Have you ever suffered from depression?

[i_forget]

My husband suffers from bipolar disorder and I wish he would do something like this. He blames my mood on "PMS" but honestly, it a reaction to his mood. When he isn't up to par mentally it affects the entire family.

The kids dads moods is one of the biggest reasons why I made him move out. I could not handle the kids and him. It took me a long time to realize that my mental health and happiness was more important and that I could not take care of my kids if I let him have such a great impact on me.

[momof3heathens]

As some of you may remember my son has depression and anxiety.

He takes meds prescribed by a psyciatrist.

What we have been wondering is would seeing a psycologist at the same time be beneficial? He says the psyciatrist doesn't really ask him any questions and just prescribes meds, changes prescription when he says he is feeling anxious or more stressed out but no real feedback.

My son isn't one to provide information unless you draw it out of him so my thought is that the doctor is waiting for him to say something.

[Skippy]

As some of you may remember my son has depression and anxiety.

He takes meds prescribed by a psyciatrist.

What we have been wondering is would seeing a psycologist at the same time be beneficial? He says the psyciatrist doesn't really ask him any questions and just prescribes meds, changes prescription when he says he is feeling anxious or more stressed out but no real feedback.

My son isn't one to provide information unless you draw it out of him so my thought is that the doctor is waiting for him to say something.

This is a hard question and I don't believe one answer will necessarily help. However, speaking from my own experience the psychologist just had one session with me and just dealt with one issue so I wasn't really impressed. Presumably after a few sessions I would hope your Son would have something to show for it.

[Aslan]

As some of you may remember my son has depression and anxiety.

He takes meds prescribed by a psyciatrist.

What we have been wondering is would seeing a psycologist at the same time be beneficial? He says the psyciatrist doesn't really ask him any questions and just prescribes meds, changes prescription when he says he is feeling anxious or more stressed out but no real feedback.

My son isn't one to provide information unless you draw it out of him so my thought is that the doctor is waiting for him to say something.

As someone who used both medication and therapy on a long term basis, I think it's a decent option. It really does vary from person to person, but personally psychotherapy was much more beneficial for me than the medication. The medication gave me stability, while therapy helped me to work out a large number of issues that negatively impacted my mental health.

Keep in mind that choosing a therapist/psychologist is almost like choosing a medication. Some people connect, and some people don't. I didn't get along with my first therapist (well, more like she didn't get along with me), but my second therapist greatly benefited my life.

The main advice I would give for choosing one, oddly enough, is be critical. Connection, trust building, empathy and understanding are all much more important than the number of degrees the person has. My personality sounds similar to your son's, as even now I still find it quite difficult to provide any information about myself, but my second therapist was a person who was easy to talk to about my problems.

Most professionals do allow free trial appointments, and your son can use this as an opportunity to see how they connect to the issues he is facing. I would also attempt to get on a waiting list for any free therapeutic services that are available, although this will probably take a year at least.

[jasperandchar]

Having suffered with mental illness since the age of 7 and still to this day. I think talk therapy is beneficial for some patients but I personally hate it. Give me my meds and leave me alone is how I feel. I don't like rehashing bad memories or incidents in my life so I prefer not to talk it over as most people believe you have to get to the ROOT OF THE PROBLEM and I know what the root of my problems are and have tried to deal with them on my own or with support of friends, family, spouse etc....I also feel that talk therapy turns into a blame game AND I don't see the point of it. Just my opinion.

[angelapride]

You should get hep from doctors and don't stay alone. You should join your friends company so you can enjoy your life with positive energy and positive thinking. You should control your self and take meditation daily .

[momof3heathens]

He went back to his original prescribing dr and was given a a new medication which made him extremely drowsy and suicidal. He was only supposed to take 1/8 of the pill per day and even the pharmacist wasn't able to break it accurately into small piece. Had a really bad morning so went to another clinic and the dr there looked at him oddly when he saw the odd dosage and told him he needs to take a full pill in order for it to be effective. Told him to expect to feel down for about a week and then hopefully back in the game. Gave him a notice for stress leave for a couple of weeks at work as well.

He seems more relaxed now that he has the letter for stress and a change in prescription.

This is just a real bad time for him overall. One month notice from landlord that although wasn't 100% unexpected did take him by surprise.

Poor budgeting, eating, sleeping habits haven't helped at all.

I am now concerned he might have developed an eating disorder on top of everything. His sister tried to take him out for lunch and he said he hasn't been hungry lately and hadn't eaten since the morning meal the day before. When he comes here he turns down food but then I see him in the kitchen wolfing down a piece of fruit and a sandwich so I am not sure what to think.

[xox2010]

Since I've noticed that a lot of people are talking about anxiety in here, I thought I'd share my thoughts / story... I started seeing a psychologist in February to help with my social anxiety which I have suffered from for as long as I can remember. I've been thinking of switching to a different one, as it really hasn't been helping me. I participate fully in the sessions, so it's not for a lack of trying on my part. I have thought for a long time that medication may be helpful for me, but I don't know who to ask.

[Aslan]

Since I've noticed that a lot of people are talking about anxiety in here, I thought I'd share my thoughts / story... I started seeing a psychologist in February to help with my social anxiety which I have suffered from for as long as I can remember. I've been thinking of switching to a different one, as it really hasn't been helping me. I participate fully in the sessions, so it's not for a lack of trying on my part. I have thought for a long time that medication may be helpful for me, but I don't know who to ask.

Ask your doctor first, and/or ask your doctor for a referral for a psychiatrist. A psychiatrist is a better option as they will be better versed in medications, but wait times are longer.

You could also try Group Therapy sessions. Meeting other people with social anxiety issues can often help, and you may get some new insights on how to manage your own.

As someone with severe Social Anxiety, I can understand your situation. Anxiety isn't really talked about too much in the media, but personally it's been much more difficult to overcome than Depression or Psychosis.

[Aslan]

Received my Health Records from back from the Mental Health system here. Always fun to find out that your psychiatrist didn't consider you a good candidate for long-term medication usage, while continually increasing your prescription without ever mentioning this...

The last 3-4 years might have been better without the dissociative and delusional disorders + intense paranoia that I know the pills caused, but there isn't much point dwelling on it.

[momof3heathens]

Sorry to hear that Aslan.

This week has been pure hell for my son. I have had to cancel cable and phone service and am going to default on my credit cards so I could help him out with rent or else he would be homeless.

He was crying so hard that he made his sisters and me cry as well and then that just got him more upset.

It is hard to say if his anxiety both social and worry make him depressed or the other way around. He has been upset that he is 19 almost 20 and has never even kissed a girl before and meanwhile his younger sister has been in 2 2.5 year relationships. He says it makes him feel even more like a loser.

I wish there was something that I could say to help him see the light at the end of the tunnel but I could tell that I was just making him feel even worse as I get that he feels that I am discrediting his feelings.

[gryphon]

I went to see some doctors and I am going to have a change of medications. I hope it helps.

[Abner007]

Yeah. Infect today i have fight with my younger brother and my mother has always took his side. That was too hurting. She know very well that he was always wrong but she never say him anything. After such behave i am very hurt and also depressed. I am also depressed now at this time.

[gryphon]

Interesting couple of weeks.
I started a new medication at a psychiatrist's recommendation and as of today I've switched back. The side effects were far too big. For one it was supposed to deal with my appetite increase from my old meds but as my doctor put it, I seem to have a paradoxical metabolism, where medicine doesn't work right on me. My appetite and weight increased and I developed severe sleeping problems. Hopefully its done with today.

[vesper]

Oh gee, is the medication worse than the problem sometimes? I wish I knew moer about this subject. Hope you are diong well buddy!