Depression

Has anyone experienced this and how did you overcome it?

I still find it sad that in 2014 depression is still looked down upon and people with it are often treated as they some kind of mentally ill patient and fobbed off by people around them and sometimes even doctors.

I've been dealing with extreme depression for the last 4 months and you can't explain what it feels like until someone has gone through depression, only way I can describe it has it a constant low mood day in and day out, if you're lucky, you may have a few hours or even a day where you feel you can face other people and live life without bursting into tears.

I've had people say to me, even my own family "why are you depressed for? You have a home, a family and food on the table everyday and you are always smiling"

That is usually what I typically get when ever I have a day where my depression hits me so hard, all I do is cry all day and I'm made to feel I'm being a brat and ungrateful. What people don't understand with depression is that its got NOTHING to with how much money or how many possessions you may have or even how good your life is currently. Depression is just is..... depression, you don't have to have a cause to experience and that depression comes in MANY forms and effects people differently.

And I still don't believe its taken seriously enough. I once went to my GP about my depression and I was fobbed off and was told I was being a silly girl and to get a grip and that was from a DOCTOR! So if some doctors behave in that manner, how are depression suffers supposed to overcome it?

I never went back to my GP since. Only way I've learned to get through everyday is to put a false smile on for other people and put a front on that everything is fine and dandy when actually behind that smile, its not.

So why do you all think depression is so frowned upon? And do you think there is a actual treatment are is it something suffers have to live with?

Meh I'm having to write this again, I clicked on back by mistake xD

If you are trying to fight depression the best thing you can do is go to a private doctors and ask for anti-depressants, that's what I did and it has worked for me so far~~

I have taken anti-depressants 2 times, the first time they helpped me get rid of depression, now I'm taking them again and they are still working, not so well, maybe because I forgot taking them for like a week

I agree people don't take it as something serious, but that's just because they don't feel the pain you do, I know how terrible depression feels and I wish no one had to go through it. Since most people have never suffered from it they don't really think is something serious, they just look at you as if they were crazy u_u

Also, you don't have to fake a smile to others, but try to smile at yourself, it helps

I have depression. It runs in my family, so I'm like literally surrounded by doom-and-gloom grandparents and stuff.

My whole life revolves around my Catholic Faith, and that's the only thing that pulls me through! Just knowing that what you're going through is meant happen - for the greater good of you - is somewhat relieving. And the fact that God is there whenever I need Him, even though I sometimes can't see or feel Him with me.

I'm the eldest of nine kids, so I usually mask my downs with happy faces. Luckily looking after and playing with them distracts me from how I feel inside.

The internet also is a place where I can at least pretend to be happy. Pretend to be the happy-go-lucky person I want to be. Who I used to be.

When I'm alone, though, I do cry, and it is really hard to breakthrough and see the light in my despair.

Idek what causes it. I don't know where it comes from. It's as if you're emotionally triggered by a situation that happens in your life where you're not in control, and your mind keeps and remembers that feeling and spurts it out at you all the time. I hate it.

And the fact that some people don't even take it seriously is just sooooooo stupid. There's a different between not understanding something and not believing in something. Unfortunately people mix those two up.

I used to have anxiety attacks every night, they were so so horrible and scary. I don't know what caused them, either, but I was just overcome with fear and the feeling of being alone, that I would sweat and shake and scare my parents.

I was sent to a specialist to be counselled, but after a series of appointments, or a "course", it did no good. Eventually I was exorcised by a FFI priest. Then I had Extreme Unction and those attacks actually disappeared.

I'm still genetically "sad" though. I notice that everytime I'm busy (I like crafting things and doing things outside, etc) I'm distracted from the way I feel.

Also it helps if you have something to live for XD Pour moi, c'est mon Dieu

I'm not sure if what I've been through is even depression, but I assume it is I guess

A few years back my sister had a Tamagotchi die (yes, this is important) and for some reason I felt that I'd really lost something. It literally felt like there was a hole in my heart that I couldn't fill. I'm not sure why I was so worked up over a Tamagotchi, but it did get me thinking about life very hard, to the point where I ended up crying myself to sleep a lot and fearing the worst would happen.

I have a sickly, 60-year-old dad, and back then I was terrified I would lose him. I still am now, but not as bad as back then. But after about a good 2-3 years, I realized nothing bad has happened yet, so it might not happen for a while. I kept that in mind and eventually got over it. All of what one Tamagotchi can do wow

But even now, from time to time I get thinking too hard and sad for a while, but it's getting less and less frequent.

And I agree, I don't see why depression is so looked down on. It's something that you can't really control, I mean, we wouldn't even have depression if we could control it. Who wants to be depressed?

I've never had depression, but my girlfriend has been diagnosed with it. She takes meds to regulate the chemical imbalance in her brain.

Good to see her able to smile again.

Before she told me that I was the reason she was able to pull through life. Which is only partially true. I'm not able to see her too often so i think it's really her family that helped most.

I guess I could say I experience depression. I've been somewhat depressed for the past few months, just haven't seen someone yet.

I recommend these links to you. They are blog posts that explain pretty well what depression is like (according to many of the comments, and now that I have experienced some depression myself, I can agree with them). The rest of the blog is excellent as well.

https://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.ca/2011/10/adventures-in-depression.html

https://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.ca/2013/05/depression-part-two.html

A month ago I started feeling a bit depressed. Suddenly I couldn't see the point in doing anything anymore. Even things that were supposed to be fun, I found it hard to find myself motivated to do them. I honestly felt like there was nothing I felt like doing, except maybe lying in bed and staring at the wall. When it came to doing fun things, like watching anime or doing crafts, it felt like doing those things was just some sort of momentary distraction. A distraction from what, I don't know. I felt so disconnected from everything. The only thing in my life then that felt like it had purpose was teaching swimming lessons at the lake I work at. I knew that was important, and seeing the kids improve at swimming and smiling up at me each day was enough for me to force myself to get out of bed and go to work. I couldn't let the kids down. Even so, at the back of my mind there were thoughts that there are probably many better swimming instructors out there who could easily replace me.

Somehow I got out of that feeling and mostly back to normal. Although thinking about it too much, like right now, I know those thoughts are still somewhere at the back of my mind. When I get back to university, I'll try and see someone about it.

As for why people don't take depression seriously? I think it's because people don't understand what it is. People think of depression as being a state of mind, like happy, or angry or something. So they think that you can be "cheered up" out of it. Probably comes from how sometimes people say they are "depressed" when they really mean "sad". It's being used as an emotion, and not as a condition, which confuses people. I really think that schools could do a better job at teaching kids about depression and other mental conditions/illnesses.

Shouldn't this be in Seriously Non TamaTalk?

I am sorry to hear you are experiencing depression. Sometimes you're just living your everyday life, thinking everything's gonna be ok, but then one horrible thing happens after the other... it's all too much for your mind to handle and you lose every ounce of happiness you used to have...

One of the things that started my depression was losing my beloved pet cat... I loved her more than anything else in the universe and wanted to be together forever with her. When I lost her, I had no one to talk to, nothing to make me happy... I wasn't even a teenager. I didn't understand what had happened to me, why I didn't want to live and why nothing made me feel better at all. :'c

I can't remember exactly when it went away... about a year ago, I think. I never took therapy or medication for it. Even now I try to fight against my depression returning. I still feel sad for no apparent reason most of the time, I still cry a lot every day, and I still have mental breakdowns, sometimes really severe ones that make me pass out... but I know I don't have depression anymore. Because I don't want to die. And because some things, like my friends, boyfriend, and Tamagotchi, make me feel happy.

General Practitioners apparently get very little training on mental health issues, which is no excuse for treating you that way/not taking you seriously. Unfortunately it's kind of like talking to a foot doctor about a heart condition. It's unfortunate because it's something that's not understood very well by the general public especially people who don't have it or don't know anyone that has it, so what they know is stereotypes or what they see on TV about it. I'm sorry that you're going through it and just know that you are not alone, it is not something that you did wrong and it is similar to a physical illness and should be treated with that level of understanding. Nobody blames people for getting cancer but people don't know what to say when other people are diagnosed with mental health illnesses. Also different things work for different people. Some people will tell you that therapy doesn't work or is a waste of time, but that's just their experience. Maybe they didn't connect well with the therapist, didn't go often enough, or didn't follow the therapist's instructions. Same thing with medication, it works for some people. I would say your best bet if you're only able to see your GP is to ask for a referral to a therapist, or try to find one on your own. The therapist will find out more about your situation or what your diagnosis actually is (self-diagnosis can be helpful in some cases OR very harmful...it really depends and remember therapists are trained, WebMD doesn't explain everything). For example, bipolar disorder (also sometimes called manic-depressive disorder) involves a certain amount of time feeling depressed, but with manic stages. Also you don't have to stick with one therapist forever. If you don't connect with them or they don't seem to care about your situation, leave. There are lots of therapists/counselors/psychiatrists etc. around and many have different approaches, some might work better for you than others. Another thing is, you don't have to hide it. People may not understand at first but if they really care about you they will try harder to become informed and be less of jerks about it. Most of the time when people say stuff like "just snap out of it" etc, remember that they are not trying to hurt you specifically, most of the time they are just ignorant about what the condition actually is. Best of luck to you. <3

Unfortunately there are good and bad doctors but I personally have never seen anyone with depression get treated badly.. I don't really understand what you mean by getting treated as though you're "mentally ill" perhaps you're referring to some form of psychopathy? because suffering with depression is a mental illness so you are mentally ill if you have chronic depression it's also something that can be hereditary which a lot of people will find they can't explain why they have it usually can look down the family line and see cases amongst other family members. I think when it's hereditary and you have a family doctor they do tend to take it more seriously though, in the past when I've suffered I've always had the most support i could have ever asked for where I know a friend who suffered and her doctor actually wanted to run several questionnaires on her to make sure what she was suffering was depression and not to misdiagnose it as there are a LOT of people out there who fake it for multiple reasons and it's terrible so the support wasn't readily given out to her like it was for me. I can understand why they do that though and they want to make sure you are serious about it and not just trying to pull the wool over their eyes as it's not like they can do a blood test and say "yeah ok you have depression here is medication here is counseling here is support groups and sleeping pills etc etc" 1 it's expensive if you live in countries where you can get free health care to dish out these things to everyone and 2 as I said there are a lot of people that try and fake it and the medication can be dangerous and have serious side effects if you don't actually suffer.

I think the worst part though is when people say "you should just cheer up" like it's that easy omg why didn't I just do this before? thanks for telling me

Oh wow after reading those articles posted by puzzledpanda I think I was actually depressed more recently ono

Well uh, I can never stay in one fandom forever. Like, I'm into one thing then in a few months I'm into another thing. And usually when I'm into one thing I'm into it hardcore, like drawing fan art and writing fanfictions, you know. But usually I end up watching some videos about something else and end up getting into that fandom. Aaand it's a cycle that never eeeeends. What does this have to do with my depression?

Well when I was into Tamagotchis, I felt this was a different kind of fandom than the others I've been in before. I actually made friends who loved it as well and I couldn't stay off of TamaTalk. I felt more attached to the characters. It was just a different kind of fandom that I felt I belonged. But somewhere inside I felt that this happiness I felt for Tamagotchis was going to be replaced soon with a love for something else. So I decided to try to make my time in this fandom last as long as possible.

But with nothing really else to do over the summer I began to watch a lot of Youtube videos. ...And I happened to watch a lot of video game-related videos. Before I was into Tamagotchis again, I was a biiiiig video game fanatic (and I still am in a way) and I felt that inner love for video games try to come out again and push my love for Tamagotchis out. I didn't know what to love anymore. Sooner or later I didn't know what videos to watch, because I felt no motivation to watch either.

I began to feel deprived of inspiration and motivation to do anything. I didn't want to draw, I didn't want to write, I didn't want to play video games or watch Youtube or anything. I didn't really feel too sad; the only times I really did cry was when my boredom lead me to thinking about life to hard. Mostly, I just felt very bored and confused that I couldn't care for anything anymore.

But after a few weeks, it all evened out internally and I felt equal about the both of them. I haven't felt hardcore-in-love about a fandom ever since... I've tried watching play-throughs of games and episodes of Tamagotchi, but no matter what I can't feel the way I did before. Heck, I've watched lets-plays of Megaman 1-7 and that didn't even effect me.

But now I'm trying to get that feeling when I was hard-core into Tamagotchi back, but I think this depression-of-some-sort really affected how I get into fandoms. All of the fandoms I've been in are all evened out and I don't love any more than the other, with the exception of Tamagotchi which I'm starting to feel more hard-core for again.

....I'm terrible at explaining XD

Okay, this might be a little long-winded but I'll do my best to condense it.

I know the feelings you have all to well. I was hit with depression bad at the age of 16 and it was bad for up to 8 years. I refused antidepressants, I was afraid of what they'd make me as I heard horror stories about side effects. When I finally did try them (Paxil), a single pill made me super sick and numb and gave me terrible profuse sweating. I threw the pills away, afraid to try them again.

During this time I also developed panic attacks to the point of having them daily. I even was up 3 days straight one time when i ran away from home (another long story, and I ended up coming back) with a severe panic attack. I finally told my doctor and was prescribed Xanax which helped a LOT and I was finally able to have nights of full sleep.

During all of this I also saw a social worker through my medical insurance plan. There was a brief period I stopped going, thinking things would get better, but they got worse. And when i was in high school I saw a counselor, whom later ran into my dad and told him about the cutting I used to do (totally going against confidentiality policy, mind you, however I bet she did for the fact that she wasn't a counselor anymore), and it sparked new problems as he was unaware of me doing that. I went back to my social worker shortly after who finally suggested I see a psychiatrist for my extreme depression and mood swings.

I ended up seeing one and he prescribed me Celexa since my grandma was on it for her anxiety issues. Even on 5 mg of it (I cut 10 mg pills in half), after 2 days, I was super wired as if I had 10 cups of coffee, and I would speak and suddenly stop and completely forget what i was saying. I would also stare at things a lot and stop and listen to sounds. It was very strange. Needless to say I quit the pills and told the psychiatrist. He said it was very odd and decided to try a different route, thinking I might not be depressed, but rather bipolar, but with hypomania (I do not get manic upswings).

Needless to say i was put on Lamictal, but had to taper on (it's a very fickle drug that can give you a rash that can kill you if you start too high too soon). During this time my family wasn't supporting me, telling me "it's all in your head" (well duh), and that I was going to turn into my mother (she was paranoid schizophrenic), etc. But I did it anyway. And over time I slowly got better, I felt less depressed, more energized. Anxiety was still there and I still take Xanax as needed, but taking the new med actually helped me and therapy sessions went better. It took a few more years to finally get the hang of things. Along the way though, I noticed that i couldn't be on too high a dose as i would have weird side effects, such as lactating blood (sorry if that's gross, but it's hat happened to me, I was like the rare 1% but it's not uncommon to lactate just regular milk on an epileptic medication [which also treats bipolar] like Lamictal), having bouts of mood swings with anger/irritation, etc. However I found a good dose that works for me.

Point is, depression, bipolar, whatever it is, it's not something to take lightly. I know it's hard, I walked that path for at least a decade now, and even though I'm better, i will never be cured. It's a brain condition, a chemical hiccup that we cannot control, and sadly in more developed countries it's seen as a bane, something to fear or hate. In 3rd world countries, to be schizophrenic made you special, and sometimes a shaman/witch doctor. People with mental illness are treated better and have fewer relapses. But in our countries, we are shunned, the stigma being we are broken, not quite human, something is wrong, etc. (Especially if you're bipolar, and people don't realize there are several different types, but everything thinks of type 1, where there's rapid cycling, violence, promiscuity, etc.)

But even if it turns out to be a lifelong thing (maybe not yours, but mine is), there are things/advice i can give to help you out:

• Seek help. If you can get a counselor, get one. Don't let anyone stop you or put you down for it. Not even family.
• Find support. Be with friends more who lift you up. Find a support group. Join a meet up that shares your hobbies. Keep busy.
• Be creative. Whatever you do, whatever you create, do it. Write, sculpt, draw, etc. Do whatever it takes.
• Volunteer to do something. Again, busy work, and it feels good to help others. Helping to make others happy will in turn make you feel better.
• Put some time aside for yourself. Don't forget that you come first. Yes it's nice to do for others and help others, but you need time to recharge your batteries as well. Have a spa day, pig out on sweets, etc. Make it all about you!
• Go on an adventure. Do something new, go somewhere you haven't been before but have been curious about. Sure you'll be nervous, but at least only about that one particular thing at that point in time rather than everything else weighing you down. But tell yourself that you're excited, not nervous. It changes your way of thinking.
• Try something new. Get into a new hobby, read a book in a genre you don't normally read, try a different video game than you'd normally play, etc. Not only will it open your mind to new things, you'll also learn more about yourself.
• If you cannot find a way, make a way. The only one holding you back is yourself. Others don't control you, you choose to let others or circumstances control you. Don't let them!
• Give it time. Depression and other issues cannot be fixed in a day. It takes time, a lot of time. Don't get discouraged if you don't feel better right away, understand that it takes baby steps, changed mentality, conditioning yourself to think differently, etc. Don't give up.
• Keep positive. (I know, this is a hard one.) Things may not be as bad as you think. For every negative you think about, counter it with a positive. For example you may think "I'm not good enough." Counter it with "I am good enough to make myself happy and not be what others want me to be."

That's all I can think of for now. I'm sure there's more, but it's getting late and I worked today and have a lot going on. I'm sure others can fill in some of the gaps with other advice, too.

Yes Midorime, hobbies can help distract a person temporarily from their sadness ^.^

As some ideas, here are things I do to help fight against my depressive state returning

• Playing with Tamagotchis, setting certain goals such as trying to get a certain number of points or trying to win a difficult minigame.
• Drawing; I do both digital and traditional art of things I love such as cats and Tamagotchi characters. It's really fulfilling!
• Stroking my cats. Relaxing while petting a cat on my lap helps distract me from depressing thoughts.
• Sewing. I love making plushes and Tamagotchi pouches! I prefer hand-sewing rather than machine-sewing because it requires more input from me.

And also, avoid things that are prone to upset you! There are lots of mean people on the internet so only going to safe sites with rules about being kind to other members (such as TamaTalk ) is a good idea.

And remember, in the future, things may be much better than they are now! I used to be so upset with no computer, internet access, or friends but now I have all three. I know a computer and internet doesn't sound that important but I really wanted to make friends online, and I love drawing on a computer

I used to be upset about not being able to buy stuff online but now I can!

So never give up hope, because no matter how long it takes, one day all your wishes may come true

I suffer severe depression. Mainly due to bullies but I feel most of the world hates me. I hope I can get over it, but I don't know if I will.