The Depression Thread #2

[Dogtanian]

I've been bad for the last few months and I finally went to the doctor 3 weeks ago. I had an online assessment last week with another unit and we talked about everything - grief, long term disease, lifespan, health, family, current support, money, suicide, previous doctors response, lack of motivation, lack of concentration etc.
I'm waiting for a follow up appointment with the GP who's already mentioned pills and a therapy course. I just don't know what to expect going forwards whether things will improve or if they'll just stay like this.

 

[yayoi]

I've been bad for the last few months and I finally went to the doctor 3 weeks ago. I had an online assessment last week with another unit and we talked about everything - grief, long term disease, lifespan, health, family, current support, money, suicide, previous doctors response, lack of motivation, lack of concentration etc.
I'm waiting for a follow up appointment with the GP who's already mentioned pills and a therapy course. I just don't know what to expect going forwards whether things will improve or if they'll just stay like this.

Well done for going. It's so hard to reach out and I hope that things improve for you

 

[honeybunny2012]

Ive known for a while that I need to go to the doctors about the way I am feeling but i am so anxious to do it. Had a lot happen recently that I think have tipped my mental health over the edge, im so irritable, forgetful and tired and find it really hard to be happy. My doctors do telephone appointments and only do in person appointments sometimes. I really dont want a telephone appointment as they dont give you an exact time for it and i dont want to have to take the call at work.

Can anyone offer advice on how to take that step to make the appointment and what to expect.

 

[Beaversabout]

What’s your dosage? The first time I took Prozac I was on 20mg and had all the side effects imaginable, this time around I take 40mg and I’m a completely different person with few to no side effects. In fact, I feel like I’m slowly becoming my pre-depression self, I never thought it would be possible.

Counselling can be very beneficial, but you have to work quite hard to find a therapist you can click with. I’ve found that talking to most of them just makes me feel worse, but I’ve also had a few positive experiences when they pointed out the root causes I wouldn’t have thought of. So unfortunately, you just have to try it and see for yourself.

Im On 10mg to start then maybe 20. 10 was enough to take the edge off and now I'll be getting counselling. Yh it's just trying to see wat works I suppose.

 

[Fledgling Psycho]

@honeybunny2012 Can you contact them online and choose to see the doctor? You'll have to be insistent that you need to see someone in person. It's awful when you don't even have the energy to tackle something which should be so simple. Also often it's not as bad as our mind torments us. Good luck. Be brave and take care of you. X

 

[comment on life]

Does anyone have any good experiences with Mirtazapine? I have just been prescribed it by GP and all I can see are people that have had negative experiences - weight gain, drowsy, hallucinations....... Makes me afraid to start it

 

[InTheDollsHouse]

Does anyone have any good experiences with Mirtazapine? I have just been prescribed it by GP and all I can see are people that have had negative experiences - weight gain, drowsy, hallucinations....... Makes me afraid to start it

Yes, I took it for quite a while, alongside Venlafaxine.

I took it at night to help sleep and didn’t have any other side effects after the usual first couple of weeks.

I did gain weight, I found myself snacking all the time. For me, it was worth the weight gain, and I really could have made better food choices than the crap I was eating.

I found the fog lifted a bit and made things feel clearer, which was so good.

What dose are you on?
Are you taking anything else?

 

[comment on life]

Yes, I took it for quite a while, alongside Venlafaxine.

I took it at night to help sleep and didn’t have any other side effects after the usual first couple of weeks.

I did gain weight, I found myself snacking all the time. For me, it was worth the weight gain, and I really could have made better food choices than the crap I was eating.

I found the fog lifted a bit and made things feel clearer, which was so good.

What dose are you on?
Are you taking anything else?

She wants to start me on 7.5mg and says she will raise it to 15mg in 2-3 weeks if the side effects are manageable. I was on Lexapro a few years ago but had terrible side effects so think I'm mentally scarred now as a result.

Is it the tablet itself that causes the weight gain or that it makes everyone feel starving so they eat more do you know?

 

[InTheDollsHouse]

She wants to start me on 7.5mg and says she will raise it to 15mg in 2-3 weeks if the side effects are manageable. I was on Lexapro a few years ago but had terrible side effects so think I'm mentally scarred now as a result.

Is it the tablet itself that causes the weight gain or that it makes everyone feel starving so they eat more do you know?

Okay, I started on 15 and was up to 45 so 7.5 is a gentle start, hopefully that will be okay for you.

I’m not certain. I just found myself eating all the time! It sounds ridiculous but I would walk into the kitchen and then I’d have food in my hand… So I think a bit of both contributed.

 

[Carapop]

No tablet of that nature will in and of itself cause you to spontaneously gain fat. It may increase your appetite, and have you reaching for more food than you would usually eat. Or it may make you feel drowsy and therefore less active. But it may also make you feel better able to get out of bed in the morning and be more active. Or feel more brighter and more motivated to make better food choices etc.

I started back on lexapro in January. I thought I would die for the first few weeks, the side effects were brutal. My anxiety was the worst it’s ever been, I was living in a constant state of fear, couldn’t stop shaking, couldn’t sleep at all and every day was a living nightmare. I’ll never forget it. I didn’t think I’d survive it. And I was already low starting the meds. But it passed. Almost like magic. After two weeks. And now I don’t notice anything. Except life feels a little more tolerable than before the meds. I hope that helps a bit. That side effects can be brutal and still be fleeting. If I knew then that an end was in sight, it would have been such a comfort.

 

[comment on life]

Okay, I started on 15 and was up to 45 so 7.5 is a gentle start, hopefully that will be okay for you.

I’m not certain. I just found myself eating all the time! It sounds ridiculous but I would walk into the kitchen and then I’d have food in my hand… So I think a bit of both contributed.

Thanks so much for sharing your experience. I really appreciate it
---

No tablet of that nature will in and of itself cause you to spontaneously gain fat. It may increase your appetite, and have you reaching for more food than you would usually eat. Or it may make you feel drowsy and therefore less active. But it may also make you feel better able to get out of bed in the morning and be more active. Or feel more brighter and more motivated to make better food choices etc.

I started back on lexapro in January. I thought I would die for the first few weeks, the side effects were brutal. My anxiety was the worst it’s ever been, I was living in a constant state of fear, couldn’t stop shaking, couldn’t sleep at all and every day was a living nightmare. I’ll never forget it. I didn’t think I’d survive it. And I was already low starting the meds. But it passed. Almost like magic. After two weeks. And now I don’t notice anything. Except life feels a little more tolerable than before the meds. I hope that helps a bit. That side effects can be brutal and still be fleeting. If I knew then that an end was in sight, it would have been such a comfort.

I took Lexapro for a few years and found it made life more manageable. Came off it when things were going good. Then tried to go back on it last Summer. The side effects were horrendous. By day 3 I was crying down the phone to the GP. I actually couldnt cope at all. The anxiety on an ongoing basis felt more manageable than 2 weeks of feeling like that. Well done for getting through it

 

[Carapop]

Thanks so much for sharing your experience. I really appreciate it
---

I took Lexapro for a few years and found it made life more manageable. Came off it when things were going good. Then tried to go back on it last Summer. The side effects were horrendous. By day 3 I was crying down the phone to the GP. I actually couldnt cope at all. The anxiety on an ongoing basis felt more manageable than 2 weeks of feeling like that. Well done for getting through it

Gosh. I was the same. I had been on it for over a decade. Felt better and brighter. Got cocky, I guess. Came off it and then some unexpected life events rendered me entirely unable to stay afloat. I was really surprised by how strongly I reacted to reintroducing it. I didn’t have that reaction the first time around. My anxiety is still present but the edge has been taken off. Doc recommending I try something else to better manage it but i am
Terrified of starting from scratch again with an unknown. Sometimes the cure can feel worse than the disease.

please remember when doing your research of people’s personal experiences, folk are far far more inclined to write about bad experiences than good. The general consensus will look very skewed. If something is going well then you’re not likely to go online and talk about it. You won’t see word of all the people thriving.

Best of luck with it and keep us posted

 

[comment on life]

Gosh. I was the same. I had been on it for over a decade. Felt better and brighter. Got cocky, I guess. Came off it and then some unexpected life events rendered me entirely unable to stay afloat. I was really surprised by how strongly I reacted to reintroducing it. I didn’t have that reaction the first time around. My anxiety is still present but the edge has been taken off. Doc recommending I try something else to better manage it but i am
Terrified of starting from scratch again with an unknown. Sometimes the cure can feel worse than the disease.

please remember when doing your research of people’s personal experiences, folk are far far more inclined to write about bad experiences than good. The general consensus will look very skewed. If something is going well then you’re not likely to go online and talk about it. You won’t see word of all the people thriving.

Best of luck with it and keep us posted

Thank you so so much! I was too afraid to start it last night so tonight will be night 1. You are absolutely right. I never thought about it like that. People rarely go to the bother of writing a review to rave about a product. That's a really helpful insight and I will keep that in mind

 

[InTheDollsHouse]

Thank you so so much! I was too afraid to start it last night so tonight will be night 1. You are absolutely right. I never thought about it like that. People rarely go to the bother of writing a review to rave about a product. That's a really helpful insight and I will keep that in mind

Taking the first one is always hard. Once you’ve done that, it doesn’t feel so scary

 

[Dogtanian]

I’m on 50mg sertraline/day and I’ve been on them for 2 weeks now. I don’t feel any huge benefit yet but maybe things are getting better a little.
I haven’t burst into tears in any meetings this week (and I did just before I went onto them).
The sexual side effects are a pain though, don’t know what to do about them.

 

[altgirl]

Sorry just jumping in here..
Does anyone ever feel like they don’t want things to improve? I’m incredibly lonely and fed up of life and what I’ve had to deal with and I wish I could just disappear forever. I’ve lost both of my parents, my family are estranged and the sort of people I can’t turn to for support or any help and out of the 2 people I’d turn to one has pretty much ghosted me and he tries to avoid me and the other has really distanced herself.

 

[AL10]

I’ve been suffering with depression for quite a long time, during this time I haven’t taken care of myself but recently I want to change my life because I can’t cope with living like this anymore!

I’m trying to improve my diet and have less sugar and drinking more water, I’ve also been brushing my teeth twice a day for the past 6 weeks so as they’ve been getting cleaner I’ve noticed the gap between my front 2 teeth has gotten really big and I just feel soo ugly.

I think because I didn’t care about myself I didn’t care about how I looked but now I want to have a life and for things to get better I’ve finally realised the damage I’ve done to myself.

My self esteem is nonexistent and I feel so ugly, I don’t want to talk or smile it’s horrendous! But I am hoping to go to the dentist as soon as I can and get things sorted even though I’m so scared of the dentist and how much it’s gonna cost!

 

[or JusRollWithIt]

You’re doing so many good things @AL10 , keep building on that. Don’t give up on yourself. And a gap between teeth is actually something that makes you unique, and many people find it an attractive feature. Things change as we age, you don’t want to look back on this time and wonder why you were so hard on yourself. Smile and laugh and talk as you feel it, I bet your whole demeanour lights up when you do. Make those appointments as you can afford. You deserve it just as much as anyone else.

 

[AL10]

You’re doing so many good things @AL10 , keep building on that. Don’t give up on yourself. And a gap between teeth is actually something that makes you unique, and many people find it an attractive feature. Things change as we age, you don’t want to look back on this time and wonder why you were so hard on yourself. Smile and laugh and talk as you feel it, I bet your whole demeanour lights up when you do. Make those appointments as you can afford. You deserve it just as much as anyone else.

Thank you so much I really do appreciate that! I’ve only told my mum and my fiancé how I feel so it does feel a bit better to share it x

 

[Fledgling Psycho]

@AL10 My son was over the moon that his new gf (now wife) had a gap in her teeth. Me, I long for my long lost thigh gap.