Who here has a mental illness?

Discuss Mental Health topics & issues.
Mariposa Traicionera
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Who here has a mental illness?

Post by Mariposa Traicionera »

I notice this forum isn't used much. I'm hoping that it's not because of fear of stigma, but just because those members with a MI are busy in other forums and not focusing on their illness. I'm bipolar though, and I'd love to meet others who are living with a MI.
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CARLA
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Post by CARLA »

My X was "Bipolar" back them it was called Manic Depressive it was his torment till the day he died. He never wanted to take medication so he suffered greatly.
ALOHA!!

MOTTO TO LIVE BY:

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WOO HOO!!, what a ride!!!"

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Accountable
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Post by Accountable »

I have a couple of bipolar students. I watch the complex emotions play across their face as they know what they want to do, what they need to do, what they're supposed to do .... the three rarely intersect. I have infinite patience when I see that.
luciferjohn
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Post by luciferjohn »

i had a friend who was bi polar, dont know what happened to her she moved while we were out of town:-1

and ive never been accused of being mentally stable:p:D
:driving:lookout smart guy talkin:guitarist:yh_devil:yh_ghost:
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Odie
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Post by Odie »

I have a freind who is bi-polar, every once in a while he locks himself in to complete solitude, doesn't answer the door nor his phone until he comes out of his heavy depression....and he is on meds.
Life is just to short for drama.
Mariposa Traicionera
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Who here has a mental illness?

Post by Mariposa Traicionera »

Odie;1238477 wrote: I have a freind who is bi-polar, every once in a while he locks himself in to complete solitude, doesn't answer the door nor his phone until he comes out of his heavy depression....and he is on meds.Ah yes, I know that kind of depression well. :(
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Nomad
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Post by Nomad »

Total whack job here.
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Odie
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Post by Odie »

Mariposa Traicionera;1238530 wrote: Ah yes, I know that kind of depression well. :(


me to, been on ant-depressants so long, they no longer work.:-5:-5
Life is just to short for drama.
Mariposa Traicionera
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Who here has a mental illness?

Post by Mariposa Traicionera »

Odie;1238555 wrote: me to, been on ant-depressants so long, they no longer work.:-5:-5


Odie, what are you taking? I had 2 SSRIs(Paxil and then Zoloft) stop working for me. The Dr. then put me on Effexor, which is an SNRI.
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Odie
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Post by Odie »

Mariposa Traicionera;1238558 wrote: Odie, what are you taking? I had 2 SSRIs(Paxil and then Zoloft) stop working for me. The Dr. then put me on Effexor, which is an SNRI.


I'm now on Cymbalta, they seem to help.

been on all the ones you mentioned as well, and tons more, seems they wear off every 2 years, which is supposedly right, as all drugs will wear off once your system becomes amune.
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shelbell
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Post by shelbell »

I have major depression and am bipolar 2. not as in bipolar also, but a different type of bipolar than what people recognize the most. I've tried just about every med out there, but I'm very medication resistant, so I haven't found a certain med, or combo of meds that have helped.
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Odie
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Post by Odie »

Mariposa Traicionera;1238530 wrote: Ah yes, I know that kind of depression well. :(


sorry I never responded, just now saw this thread again.

I'm sure you do know how that part of the depression is and even being on meds.

that's why is has its name.

I know how hard it is to stay strong, as I told you of my problems, its sucks.

and sometimes I cannot go out and see anyone, cannot drive, I cannot make any plans ahead of time...and yes...its sheer hell!

you know where I am if you need me.;)
Life is just to short for drama.
farmer giles
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Post by farmer giles »

i have bi polar i have learnt to control it

if i'm having a moment i cut off all contact with the outside world friends,internet and try not to upset any one i know its my illness making me angry or upset and i keep telling myself killing oscar is not a good idea its just my voices telling me it is :sneaky::sneaky:

i have post traumatic stress dissorder and i am seeing a top shrink :thinking:

i am drug free and i seem to be okish

my biggest bug to bare is fymbromyralgia which means i'm in constant pain which does not help my moods to much :thinking:

but unlike oscar i cant wait and hope tombie bans it :yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl



er just kidding oscey (mostly):D
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Odie
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Post by Odie »

farmer giles;1243843 wrote: i have bi polar i have learnt to control it

if i'm having a moment i cut off all contact with the outside world friends,internet and try not to upset any one i know its my illness making me angry or upset and i keep telling myself killing oscar is not a good idea its just my voices telling me it is :sneaky::sneaky:

i have post traumatic stress dissorder and i am seeing a top shrink :thinking:

i am drug free and i seem to be okish

my biggest bug to bare is fymbromyralgia which means i'm in constant pain which does not help my moods to much :thinking:

but unlike oscar i cant wait and hope tombie bans it :yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl



er just kidding oscey (mostly):D


:yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl mostly.
Life is just to short for drama.
hoppy
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Post by hoppy »

Don't know if I'm sick or not but I find myself avoiding people. I cross the street to keep from passing people, if I can. I enter and leave my building through the parking garage usually. Make excuses when I'm invited anywhere. Even to relatives homes. Don't encourage visitors. Being around people makes me uncomfortable. My daughters say I'm just being a crabby old fart.:confused:
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Odie
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Post by Odie »

hoppy;1243978 wrote: Don't know if I'm sick or not but I find myself avoiding people. I cross the street to keep from passing people, if I can. I enter and leave my building through the parking garage usually. Make excuses when I'm invited anywhere. Even to relatives homes. Don't encourage visitors. Being around people makes me uncomfortable. My daughters say I'm just being a crabby old fart.:confused:


could just be that you don't feel like being sociable.

some are just like that.
Life is just to short for drama.
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shelbell
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Post by shelbell »

hoppy;1243978 wrote: Don't know if I'm sick or not but I find myself avoiding people. I cross the street to keep from passing people, if I can. I enter and leave my building through the parking garage usually. Make excuses when I'm invited anywhere. Even to relatives homes. Don't encourage visitors. Being around people makes me uncomfortable. My daughters say I'm just being a crabby old fart.:confused:


Well are you a crabby old fart? ;) You sound like how I am hoppy...with my depression, I have a strong tendancy to isolate myself. I never make plans in advance because I don't know if I'll be able to handle it when that day arrives. That's what's so nice about cyber land...I can check out of it whenever I want. It's harder to do that in RL. I also avoid being around people as much as I can, even family.
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TenneseeGirl
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Post by TenneseeGirl »

I'm nuts, but I am just getting back on FG so maybe I shouldn't tell anyone that.

To late.

:-5

Bi-Polar, no meds. Meds Make me worse. Really and truley. So I manage with those good old fashioned coping skills....

Now where did I leave my chainsaw? *looks*
~~~~~

Just some food for thought. Swallow it or not that's up to you.:lips:
Clodhopper
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Post by Clodhopper »

Someone who is (unfortunately) rather more important to me than I am to her suffered from bipolar depression. When my wife left, my friend (who was also my ex-wife's oldest friend) ended her friendship with my ex. Since then she has never had a bout of the bad stuff - this is now about ten years. Tells you somethig about what an expert manipulator my ex-wife was. I had seen some of the signs, but I was in love and a fool. I believed my wife's explanations...

My sisters think I have Asperger's. Actually, I suffer from very low self-esteem and self-confidence as a result of a violent and domineering mother and a wife who used me as a lesbian's alibi. I have no problems with homosexuality - love is love - but she married me intending to divorce me when it suited. I loved her with the passion of a first love and have not yet recovered from the effects of having that shat on. I now find it very difficult to trust, and run a mile if anyone shows an interest. Equally, I find I am only interested in women it is very, very unlikely will be interested in me.

On the other hand, although I was ground down to a tightly curled knot, almost invisible, I have never lost the ability to laugh at the world and its follies as well as me and mine.

Sh*t has happened and will continue to happen, but I'm still here and still laughing and tomorrow I will move forward, even if it's only a millimetre and even if I can't get off my knees.
The crowd: "Yes! We are all individuals!"

Lone voice: "I'm not."
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Raven
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Post by Raven »

Clodhopper;1244547 wrote: Someone who is (unfortunately) rather more important to me than I am to her suffered from bipolar depression. When my wife left, my friend (who was also my ex-wife's oldest friend) ended her friendship with my ex. Since then she has never had a bout of the bad stuff - this is now about ten years. Tells you somethig about what an expert manipulator my ex-wife was. I had seen some of the signs, but I was in love and a fool. I believed my wife's explanations...



My sisters think I have Asperger's. Actually, I suffer from very low self-esteem and self-confidence as a result of a violent and domineering mother and a wife who used me as a lesbian's alibi. I have no problems with homosexuality - love is love - but she married me intending to divorce me when it suited. I loved her with the passion of a first love and have not yet recovered from the effects of having that shat on. I now find it very difficult to trust, and run a mile if anyone shows an interest. Equally, I find I am only interested in women it is very, very unlikely will be interested in me.



On the other hand, although I was ground down to a tightly curled knot, almost invisible, I have never lost the ability to laugh at the world and its follies as well as me and mine.



Sh*t has happened and will continue to happen, but I'm still here and still laughing and tomorrow I will move forward, even if it's only a millimetre and even if I can't get off my knees.
You sound like my husband. :-2 Before I met him of course. Have you ever thought of writing a diary?

Your soul mate is out there....and probably thinking the same thing! This is fascinating stuff, Clod!

How are you doing now honey?



The National Autistic Society - What is Asperger syndrome?



In case anyone wants to look at the symptoms and signs of aspergers.
~Quoth the Raven, Nevermore!~
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AussiePam
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Post by AussiePam »

I only just saw this thread this morning . Ah Clodhopper, so sorry!! You deserve so much better. I'm sending you a heap of positive thoughtwaves. Reckon you're attitude is spot on about keeping laughing and crawling forward.

I've found - like you have too - that taking a long walk in the countryside can massively lighten the psyche. So can music.

And Raven's suggestion of writing a diary !!!
"Life is too short to ski with ugly men"

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shelbell
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Post by shelbell »

AussiePam;1260245 wrote: I only just saw this thread this morning . Ah Clodhopper, so sorry!! You deserve so much better. I'm sending you a heap of positive thoughtwaves. Reckon you're attitude is spot on about keeping laughing and crawling forward.

I've found - like you have too - that taking a long walk in the countryside can massively lighten the psyche. So can music.

And Raven's suggestion of writing a diary !!!


Some great ideas on here clodhopper...I should listen to them too. :-6
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Raven
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Post by Raven »

hoppy;1243978 wrote: Don't know if I'm sick or not but I find myself avoiding people. I cross the street to keep from passing people, if I can. I enter and leave my building through the parking garage usually. Make excuses when I'm invited anywhere. Even to relatives homes. Don't encourage visitors. Being around people makes me uncomfortable. My daughters say I'm just being a crabby old fart.:confused:
Dunno Hops. I'm thinking it's just us older ones. Starting to isolate ourselves because the younger world just doesnt make sense anymore.

It's violent, rude, hostile and totally alien. I dont like going out either, and I find myself making hubby do the small errands so I dont have to. I find it harder to leave my front door anymore. But I know I'm not ill. Nothing wrong with not liking what society is turning itself into. :thinking:
~Quoth the Raven, Nevermore!~
Earl Purple
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Post by Earl Purple »

I am aspie. And my wife is bi-polar. And my son is Downy. Whole family of it here...
mikeinie
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Post by mikeinie »

I didn't before I joined here.... :thinking:
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YZGI
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Post by YZGI »

mikeinie;1261342 wrote: I didn't before I joined here.... :thinking:
:yh_rotfl

Ditto, now I'm starting to wonder.
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Odie
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Post by Odie »

mikeinie;1261342 wrote: I didn't before I joined here.... :thinking:


perhaps this will help!:yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl




Life is just to short for drama.
Clodhopper
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Post by Clodhopper »

AussiePam, shelbell, Raven: Thanks for the kind thoughts.

I've been unlucky in some ways, but it's still a beautiful world. Yesterday was sunshine and showers and a small tree in my garden, totally bare of leaves, was diamond covered with raindrops refracting in sudden sun. breathtaking in suburbia! :)

And, of course, I'm English. The Pinnacle of Creation. :p

I found I had some good friends and - let it be said - my wife could have made the divorce much worse. We avoided the courts. I live by renting a few rooms. My health is pretty good (touch wood) and my time is my own. Oh my, it could be much, much worse! :-6

Emotional damage is real. It affects me in my everyday behaviour and the way I view the world and much of it isn't nice. Perhaps the main reason I empathise with Autistics is that like them I view the world in a not-quite-standard-way. This is not something I would be without and if the price is my life to date - so be it.

Be nice if the England Rugby team were playing better, though. Reckon those All Blacks are going to give us a right royal stuffing. :mad::wah:
The crowd: "Yes! We are all individuals!"

Lone voice: "I'm not."
Ahso!
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Post by Ahso! »

Clodhopper;1244547 wrote: Someone who is (unfortunately) rather more important to me than I am to her suffered from bipolar depression. When my wife left, my friend (who was also my ex-wife's oldest friend) ended her friendship with my ex. Since then she has never had a bout of the bad stuff - this is now about ten years. Tells you somethig about what an expert manipulator my ex-wife was. I had seen some of the signs, but I was in love and a fool. I believed my wife's explanations...

My sisters think I have Asperger's. Actually, I suffer from very low self-esteem and self-confidence as a result of a violent and domineering mother and a wife who used me as a lesbian's alibi. I have no problems with homosexuality - love is love - but she married me intending to divorce me when it suited. I loved her with the passion of a first love and have not yet recovered from the effects of having that shat on. I now find it very difficult to trust, and run a mile if anyone shows an interest. Equally, I find I am only interested in women it is very, very unlikely will be interested in me.

On the other hand, although I was ground down to a tightly curled knot, almost invisible, I have never lost the ability to laugh at the world and its follies as well as me and mine.

Sh*t has happened and will continue to happen, but I'm still here and still laughing and tomorrow I will move forward, even if it's only a millimetre and even if I can't get off my knees.I just now noticed this thread.

It's funny, CH, you seem so intuitive about relationships with the excellent advise you've so generously offered up to me in another thread. And based on the elegance and style with which you present yourself, if some smart woman doesn't grab you, I just might fly to the UK and chase you down myself. :)

Seriously though, when I experienced the unfortunate event of infidelity in my marriage it was devastating for a good 2 years. For the first 7 months to the day i could not function as my kids watched the strongest man they had known crumble into a pile of sawdust before them. I found that forgiveness is a conscious choice, but I also had a wife that was so sorry and contrite that the outward appearance of her shame was as obvious as my pain. Unfortunately, you and so many others have not had that benefit, and I'm so sorry for you and them.

Now its my turn to offer you some advice, and that is to take a chance on a person you consider least likely to possess what you need, not for a serious relationship, but for the purpose to go on the hunt again (as my son calls it). Could be that you need to let your ex know, even though she may never really know that you've healed and she possess no more power over you. You'll never get completely over the betrayal but you can put it in a place that will only present itself to you on your terms, not its or hers. You survived and you need to appreciate the fact that you have that strength.

Become playful with women again, welcome your wit and intelligence once again into your being, its dying to smile through you.

As for the aspie -- hey bro!!
“Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities,”

Voltaire



I have only one thing to do and that's

Be the wave that I am and then

Sink back into the ocean

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Ahso!
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Post by Ahso! »

hoppy;1243978 wrote: Don't know if I'm sick or not but I find myself avoiding people. I cross the street to keep from passing people, if I can. I enter and leave my building through the parking garage usually. Make excuses when I'm invited anywhere. Even to relatives homes. Don't encourage visitors. Being around people makes me uncomfortable. My daughters say I'm just being a crabby old fart.:confused:This often happens to me as well, Hoppy. It seems the more I isolate myself, the more I want to be isolated, and isolation is fine if one enjoys being alone. However, the fact that you and I are here on this forum with all these other wonderful people at least offers very strong hope to us that we really do enjoy company too.

You've got so much to offer people. You're intelligent and funny and probably so much more than that.

What I've been learning lately now that I have accepted who I am, is that I'm so much more comfortable in my skin. I've been taking my virtual personality back out to the street again where it originated and am seeing that most people respond positively when I engage them in conversation and good cheer.

As I've become older, I look at myself in photos and am amazed at not only the advanced aged looks I now adorn, but my weight fluctuates so much and when I think I'm looking heavy, I tend to isolate myself more. I have to get comfortable with my appearance or else I'll wither away in the RW, and my family deserves better than that from me.

Good Luck!!
“Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities,”

Voltaire



I have only one thing to do and that's

Be the wave that I am and then

Sink back into the ocean

Fiona Apple
Ahso!
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Post by Ahso! »

Earl Purple;1261210 wrote: I am aspie. And my wife is bi-polar. And my son is Downy. Whole family of it here...Welcome EP, I hope you share your thoughts with us. We could use the conversation.
“Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities,”

Voltaire



I have only one thing to do and that's

Be the wave that I am and then

Sink back into the ocean

Fiona Apple
Ozay
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Post by Ozay »

My brother has had mental illness since he was 16. He is stable at the moment as he is on anti-psychotic drugs but he has been through some tough times and it has been particularly hard for me and my parents until the last couple of years these pills have helped a lot. He used to have psycotic episodes and dellusions that were scary to have to deal with and he has been in hospital often until the last couple of years. I wouldn't say he is a hundred per cent better no one in his shoes is he will probably remain on benefits for the rest of his life the doctor years ago diagonised him as having schizophrenia not voices in his head but dellusions that came on strong at times. He is so lucky that he lives in York where the healthcare system is excellent where i live there is a lot to be desired! For too many years he didn't have a community physchiatric nurse to help support him where as now he does have. I have had a very hard life at times having to cope with him but have got through it and at least now we got on better than we have in years although i do find him very demanding at times. He has one good friend in York who is also a friend of mine who i knew years before my brother who also has mental health problems but has been stable for a long time now, his parents died when he was 18 so that lead to his illness. My best freinds' ex girlfriend also has mental health problems so i know quite a few of people with these problems! I don't think it is something to be ashamed of in my position it is just something i have had to deal with and apart from depression myself at times due to stress and past drug abuse i count myself lucky that i haven't had to be in hospital or are on strong medication. In the town where i live there is a lot of small mindedness and a lot of people are afraid of people who have mental health problems and mock them rather than try to understand them.
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shelbell
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Post by shelbell »

Ozay, it seems to be so much different here in the states. It's like a mental illness epidemic. At least in my part of the country, it seems mental illness is no longer a stigma, but openly discussed and, in my opinion, way over diagnoised. I don't know the numbers and statistics off the top of my head and am way to lazy to look them up right now, but it seems that any child with a little too much energy is ADD, ADHD, and the list goes on. Everyone that feels a little sad for a couple of days has clinical depression. (yes, I know that's an exhageration) But I think you get my point.

I guess it's a good thing that mental illness is more openly accepted than it was in the past, and maybe that's the reason for the explosion of people diagnosed with a MI. I can't judge this myself considering I have major depression and Bipolar2. I have yet to find a med, or a combination of meds, that actually help me, but I keep trying. If it weren't for the internet, I would have almost no "social life" at all.
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AussiePam
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Post by AussiePam »

shelbell;1264201 wrote: Ozay, it seems to be so much different here in the states. It's like a mental illness epidemic. At least in my part of the country, it seems mental illness is no longer a stigma, but openly discussed and, in my opinion, way over diagnoised. I don't know the numbers and statistics off the top of my head and am way to lazy to look them up right now, but it seems that any child with a little too much energy is ADD, ADHD, and the list goes on. Everyone that feels a little sad for a couple of days has clinical depression. (yes, I know that's an exhageration) But I think you get my point.

I guess it's a good thing that mental illness is more openly accepted than it was in the past, and maybe that's the reason for the explosion of people diagnosed with a MI. I can't judge this myself considering I have major depression and Bipolar2. I have yet to find a med, or a combination of meds, that actually help me, but I keep trying. If it weren't for the internet, I would have almost no "social life" at all.


You don't think this may have something to do with extreme private enterprise and the pharmaceutical industry. Feed every kid overprocessed food full of sugar and colours, and ensure they play flashing computer games all day. They get hyperactive, so you ignore the causes and just treat the symptoms with an array of drugs with side effects, so these kids will grow up needing more and more etc..

For adults, calm them down with prozac. Oh, that messes with their libido. So give them viagra. And something to wake them up. Oh and something to make them sleep.

Sigh.

Mental illnesses have always existed, and it's great that the genuine ones can be much helped these days with appropriate medication - but sadness isn't the same as clinical depression. One is reaction to an event, one is related to brain chemistry. Anti-depressants treat the second, and just make you too fogged up to deal with the first.

Sorry - small personal tangent there... :sneaky:
"Life is too short to ski with ugly men"

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shelbell
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Post by shelbell »

AussiePam;1264202 wrote: You don't think this may have something to do with extreme private enterprise and the pharmaceutical industry. Feed every kid overprocessed food full of sugar and colours, and ensure they play flashing computer games all day. They get hyperactive, so you ignore the causes and just treat the symptoms with an array of drugs with side effects, so these kids will grow up needing more and more etc..

For adults, calm them down with prozac. Oh, that messes with their libido. So give them viagra. And something to wake them up. Oh and something to make them sleep.

Sigh.

Mental illnesses have always existed, and it's great that the genuine ones can be much helped these days with appropriate medication - but sadness isn't the same as clinical depression. One is reaction to an event, one is related to brain chemistry. Anti-depressants treat the second, and just make you too fogged up to deal with the first.

Sorry - small personal tangent there... :sneaky:


Sounds like we're on the same page here Pam. What I meant by the sadness versus the depression, is that it seems the "professionals" want to prescribe, prescribe, prescribe for anyone that is down. They diagnois to quickly, plus it means more visits to them, and as you said, lots of money for the pharmaceutical companies that just keep pumping out new meds all the time, which in a lot of cases, are just the same as the old ones, just a wee bit different.

And I understand your tangent, I think that's what mine was too. :wah:
Ozay
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Post by Ozay »

I have never felt 'fogged up' when taking anti-depressants in the past such as prozac in fact they have sorted me out on both occasions and i have never felt as happy or confident as that before. It maybe different for other people and i know that they can be addictive but i don't think you should dismiss them for everyone some people they do genuinely help. I don't know what it is like in the US but in the UK these drugs are hard to get hold of from the doctor last time i tried when i was feeling down i had to answer a questionare before i was prescribed them i found it humilating it made me think if i feel this bad again i would be best just riding it out.
Ahso!
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Who here has a mental illness?

Post by Ahso! »

Ozay;1264472 wrote: I have never felt 'fogged up' when taking anti-depressants in the past such as prozac in fact they have sorted me out on both occasions and i have never felt as happy or confident as that before. It maybe different for other people and i know that they can be addictive but i don't think you should dismiss them for everyone some people they do genuinely help. I don't know what it is like in the US but in the UK these drugs are hard to get hold of from the doctor last time i tried when i was feeling down i had to answer a questionare before i was prescribed them i found it humilating it made me think if i feel this bad again i would be best just riding it out.Here in the U.S., these drugs are so easily gotten it's scary.

I think the point is that it probably is better to "ride it out" because thats where wisdom comes from. If we run to the nearest relief as often as many do every time fife presents a problem, we become dependent. How in the world are we to advise our children and grandchildren how to navigate life if we don't bother figuring it out ourselves? Thats our job as adults, isn't it? Assisting kids with homework is only part of our responsibility as elders.

There are of course extreme cases in which drugs are needed, but those cases are far fewer than we're witnessing. I've always said that in the vast majority of cases theres only one reason to take drugs, and it isn't to get better, its to get high, which is exactly what "felling good and more confidant" really means.

If people want to remain perpetually high they should say that rather than tell others drugs gets them through. Being straight has its advantages too, but we've lost focus of that as a society.

People should understand that they are so simply manipulated by corporate interests. Monkeys on a string. Life is ying and yang-light and dark-good and evil, or whatever other metaphor one chooses.
“Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities,”

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Ozay
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Who here has a mental illness?

Post by Ozay »

I think you have got the wrong end of the stick here! I never meant to make 'confident and happy' to sound like i was getting high if i wanted to get high rather than helped i could have easily took a street drug! The fact was i like many others took a prescription drug to help me. The majority of people who are mentally ill in the UK take prescription drugs not to get high but to function because if they didn't they would most likely end up back in hospital. Whatever majority you are talking about it's not one i know of!
Ahso!
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Who here has a mental illness?

Post by Ahso! »

Ozay;1264816 wrote: I think you have got the wrong end of the stick here! I never meant to make 'confident and happy' to sound like i was getting high if i wanted to get high rather than helped i could have easily took a street drug! The fact was i like many others took a prescription drug to help me. The majority of people who are mentally ill in the UK take prescription drugs not to get high but to function because if they didn't they would most likely end up back in hospital. Whatever majority you are talking about it's not one i know of!Most street drugs are kids and others selling their meds, did you know that?

Any drug or even over stimulation of hormones which alters ones perception is how 'getting high' could be defined. Regulation of a high by a doctor is still 'getting high'. I'm simply asking those whom take drugs to ask themselves whether or not they are simply living life high. Most will deny it but keep asking yourself the question until the answer becomes a 'yes'. Thats when honesty is beginning to creep its way into your mind again.

After the question is in the affirmative then if those whom take the drugs want to continue thats fine with me as long as they do not impede the rights of others.

Also, I certainly hope those people whom take these drugs are all for drug legalization for the rest of us marijuana smokers who refuse to give into pharmaceutical company pressures to use theirs. Besides, it seems a bit hypocritical to not support those reforms, don't ya think?
“Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities,”

Voltaire



I have only one thing to do and that's

Be the wave that I am and then

Sink back into the ocean

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Who here has a mental illness?

Post by AussiePam »

Appropriate use of medication can prevent illness, cure disease, alleviate suffering. There have been incredible pharmaceutical breakthroughs which allow some sufferers of mental illnesses like schizophrenia to lead relatively normal lives. Those with mental illnesses need to be encouraged to take their medication properly, under the supervision of qualified specialists.
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Who here has a mental illness?

Post by Ahso! »

AussiePam;1264897 wrote: Appropriate use of medication can prevent illness, cure disease, alleviate suffering. There have been incredible pharmaceutical breakthroughs which allow some sufferers of mental illnesses like schizophrenia to lead relatively normal lives. Those with mental illnesses need to be encouraged to take their medication properly, under the supervision of qualified specialists.I agree!
“Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities,”

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I have only one thing to do and that's

Be the wave that I am and then

Sink back into the ocean

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Who here has a mental illness?

Post by shelbell »

Robert J;1264890 wrote: Most street drugs are kids and others selling their meds, did you know that?

Any drug or even over stimulation of hormones which alters ones perception is how 'getting high' could be defined. Regulation of a high by a doctor is still 'getting high'. I'm simply asking those whom take drugs to ask themselves whether or not they are simply living life high. Most will deny it but keep asking yourself the question until the answer becomes a 'yes'. Thats when honesty is beginning to creep its way into your mind again.

After the question is in the affirmative then if those whom take the drugs want to continue thats fine with me as long as they do not impede the rights of others.

Also, I certainly hope those people whom take these drugs are all for drug legalization for the rest of us marijuana smokers who refuse to give into pharmaceutical company pressures to use theirs. Besides, it seems a bit hypocritical to not support those reforms, don't ya think?


I'll tell you Robert, I wish these meds gave me a high...at least once in awhile. I'm extremely medication resistant and have yet to find anything that helps me to feel even close to normal. I'm not looking for a high...I'm looking for something that will help me be able to somewhat funtion daily.

It seems like you are making a wide generalization of people that take these meds. Yes, there are people that only want to feel that "high", but I believe the majority of us just want to feel a little more "normal". I believe that perceptions and denial of real problems, as you seem to be suggesting, is what keeps some people from seeking the help they desperately need.

I do not support the drug reform that you are suggesting, but I do believe there needs to be more stringent rules to detect the people that need the meds for help, versus the ones that are looking to get the drugs for abuse or monitary gain.
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Who here has a mental illness?

Post by shelbell »

AussiePam;1264897 wrote: Appropriate use of medication can prevent illness, cure disease, alleviate suffering. There have been incredible pharmaceutical breakthroughs which allow some sufferers of mental illnesses like schizophrenia to lead relatively normal lives. Those with mental illnesses need to be encouraged to take their medication properly, under the supervision of qualified specialists.


Yes, we do need more "professionals" to closely supervise their patients. Unfortunately some just pass out the drugs just to pacify the ones that complain they need them, then just keep refilling their prescriptions without any type of counseltation. I see my psychiatrist every 3-4 weeks to go over my meds and I play an active role in monitoring my meds and any side effects.
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Who here has a mental illness?

Post by Ahso! »

shelbell;1264906 wrote: I'll tell you Robert, I wish these meds gave me a high...at least once in awhile. I'm extremely medication resistant and have yet to find anything that helps me to feel even close to normal. I'm not looking for a high...I'm looking for something that will help me be able to somewhat funtion daily.

It seems like you are making a wide generalization of people that take these meds. Yes, there are people that only want to feel that "high", but I believe the majority of us just want to feel a little more "normal". I believe that perceptions and denial of real problems, as you seem to be suggesting, is what keeps some people from seeking the help they desperately need.

I do not support the drug reform that you are suggesting, but I do believe there needs to be more stringent rules to detect the people that need the meds for help, versus the ones that are looking to get the drugs for abuse or monitary gain.Thanks for the reply. But I guess some questions I need to ask is:

1)what is normal?

2) if a person has never felt normal, how do they know they are abnormal?

3)if the drugs have not been working and you have been getting by anyway, why not stop taking different drugs to find the one that "works". The fact that you're here and lucid must mean something. Sometimes I get so hung up on getting something done, I only focus on getting what I want done. Thats called obsessing, which i do often but I don't need any drugs for it.

My moods change pretty often and easily. If I find I've posted something incorrectly from thinking about the subject more, i get down and beat myself up which causes me to want to hide in a corner, but I deal with it without any drugs. I go into prolonged periods of downward turns at times, but i always ride it out. Sometimes I go to the other extreme too.

Thats life for some and is normal.
“Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities,”

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I have only one thing to do and that's

Be the wave that I am and then

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Who here has a mental illness?

Post by shelbell »

Robert J;1264980 wrote: Thanks for the reply. But I guess some questions I need to ask is:

1)what is normal?

2) if a person has never felt normal, how do they know they are abnormal?

3)if the drugs have not been working and you have been getting by anyway, why not stop taking different drugs to find the one that "works". The fact that you're here and lucid must mean something. Sometimes I get so hung up on getting something done, I only focus on getting what I want done. Thats called obsessing, which i do often but I don't need any drugs for it.

My moods change pretty often and easily. If I find I've posted something incorrectly from thinking about the subject more, i get down and beat myself up which causes me to want to hide in a corner, but I deal with it without any drugs. I go into prolonged periods of downward turns at times, but i always ride it out. Sometimes I go to the other extreme too.

Thats life for some and is normal.


I felt "normal" for many years. I believe everyone has their own normal.

I'm not looking for meds to be a quick fix for me...I'm just hoping to find something to help me enough so I can get out in the world again. I have a lot I need to deal with and believe I need other help besides meds. People with major depression have a chemical imbalance in their brain, this is a proven fact. Most people can't just "ride it out" without some help.

Yes I am here and am lucid, but this is easy for me most of the time. I don't have to change out of my pj's and face anyone and I don't have to leave my house. Just going to a doctors appointment is incredibly difficult. If I have to leave the house I get so much anxiety that all I can focus on is getting home and getting back into my pj's. Sometimes I can't even make myself get out of bed...i've slept 36 hours many times just because I can't face any part of the world or I can't deal with any type of feelings...so I sleep until I can't sleep anymore...I hide from the world and sleeping means I don't have to deal with anything or anyone. I am always tired and have no motivation to do much of anything because I'm so tired. I've missed out on many things just because I can't force myself out of bed.

I think the hardest part of this is that I don't care. My house is a mess, the dishes and laundry need to be done...I just don't care. I do just enough to get me by. I have to force myself to eat, I have such a lack of concentration. I used to be a very happy, very outgoing person...but now I'm just a shell of my former self. I would love to be able to be that person again, and this is why I keep trying different meds...maybe one day I'll find something that will help me just enough so that I can get out into the world again and finally give a damn about things enough to be able to somewhat enjoy life again.

I hope I've at least somewhat answered your questions.
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Post by Ahso! »

shelbell;1265173 wrote: I felt "normal" for many years. I believe everyone has their own normal.

I'm not looking for meds to be a quick fix for me...I'm just hoping to find something to help me enough so I can get out in the world again. I have a lot I need to deal with and believe I need other help besides meds. People with major depression have a chemical imbalance in their brain, this is a proven fact. Most people can't just "ride it out" without some help.

Yes I am here and am lucid, but this is easy for me most of the time. I don't have to change out of my pj's and face anyone and I don't have to leave my house. Just going to a doctors appointment is incredibly difficult. If I have to leave the house I get so much anxiety that all I can focus on is getting home and getting back into my pj's. Sometimes I can't even make myself get out of bed...i've slept 36 hours many times just because I can't face any part of the world or I can't deal with any type of feelings...so I sleep until I can't sleep anymore...I hide from the world and sleeping means I don't have to deal with anything or anyone. I am always tired and have no motivation to do much of anything because I'm so tired. I've missed out on many things just because I can't force myself out of bed.

I think the hardest part of this is that I don't care. My house is a mess, the dishes and laundry need to be done...I just don't care. I do just enough to get me by. I have to force myself to eat, I have such a lack of concentration. I used to be a very happy, very outgoing person...but now I'm just a shell of my former self. I would love to be able to be that person again, and this is why I keep trying different meds...maybe one day I'll find something that will help me just enough so that I can get out into the world again and finally give a damn about things enough to be able to somewhat enjoy life again.

I hope I've at least somewhat answered your questions.You and I sound so much alike.

If you listen to the commercials for these drugs carefully, they say that depression MAY be caused by a chemical imbalance, not that it is. the research is disputed too.

One thing that has been recently discovered is that "the pill", due to the fact that it reduces testosterone levels in females definitely contributes to depression. But what MD's do to deal with this is instead of taking their patients off the pill is prescribe anti-depressants, which no one really knows how anti depressants work (watch the commercials and read the literature critically) . The patient then becomes bi polar and is prescribed still more drugs. Its crazy!
“Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities,”

Voltaire



I have only one thing to do and that's

Be the wave that I am and then

Sink back into the ocean

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Who here has a mental illness?

Post by shelbell »

Robert J;1265211 wrote: You and I sound so much alike.

If you listen to the commercials for these drugs carefully, they say that depression MAY be caused by a chemical imbalance, not that it is. the research is disputed too.

One thing that has been recently discovered is that "the pill", due to the fact that it reduces testosterone levels in females definitely contributes to depression. But what MD's do to deal with this is instead of taking their patients off the pill is prescribe anti-depressants, which no one really knows how anti depressants work (watch the commercials and read the literature critically) . The patient then becomes bi polar and is prescribed still more drugs. Its crazy!


I don't remember them using the word may in the commercials, but I don't pay attention to them since I seem to have tried most of them. I do know that the word may is used lots of times for side effects in every medication commercial for everything. I'll have to look up some of this and look more closely at it.

Thankfully I don't take, or need, the pill. I do, however, have someone very close to me that does so I'll be doing some research on that also. Thanks for that info.

We may seem alike, but I've never been able to "ride it out". I've been dealing with this crap for 9 years and I really wish it would just go away already...I've had enough and don't want it anymore...I just wish I could find a way to get better. :(
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Who here has a mental illness?

Post by guppy »

I suffer from depression..i have taken zoloft, something else i cant remember and now cymbalta..i started out on 30, then sixty and now a hundred and twenty. there are days i am truelly happy..or peaceful..but there are far too many days when i am depressed. More than i care for anyway. The older i get the harder it seems for me to stay out of depression. When i am around other people i am happy..functioning..if i spend way to much time by myself..i slowly sink..and here is the kicker..i get depressed because i am feeling isolated from life..from the people i desire to be around..friends and family..and when the depression kicks in..i withdraw..which only makes the whole thing worse. for years i compensated with the isolation by coming to the internet. reading, cooking, gardening. anything to function. I never in my wildest dreams thought i would just break..crack, give up..go down..and not get up..but i did that and have never gotten back up as strong as i once was..i am always aware now..that i can be broken..and the thing nobody around me realizes is ..i hear that voice in my head far more often than i care for and would never admit in my real life..."there is always a way out and it would be so easy to do it" Thats how i have changed..instead of working towards something..goals, dreams..most of the time..what am doing now is..thinking..i made it another day and didnt take myself out.
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Post by guppy »

Sometimes when i hear something that hurts me i take even more of the antidepressents than prescribed..so i can stay a few steps aways from the dark place of no return..that meant i ran out two days ago and cant refill the script until tomorrow..so i have basically just been riding it out till tomorrow..i am on shakey ground and know it..Tomorrow will be better..tomorrow i will be standing in walmart..get what keeps me standing..keeps me breathing..and make it one more day.
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Who here has a mental illness?

Post by jennyswan »

I have panic disorder and ocd. I take lexapro and amisulprid which both really help. I take the occassional lorazepam if I get a really bad day but they are few and far between thank god. Life will always have its ups and downs and I try to see it that way. There is always a tomorrow.
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