

If I don't run long distances, I get depressed... I have tendinitis on the tendant between my left hamstring and my fibula...

[gibby]

Hey Dan...if ever you find it hard and need to vent out, feel free to send me a PM and I'll gladly listen to you. I used to go out with someone who suffered from S.A.D. Actually, she still does but a lot has happened and she's learned to deal with it. I tried to help her by giving her advice, but like Miscue said, unless you've gone through it yourself, you're not going to find the right words to motivate the other person. But I can say that although I haven't been through it, I'm more certainly willing to listen and try to feel what you're going through.

Granted, we might not go through the same experiences, but I believe it's the experiences in life that helps us understand.

Good luck and like I said, feel free to let me know and I'll listen.

[TransMan]

I smoke too much to be depressed

[spazzed]

A note guys & gals, this MDD is *NOT* the only form of clinical depression out there, however it is one of, if not the most severe. I urge any of you who see themselves falling into these criteria to seek help ASAP.

(*note* Below is not directly from the DSM-IV so bear w/ me if there are some inconsistancies ).

Major Depressive Disorder
-Primary Symptoms (Must have 1 of the 2)
--Depressed Mood- Overwhelming feeling of insignificance (Must occur for 2 weeks, minimum)
--Anhedonia (Lack of pleasure/fulfillment in activites one used to enjoy
-Secondary Symptoms
--Appetite (Typical= Decrease, Atypical= Increase)
--Sleep (Typical= Decrease, Atypical= Increase) (Commonly misunderstood.. may be in bed, lethargic, etc, but *not* sleeping)
--Slowed movements, appears as a lack of urgency while doing tasks.
--Speak quieter, slowed speach rate.
--Decreased Energy
--Decreased self-worth.
--Decreased Concentration (focusing, completing tasks)
--Suicidal Idiation (Thoughts of suicide, etc)

[knodeoff]

hey you

when i feel depresed or iritated i go paintball or listen to music it always helps me. usually i get depresed when i dont get enough sleep or let something bother me for a long time.

[DiRTyBuNNy]

in light of everything that's happening in the world and just the general nature of society I thought I'd throw this back up again so that others could comment and get their feelings/experiences out....I want people to be honest and open here....and if anyone turns this into a flaming competition you're in some serious trouble...I'll be dropping the "mod hammer" like it's going out of style...

[InfinatyBPS]

I think I'm so depressed I'm going insane. Like seriously, everything in my life has been such a downfall scince the end of december, and it just gets worse and worse. And I'm not getting treated for my problems. And they're building, I'm being tortured by my own thoughts and my personality actually is starting to split enough where I can talk to myself as 2 people without realizing it. I don't tell anyone though. I'm sure thats not good. And I'm 100% serious about all of this. Just felt like sharing.