I too am this way...well except I don't have a boyfriend....

quote:

Originally posted by Trey's Daddy:
I too am this way...well except I don't have a boyfriend....

lol well as for this very minute, I don't either.

Hi miss jess. I have been going through what sounds to be somewhat similar. http://singlefamilyvoices.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/1211033691/m/8921040373
I "diagnosed" myself and asked to be put on anti-depressants, had a follow up appt with my doc....he said yes that it was situational depression due to what has been going on in my life.
I also knew that I wasn't connecting with anyone or anything beyond the surface. Was putting on a happy mask to deal with my customers, totally hiding how I was struggling except to confide in my brother and even my daughter to some degree (it was apparent to her anyway that dad was having issues ). I was even coming in here and reading posts but unable to really reply to anything. I've been on the anti-depressants for nearly a month now and they have helped, though I am supposed to send an email to my doc (today) to let him know how it's going and I'm going to ask him if I should try to up the dose since I still seem to not be completely "leveled out" yet and he started me on a pretty low dose.

Consider making an appt with your doctor, or a therapist, and see what they think. In depression you will have up days and down days, it's not like you are always bottomed out. It's just that the ups aren't as high as normal ups, and the downs are quite a bit lower than normal downs.

Hey MJ,

Before you break up... have you talked about this with your OB/GYN? If this "disconnection" occurs about every month for a week, it may be a good idea to tell your doctor about it.

I too deal with this.

I have been diagnosed with social anxiety disorder.
I have also been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and I do not take medication. This my choice. I have come along way since I was diagnosed 2 years ago. Alot of the people I have met and become closer to they did not that I suffer from these disorders.
I wish you luck and maybe talk to someone if you feel that this is taking over your life.
Good Luck!

Had I not seen first hand what the meds have done for my daughter I would have had a harder time asking for them. I did have a VERY hard time even allowing my daughter to be put on them to begin with, but they have made a big difference so I'm really okay with it now. Even the first time I was anxious for those 6 months to be done, but then seeing how fast she fell again after being off of them I'm in no hurry to have her back off of them now.
For females with the hormonal changes monthly it does definitely also affect the depression levels also. Some females get certain symptoms during that time, while females suffering from depression besides having the symptoms regularly get even worse during that time.
There are different "causes" for depression, it doesn't necessarily take major situational events to trigger it, in the end it still boils down to chemical imbalance. In my daughter's case it was something that had been going on for years because of her mother's stuff and undiagnosed/untreated for that long is part of why she got to the point she did and found her unhealthy outlet for dealing with it. I just didn't realize just how much it all affected her.
In my case as far back as I can remember I've always had some sort of social anxiety, part of why I got so deep into drugs/alcohol in my early adulthood....it masked that anxiety, but of course lead to a ton of other problems. Even after coming to terms with my addictions I've still had the social anxiety but have learned to just deal with it enough to get by. But now with this other stuff thrown in the mix as well, it got to the point I knew I needed to do something to change things. Especially with all the reading I've done about teen depression etc. I kept finding statements about how much more difficult it is for the teen if the parent is depressed as well.

But back to you. Only you will be able to really decide whether medication is the answer. For some just identifying and accepting what is going on, some learning about how us humans deal with things mentally etc. is enough to turn things around and make things better or at least bearable Just actually realizing and addressing what is going on seems to be enough for some people to turn it around.
I would recommend first foremost to see your doctor, talk about what is going on, maybe a referral to a therapist/psychiatrist for some more detailed insight if need be. I'm certainly not saying meds is going to be the answer.
I only self diagnosed because of what I've already come to know about it all for the last few years dealing with my daughter, the counseling/therapy sessions, meetings with her psych, and a lot of reading on my own to help me understand what she is going through. And well of course I still went through my doctor and had a lengthy appt talking about everything that's going on and how I was feeling.

Hi Miss Jess...dissassociation been through that myself..speech and memory affected. Docto had diagnosed me with circumstancial depression, but was concerned with the severity of it..I was not able to drive my car for weeks because i was so diassociated that i couldnt measure my distance to anthing.

I went on it for about 6 months, and the doc gradually took me off to minimize the withdrawel. It took me about another 6 months to adjust after the medication, then i had another reassessment and so far so good..that has been about 2 years now.

I didn't want to go on them originally but the doc explained to me that if i didn't take care of it, in the early onset, that it would not go away and would only get worse. If I got on it, i had a chance to reverse the imbalance ...

quote:

Originally posted by Singleparentcoach:
Hi Miss Jess...dissassociation been through that myself..speech and memory affected.

Do you think I'm suffering from disassociation disorder?

quote:

Do you think I'm suffering from disassociation disorder?

I am not a doctor so I can't really say but my sister was just diagnosed with this disorder.
I would have to agree with Don and talk to your doctor.

I wish you luck!

quote:

Originally posted by miss jes:

quote:

Originally posted by Singleparentcoach:
Hi Miss Jess...dissassociation been through that myself..speech and memory affected.

Do you think I'm suffering from disassociation disorder?

Miss Jes,

Oops, it is a possibility, but don't focus on what you may have which may also be a part of depression and will just get you down...I realized I had said dissaciation, it was a word I used to relate to disconnection. So I apologize, the word I used probably wasn't the correct one. I didnt know it was a disorder. LOL
I'll look it up though.

Disassociation/disconnection I think from what I have heard is common with normal circumstancial depression.

To help you reverse it, or control it, check into yoga, and reiki sessions..it will definately help you and I can almost guarantee the reiki treatments will help you with "grounding" your chakras and rebalancing them.

In addition of course do not ignore seeing a doctor about it...i.e. vitamin deficiencies, hormonal imbalance etc...

The next few weeks should be spent grounding on simple grounding techniques. Here is one example I found on www.healthyplace.com which I have used myself in expressive art therapy.

Exercise 3: Oak Tree Meditation
Sit in a comfortable position, your arms resting at your sides.
Close your eyes and breathe deeply. Let your breathing be slow and relaxed.
See your body as a strong oak tree. Your body is solid like the wide, brown trunk of the tree. Imagine sturdy roots growing from your legs and going down deeply into the earth, anchoring your body. You feel solid and strong, able to handle any stress.
When upsetting thoughts or situations occur, visualize your body remaining grounded like the oak tree. Feel the strength and stability in your arms and legs.
You feel confident and relaxed, able to handle any situation.


Of course that is just one example, there are many. That one worked particularly well for me on a daily basis, esepcially outdoors in a park, but you will have to find oen that you enjoy doing that gives you the satisfaction...it is going to be a daily committment on your part even if it is for 5 minutes daily...

It will help you to regain connection with yourself and even the withdrawal of medication if your doctor does prescribe them to you for 6 months or so and weans you off.

Definitely talk to your doctor to get it out there and hear suggestions of how to deal with it.
Don't be afraid of medication, it doesn't make you any weaker to take them it makes you smarter for realizing you have an issue that you want taken care of.

As single parents we find ourselves taking care of everything but ourselves. After a while this can take its toll. We may not be able to pull ourselves up without others, but so often when we need help we push them away because we feel we should be strong enough to deal with it.

I don't have any advice on how to win the battle. I'm manic depressive and battling it myself. The fact that I've been able to come here and post a paragraph is astounding. It must be a good day. Myself...I'm on medication and about to start therapy again. Nothing really takes care of my condition b/c it's aggravated by so many factors. I wish you the best, and remind yourself when you're pushing people away that the good friends will push back.

Yes manic depression is difficult to manage..my aunt has it and she seems to have more bad days then good.
Her situation was not something i was able to understand nor help her with because she drinks alot with her meds. I am not sure if she went to drinking because of being manic depressive, or if it is a seperate issue altogether, but it sure makes it difficult for me to understand her. I wish I could. *sigh*

But nevertheless, as Blinsky and the others have said it doesn't hurt to get the help.

BTW...just curious how the medical doctors perscribe antidepressants there compared to here.

My doctor put me on a beginners perscription, a mild one, and depending on the effect, they can change the perscription to a stronger one, or reduce teh one your on, and wean you off...they do that here with mild forms of depression until they see what they are working with, and then decide of they continue or not.

Do the docs in the states work the same way? Just curious and is there such thing as a mild perscription and a stronger one in terms of the type of pill?