Answered questions(8)
Distinguishing Mental Health Issues and Adolescent Issues
Hi! I'm 16 and I think I have been struggling with anxiety and depression for the last two years but I never told any one about it (whenever I tried my mum said it was because of "hormones" and my friends and people overall think it's just my personality) because I'm not exactly sure or even know what's wrong with me. Anyway I would like your opinion on it. When I was 14 I had no friends and I was very shy, also because my parents fight a lot I would just be sad all the time, I cried a lot but acted normal and I guess that no one really noticed that something was wrong enough. Then when I was 15 things got better about the shyness, I made friends and guess I became happier, still I had a very negative image of myself ( I tought that I was very ugly and I was disgusted with myself, and used as an excuse for my lack of friends). This Summer I overcame this problem as I started to be more optimistic and focus in positive thoughts and exercising. Now even though I feel beautiful I still have a hard time talking with people that I don't feel comfortable with (everyone beside my friends and relatives) as I just can't avoid feeling judged and like I'm not good enough or interesting enough as a person. Still this isn't the worse and it's relatively easy to deal with. What concerns me the most is that I'm very moody and anxious. I'm usually a happy, bubbly and nice person during like two weeks then during 2/3 days I feel awful, cranky, sad, annoyed, almost physically sick and I just have this horrible feeling like I'm in a black hole and like there's no hope, then I'm normal for like two weeks again. I know this sounds and is silly but I can't avoid it when it happens. I'm also anxious about lots of things, I try to distract my self but I still feel anxious, sometimes I even feel my heart beat fast inside my body. I just know that this isn't normal and because during the summer I've been normal with out any of these symptoms for like a month. Recently I've been diagnosed with polycystic ovarian syndrome and I read some studies that show it might be connected to depression and anxiety so maybe if I treat it this will go away? But my mum doesn't even let me take the contraceptive pill (which should control it)! I know that this is 2 much but what do you think my problem and is and what should I do? I'm confused.
Read answer →Is it about you?
Hello, I am writing to you because I read a question that someone had asked you a few years ago which was similar to my situation but not exactly. My 26 yr old son lives with me now and suffers from severe depression which is getting worse all the time. Since high school he has entered school multiple times but never finished. He moved to a larger city for almost a year and seemed to be happier then, met a girl he really liked, decided to go back to school.... He was in a very high pressure and stressful program and in the semester before what would have been his last he fell apart. He dropped out, came home and that was nearly 2years ago. About 14 months ago he broke up with the girl, said it was too hard to keep a relationship going if he wasn't going back to school where she lived and that she wouldn't want to stay with a failure like himself. Since then he has sunk lower and lower. He constantly lives in his head which is not a happy place. He beats himself up over all the failed attempts in the last 8 years since high school. Last fall he got a job, minimum wage and I think it perked him up temporarily but he quit it 2months ago and has done nothing. He doesn't do drugs and drinks very minimally. He was very addicted to a video game as an escape from reality but the last weeks I haven't seen him playing it much. I begged him to take some classes at the local community college and he has been doing that for a month now. So that is the history briefly. He says the constant mental chatter never ceases and that he will never be able to meditate. He has no friends, except his best friend who lives away and is about to get married. He goes no where and does nothing except school now. His health is starting to be affected. He eats very little, usually 1 meal a day, if that. I am single and I do not have the funds to support him. I paid for his school with a credit card. I have been able to get him to go to the chiropractor for his back which I also pay for with credit card. He has done minimal counseling the first year he was home, but he doesn't believe there is any help out there for him. He is loosing hope and he has said to me many time that it isn't worth it, that there is no point. I'm a pretty upbeat person but this is getting really, really hard. My other son also suffers from depression he is only 21. He also entered college right out of high school and didn't make it through the first year. We did get him treatment which he kept up for about 8 months after that he stayed home for another year. He went back to school last year, nearly dropped out in the spring semester but stuck it out barely getting by. He is back there again and is on meds and seems to be doing ok. I just have stay in touch with him regularly and try to make sure he's alright. Honestly, this almost sounds like a plea for help for myself, but if my kids are doing well then I can easily get on top of the world. I just don't know what to do for my oldest son that is at home now. He feels he's wasted the past 8 years and just can't get out of that place and he won't seek help. He has no joy, no goals, no interests and has virtually cut himself off from all emotion. He is basically shutting down. This situation would be a tragedy for any young person, but it is even more so for him because he is brilliant, an extremely intelligent and very handsome young man. I have to say that where we live I'm not sure we have access to quality mental health care anyway, but I would find the means somehow to pay for it if he were willing to get help.
Read answer →Could This Be Depression?
I am feeling a little bit down for no reason and this has been going on for about 2 weeks. The odd thing is I am all of a sudden sleeping like 10 or 11 hours a day and dragging myself out of bed even then. I am normally totally rested after about 7. Does this sound like depression. I am a little depressed but I would not have said it was serious enough to count as depression.
Read answer →Exposure Therapy - Would It Help?
I was bitten pretty badly by a German Sheppard when I was 11. I could have been killed but the owner of the dog saved me in time. Ever since then my fear of dogs has gotten worse and worse. Now I am 26 and I can’t even go to the park because there could be dogs there. Even watching a dog show on TV is difficult and unpleasant. If I want to get past my fear is exposure therapy the best choice? How long would it typically take for me to see some results? Do I need to find a person who specializes in this type of therapy or would any therapist feel comfortable with this type of thing?
Read answer →Helping a Depressed Person Seek Help
My sister is clearly depressed. She lost her job 18 months ago and has spiraled from a high energy person to a person that sleeps the day away so she won’t have to face it. I could list a thousand examples of the differences from then and now but there is no way there isn’t something seriously wrong. What is so frustrating is that she won’t admit it and she won’t do anything about it and when I try to bring up the subject now she closes up right away and it is like I am talking to a wall and so I end up listing all these reasons why I think she is depressed and it feels like I am in a courtroom putting her on trial for not being good enough. How do I convince her to get help without making her feel worse about herself than she already does and when by now, she doesn’t even want to talk to me anymore because she knows I keep nagging her about getting help.
Read answer →How to Support a Depressed Friend
What can you do when your friend is depressed and they tell you they don’t want you to call or come over anymore? Do you just ignore their wishes and go over anyway or is it better to respect their wishes because seeing friends makes them feel worse?
Read answer →Drastic Changes - Where To Look Next
My dad is a life long heavy drinker and smoker. 6 weeks ago he had a heart attack and emergency bypass surgery. Now he’s on a bunch of medications. He didn’t even know he had heart disease but apprantly his blood pressure was through the roof. He hasn’t had a drink or a smoke since the heart attack, which is incredible for him. But he is so changed that I am worried about him. He used to be very vital and funny and now he is like the opposite. He just goes to work and then goes home and sits in front of the TV. He seems depressed but I am not sure what to do. My questions are: Is it still normal for him to be depressed this long after his heart attack and surgery? Would quitting alcohol after drinking every day for a lifetime cause depression? He is on statins and beta blockers. Should he talk to his doctor about his depression to see if the medications might be causing it or is it still too soon for this? I understand that you can only give very general responses, but I’d appreciate having a starting point to know what to do or to know if I should just wait a bit longer.
Read answer →More Depression in the Modern World?
Is the modern lifestyle causing more people to get depressed than in decades of the past? Do you think as many people were depressed 100 years ago as are depressed today?
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