Mod. Notice Depressed? Anxious? Call Beyond Blue (1300 224636), Lifeline (131114), resources in OP

[Billy ray]

anyone ever gone to a "dads in distress" meeting/get together?
just wondering what they are like and how many times you went etc

 

[workhorse]

Unfortunately it's with a heavy heart that I return to this thread with an important message. I'd say it would be safe to assume that majority of posters on here are male, and probably a lot are middle-aged. I just want to absolutely stress the importance of getting help. A teammate of mine from my local cricket club unfortunately took his own life last weekend. He was 34 years old. He was one of the most loved and popular blokes at the club, popular, a great player and vice-president of the club. No one had the slightest idea that he was going through mental health problems.

I wanted to say to anyone and everyone, please, please get help. Especially blokes. I know there's a few social campaigns about getting men to talk about their problems and it's really rung through to me in the past week. There's always help out there, and you should feel no shame in admitting that you need it.

Stay safe everyone

 

[skipper kelly]

Unfortunately it's with a heavy heart that I return to this thread with an important message. I'd say it would be safe to assume that majority of posters on here are male, and probably a lot are middle-aged. I just want to absolutely stress the importance of getting help. A teammate of mine from my local cricket club unfortunately took his own life last weekend. He was 34 years old. He was one of the most loved and popular blokes at the club, popular, a great player and vice-president of the club. No one had the slightest idea that he was going through mental health problems.

I wanted to say to anyone and everyone, please, please get help. Especially blokes. I know there's a few social campaigns about getting men to talk about their problems and it's really rung through to me in the past week. There's always help out there, and you should feel no shame in admitting that you need it.

Stay safe everyone

Sad for your loss.

Great advice.

 

[Ando727]

I don't go to Victory games anymore because there is a pack mentality in the terraces,if you aren't involved with a group and go alone,you get treated like s**t especially if you are older.
Got beer poured on me,people making fun of me,soccer fans need to display this faux tough guy bs.
AFL people don't do that,everyone treats you fine.
One thing I love about ourgame is you can have a beer and talk to anyone,noone is generally awful to you.
I stood in the northern terrace and copped kids pointing me in the back and just making it a miserable experience for me.
Still buy the memberships but haven't gone for over two years.

Geez mate, that's fricking appalling. If I were you I'd give Victory a call and tell them your experience and say you can't go to games anymore. They'll probably do nothing about it in the short term, but they should at least know the nature of their constituents. Maybe one day they'll have enough complaints to do something about it. Personally I wouldn't give them a bloody dime until they do.

 

[Ando727]

Unfortunately it's with a heavy heart that I return to this thread with an important message. I'd say it would be safe to assume that majority of posters on here are male, and probably a lot are middle-aged. I just want to absolutely stress the importance of getting help. A teammate of mine from my local cricket club unfortunately took his own life last weekend. He was 34 years old. He was one of the most loved and popular blokes at the club, popular, a great player and vice-president of the club. No one had the slightest idea that he was going through mental health problems.

I wanted to say to anyone and everyone, please, please get help. Especially blokes. I know there's a few social campaigns about getting men to talk about their problems and it's really rung through to me in the past week. There's always help out there, and you should feel no shame in admitting that you need it.

Stay safe everyone

Really sorry to hear that, mate. Condolences to you and your club.

 

[benchwarmer5]

I don't go to Victory games anymore because there is a pack mentality in the terraces,if you aren't involved with a group and go alone,you get treated like s**t especially if you are older.
Got beer poured on me,people making fun of me,soccer fans need to display this faux tough guy bs.
AFL people don't do that,everyone treats you fine.
One thing I love about ourgame is you can have a beer and talk to anyone,noone is generally awful to you.
I stood in the northern terrace and copped kids pointing me in the back and just making it a miserable experience for me.
Still buy the memberships but haven't gone for over two years.

Are you serious ? That's so gross!
Forget those mother *ers

 

[Mootsy]

I read an article that the world has changed more from 2005-2016 then the 500 years before hand, so many things are changing in terms of technology, housing going up, population growth, behaviour, pressure to succeed..

I think a lot of people long for the 90s or some sort of simple nostalgic throwback..

Unless you barrack for hawthorn, then you probably don't, laughs..

 

[ozish]

I read an article that the world has changed more from 2005-2016 then the 500 years before hand, so many things are changing in terms of technology, housing going up, population growth, behaviour, pressure to succeed..

This fact is going to be important for parents to remember going forward. Imagine if life had changed so quickly during your childhood. I fear that, in the short term at least, we are in for an increase in depression that will outstrip our current ability to deal with it.

It's important to talk to someone if you feel depressed. It is just as important to watch out for your family and your mates as well.

Take care everyone.

 

[Pike13]

Unfortunately it's with a heavy heart that I return to this thread with an important message. I'd say it would be safe to assume that majority of posters on here are male, and probably a lot are middle-aged. I just want to absolutely stress the importance of getting help. A teammate of mine from my local cricket club unfortunately took his own life last weekend. He was 34 years old. He was one of the most loved and popular blokes at the club, popular, a great player and vice-president of the club. No one had the slightest idea that he was going through mental health problems.

I wanted to say to anyone and everyone, please, please get help. Especially blokes. I know there's a few social campaigns about getting men to talk about their problems and it's really rung through to me in the past week. There's always help out there, and you should feel no shame in admitting that you need it.

Stay safe everyone

Gee, terrible news & sorry to hear that.

 

[Pike13]

I didn't even know such a thread existed until today - well done for the existence of one.

The breakthrough for me was finding the right therapist & have read research that says it's not necessarily the right therapy but having the rapport with the therapist that's one of the most important factors. Alcohol was my coping mechanism & when everything would flame out due to the depression it'd be time to blow all the doors out. Now I haven't drunk for 4 years & can walk into a bar with mates & not be tempted. Was told that I wasn't alcohol dependent but would abuse myself with alcohol. Also had to cope with voices but most of that has gone now too.

The hardest part for me was actually reaching out for help. That's when I was struck by how many mates didn't see me as 'crazy' & didn't have a single one abandon me because of it. Very empowering. While some medication worked for me, the most crucial part was the psychologist doing Schema therapy with some CBT & 'peeling' away the layers of the onion to see what was driving so much of my beliefs & negative self-talk. While some of this was scary in terms of falling even further due to the return of repressed memories so to speak, it was crucial over several years of therapy get where I am now. No shame in going into hospital either & incredible in how many people cared. Being challenged in therapy was very hard, hell some days I'd be so angry at them, but later when the fog & irrationality would clear, I would realise that it was a fine line in being gentle & getting a metaphorical kick when I needed it.

Finally, was told the other day by them how far I've come & they're right. So for others out there struggling, it can be done, just need to let other people that care in. Best advice I was ever told was 'We need to talk about our emotions instead of acting them out.' Even just letting someone that cares about you know that you're not doing well or you're not having a good day - immediately they know what's going on & it's important they do because they can't read minds. Let the avoidance & self-sabotage go, be kind to yourself & keep fighting.

 

[jaymasha]

Reading this thread has helped me to confront some issues I've been trying to avoid. I've been having a lot of mental demons for the last 18 months. I've never really had any confidence in myself, and this has been typified by two relationship breakdowns within the last two months. I turned to self harming and alcohol, and that got discovered by some friends, and I couldn't look them in the eye and tell them. I also turned to other vices to try to numb myself, but I just end up feeling worse than before. I'm only 23, and I want to be able to sort myself out before I finish university.

I'm not really one to post personal stuff on a forum, but i was bottling everything up, and reading through has shown me there's worse out there than what I'm dealing with.

Since my initial post, I've taken steps to rectify my situation, I've seen pyschiatrsits, and implemented actions to eliminate triggers that would send me back into the dark places that I was in before. I've even met with someone who sent me a message on this site, for a few pints and a friendly chat. It's done the world for me, and although that there's been some bad days, they're slowly being outnumbered by the number of goods ones.

To anyone reading this, you're never alone, and there's always someone to talk to. Look after yourself everyone

 

[Collins-Langford-Ayres]

Since my initial post, I've taken steps to rectify my situation, I've seen pyschiatrsits, and implemented actions to eliminate triggers that would send me back into the dark places that I was in before. I've even met with someone who sent me a message on this site, for a few pints and a friendly chat. It's done the world for me, and although that there's been some bad days, they're slowly being outnumbered by the number of goods ones.

To anyone reading this, you're never alone, and there's always someone to talk to. Look after yourself everyone

What actions did you implement to eliminate what triggers? Very interested to know.

 

[The City Boyz]

For everyone going through issues on this board, just want to let you guys know that you're not alone.

 

[PoppedCorn]

So I ended up talking to someone at/thru work,
* me dead it helped great
Just someone else giving you some positive reassurances and just talking about stuff.

Gave myself some goals to work towards like getting fit and going on another trip to melbs with the mrs.

Completely blocked out all the negative douchebags who don't give a * at work, found it hard to switch off and not care AND remain positive about myself and my workplace
So far its been good and I don't feel like my inner serial killer is going to let loose anytime soon.

Talk, set some goals and screw everyone else and what they do and think

 

[WIZARD24]

Hi I am true believer that medication is the last resort, a positive enviroment and support are keys to this issue however medication should be used if really necessary.anyhow i have recently injured my self at work and must admit the aftermath is more about politics and I'm glad I worked it out early because it is a stressful time using pain killers not being yourself thinking your letting the team down. depression in my mind starts with no hope whatever way it started. I agree with a few points raised here but the best cure to self judgement is to be positive happy to be at the end of a nasty injury/bad time in my life I surrounded yourself with positive supportive people. I lost a chunk of my life to people that are not happy that were medicated but that does not mean I think it does not work for other people GLASS HALF FULL

 

[mxett]

there are many different ways to tackle mental illness with no single method suiting all, although actively seeking help when you need it is the paramount. I've tried many things during my 'journey' with anxiety over the last 15 months, but by far the most effective has been Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). There's a lot of information on this topic on the Internet, and some fantastic books covering it in detail, which I can recommend to anyone who is interested. But in a nutshell ACT is about recognising uncomfortable feelings and thoughts, learning how to view them in a 'healthy' context so you can accept them rather than avoiding or run from them, then forging forward towards goals that are based on the things you value.

These skills are so important it's a shame we only seem to learn about them once a problem manifests. So many people could benefit from them, even without a diagnosed mental health issue.

 

[jedi mind tricks]

Hi I am true believer that medication is the last resort, a positive enviroment and support are keys to this issue however medication should be used if really necessary.anyhow i have recently injured my self at work and must admit the aftermath is more about politics and I'm glad I worked it out early because it is a stressful time using pain killers not being yourself thinking your letting the team down. depression in my mind starts with no hope whatever way it started. I agree with a few points raised here but the best cure to self judgement is to be positive happy to be at the end of a nasty injury/bad time in my life I surrounded yourself with positive supportive people. I lost a chunk of my life to people that are not happy that were medicated but that does not mean I think it does not work for other people GLASS HALF FULL

Medication never worked for me. I totally agree with positive mindset and support from loved ones. A friend has taught me to meditate properly and was easier than a psychologist showing me mindfulness.

I found a lot of strength in my little girl who I adore and my music that I make and perform. Somevery non judgmental and supportive people out there.

Socializing with the right people was key to me

 

[JunglistPosse]

I'm on the board of a Drepression charity in WA.
We provide free support groups for anyone over 25 experiencing anxiety /depression. We are trying to provide more free services to the community and grow.
Does anyone know any potential sponsors / donors that may want to help?
WA based only at this stage.

 

[DarkPhoenix]

Depression/Anxiety

Long post ahead.

I've seen a lot of posts around lately regarding mental illness, so thought I'd chip in and share my experience.

A lot of you would not realise but recently I have been battling significant issues with Adjustment/Social Anxiety. I had experienced the symptoms for years and never been "diagnosed" as such, so it was good to be able to pinpoint and give a name to something that had troubled me for years- why I hated eating around people, why I often didn't respond to people saying things for fear of saying the wrong thing, the hours spent thinking over what people thought about me and my inate desire for everyone to like me and anxious feeling when I found out someone disliked me.

Prior to this point I had had... a few... issues with my workplace. Unrealistic expectations, ever increasing workloads, a confrontational role which basically consisted of being yelled at for 9 hours a day with little to no downtime were among some of the easiest to explain issues, there were so many more I have not named.
Combine this with the workplace itself refusing to address the issues that were repeatedly brought forward by their work force and choosing to turn a blind eye to practices which were completely destroying the morale and health of their workers (went from 150 to 75 staff and had multiple people off on stress leave in under a year and this apparently was normal)and it was a horrible time for me.

I had no energy, I put on a LOT of weight (which I had just recently got to a good place), I constantly got sick, I didn't want to do anything when I finished work except for sleep or watch TV, my friendships suffered and overall I just felt useless and miserable.

It got to the point where I could barely function and it finally hit a point where I got to work and literally could not comprehend sentences I was reading although they were simple things I dealt with every day in my work life and started getting a scary tunnel vision effect where I couldn't see things in my peripheral.
Thankfully the shift leader told me to log out and go see a doctor who immediately booked me in with a colleague for a mental health assessment. They then advised me that I had social/adjustment anxiety and told me to take some time off work.

I offered my work to use my own built up leave to do this, but they refused and asked me to do it as workers comp, they booked me in for an independent medical who corroborated the psychologist and GPs assessment, but the workplace then turned around and disputed the compensation claim and made me jump through hoops while I felt horrible already to show that I deserved the pay they had given me while off due to their own instruction to do it as workers compensation.

The claim was ruled in my favour when the workplace refused to offer any evidence to the tribunal for their counterclaim and I immediately decided to end my tenure with them.

I thought that would be the end but it wasn't, I soon found out that people I had trusted at the company were spreading rumours around that I had sued the company to get money out of them and had essentially been a liar and putting it on even though at the end of the day they were the ones who told me to go down the path I did, I had offered to use my own leave and was declined.

I lost a lot of people I thought were close friends due to no fault of my own and it destroyed what was left of my self confidence and further aggravated the issue for which I had taken time off originally.

I spiralled downward and got worse even though I had freed myself from the place.

I then lost a relationship which at the time was the only bright light in my life and the Psych/GP had told me to use as an anchor point for happiness, whats worse is I didn't really receive any reason as to why.
I stayed in bed for 10 days straight, I didn't eat, I lost 10 kgs, after this I made excuses not to see friends because I couldn't bring myself to leave the house. The simplest things became harder, even going to the shops to get food to sustain myself was an insurmountable task, I couldn't bring myself to go out and be around people because in my mind I constantly questioned what they were thinking about me and worried they would hate me. I couldn't even do things that I enjoyed any more, going to the football with friends, training in jiu jitsu, going out for dinner and drinks with friends.

I pretty much broke down in my doctors office, and having known him for years he could see how much it was affecting me and gave me great advice and a lot of help.

Things are getting better now. They'll never be as perfect as some peoples lives but I'm getting to a point where I can be happy again. Something as simple as going to the football on Saturday with my best friend Adam is a huge step, and getting out there and doing things I wouldn't normally like going to board game days and planning to go to PAX Aus in November.

Depression and Anxiety are silent killers, and most people that have them (anxiety in particular) do not know what they entail or that it's even possible for them to have them so they don't seek help and if they do know they're afraid to ask for help in case they look weak. Factor into this that anxiety and depression make you less self inclined to ask for help and speak to people and it's a snowballing effect that can lead to people taking their lives as they see it as the only way out from the continuous cycle.

You may have seen the quote "Having anxiety is when you care too much about everything. Depression is when you feel you don't care about anything. Having both is hell", I never truly understood just how true this quote was and I have so much respect for those worse off than myself.

What I want to do is speak up and encourage people to talk to each other, there is absolutely no shame in asking for someone to listen to you and it can really, REALLY help. I have been so lucky to have a number of close friends that have listened to me, not necessarily always offering advice but just listening, and sometimes thats all you need.
It warms my heart seeing so many people opening up and inviting people to speak to them about these issues, and charitys such as Speak UP stay ChatTy spreading fantastic messages of support for people that are struggling. The more we talk and the less we demonise mental illness the easier it will be to address these horrible illnesses and prevent uneccessary loss of life (both literally and figuratively).

If you need help, speak out, speak to me, speak to a friend, anyone, just speak to someone. Don't let yourself lose the best years of your life and possible opportunities to these horrible illnesses. There is always someone out there willing to LISTEN.

 

[Ando727]

Depression/Anxiety

Long post ahead.

I've seen a lot of posts around lately regarding mental illness, so thought I'd chip in and share my experience.

A lot of you would not realise but recently I have been battling significant issues with Adjustment/Social Anxiety. I had experienced the symptoms for years and never been "diagnosed" as such, so it was good to be able to pinpoint and give a name to something that had troubled me for years- why I hated eating around people, why I often didn't respond to people saying things for fear of saying the wrong thing, the hours spent thinking over what people thought about me and my inate desire for everyone to like me and anxious feeling when I found out someone disliked me.

Prior to this point I had had... a few... issues with my workplace. Unrealistic expectations, ever increasing workloads, a confrontational role which basically consisted of being yelled at for 9 hours a day with little to no downtime were among some of the easiest to explain issues, there were so many more I have not named.
Combine this with the workplace itself refusing to address the issues that were repeatedly brought forward by their work force and choosing to turn a blind eye to practices which were completely destroying the morale and health of their workers (went from 150 to 75 staff and had multiple people off on stress leave in under a year and this apparently was normal)and it was a horrible time for me.

I had no energy, I put on a LOT of weight (which I had just recently got to a good place), I constantly got sick, I didn't want to do anything when I finished work except for sleep or watch TV, my friendships suffered and overall I just felt useless and miserable.

It got to the point where I could barely function and it finally hit a point where I got to work and literally could not comprehend sentences I was reading although they were simple things I dealt with every day in my work life and started getting a scary tunnel vision effect where I couldn't see things in my peripheral.
Thankfully the shift leader told me to log out and go see a doctor who immediately booked me in with a colleague for a mental health assessment. They then advised me that I had social/adjustment anxiety and told me to take some time off work.

I offered my work to use my own built up leave to do this, but they refused and asked me to do it as workers comp, they booked me in for an independent medical who corroborated the psychologist and GPs assessment, but the workplace then turned around and disputed the compensation claim and made me jump through hoops while I felt horrible already to show that I deserved the pay they had given me while off due to their own instruction to do it as workers compensation.

The claim was ruled in my favour when the workplace refused to offer any evidence to the tribunal for their counterclaim and I immediately decided to end my tenure with them.

I thought that would be the end but it wasn't, I soon found out that people I had trusted at the company were spreading rumours around that I had sued the company to get money out of them and had essentially been a liar and putting it on even though at the end of the day they were the ones who told me to go down the path I did, I had offered to use my own leave and was declined.

I lost a lot of people I thought were close friends due to no fault of my own and it destroyed what was left of my self confidence and further aggravated the issue for which I had taken time off originally.

I spiralled downward and got worse even though I had freed myself from the place.

I then lost a relationship which at the time was the only bright light in my life and the Psych/GP had told me to use as an anchor point for happiness, whats worse is I didn't really receive any reason as to why.
I stayed in bed for 10 days straight, I didn't eat, I lost 10 kgs, after this I made excuses not to see friends because I couldn't bring myself to leave the house. The simplest things became harder, even going to the shops to get food to sustain myself was an insurmountable task, I couldn't bring myself to go out and be around people because in my mind I constantly questioned what they were thinking about me and worried they would hate me. I couldn't even do things that I enjoyed any more, going to the football with friends, training in jiu jitsu, going out for dinner and drinks with friends.

I pretty much broke down in my doctors office, and having known him for years he could see how much it was affecting me and gave me great advice and a lot of help.

Things are getting better now. They'll never be as perfect as some peoples lives but I'm getting to a point where I can be happy again. Something as simple as going to the football on Saturday with my best friend Adam is a huge step, and getting out there and doing things I wouldn't normally like going to board game days and planning to go to PAX Aus in November.

Depression and Anxiety are silent killers, and most people that have them (anxiety in particular) do not know what they entail or that it's even possible for them to have them so they don't seek help and if they do know they're afraid to ask for help in case they look weak. Factor into this that anxiety and depression make you less self inclined to ask for help and speak to people and it's a snowballing effect that can lead to people taking their lives as they see it as the only way out from the continuous cycle.

You may have seen the quote "Having anxiety is when you care too much about everything. Depression is when you feel you don't care about anything. Having both is hell", I never truly understood just how true this quote was and I have so much respect for those worse off than myself.

What I want to do is speak up and encourage people to talk to each other, there is absolutely no shame in asking for someone to listen to you and it can really, REALLY help. I have been so lucky to have a number of close friends that have listened to me, not necessarily always offering advice but just listening, and sometimes thats all you need.
It warms my heart seeing so many people opening up and inviting people to speak to them about these issues, and charitys such as Speak UP stay ChatTy spreading fantastic messages of support for people that are struggling. The more we talk and the less we demonise mental illness the easier it will be to address these horrible illnesses and prevent uneccessary loss of life (both literally and figuratively).

If you need help, speak out, speak to me, speak to a friend, anyone, just speak to someone. Don't let yourself lose the best years of your life and possible opportunities to these horrible illnesses. There is always someone out there willing to LISTEN.

Great post, Dark Pheonix. Very honest and well expressed. I'm glad to hear that things are on the improve for you. Keep it up mate.

 

[Carl Hooper]

Depression/Anxiety

Long post ahead.

I've seen a lot of posts around lately regarding mental illness, so thought I'd chip in and share my experience.

A lot of you would not realise but recently I have been battling significant issues with Adjustment/Social Anxiety. I had experienced the symptoms for years and never been "diagnosed" as such, so it was good to be able to pinpoint and give a name to something that had troubled me for years- why I hated eating around people, why I often didn't respond to people saying things for fear of saying the wrong thing, the hours spent thinking over what people thought about me and my inate desire for everyone to like me and anxious feeling when I found out someone disliked me.

Prior to this point I had had... a few... issues with my workplace. Unrealistic expectations, ever increasing workloads, a confrontational role which basically consisted of being yelled at for 9 hours a day with little to no downtime were among some of the easiest to explain issues, there were so many more I have not named.
Combine this with the workplace itself refusing to address the issues that were repeatedly brought forward by their work force and choosing to turn a blind eye to practices which were completely destroying the morale and health of their workers (went from 150 to 75 staff and had multiple people off on stress leave in under a year and this apparently was normal)and it was a horrible time for me.

I had no energy, I put on a LOT of weight (which I had just recently got to a good place), I constantly got sick, I didn't want to do anything when I finished work except for sleep or watch TV, my friendships suffered and overall I just felt useless and miserable.

It got to the point where I could barely function and it finally hit a point where I got to work and literally could not comprehend sentences I was reading although they were simple things I dealt with every day in my work life and started getting a scary tunnel vision effect where I couldn't see things in my peripheral.
Thankfully the shift leader told me to log out and go see a doctor who immediately booked me in with a colleague for a mental health assessment. They then advised me that I had social/adjustment anxiety and told me to take some time off work.

I offered my work to use my own built up leave to do this, but they refused and asked me to do it as workers comp, they booked me in for an independent medical who corroborated the psychologist and GPs assessment, but the workplace then turned around and disputed the compensation claim and made me jump through hoops while I felt horrible already to show that I deserved the pay they had given me while off due to their own instruction to do it as workers compensation.

The claim was ruled in my favour when the workplace refused to offer any evidence to the tribunal for their counterclaim and I immediately decided to end my tenure with them.

I thought that would be the end but it wasn't, I soon found out that people I had trusted at the company were spreading rumours around that I had sued the company to get money out of them and had essentially been a liar and putting it on even though at the end of the day they were the ones who told me to go down the path I did, I had offered to use my own leave and was declined.

I lost a lot of people I thought were close friends due to no fault of my own and it destroyed what was left of my self confidence and further aggravated the issue for which I had taken time off originally.

I spiralled downward and got worse even though I had freed myself from the place.

I then lost a relationship which at the time was the only bright light in my life and the Psych/GP had told me to use as an anchor point for happiness, whats worse is I didn't really receive any reason as to why.
I stayed in bed for 10 days straight, I didn't eat, I lost 10 kgs, after this I made excuses not to see friends because I couldn't bring myself to leave the house. The simplest things became harder, even going to the shops to get food to sustain myself was an insurmountable task, I couldn't bring myself to go out and be around people because in my mind I constantly questioned what they were thinking about me and worried they would hate me. I couldn't even do things that I enjoyed any more, going to the football with friends, training in jiu jitsu, going out for dinner and drinks with friends.

I pretty much broke down in my doctors office, and having known him for years he could see how much it was affecting me and gave me great advice and a lot of help.

Things are getting better now. They'll never be as perfect as some peoples lives but I'm getting to a point where I can be happy again. Something as simple as going to the football on Saturday with my best friend Adam is a huge step, and getting out there and doing things I wouldn't normally like going to board game days and planning to go to PAX Aus in November.

Depression and Anxiety are silent killers, and most people that have them (anxiety in particular) do not know what they entail or that it's even possible for them to have them so they don't seek help and if they do know they're afraid to ask for help in case they look weak. Factor into this that anxiety and depression make you less self inclined to ask for help and speak to people and it's a snowballing effect that can lead to people taking their lives as they see it as the only way out from the continuous cycle.

You may have seen the quote "Having anxiety is when you care too much about everything. Depression is when you feel you don't care about anything. Having both is hell", I never truly understood just how true this quote was and I have so much respect for those worse off than myself.

What I want to do is speak up and encourage people to talk to each other, there is absolutely no shame in asking for someone to listen to you and it can really, REALLY help. I have been so lucky to have a number of close friends that have listened to me, not necessarily always offering advice but just listening, and sometimes thats all you need.
It warms my heart seeing so many people opening up and inviting people to speak to them about these issues, and charitys such as Speak UP stay ChatTy spreading fantastic messages of support for people that are struggling. The more we talk and the less we demonise mental illness the easier it will be to address these horrible illnesses and prevent uneccessary loss of life (both literally and figuratively).

If you need help, speak out, speak to me, speak to a friend, anyone, just speak to someone. Don't let yourself lose the best years of your life and possible opportunities to these horrible illnesses. There is always someone out there willing to LISTEN.

View attachment 279973

Great post man, I can relate to a lot of this post.

One question is, when you broke down in front of your GP, was it a gp you'd had for a while?

I've never really had a 'family gp' because I NEVER go to the doctor. I'm 26 and have been once in the past 10 years (I'm very physically healthy).. So I've been to like 3 local gps and it seems they don't give a s**t about me or my problems. Having severe social anxiety means it's hard meeting new people, especially authoritive or high up figures like doctors- so I guessmy 2nd question is what's your advice for finding a GP who cares?

 

[DarkPhoenix]

Great post man, I can relate to a lot of this post.

One question is, when you broke down in front of your GP, was it a gp you'd had for a while?

I've never really had a 'family gp' because I NEVER go to the doctor. I'm 26 and have been once in the past 10 years (I'm very physically healthy).. So I've been to like 3 local gps and it seems they don't give a s**t about me or my problems. Having severe social anxiety means it's hard meeting new people, especially authoritive or high up figures like doctors- so I guessmy 2nd question is what's your advice for finding a GP who cares?

Yeah he's our family GP. Has been seeing members of my family for over 40 years.

If you don't feel that you are getting the help you need from your GP ask them for a referral to a psychologist, they'll speak with you and help. They'll send notes to your GP as well if they believe you are in need of medication etc, but first and foremost they can get you set up with a mental health plan.

It's hard to find a caring GP without "doctor shopping" but ask around your group of friends for Doctors they know of who are caring or good with mental health issues, whichever name comes up most give them a go and see if they can assist.

I'm not sure if places like beyond blue would have lists of GPs in general areas that specialize in mental health. But might be worth contacting them.

 

[Carl Hooper]

Yeah he's our family GP. Has been seeing members of my family for over 40 years.

If you don't feel that you are getting the help you need from your GP ask them for a referral to a psychologist, they'll speak with you and help. They'll send notes to your GP as well if they believe you are in need of medication etc, but first and foremost they can get you set up with a mental health plan.

It's hard to find a caring GP without "doctor shopping" but ask around your group of friends for Doctors they know of who are caring or good with mental health issues, whichever name comes up most give them a go and see if they can assist.

I'm not sure if places like beyond blue would have lists of GPs in general areas that specialize in mental health. But might be worth contacting them.

Ah yeah, see I don't have a relationship with a doctor like your family does. But I do have one friend here in my state who has social anxiety, I'm going to hit her up and find her gp.

I did go to a pyschiatrist once but it was a random one I found on the Internet and she was some annoying middle eastern lady who I just didn't click with. Maybe I'll try that again as well.

Thanks again for the help/info. Appreciate it and hope your journey gets better.

 

[Matt Stevic]

Ah yeah, see I don't have a relationship with a doctor like your family does. But I do have one friend here in my state who has social anxiety, I'm going to hit her up and find her gp.

I did go to a pyschiatrist once but it was a random one I found on the Internet and she was some annoying middle eastern lady who I just didn't click with. Maybe I'll try that again as well.

Thanks again for the help/info. Appreciate it and hope your journey gets better.

Yep this is a huge barrier- I have seen great GPs in Brisbane and Logan for other health issues, but finding someone down here has been tough. In March I saw someone near my parents' place but she fobbed me off because of my profession, as if it actually has some sort of bearing as to whether I can have treatment or not.

I've been recommended someone down here in Geelong, might make an appointment to see him if I ever have some time.

 

[sherb]

A bloke I played with sport many years ago recently committed suicide.

In his 40s, on the surface seemed happy and jovial.

Never underestimate what may be lurking underneath the surface of people.

And don't be afraid to talk and get involved if you suspect issues. It could save a life.

(I only kept in touch via electronic means with him on a casual basis, as he lived quite a way away, so I had no idea. I wish I did know).