Discussion & help on depression & mental health related issues

Realise this is "Dr Google" territory, but has anyone else had a period where they find they wake up at silly o'clock? For the past few weeks I've been getting up at around 4.30 every day, which is a good hour/hour and a half earlier than normal. Weirdly I don't feel particularly tired as a result.
Always wake up at 4.10 am. Ridiculous. I'm now wondering if there's a specific noise that wakes me up. Although it happens even if I'm not at home. I do not get up though. I look at the time, think oh look it's 4.10 and go back to sleep.
 
Hi guys, I would like to share a story with you.

Back at the start of August I developed a bit of a limp in the left leg. I had a sore spot at the top of the hamstring.
Thought nothing of it, it will clear in a week or so.
This sore spot started spreading down the back of the thigh and into the knee, it felt bruised and I still didn't worry too much.
Got into September and my leg started swelling massively and I began to really struggle to walk at all and on Sept 8th went to A&E.

This is what my leg looked like on Sept 8th....

bad leg.jpg

The circumference around the knee was 4 inches larger than the right knee. Swelling had also started in my calf and was right to the top of my thigh.
They sent me home with pain killers and suggested I 'tweaked a hamstring'.........

I went back to A&E 5 days later in agony and had to insist on a blood test and check for DVT.
This was followed up with a Dopla scan which showed I have a blood clot running down the entire calf from my knee to my ankle.

They put me on a blood thinner called Apixaban and told me it could take up to 6 months of treatment.

I understood that I should start to feel small improvement after 2 or 3 weeks. For 2 or 3 weeks I didn't complain too much, but became almost totally bedridden. The swelling got worse all the way from top of the thigh to my toes. The knee swelling increased by yet another 2 inches.
Through all this I am communicating with my GP and hospital that the medication wasn't working and my leg has got worse, not better.
I went back 4 times over 2 weeks, seeing different doctors each time. Believe me I had to go through pain barriers to get there.
I couldn't stand up, I couldn't sit down and I couldn't lie down.

Gets to October 15th and I insisted they check the size of the blood clot, which they were happy to do so. The result came back that the DVT was safe. So I suggested to the doctor that if the DVT is fine perhaps we should start again and ask the question "What is wrong with my knee?"

She got two other doctors involved from different departments and said if it's what we think it is, we can't treat you here. We are referring your care to North Manchester General.
Saturday morning 16th, they did all my blood tests, xrays and scans in the first 2 hours. Then they stuck a syringe into my knee and drained 5 tubes full of fluid. It was red and yellow in colour. An hour later the specialist said I have sepsis and I would be in theatre in 2 hours! The infection blood count was through the roof and I was advised that amputation was a possibility.

I woke up from the operation and still had both legs. You can not believe the feeling! The surgeon came to see me about 2 hours after the procedure and said that my leg was riddled with sepsis, that they think they have got to it just in time and that it might come back. He told me I would have to stay in hospital for 2-4 weeks on IV AB's.

I have asked several times how can sepsis AND a DVT be missed in diagnosed as a tweaked hamstring. No answers of course.
I am recovering well and as my blood markers came down to safe levels didn't have to stay in hospital that long in the end.
I'm walking with crutches and have some movement in my knee and hope to be back at work in a few weeks.

I can only thank the medical teams at NMGH. They are workings their nads off and can not keep up with the work loads.

My advice to all of you is this: if you start to suffer any unexplained swelling in your legs or arms demand at the point of triage that your blood is tested for blood clot and infection. Insist on it. It could save your life.
 
Hi guys, I would like to share a story with you.

Back at the start of August I developed a bit of a limp in the left leg. I had a sore spot at the top of the hamstring.
Thought nothing of it, it will clear in a week or so.
This sore spot started spreading down the back of the thigh and into the knee, it felt bruised and I still didn't worry too much.
Got into September and my leg started swelling massively and I began to really struggle to walk at all and on Sept 8th went to A&E.

This is what my leg looked like on Sept 8th....

View attachment 145591

The circumference around the knee was 4 inches larger than the right knee. Swelling had also started in my calf and was right to the top of my thigh.
They sent me home with pain killers and suggested I 'tweaked a hamstring'.........

I went back to A&E 5 days later in agony and had to insist on a blood test and check for DVT.
This was followed up with a Dopla scan which showed I have a blood clot running down the entire calf from my knee to my ankle.

They put me on a blood thinner called Apixaban and told me it could take up to 6 months of treatment.

I understood that I should start to feel small improvement after 2 or 3 weeks. For 2 or 3 weeks I didn't complain too much, but became almost totally bedridden. The swelling got worse all the way from top of the thigh to my toes. The knee swelling increased by yet another 2 inches.
Through all this I am communicating with my GP and hospital that the medication wasn't working and my leg has got worse, not better.
I went back 4 times over 2 weeks, seeing different doctors each time. Believe me I had to go through pain barriers to get there.
I couldn't stand up, I couldn't sit down and I couldn't lie down.

Gets to October 15th and I insisted they check the size of the blood clot, which they were happy to do so. The result came back that the DVT was safe. So I suggested to the doctor that if the DVT is fine perhaps we should start again and ask the question "What is wrong with my knee?"

She got two other doctors involved from different departments and said if it's what we think it is, we can't treat you here. We are referring your care to North Manchester General.
Saturday morning 16th, they did all my blood tests, xrays and scans in the first 2 hours. Then they stuck a syringe into my knee and drained 5 tubes full of fluid. It was red and yellow in colour. An hour later the specialist said I have sepsis and I would be in theatre in 2 hours! The infection blood count was through the roof and I was advised that amputation was a possibility.

I woke up from the operation and still had both legs. You can not believe the feeling! The surgeon came to see me about 2 hours after the procedure and said that my leg was riddled with sepsis, that they think they have got to it just in time and that it might come back. He told me I would have to stay in hospital for 2-4 weeks on IV AB's.

I tohave asked several times how can sepsis AND a DVT be missed in diagnosed as a tweaked hamstring. No answers of course.
I am recovering well and as my blood markers came down to safe levels didn't have to stay in hospital that long in the end.
I'm walking with crutches and have some movement in my knee and hope to be back at work in a few weeks.

I can only thank the medical teams at NMGH. They are workings their nads off and can not keep up with the work loads.

My advice to all of you is this: if you start to suffer any unexplained swelling in your legs or arms demand at the point of triage that your blood is tested for blood clot and infection. Insist on it. It could save your life.
Love this post, great advice. When my boy, 3 at the time, started limping my wife took him to the A&E. On call Dr took a look. Nothing. His mum " I'm telling you, something is not right, please X ray his foot " . Wife heard senior Dr tell the " junior Dr " mum knows best ". They did X ray his foot and it transpires my boy had tread on a compass pin from a compass in a Christmas cracker. It was small but the X ray showed it. As Big Blue has rightly pointed out, if your concerned nothing wrong with a polite " can you take a look, can I have a second opinion please?"
 

Not posted in a while but am going through a bit of tough time at the moment. Things had been pretty good for a pro-longed period but over the past few months frustration has built up about something and I can't hold it in anymore.

I work in a stable place and most of the people I get on with, it's not a long term thing but it finally seemed a good fit for me to get my head down and just settle for a while whilst I slowly planned out my future. A few months ago however someone joined who sits directly next to me whom I just can't bare. It's a personality clash mostly, I'm a quiet and private sort but he's a talker whom constantly tries to force conversations about anything, even dropping comments about things that make me really want to snap at him for being so arrogant and disrespectful. It doesn't help that he's constantly over-stepping himself, trying to pick and choose the work he does (always trying to avoid one thing but will always try to be the first when it's time to do another thing) and the fact he's always seeking gossip. I've learnt others in the place feel the same but have to deal with him far less so it doesnt affect them as much. They just think he's ignorant/thick but I trust my read of people and to me he acts friendly but is actually very slimey. Even at the end of the days he always wants to walk together but I've shut that right down, i just throw my headphones in and walk on ahead of him or purposely stay behind to make sure he gets the message (I think he has now but bloody hell it took WEEKS of this). Once we're out of the workplace I refuse to stomach him.

Has anyone been through something similar or have any advice? Much appreciated.
Mate that’s tough, having to deal with someone that you don’t get along at work impacts your output, and what’s even more unfortunate is that this situation is creating some frustration that seem to be putting you in a fragile state of mind. Have you considered discussing with your supervisor the possibility of switching desks or moving to another area? Perhaps if you were to express how this interaction is affecting your mental health there is more willingness to assist you dealing with your coworker. I’m not sure how things are in your area but here is the US there is a huge need for workers thus some employers are doing everything possible to accommodate their employees needs rather than losing them. So it may be worth giving a try, you don’t want for this situation to escalate to the point you can’t take it any longer and just leave a job that seems to be working for you at the moment. Good luck dealing with this situation, I hope it improves for you.
 
Thank you mate but don’t be impressed by me. I’m just doing my what works for me.

I’m a Toffee, die hard Blue who puts a game face on for work but I struggle with being able to just relax. For an Everton game I can give 110% but any other game or TV show I am anxious. No reason for it but I am flicking the paper, scanning the phone or similar nonsense.

Gotta work on this relaxation thing.
HA ha, I know Atticus Finch, in fact to cheer up all the patients on the Ward when I go in later, I'm going to go dressed as .........HAM. ( Sorry about the ham reference but those that know will know ). ( Insert smiley thing )
 
Not posted in a while but am going through a bit of tough time at the moment. Things had been pretty good for a pro-longed period but over the past few months frustration has built up about something and I can't hold it in anymore.

I work in a stable place and most of the people I get on with, it's not a long term thing but it finally seemed a good fit for me to get my head down and just settle for a while whilst I slowly planned out my future. A few months ago however someone joined who sits directly next to me whom I just can't bare. It's a personality clash mostly, I'm a quiet and private sort but he's a talker whom constantly tries to force conversations about anything, even dropping comments about things that make me really want to snap at him for being so arrogant and disrespectful. It doesn't help that he's constantly over-stepping himself, trying to pick and choose the work he does (always trying to avoid one thing but will always try to be the first when it's time to do another thing) and the fact he's always seeking gossip. I've learnt others in the place feel the same but have to deal with him far less so it doesnt affect them as much. They just think he's ignorant/thick but I trust my read of people and to me he acts friendly but is actually very slimey. Even at the end of the days he always wants to walk together but I've shut that right down, i just throw my headphones in and walk on ahead of him or purposely stay behind to make sure he gets the message (I think he has now but bloody hell it took WEEKS of this). Once we're out of the workplace I refuse to stomach him.

Has anyone been through something similar or have any advice? Much appreciated.
Paul if he's as bad as you say, might I suggest leave him be. Unless your boss doesn't know about him, and he / she will know, this man is going to be found out. He sounds like a man to be pitied more really Paul. Annoying for you but sad really.
 
Hi guys, I would like to share a story with you.

Back at the start of August I developed a bit of a limp in the left leg. I had a sore spot at the top of the hamstring.
Thought nothing of it, it will clear in a week or so.
This sore spot started spreading down the back of the thigh and into the knee, it felt bruised and I still didn't worry too much.
Got into September and my leg started swelling massively and I began to really struggle to walk at all and on Sept 8th went to A&E.

This is what my leg looked like on Sept 8th....

View attachment 145591

The circumference around the knee was 4 inches larger than the right knee. Swelling had also started in my calf and was right to the top of my thigh.
They sent me home with pain killers and suggested I 'tweaked a hamstring'.........

I went back to A&E 5 days later in agony and had to insist on a blood test and check for DVT.
This was followed up with a Dopla scan which showed I have a blood clot running down the entire calf from my knee to my ankle.

They put me on a blood thinner called Apixaban and told me it could take up to 6 months of treatment.

I understood that I should start to feel small improvement after 2 or 3 weeks. For 2 or 3 weeks I didn't complain too much, but became almost totally bedridden. The swelling got worse all the way from top of the thigh to my toes. The knee swelling increased by yet another 2 inches.
Through all this I am communicating with my GP and hospital that the medication wasn't working and my leg has got worse, not better.
I went back 4 times over 2 weeks, seeing different doctors each time. Believe me I had to go through pain barriers to get there.
I couldn't stand up, I couldn't sit down and I couldn't lie down.

Gets to October 15th and I insisted they check the size of the blood clot, which they were happy to do so. The result came back that the DVT was safe. So I suggested to the doctor that if the DVT is fine perhaps we should start again and ask the question "What is wrong with my knee?"

She got two other doctors involved from different departments and said if it's what we think it is, we can't treat you here. We are referring your care to North Manchester General.
Saturday morning 16th, they did all my blood tests, xrays and scans in the first 2 hours. Then they stuck a syringe into my knee and drained 5 tubes full of fluid. It was red and yellow in colour. An hour later the specialist said I have sepsis and I would be in theatre in 2 hours! The infection blood count was through the roof and I was advised that amputation was a possibility.

I woke up from the operation and still had both legs. You can not believe the feeling! The surgeon came to see me about 2 hours after the procedure and said that my leg was riddled with sepsis, that they think they have got to it just in time and that it might come back. He told me I would have to stay in hospital for 2-4 weeks on IV AB's.

I have asked several times how can sepsis AND a DVT be missed in diagnosed as a tweaked hamstring. No answers of course.
I am recovering well and as my blood markers came down to safe levels didn't have to stay in hospital that long in the end.
I'm walking with crutches and have some movement in my knee and hope to be back at work in a few weeks.

I can only thank the medical teams at NMGH. They are workings their nads off and can not keep up with the work loads.

My advice to all of you is this: if you start to suffer any unexplained swelling in your legs or arms demand at the point of triage that your blood is tested for blood clot and infection. Insist on it. It could save your life.

My missus is a wound care specialist mate and I showed her the photo you posted of your legs, without telling her the rest of the story.

The first thing she said was - DVT and or Sepsis.

The problem as she explains it, is that each consultant, no matter what their field of expertise, have their own little kingdom, where they are god and no one ever dares to question them ( she does, as she has the knowledge and backbone to do it )

In short, they are never wrong, even when it`s proved they are and their colleagues will never ever question or criticise them, in public at least ( even if they have a bad reputation around the hospital ) It`s like an unwritten code of conduct.

This is why you haven`t got any answers and are highly unlikely to get any, unless you make a formal complaint. ( the Patients Charter will explain how to go about this )
 
Hi guys, I would like to share a story with you.

Back at the start of August I developed a bit of a limp in the left leg. I had a sore spot at the top of the hamstring.
Thought nothing of it, it will clear in a week or so.
This sore spot started spreading down the back of the thigh and into the knee, it felt bruised and I still didn't worry too much.
Got into September and my leg started swelling massively and I began to really struggle to walk at all and on Sept 8th went to A&E.

This is what my leg looked like on Sept 8th....

View attachment 145591

The circumference around the knee was 4 inches larger than the right knee. Swelling had also started in my calf and was right to the top of my thigh.
They sent me home with pain killers and suggested I 'tweaked a hamstring'.........

I went back to A&E 5 days later in agony and had to insist on a blood test and check for DVT.
This was followed up with a Dopla scan which showed I have a blood clot running down the entire calf from my knee to my ankle.

They put me on a blood thinner called Apixaban and told me it could take up to 6 months of treatment.

I understood that I should start to feel small improvement after 2 or 3 weeks. For 2 or 3 weeks I didn't complain too much, but became almost totally bedridden. The swelling got worse all the way from top of the thigh to my toes. The knee swelling increased by yet another 2 inches.
Through all this I am communicating with my GP and hospital that the medication wasn't working and my leg has got worse, not better.
I went back 4 times over 2 weeks, seeing different doctors each time. Believe me I had to go through pain barriers to get there.
I couldn't stand up, I couldn't sit down and I couldn't lie down.

Gets to October 15th and I insisted they check the size of the blood clot, which they were happy to do so. The result came back that the DVT was safe. So I suggested to the doctor that if the DVT is fine perhaps we should start again and ask the question "What is wrong with my knee?"

She got two other doctors involved from different departments and said if it's what we think it is, we can't treat you here. We are referring your care to North Manchester General.
Saturday morning 16th, they did all my blood tests, xrays and scans in the first 2 hours. Then they stuck a syringe into my knee and drained 5 tubes full of fluid. It was red and yellow in colour. An hour later the specialist said I have sepsis and I would be in theatre in 2 hours! The infection blood count was through the roof and I was advised that amputation was a possibility.

I woke up from the operation and still had both legs. You can not believe the feeling! The surgeon came to see me about 2 hours after the procedure and said that my leg was riddled with sepsis, that they think they have got to it just in time and that it might come back. He told me I would have to stay in hospital for 2-4 weeks on IV AB's.

I have asked several times how can sepsis AND a DVT be missed in diagnosed as a tweaked hamstring. No answers of course.
I am recovering well and as my blood markers came down to safe levels didn't have to stay in hospital that long in the end.
I'm walking with crutches and have some movement in my knee and hope to be back at work in a few weeks.

I can only thank the medical teams at NMGH. They are workings their nads off and can not keep up with the work loads.

My advice to all of you is this: if you start to suffer any unexplained swelling in your legs or arms demand at the point of triage that your blood is tested for blood clot and infection. Insist on it. It could save your life.
What a scary experience and one that could had turned badly had you not been advocating for yourself and insisting the doctors look deeper into your issue. Patients frequently experience problems in care and many do not feel comfortable speaking up, but without that persistence from patients then physicians can miss key opportunities that could save a person’s life. So thanks for reminding us that when it comes to our well being silence isn’t safe but speaking up is. I’m glad to read your leg is doing better and may you fully recover. X
 

My missus is a wound care specialist mate and I showed her the photo you posted of your legs, without telling her the rest of the story.

The first thing she said was - DVT and or Sepsis.

The problem as she explains it, is that each consultant, no matter what their field of expertise, have their own little kingdom, where they are god and no one ever dares to question them ( she does, as she has the knowledge and backbone to do it )

In short, they are never wrong, even when it`s proved they are and their colleagues will never ever question or criticise them, in public at least ( even if they have a bad reputation around the hospital ) It`s like an unwritten code of conduct.

This is why you haven`t got any answers and are highly unlikely to get any, unless you make a formal complaint. ( the Patients Charter will explain how to go about this )

My experience was that the doctors were stressed out, over worked and underfunded. They are trying to turn everybody around asap because there are so many people to get through. Got so many stories that I witnessed.
Rather than try and complain, my observation was that they are doing a great job under extremely challenging conditions.
The wards kept running out of basic medical supplies and nurses would be scouring the hospital for replacements.
That is not about their skill and efficiency. It is about lack of funding and just not enough to people to carry out the care.

Since conception, the NHS was possibly the greatest institution this country ever had and used to be the envy of the world.
It should be protected and invested in, not used as a political tool.
The way things are going with this current government, it will not be around in 5 years time.

I will send your wife photos of any future illness's I have! lol
 
My missus is a wound care specialist mate and I showed her the photo you posted of your legs, without telling her the rest of the story.

The first thing she said was - DVT and or Sepsis.

The problem as she explains it, is that each consultant, no matter what their field of expertise, have their own little kingdom, where they are god and no one ever dares to question them ( she does, as she has the knowledge and backbone to do it )

In short, they are never wrong, even when it`s proved they are and their colleagues will never ever question or criticise them, in public at least ( even if they have a bad reputation around the hospital ) It`s like an unwritten code of conduct.

This is why you haven`t got any answers and are highly unlikely to get any, unless you make a formal complaint. ( the Patients Charter will explain how to go about this )
A Wells’ test should have been the minimum carried out on @BigBlueConk the first time he presented at A&E, given the symptoms and recent history. It would certainly have scored more than 3 and at least caught the DVT (although Stevie Wonder may have called that, going by the picture!)
Poor management of the issue in the 1st instance but thanks to his insistence things turned out ok in the end. Could have been a lot worse.
Glad you came through @BigBlueConk ;)
 
Love this post, great advice. When my boy, 3 at the time, started limping my wife took him to the A&E. On call Dr took a look. Nothing. His mum " I'm telling you, something is not right, please X ray his foot " . Wife heard senior Dr tell the " junior Dr " mum knows best ". They did X ray his foot and it transpires my boy had tread on a compass pin from a compass in a Christmas cracker. It was small but the X ray showed it. As Big Blue has rightly pointed out, if your concerned nothing wrong with a polite " can you take a look, can I have a second opinion please?"
Definitely ask for a second opinion, don’t just walk away with the first diagnosis, it’s the wingeing hinge that gets the oil!! Glad your wife had the sense to persist and get the right treatment for your boy.
 
I believe I’m a lot older than you, and one of the odd things as you get older the mistakes you made , regrets you have from the past pop more and more into your head . You easily forget all the good things you’ve done, the happiness you’ve created , it seems that only others recognise those things while we continue to beat ourselves up about our past mistakes. If a new “ mistake/ regret” pops into my head I make an apology to whomever was concerned and make my peace. It works for me

My experience was that the doctors were stressed out, over worked and underfunded. They are trying to turn everybody around asap because there are so many people to get through. Got so many stories that I witnessed.
Rather than try and complain, my observation was that they are doing a great job under extremely challenging conditions.
The wards kept running out of basic medical supplies and nurses would be scouring the hospital for replacements.
That is not about their skill and efficiency. It is about lack of funding and just not enough to people to carry out the care.

Since conception, the NHS was possibly the greatest institution this country ever had and used to be the envy of the world.
It should be protected and invested in, not used as a political tool.
The way things are going with this current government, it will not be around in 5 years time.

I will send your wife photos of any future illness's I have! lol
Big Blue you have really hit a raw nerve with me. Not with you personally, it's what you said " so many to get through.....". So so right and it's so so wrong. I recall being the nurse in charge of a shift, 23 acutely ill people, I mean really poorly. Onto the Ward comes a Manager, she's staring at the patients board, making marks here and here, crossing this out, putting this name here. I asked are you looking for beds. Yes she said we've got three people in desperate need of a bed. We went through the list with me basically saying " no too poorly, no too poorly, no not enough support when she gets home. " I was fuming and at the next Ward round I " let them have it ". How can you put time scales on people's mental health, how can you discharge them with no support in the community and since when have we discharged somebody who three days I was rolling around the floor with him trying to remove curtain string from his neck. ". In short, they were trying to discharge people without a full risk assessment and who, without further support in the community, would be back here in three days. You can't second guess health outcomes in the " hope " they will be ok and you certainly CANT DO IT IN MENTAL HEALTH. I'm sorry for this rant Blue but you are spot on, management making decisions on " waiting list numbers, and " forecasts ". We are dealing with people, your sister and mum, your child, mam dad and brother and partner. They can't ask me to make decisions so they can produce and present favourable waiting list numbers / figures at the next Management meeting or press briefing. Sorry for the rant Blue.
 

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