Discussion & help on depression & mental health related issues

I've suffered and still do suffer with depression which has gone on since i was 15/16, parents don't understand how a 22 year old can be depressed, my little brother understands it more then them to be honest. I haven't told my doctor or really anyone else besides my immediate family because i'm not sure how it would help. Some days i feel boss like and others i could just sit there and cry but i don't do that like cause i don't like showing weakness, i feel i do know the root cause of my depression and i'm working on improving things for myself but it's hard when opportunities to do so aren't exactly in my control.

I've thought about killing myself and even collected the means to do it a few years back but thought better of it as it didn't seem fair on my family, i think if i didn't have one i'd have done though.

I'm no kind of expert, but I read this and can't help but feel you should seek some help. Like many other illnesses, depression is unlikely to get better on its own and there are lots of professionals who have the skills and resources to help you. If you don't feel ready for that, why not pm one of the guys above?
 
I've suffered and still do suffer with depression which has gone on since i was 15/16, parents don't understand how a 22 year old can be depressed, my little brother understands it more then them to be honest. I haven't told my doctor or really anyone else besides my immediate family because i'm not sure how it would help. Some days i feel boss like and others i could just sit there and cry but i don't do that like cause i don't like showing weakness, i feel i do know the root cause of my depression and i'm working on improving things for myself but it's hard when opportunities to do so aren't exactly in my control.

I've thought about killing myself and even collected the means to do it a few years back but thought better of it as it didn't seem fair on my family, i think if i didn't have one i'd have done though.

best thing you can do mate is to see your GP, trust me in the fact most these days are used to treating this, and theirs a range of things from medications, to counseling services, cognitive behavioral therapies and the like which can do wonders which your GP can refer you to directly
 
I find it extremely difficult to talk about to be honest and as a person who has always tried to help other people through their problems i think i can help myself.
 
I find it extremely difficult to talk about to be honest and as a person who has always tried to help other people through their problems i think i can help myself.

I wish you well then, but make sure you seek professional advice if it starts to get away from you mate.

Take care.
 

Had a lad working for me who was the "life and soul" spent all his spare time going out and living life to the full amazingly he said he was taking a few days off to book himself into the local mental hospital. Recurring depression he reckoned, but in all honesty I thought he was arsing about going on a bender only his ex explaining give it some credence - he had tried to do himself in a few times the last one had the police talking him down from the top of a multi storey car park.

Apparently he'd sink into depression take an overdose or pull some stunt like above but tell someone by text or some kind of warning and rescue would come - had him down as a bit of an attention seeker myself.

He left pretty soon after moving to Manchester and 6 months later had took an overdose in a railway station after texting his new girlfriend, she never read it for a few hours and he slipped away - 31 yrs old he was.

Because you can't see it doesn't make it false, absolutely dreadful.
 
I take Sertraline anti-depressant tablets. I went to the doctors about 2 years ago but never took the advice, went to therapy sessions for about 6 months, that didn't work so I've recently went back the doctors and got prescribed the tablets.
Its important to have somebody to talk to, I'm lucky I suppose that I do but if you don't the doctor is there, he said to me "Obviously if things get worse I'm here". The hardest part is actually going to the doctors and admitting you have a problem. I think depression is worse for men to admit to as it is seen by some as a weakness but it is far from that.
 

Great OP Groucho.

It's long been taboo to even acknowledge mental health issues, but society is slowly changing. This thread is evidence of that. Even as recently as 10 years ago it probably wouldn't have been posted, so progress is being made. Reading through this thread has made me smile to be honest. Anyone posting in this thread (especially those who have stated personal issues) should be applauded. Only through engagement will mental health issues be tackled in society.

Mental illness is exactly that. An illness. There's an argument amongst scientists currently as to whether or not the human brain is the most complex thing in the known universe. It's certainly the most complex thing in biology. Therefore, things can and will go wrong with it. Chemical imbalances are usually the cause of most mental illness. I don't claim to be an expert, many posters in this thread alone are more educated on the issue than me, but grinning and bearing it (or soldiering through) won't help. Medication isn't always the answer either and I would repeat what has been said before. Talk to someone, and seek help.

The times have changed. I work as a fire fighter. For years (especially through the troubles in n.ireland) it was seen as weakness to be affected by mental health issues. You would have been told to "man up", or "have another drink". This is simply not the case anymore, and I have seen a wholesale change in both how mental health is approached by employers, and the people I work with. Simply put, people care.

Mental health issues are like cancer. Everyone has been affected by them at some point or by some degree. Either personally, or by knowing someone who has. Only by addressing it head on will the taboo be broken.
 
I just heard recently that a lad who was in my class at school years back was found hanged in Croxteth Park. Although I hadn't seen him in a few years he was always chatty and happy. Must be sad to hear and I feel for his family. Life is short. If people are hitting some buffers in their lives there is always help out there. always.
 
Great words Groucho.

I've been there myself to an extent. My mum was in Clatterbridge hospital for about two years with depression also, It's horrible.

A few of my friends have fallen on tough times over the last few years and been on medication of various severities. Lads, it's a hell of a lot more common than you think, don't think you're weak or abnormal by feeling that way. Talk to your parents, or your doctor, or at the very least start with one of your good friends who you know you can trust, it helps to talk.
 

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