Depression?

[FuzzyToy]

Hi all,

I’m 24, F, from London. Long story short, I feel like I’m in denial with my mental health. I’ve always had this heavy feeling, which ’comes and goes’, since I was about 14/15 years, however, it seems to have intensified over the last couple years. I’ve always looked up my symptoms or took online “tests”, which matches with depression, but I tend to shrug it off either way. I feel like since I’ve “coped” with it this long it’s fine etc, but deny the fact that I could actually be struggling with it.

I always want the help others, but not keen on talking about mental health with family and friends, mainly because I don’t want to become a burden. The family situation isn’t great either, most of my siblings seem to have mental health issues, so I do not want become another worry. Even the idea of talking to the doctors about it doesn’t seem like an option. I just feel so mentally and physically drained, but my current situation seems okay and have a future to look forward to, where I will be moving to Canada for a two year work visa. My weight has been fluctuating for a while too, and even some friends have noticed a weight loss (I’m already a slim build person). I always wanted to have a healthier lifestyle, and do compare myself to other people, but when it comes to it, I just have no motivation.

I don’t know what to do really. I haven’t really told anyone about it, maybe hinted or ”joked“ about it here and there, but never explicitly said that I might be depressed. I guess telling someone would help me a bit, that’s why I wanted to post this.

Any advice and prayers will be appreciated. Thanks

 

[Sam91]

You might not be depressed. If you think of yourself as depressed you will be more likely to become depressed. Maybe you could realise you feel blue and do something to help lift your mood.

1)Praising the Lord and a having deep sense of gratitude, seems to really lift my heart. Gratitude seems to keep the good feelings in the brain there the longest.

2) Make sure you sleep regular hours. Going to sleep and waking at the same time each day means your body can plan its sleep cycles while asleep. You'll a better quality of sleep. Getting the correct amount of sleep is of so much importance. Getting not enough sleep can cause weight gain due to hormone levels, it will also affect mood.

3) Exercise creates energy. It also clears the mind.

4) Eat right. Lack of nutrients affects mood and if you are not feeding your body the correct fuel it won't run at it's best.

5) DITCH CAFFEINE!!! Read up about its effects. Tolerate the severe headaches, if you get them during withdrawal. Stimulants cause fatigue and cause anxiety! It also prevents a proper sleep. I am not talking about sleep quality, not length here.

God bless you.

As for depression. I noticed that just before I got depressed I started wondering if people didn't like me, or were annoyed with me etc. I didn't usually get paranoid before that. Then as soon I thought the same a few years later I recognised the thought pattern and got rid of it immediately. I didn't get depressed because I started focusing on being healthy and making the effort to socialise rather than hide away. As an introvert, I enjoy alone time but it's not so good to hide away with negative thoughts.

 

[FuzzyToy]

You might not be depressed. If you think of yourself as depressed you will be more likely to become depressed. Maybe you could realise you feel blue and do something to help lift your mood.

1)Praising the Lord and a having deep sense of gratitude, seems to really lift my heart. Gratitude seems to keep the good feelings in the brain there the longest.

2) Make sure you sleep regular hours. Going to sleep and waking at the same time each day means your body can plan its sleep cycles while asleep. Getting the correct amount of sleep is of so much importance. Getting not enough sleep can cause weight gain due to hormone levels, it will also affect mood.

3) Exercise creates energy. It also clears the mind.

4) Eat right. Lack of nutrients affects mood and if you are not feeding your body the correct fuel it won't run at it's best.

5) DITCH CAFFEINE!!! Read up about its effects. Tolerate the severe headaches, if you get them during withdrawal. Stimulants cause fatigue and cause anxiety! It also prevents a proper sleep. I am not talking about sleep quality, not length here.

God bless you.

As for depression. I noticed that just before I got depressed I started wondering if people didn't like me, or were annoyed with me etc. I didn't usually get paranoid before that. Then as soon I thought the same a few years later I recognised the thought pattern and got rid of it immediately. I didn't get depressed because I started focusing on being healthy and making the effort to socialise rather than hide away. As an introvert, I enjoy alone time but it's not so good to hide away with negative thoughts.

You might not be depressed. If you think of yourself as depressed you will be more likely to become depressed. Maybe you could realise you feel blue and do something to help lift your mood.

1)Praising the Lord and a having deep sense of gratitude, seems to really lift my heart. Gratitude seems to keep the good feelings in the brain there the longest.

2) Make sure you sleep regular hours. Going to sleep and waking at the same time each day means your body can plan its sleep cycles while asleep. Getting the correct amount of sleep is of so much importance. Getting not enough sleep can cause weight gain due to hormone levels, it will also affect mood.

3) Exercise creates energy. It also clears the mind.

4) Eat right. Lack of nutrients affects mood and if you are not feeding your body the correct fuel it won't run at it's best.

5) DITCH CAFFEINE!!! Read up about its effects. Tolerate the severe headaches, if you get them during withdrawal. Stimulants cause fatigue and cause anxiety! It also prevents a proper sleep. I am not talking about sleep quality, not length here.

God bless you.

As for depression. I noticed that just before I got depressed I started wondering if people didn't like me, or were annoyed with me etc. I didn't usually get paranoid before that. Then as soon I thought the same a few years later I recognised the thought pattern and got rid of it immediately. I didn't get depressed because I started focusing on being healthy and making the effort to socialise rather than hide away. As an introvert, I enjoy alone time but it's not so good to hide away with negative thoughts.

Thank you for the reply! I admit my faith hasn’t been great with God recently, so I guess it could help if I was to try and build it up again. It’s just frustrating because, I try to live a healthier lifestyle by eating and exercising, which doesn’t last long and do get enough hours of sleep, but feel the same. Just need to keep trying I guess. Thanks again though

 

[JackRT]

During her late teen years and into her 20s my daughter suffered from severe clinical depression to the point of a nearly successful suicide. Many diseases are caused by chemical imbalances in one or the other of our body's organs. When the brain is involved we call it a mental disease but it is just a disease and like many other diseases it can be alleviated by medication. You have tried self diagnosis and self treatment, perhaps now is the time to seek professional help. BTW my daughter is now 40, has completed her education, is married to a wonderful young man, holds an excellent job and has given us a grandson. She leads a busy and happy life. She is still under very minimal medication.

 

[Sam91]

Thank you for the reply! I admit my faith hasn’t been great with God recently, so I guess it could help if I was to try and build it up again. It’s just frustrating because, I try to live a healthier lifestyle by eating and exercising, which doesn’t last long and do get enough hours of sleep, but feel the same. Just need to keep trying I guess. Thanks again though

If you've tried these things and haven't seen an improvement definitely see a doctor. If you start with saying that you feel depressed they might not check for physical causes. Remember depression is also a symptom of physical ailments, they didn't check my bloods once. In the UK, doctors are all too quick to prescribe antidepressants without checking for other causes. (Which is awful because medication messes with the brain and in my opinion should not be given lightly.) Mention the fatigue first. Hopefully they'll take your bloods and check for anaemia, thyroid and vitamins etc.

However, it once took a doctor 6 months of blood tests to diagnose my adrenal gland issue.

I have a thyroid issue now and that causes fatigue and depression etc. It's easy to test for on a blood test, so make sure you get one to rule out anything physical.

And keep up the effort to live healthily! (PS sugar lowers my mood I need to start cutting back on it again.)

 

[Willing-heart]

Speak to someone... Perhaps someone you can trust - family or friend. Also, I think you should speak to your GP. Looking things online usually can make the situation seems worse than it really is. I wrote this blog a year ago on the subject of depression. Do give it a read when you can. God bless.

From Despair to Joy

 

[LoricaLady]

Studies I have seen show that the very best treatment for depression is exercise. And it makes you look good, too. There are other possible cause, like an undiagnosed thyroid problem. See stopthethyroidmadness.com for info on how that could be a culprit. Low iron, low B12 can also cause depression.

I pray you are led to healing.

 

[joshua 1 9]

I’ve always looked up my symptoms or took online “tests”, which matches with depression,

Then you need to read Matthew chapter 5 in your Bible. This is what we call the Beatitudes or the BE HAPPY ATTITUDES. I can understand that people do not understand what they are reading. But there is an easy solution for this. Get a book on the Beatitudes or do a google search and find someone to explain this teaching to you. Or go to YouTube and get some good teaching on this subject. Jesus was the Greatest Teacher that ever lived. The Sermon on the Mount was the Greatest Sermon ever Preached. Then when Jesus departed HE gave us the Holy Spirit of God to be our Teacher, Guide & Comforter. So we really do not even need man to teach us. In fact we have to discover the truth for ourselves. Others can just point us in the right direction. They can not do it for us. For me I have noticed that loving, caring - giving people are happy people. They give to others and serve others and spend little time thinking about themselves and whatever needs they may have. Even Jesus did not come to be served. He came to serve others and show us how we are to be a servant to all. Then God will take care of us and provide for all we need. Even we are told to delight ourself in the Lord and HE shall give us the desires of our heart. So this is where we need to begin.

I hear people say: I just wanna die. Then I think good wonderful, you finally figured it out. You need to die to self so you can become a NEW Creation in Christ. As we put off the old and put on the new. When we explain how this works people go from misery to happy care free people in almost an instant. This is all so easy and simple to understand even a child can figure it out.

 

[pink318]

Hello,

Sorry that you are dealing with this situation. Try to talk to your doctor about how you feel, he/she can discuss options if you need therapy and medications. Talking with a friend or a family member that you can trust will also be helpful. Try to join a support group that you can meet in person, you can learn coping skills and you will feel less lonely. I hope you can get the assistance you need to get better.

Please keep us posted. Praying for you that you will remain hopeful and you will overcome the sadness you are going through now.

Take care of yourself.

 

[musicalpilgrim]

Hi all,

I’m 24, F, from London. Long story short, I feel like I’m in denial with my mental health. I’ve always had this heavy feeling, which ’comes and goes’, since I was about 14/15 years, however, it seems to have intensified over the last couple years. I’ve always looked up my symptoms or took online “tests”, which matches with depression, but I tend to shrug it off either way. I feel like since I’ve “coped” with it this long it’s fine etc, but deny the fact that I could actually be struggling with it.

I always want the help others, but not keen on talking about mental health with family and friends, mainly because I don’t want to become a burden. The family situation isn’t great either, most of my siblings seem to have mental health issues, so I do not want become another worry. Even the idea of talking to the doctors about it doesn’t seem like an option. I just feel so mentally and physically drained, but my current situation seems okay and have a future to look forward to, where I will be moving to Canada for a two year work visa. My weight has been fluctuating for a while too, and even some friends have noticed a weight loss (I’m already a slim build person). I always wanted to have a healthier lifestyle, and do compare myself to other people, but when it comes to it, I just have no motivation.

I don’t know what to do really. I haven’t really told anyone about it, maybe hinted or ”joked“ about it here and there, but never explicitly said that I might be depressed. I guess telling someone would help me a bit, that’s why I wanted to post this.

Any advice and prayers will be appreciated. Thanks

I pray for you,
Dear Father, please fill FuzzyToy with your peace and joy as she reads her Bible and prays to you.
Thank you that you have the words that she needs,
I praise you because you are the answer,

I do hope this lovely song helps you as it helped me when my lovely son died

 

[Greg Merrill]

God created the brain, and understands the mind. If it is not a physical problem, a proper intake of the Word of God, and a proper response to it can solve the mental, social, spiritual aspects of one's life. Father, I pray this one will realize what the problem is, and get the proper treatment. Philippians 4:6-9; 2 Timothy 1:7; Psalms 139:23-24; Philippians 4:13.