Do you suffer from depression?

pekoe & nigel

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Hope this isn't too intrusive to ask, so please ignore me if you wish.

I've noticed a fair number of people (myself included) posting about their personal issues relating to depression and similar problems. I'm curious about how many people here have experienced this, either in their past or present.

I'll make this anonymous in case anyone wants to vote, but not share their personal life.
 

swampwitch

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After the childhood I had, my life's only gotten better and better. I realize depression can be caused by a chemical imbalance, too, but I live in the present and my life is full of silver linings.
 

arlyn

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I'm currently suffering depression and taking drugs for it, but I don't think my problem is chemical.
I think my depression is due to a past injury and my personal pity party about my ongoing pain.
Not sure what they call it these days, but it used to be called Chronic Pain Disorder.
The pain is very real, but the injuries are no longer there.
 

megagene

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I have suffered from severe refractory depression for almost four years now. I've had to be hospitalised because of it.
 

Moz

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Yes, in spring 2006 it was found that I have depression and panic disorder. I actually missed a large chunk of grade nine because of it. Now I'm medicated (and dedicated!) and in therapy so hopefully everything will return back to normal.
 

kaylacat

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Yes, I suffer from depression, agoraphobia and socail anxiety disorder (and panic attacks because of it).

I am on paxil and klonopin now and for the most part I am doing better. Right now I have been stressed so I have been a little down but I won't let it win.
 

miagi's_mommy

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Yes, but I don't let it get in the way of my life.
I am pretty positive about things, although depression sucks and if I get really depressed I just push myself back to the top and do stuff I enjoy and always take good care of myself.
 

okuda

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Yup .. since the age of 11.

It comes in cycles tho and when it hits I have to go on the ol happy pills.
I also get extremely paranoid when I am on a cycle.

For me it's a chemical imbalance.
My latest Dr actually sat down and explained it all to me (The first one to do this in 15 years)

She told me your brain produces Serotonin which it naturally breaks down and replaces.
When I hit a cycle of depression ~ It stops producing it and just breaks it down totally.
What the anti depressants do is make your brain continually produce Serotonin and that is why they bring you back up.
She said you have to be on them for a minimum of 6 months because a lot of people come off them too early and it sends you back down.
This is also why you can't come off them cold turkey, cause your brain is basically addicted to them. (I learned that the hard way!)

My last stint I was on them for a year and 3 months ... I came off them Feb this year.

I gave up fighting it and getting mad about it years ago.
I accept it is part of me and a part of who I am, as much as my heart beating is part of me. Just got to deal with it when it comes.
 

natalie_ca

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Yes. I take 30 mg of Celexa every day and that helps. I've been on Celexa for 4 or 5 years. I now have the normal range of emotions and am able to bounce back from periods of saddness.
 

ocicatdude

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Yes i had my first panic attack at age 11.

I then dropped out of school at age 13 and could not leave the house due to severe anxiety which then stemmed into depression which i still suffer from to this day. I'm 18 now. I have been told I have a chemical imbalance of the brain.. I had lots of therapy/councelling all that rubbish but none of it helped me really, the only person that helped me was myself and my parents!

I'm on medication and the anxiety is way better though it still hits me in the face sometimes, But i do everything now and dont let it rule my life anymore.


Also have OCD which is quite a recent thing, i first noticed it about a year and a half ago.

My dad has also suffered from anxiety/depression for over 20 years so i think it is hereditry(spell?)
 

gilly

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I am 29 and since I was 18 I have suffered from depression - on and off - I have had bad years and good years. Since November I have been 100% better (I moved house and I am on a super high still). I am waiting for it all to fall again but I am trying not to let that happen (I know that sounds negative, but it has happened so many times before). I still get bad days but the good days are currently in charge. This is the longest period since I was 18 where I am on a high.


I agree to some extent that it can be genetic - my grandmother has suffered all of her life and apart from my mum having post-natel depression after I was born, I am the only other person in the family with it. I also know that mine is from past experiences as well and not just genetic. There has been some triggers and also some form of post traumatic stress.

to everyone who posted
 

tnr1

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Yes....years ago I was on Paxil for a bit but found that the drug route didn't work for me because I have both depression and anxiety (go figure) so (for me) I'd either decrease the depression and increase the anxiety or vice versa. What has worked well for me is to learn new coping skills...having a better overall attitude about myself and incorporating humor whenever possible.

Katie
 

lsulover

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I do not suffer from depression, I take life as it is, stuff happens in life that we don't like, but I just take it and go on.

I don't let stuff bother me, I worry about stuff, but I don't get depressed because of it.
 

pookie-poo

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I was diagnosed with Seasonal Affective Disorder in 1990, but I think I was suffering from it as far back as the mid '70's. I was enrolled into a SAD study through University of Michigan in the early '90's, where anti-depressant therapy and light therapy was tested for efficacy. I was on the anti-depressant and counseling track. In 1990, I was so depressed that I was seriously considering suicide. The antidepressants that they put me on were truly lifesaving. Later, I found out that I was on Prozac. Since that time, I have been on antidepressants most winters (November through March or April.) Prozac still works the best for me. Things have been pretty good for the last few years and I haven't needed them. I recognize the signs and am very quick to talk to my doctor if I start feeling down and blue and will get back on them if I need them.

There must be a genetic componant of depression in my family. My father, his mother, and 3 of his 5 sisters suffer(ed) from depression. My mother had a bout of it (with suicidal ideation) after her mother died. My sister is (finally) being treated for depression and anxiety disorder. Actually, my sister probably has it worse than anyone in our family. She really scares me sometimes. It's especially hard, because she's 3000 miles away in San Diego, so it is difficult to check up on her. She sometimes doesn't answer the phone for days or weeks. Thankfully, her ex-husband is willing to go over to her house and check on her for me.
 

jaffacake

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Unfortunatley, yes.
I`ve had it since puberty and the last episode had me hospitalised for 6 months but that was nearly 5 years ago now and they put me on 5 kinds of medication which I`ve gradually weened myself off of until now I`m only taking one which is Tegretol and I`ve reduced that but I don`t know if I will come off it completely. The doctors never gave a firm diagnosis but BPD and bi-polar were the words bandied around.


I still have mild episodes occasionally but it`s not so bad I feel the need to slash through arteries and as corny as it sounds, having Kitty has made me be more responsible because I worry more about what will happen to him and I don`t want to be in hospital ever again.
 

okuda

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Originally Posted by LSULOVER

I do not suffer from depression, I take life as it is, stuff happens in life that we don't like, but I just take it and go on.

I don't let stuff bother me, I worry about stuff, but I don't get depressed because of it.
That's a lot easier said then done for a lot of people, more so long term sufferers of the disease.

For a lot it's not a case of not letting stuff bother them, there are many more factors involved.

I guess we just all handle "life events" and situations differently.
 

lsulover

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Originally Posted by Okuda

That's a lot easier said then done for a lot of people, more so long term sufferers of the disease.

For a lot it's not a case of not letting stuff bother them, there are many more factors involved.

I guess we just all handle "life events" and situations differently.
I am sure that it is, I wasn't talking about no one else, I just said what I did.
 
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