Hi All

Ive been suffering depression for a couple of years now and having been made redundant I am on a daily struggle to keep going.

I am reluctant to go back onto the anti-depressents in case it affects my chances of getting a job, so I’ve been taking St John Wort for the last couple of weeks, but it doesn’t seem to of made much difference.

Just wondered if anyone had been through a similiar experience, and looking for ways to help. I am doing the usual things like trying to get excercise, eat well and I am waiting to hear about CBT, but it’s all locked up inside me and I cant talk to anyone about how I feel.

M.

Hello M, I am sorry to hear that you are having a difficult time.  I spoke to many people at this year’s World Mental Health Day events who are suffering from depression but daren’t seek help for fear of it derailing their career or jeapordizing future employment.  It seems so unfair. How are we supposed to get better if we can’t seek help?  However, help can come in many forms M so I am so pleased that you have come to the site.  I experienced something similar myself when I was diagnosed with clinical depression. I didn’t want the doctor to write on my sick note that I was suffering from depression. 
I tried St John’s Wort too and it didn’t make any difference to me.  Have you heard of the herbal remedy Filisa? I’ve taken it in the past when I felt depressed and it really worked for me.  Lots of people find it very helpful.  People have written about it on this site.  Someone even recommended it as a positive suggestion on the site.  Marisa Peer, an expert on the site and autho,r recommends it to her patients.  www.littleherbal-international.com. Also, my psychiatrist recommended that I take a good omega which I do religiously every day without fail.  Please do talk to us on the site if that helps too.  It is totally confidential so won’t affect anything apart from hopefully you for the better.  There are some amazing people with wise and sympathetic words on the site who I am sure will make you very welcome.  One thing in this life that we are guaranteed is change and I hope that your situation and mood changes for the better very very soon.  Thinking of you.  Best wishes, Helen

Hello M. Just wanted to send you a HUG XXXX remember this won’t last for ever XXX you are going to get better XXX We all have on this site Xxx As Helen says baby steps Xxx I am going to copy and post the post that i feel can help Xx

This post came from Moonfriend on the Mornings post at the bottom of the forum- I thought it was such beautiful advice I copied and pasted it on the getting up forum so others would read it xx

i don’t know if this will help Steve as it’s months since the post, but it might help others. When I’m feeling down - I have recurring bouts of depression and have been on medication since I was diagnosed 13 years ago - mornings are the hardest. I wake up and wish I could just stay in bed, it’s my only comfortable space, I compare it to a rabbit’s burrow, where I can hide away. The day - I work full-time, and my daughter usually needs help with homework in the evening and more often than not I have to get something together for dinner, all the other things can usually wait - feels as overwhelming as attempting to climb Everest. I find it really helps me to literally focus on just one thing at a time. That is I’ll say to myself ‘I’m going to get out of bed’ then ‘I’m going to make a cup of tea’ ‘I’m going to have a shower’ and so on. At times I have to put chop things up into even smaller blocks, such as ‘I’m going to put the kettle on’ ‘I’m going to undress’. I compare it to cutting food up into little pieces that can be chewed easily, whereas if you try to eat a steak, say, all at one go it would choke you. I really hope my sharing will help someone out there. Depression is a filthy disease, I call it the black cloud which envelopes my head (Churchill called it ‘black dog’ but I have a real black dog and she is one of the lights of my life!)

I hope this helps the people who read this that have trouble getting up - this was written by moonfriend XxChloe

Jean wrote this to Jess, 
Sometimes, when your life changes, even temporarily, it is hard to cope with.
Maybe I can actually suggest something that worked for me when I was going through a very mentally stressful and depressed period - I wrote down how I was feeling each day and tried to work out what was causing each feeling - which didn’t seem to be making any difference then but, now when I read my notes from several months ago and compare the difference in how I feel, I realise I coped, only a very little at a time - Chloe calls it “baby steps”) but my state of mind is definitely better.  Now I just say to myself - I’m not depressed, just feeling sad or down.  I don’t suppose there is anyone who feels completely happy all the time.  So it is nice to think that we are normal.
I hope you can make sense of this and I wish you all the very best.  My best regards, jean
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Have you tried EFT emotional freedom technique. I don’t know if i am allowed to advertise other web pages on the forum this chap has a EFT site to show you where to tap it’s magnus@tapping.com. It is so positively effective Xx Chloe

I found this one too Xx
Hi Snopy
I’ve just joined this fab web page.  Sorry to hear you are not feeling good today.  Have you been refferred to the Community Psychiatrist or are you getting the support via your GP?  I only ask as I only really started to get properly well when I was eventually reffered to the Psych as they are the ones who are the experts in the field of mental health.  Make sure you see the Consultant or the RMO as they are the ones who are there all the time.

It sounds as though your medication isn’t doing what it should do.  Although any change in meds usually takes about 4 - 6 weeks to kick in.  So if you’ve just had it increased, be patient as it will work eventually.  Other things that I have found that help me are meditation and having aromatherapy massages.  The local college near you will have students training to be therapists, and you can get a massage for as little as £7.50 - huge difference to £30- £40 quid!!!  I ahve found both of these therapies a hug help in the last 2 years, and definatly feel more at peace and in control of my depression, even if I’m having an episode, as I feel at least I am taking some control.  The other thing I’ve learn’t is that the symptoms don’t last forever, they will eventually go and you will be feeling good again.  This is from experience.  I now just go with the flow when I have an episode of depression knowing it will eventually go.

Take care - thinking of you

Best wishes

Bridget

Brencoot wrote this XxxLife is very tought isn’t it? It is really hard to know who you really are, what you should be doing with yourself and your life, which way to turn etc. I think many many people spend most of their life completely lost, just kind of fumbling through life day to day. I believe that most people just kind of go through life without any plans, life just kind of takes them through it, and maybe that’s the best way to be. If you try to think too much about what you really want, who you really are etc., you’ll probably never find the answer, you’ll just confuse yourself more.

As for thinking that you don’t help people being in the state you are and that it’d be better if you were dead, you can’t even begin to imagine how much worse people would be if you weren’t around, and actually you would never know, cos if you weren’t around, you wouldn’t be able to see how much everyone missed you and wouldn’t be able to do anything about it anyway if you were dead. While you are alive, there is a least a chance that you can turn your situation around even though you may feel like it is almost impossible. One thing is for sure, if you are dead, then it really is impossible to turn things around. Dying give you no chance at all.

I realise that when people are depressed they don’t really want to listen to things like this, they don’t care, but I just wanted to say it in the hope that you may read and take some of it in.

I really hope you are OK.

There are lots of WONDERFUL posts on here and I can’t find them Xx I have to confess I have a dodgie eye today one of my eyes has kaleidoscope vision I think I have a migraine so I need to rest it Xxx When I had depression I hated reading because I felt so tired, so I wanted to find you inspiring posts. Because when I was depressed my body was tired yet my soul was strong BE STRONG XXXX We are all here to listen and we all do care XXx listen to the above posts the people on here do listen they do care and they all give me support on a daily basis XXX STAY BEING STRONG XXXX HUG XX

t’s the little things that mean a lot. A hug means the world.I’m sure things will get better.

Regards

Gallene

Brencoot wrote this Xx

I understand your concerns about going to the doctor, but to be honest, the older I get, the more I realise that health it the most important thing, cos without it, you can’t do anything. Without it, you certainly won’t be up for getting a job. I realise it’s very easy for me to sit here and say that, but just think about, and odn’t beat yourself up too much. Tough times at the moment, it’s not your fault.

Hope you are doing OK.

Just wanted to add these are other peoples OPPINIONS I tend to take them in, digest them and make up my own mind. They are just oppinions ,not fact, just somebodys elses take, somebody elses perspective. Hope you brain storm them and draw your own conclusion Xx Just wanted to add that Xx hope the posts help you soothe you and give you insight XxHUGXX

Hello Sahara, how are you doing? Not fantastic by the sounds of it.

I think if you could open up a bit to people, you’d be amazed at how many people have the same or similar issues, thoughtss feelings etc. I’ve been surprised by the number of similar problems I hear from people, but then I guess I shouldn’t be so surprised cos we are all human, so I guess it’s pretty obvious that we have similar feelings inside. Anyway, I hope you feel like you can open up to people a bit more soon.

Take care of yourself

oh gosh Xx I was thinking as I was laying in bed relaxing that these were answers to other posts so they were influenced by the post they answered before it and I might have put them out of context. However I believe the wisdom and skill of these suffers and carers is second to none and this forum is definitely meeting Maslows hierarchy of needs, Emotions XXXXHUGXXX the most important XX for us emotional beings XXx empathy XXXX

oh wow Chloe, you have been busy with all these replies which Ive just read by the way. Very interesting stuff to take in, its true though empathy is very important, we all need to stand together in this and help each other, this site is helping me and am so grateful for it.

I hope your ok Sahara and look forward to hearing from you soon.

wish it was in the day as id print all those off but am off to bed now so wont be doing that, ive just been watching what pete andre did next, ive saved all his programmes and love watching him, I see alot of myself in him, well spiritually speaking that is. He’s a decent man and a loving dad to his kids, I admire him in lots of ways.