Depression...

[Saints_Alive]

Sorry to hear that you are suffering TLL, just hang in there because it will ease eventually. You should try to get as much sunlight as possible to counteract the chemical imbalance or buy yourself a light box if you can't get enough natural sunlight in the day.
As others have said, excercise is important and eat well even if you lose your appetite as lack of nutrients will feed the depression. Cut the alcohol completely to give the best chance for the medication to take effect. Most of all talk to loved ones and try to focus on positives in your life.
Get well soon mate.

Edit: forgot to say, keep active and set yourself daily tasks, the busier you are, the less introspective you become.

 

[Sharpe*]

It's not good for you at all. But when depression is at it's worst people do your ****ing head in. Catch 22.

Ideally I'd go to the gym and be round loads of people, but I just can't muster up the strength when I'm going through an episode.

I can be the same in the sense that some days I just don't want to be around people and making chit-chat!

As much of in the sense if i'm in a bad mood i don't want people annoying me and I want to be left alone.

Cure for that is a walk with the dog with some banging tunes where there are not too many people and other than maybe a smile you don't have to interact.

Some people don't even do that.

A dog is a good shout actually.

Company of a genuine mate is also golden.

 

[Bodinki]

I can be the same in the sense that some days I just don't want to be around people and making chit-chat!

As much of in the sense if i'm in a bad mood i don't want people annoying me and I want to be left alone.

Cure for that is a walk with the dog with some banging tunes where there are not too many people and other than maybe a smile you don't have to interact.

Some people don't even do that.

A dog is a good shout actually.

One of the first things my Brother in law was told by his GP.
Get a pet.
They usually help with depression, or so I am told.
A dog is good because it encourages you to have to go out and walk it and let it out for a poo and stuff.

 

[remembercolinlee]

Known as the unseen illness, used to suffer badly with it as a teenager though have been fine for years now.

But feel like I might be starting to suffer from it again now, but I'm using drink (used to be weed) to block it out.

Problem is you drink cos you feel low, but in long run (I know this as an ex heavy drinker) it makes it worse.

A vicious circle...

Any personal experience out there n some decent* advice?










*A serious topic from me on this board for once

The mental health charity Mind offers telephone and face to face counselling.
You can just call yourself for the telephone
counselling or get referred by your GP for the face to face counselling.
And it is all free.
They were excellent for me when I was trying to get over the death of my son.

My only sdvice is not to deal with depression on your own.
Good luck mate

 

[Sharpe*]

One of the first things my Brother in law was told by his GP.
Get a pet.
They usually help with depression, or so I am told.
A dog is good because it encourages you to have to go out and walk it and let it out for a poo and stuff.

Interesting to know, cheers

And yeah I'd definitely go with that.

As you mentioned for the exercise element but its also good company.

Dog's genuinely can pick up on your feelings and make you feel better by their actions.

They're also funny as **** at times - well mine is!

You can talk to them and they don't talk back but do listen.

My dog comes everywhere I can take her - including the office every Friday.

I'd say my dog is one of the lads so to speak.

She comes fishing with me too where she's allowed.

In fact fishing is another good one.

They're doing studies atm to prove that fishing helps with PTSS/PTSD.

Its relaxing, good community and its good fun if its your thing.

 

[Skylarker]

My dog is the first person to pick up any sign of my symptoms, even before the Mrs (even before me on the rare occasion). He won't leave my side until I'm feeling better. Incredible animals.

 

[Highburyal]

Known as the unseen illness, used to suffer badly with it as a teenager though have been fine for years now.

But feel like I might be starting to suffer from it again now, but I'm using drink (used to be weed) to block it out.

Problem is you drink cos you feel low, but in long run (I know this as an ex heavy drinker) it makes it worse.

A vicious circle...

Any personal experience out there n some decent* advice?










*A serious topic from me on this board for once

Only thing I would say is go seek professional help mate, otherwise it might get worse in time and drinking isn't going to help.

I say this because one of my close family member suffered from it, to an extent it still is an battle and always will be and the longer you avoid it the worse it gets and thinking it will go away doesn't help at all, seen it first hand where it was ignored thinking it will go away and after years of thinking that eventually had a breakdown and it was hard work trying to get them back to some sort of normality. The professional help and those around you will be the big difference, at least that's what we found.

I would say see a psychologist through your GP or even privately if you can, that's what helped us, but everyone is different and at the least see your GP.....

If you need to talk in private just PM me mate and happy help or have chat about what we did and stuff if it helps you in anyway...

 

[Skylarker]

Libby, you could try CBD, it's been the most helpful thing I've found. It's a cannabanoid but doesn't have any psychoactive ingredients. Even places like Holland and Barrett sell it now!!

There's a plethora of research out there too.

https://www.marijuanatimes.org/cbd-relieves-depression-faster-than-any-other-anti-depressant/

 

[Bodinki]

Libby, you could try CBD, it's been the most helpful thing I've found. It's a cannabanoid but doesn't have any psychoactive ingredients. Even places like Holland and Barrett sell it now!!

There's a plethora of research out there too.

https://www.marijuanatimes.org/cbd-relieves-depression-faster-than-any-other-anti-depressant/

Can i use that in a regular Vape, or do I need a special one?
I ordered some but not sure whether I am able to stick it in my vape

 

[Spurlock]

My dog is the first person to pick up any sign of my symptoms, even before the Mrs (even before me on the rare occasion). He won't leave my side until I'm feeling better. Incredible animals.

Cats, dogs...they are well tuned in....my cat used to know when the ex was going to have an Epileptic fit...minor ones to major ones and would just sit next to her and follow her around the house...amazing creatures

 

[Skylarker]

Can i use that in a regular Vape, or do I need a special one?
I ordered some but not sure whether I am able to stick it in my vape

What did you order?

If it's the oil with a tincture then you put it under your tongue, approx 5 drops depending on strength. You can buy it to vape or add to normal juice from places like CBD Life UK, but it get's expensive.

CBD Brothers sell the paste, which is very strong and my favourite tbh. You just dissolve a piece the size of a pea under your tongue.


But yeah you can vape it, just ensure it's the right oil. Holland and Barrett stuff for example isn't able to vape.

If you want to see the power of CBD in it's finest watch this documentary

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or this shorter one that is a clip of Charlotte (hence Charlotte's web, incredible story)

You must log in or register to see media

 

[Spurlock]

My dog is the first person to pick up any sign of my symptoms, even before the Mrs (even before me on the rare occasion). He won't leave my side until I'm feeling better. Incredible animals.

Your dog is the first 'person'

Yeah I get what you mean Fam lol

 

[Skylarker]

Your dog is the first 'person'

Yeah I get what you mean Fam lol

I treat him like a person

 

[Archers Road]

Did you go down the 12 step path? Obviously you don't have to answer.

I did mate, yeah. I was quite resistant at first, a d I know they're not to everyone's liking, but it worked for me. The only thing that did, really. Once I put the drink down, I had to get some peace of mind from somewhere. Addiction is a condition that I believe to be mental, physical, & spiritual, & personally I have to treat all three, which the 12 step programme enables you to do.

I wouldn't hesitate to seek medical help as well though, if I thought I needed it.

 

[thefanwithnoname]

For what its worth, and this is just my experience am not making any judgements etc

I never really understood the whole depression stuff even working within a broader health setting, I often felt it was self inflicted and attention seeking and an unwillingness to change the self.

I grew up to a decent standard of living, a senior management post, own house, 5 series BMW, nice family with verging on genius kids (eldest got 16 A* in GCSEs)

Anyway long story short, sold house for double what a I paid to buy the dream house, moved into temporary rental accommodation whilst looking. Found out Mrs was preggers. Overjoyed until the doc at 20 week scan sent us to brum children's and the preceded to sit us down and 3 consultants said kid had a condition and beat to abort and give them foetus. Told them to **** off and let nature take its course. Mrs fell apart, mum dad etc fell apart I couldn't afford to. As time went on each day was avinybas nature wasn't taking its course and the baby was moving etc and the prognosis was the birth would kill him. This bought extra processes based on religion etc so.looking at burial and funeral etc. Nany was born and straight into intensive care, again prognosis was death anytime now but now there was a real being and it was ours and everyone fell apart and I couldn't.

A few weeks later prognosis "improved" as in OK he will make it but max 1 year. This made things worse really. Anyway things got better and better as time went to the point that death as a certainty was off the table

Everybody relaxed and then one night BOOM full on massive panic attack, followed by serious depression. Docs were useless just wanted to out on meds but fortunately haabe mates who work in various fields. One mate owns a pharmacy and refused to give me the prescription that doc had given

Once your body has had this it never fully recovers and as most have said its hard to get up and exercise etc but its what is needed

For me doctors were not the answer mates were

 

[Skylarker]

I did mate, yeah. I was quite resistant at first, a d I know they're not to everyone's liking, but it worked for me. The only thing that did, really. Once I put the drink down, I had to get some peace of mind from somewhere. Addiction is a condition that I believe to be mental, physical, & spiritual, & personally I have to treat all three, which the 12 step programme enables you to do.

I wouldn't hesitate to seek medical help as well though, if I thought I needed it.

I was heavily involved in NA for about 10 years, going to area meetings and generally trying to spread the message. I guess the 18 months I was in rehab helped the beginning as we had to attend 3 meetings a week, so by the time I left it was normal.

Great fellowships, and amazing what they can do.

Obviously with the weed and occasional alcohol blow out I don't go anymore, but I've got nothing but love for the fellowships. Saved my life for real.

I'm one of the fortunate one's that can take a drink or leave it, many others in the fellowship have tried what I did and died.

 

[Chief]

btw guys if you want to know how important keeping stress levels down is read up on psychoendoneuroimmunology. I studied a couple of units of this at Uni and it is fascinating.

Simply put - it is how stress can **** your immune system up. So stress leads to illness, quite severe illness in some cases.

Probably one of my favourite units to study, really, really interesting.

Stress can be the trigger for a couple of very nasty IBD's, not pleasant at all. I get bouts of one and think I've identified the cause and it isn't stress but when I am suffering from an incidence I really do have the keep calm and in my job that isn't easy.

Must admit, alcohol is my outlet as I have long since stopped smoking weed of any sort. As most of us will have had some experience though, that with a heavy drinking session sometimes will follow the paranoia if the comedown (hangover) is particularly bad, so it's clear that booze is not the solution for either stress or depression. Not that I have any experience of depression.

It's very tempting though. Too tempting most of the time for me, got to admit.

 

[PINKIE]

Known as the unseen illness, used to suffer badly with it as a teenager though have been fine for years now.

But feel like I might be starting to suffer from it again now, but I'm using drink (used to be weed) to block it out.

Problem is you drink cos you feel low, but in long run (I know this as an ex heavy drinker) it makes it worse.

A vicious circle...

Any personal experience out there n some decent* advice?










*A serious topic from me on this board for once

Hello mate. Sorry to hear that you've been going through a tough time. This was my specialist field for 16 years in the NHS. I worked in mental health managing various teams across multi disciplinary fields. If you want to PM me feel free. I could probably put you in touch with organisations who can help. Sometimes it's just a phone call, for a bit of advice and support, or you might feel you need to see somebody to do some more in depth work.

Anyway, there is support out there and you are not alone in any of this.

All the best man.

 

[Archers Road]

I was heavily involved in NA for about 10 years, going to area meetings and generally trying to spread the message. I guess the 18 months I was in rehab helped the beginning as we had to attend 3 meetings a week, so by the time I left it was normal.

Great fellowships, and amazing what they can do.

Obviously with the weed and occasional alcohol blow out I don't go anymore, but I've got nothing but love for the fellowships. Saved my life for real.

I'm one of the fortunate one's that can take a drink or leave it, many others in the fellowship have tried what I did and died.

I have a mate like you, very annoying he is . After years struggling to get off smack and crack, and a few years completely clean, he smokes one or two spliffs a day, and can have one bottle of designer lager in the pub - and not even ****ing finish it, the bastard. I can't do that, and there's no sense wishing I could.

I have a lot of trouble sometimes, trying to explain to people who don't understand that, no, I can't just have one. One drink's no ****ing use to me, never has been - I either avoid that first drink altogether (which is not difficult these days) or you'd better warn the landlord to get some more kegs in and be ready to stay open until ****ing doomesday, or until my money runs out, whichever is the quicker.

If you gave me my own brewery, a suitcase full of bugle and another one full of brown for the comedowns, it wouldn't be enough.

A tough one explaining that to people who haven't experienced the mad alky's raging thirst. But as you said about depression, why should they understand, really? A lot of things don't make any sense until you've lived them.

Do you still keep in touch with any of your NA buddies? For some reason, ex drunks and junkies are some of the sweetest people you can meet.

 

[NSIS]

I have a mate like you, very annoying he is . After years struggling to get off smack and crack, and a few years completely clean, he smokes one or two spliffs a day, and can have one bottle of designer lager in the pub - and not even ****ing finish it, the bastard. I can't do that, and there's no sense wishing I could.

I have a lot of trouble sometimes, trying to explain to people who don't understand that, no, I can't just have one. One drink's no ****ing use to me, never has been - I either avoid that first drink altogether (which is not difficult these days) or you'd better warn the landlord to get some more kegs in and be ready to stay open until ****ing doomesday, or until my money runs out, whichever is the quicker.

If you gave me my own brewery, a suitcase full of bugle and another one full of brown for the comedowns, it wouldn't be enough.

A tough one explaining that to people who haven't experienced the mad alky's raging thirst. But as you said about depression, why should they understand, really? A lot of things don't make any sense until you've lived them.

Do you still keep in touch with any of your NA buddies? For some reason, ex drunks and junkies are some of the sweetest people you can meet.

I know some people just can't, mate. I had a neighbour like that years ago. He seemed to have no problem giving up, he could go months without a drink.

But, !! Once he got the first one or two down his neck he was off! There was nothing in between with the guy. He either didn't drink at all or he would drink until he literally was incapable of raising a glass to his face anymore.

I used to hit it pretty hard back in my working days, but now I've developed an 'off switch'. I can have a couple and walk away. I couldn't have done that 15-20 yrs ago.