Frustrated

Frustrated not so much with myself and my current situation, although that is just right now in this moment. I have been very frustrated with my situation just about everyday even though I am not depressed today.

Frustrated at all the post I read of people hurting and struggling so much and feeling powerless to help. I know all the stories I read so well from my own experience and I can say you are not alone but that doesn't seem adequate. I want to say here is the solution and just do this and you will be cured. No such animal.

What tools do we have.

Medication- works great for some but not very well at all for so many. For me it has been a mixed bag.

Therapy- I have done years of it and it hasn't cured depression in fact it has gotten worse. Although I think it has helped me in the long run.

Group Therapy- My favorite but it has not cured depression. I think it has helped me in my life in other areas the same as one on one therapy.

Meditation- 20 years of practice. Helped in many ways but not for depression.

Diet and exercise- Pretty good about exercise over my life but not diet. Do I have faith that a totally healthy diet will lessen my depression? Not really.

Journaling- I have done a lot of it over the years. It has helped me but not in the depression area.

What else is there???? Doesn't seem like a very big tool kit. I have done them all for many years and the depression has gotten worse.

One word of encouragement is that my current set of meds are working better than anything I have ever taken for the last three months but I have had some three day dips into pretty bad depression while on them. I have no idea how long they will work.

In the big picture I have basically had to accept and live with this disease. Not a lot of great options and not enough tools. Therapy can take years. Meds are a big roller coaster as most of us know.

What else can we offer ourselves???

I hope the meds you're taking help you for a long time! I also get frustrated that so many of us are suffering, that I'm suffering. My sister took therapy and she seems fine, she has mild anxiety and of course, some things get her depressed but she gets over it the next day, she has a lot more motivation. That gives me hope since we suffer similar things. She's been like this since she was a child but she in a better place than I am right now. My anxiety and depression started in high school and it was okay, I was feeling anxious and depressed here and there but it was never this consistent. I hope I can go back to having anxiety here and there. I don't expect to be cured completely but I hope I can get to a mild level with my illnesses and live my 20s more in peace. We should never lose hope. Im holding on tight to hope right now and I hope therapy works for me like it did with my sister.

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Zinco,
Its nice to know that there are people like you who care so much. Depression can make you selfish but this clearly has not happened to you. I am glad your meds are working, just enjoy the good days try not to think how long your meds will work.
Best Wishes to you.

Hi zinco,
First bit first:

"Frustrated at all the post I read of people hurting and struggling so much and feeling powerless to help. I know all the stories I read so well from my own experience and I can say you are not alone but that doesn't seem adequate. I want to say here is the solution and just do this and you will be cured. No such animal"

You're right there's no "magic wand" we can just wave and...........there's no words that can just like that make everything OK........there's often no "just do that for a couple of weeks and you'll be feeling so much better".............now if that sort of help was possible, well.....that would be amazing!! But don't underestimate in any way the actual help you're giving people zinco!!!
You show people so much understanding, empathy, let them know they're not on there own in this, you relate to them however they're feeling and allow them to relate to you, you offer such good advise and support when............!!!!
And "even" things like that can sometimes make so much difference to someone when they're................just a tiny bit of light can mean a lot in between............!!
Seriously zinco, you help!! There's no disputing that at all!!
You might not be helping in the way you/any of us would want to be able to, but you are such an important part of the site. And what you do/say matters!!!

And now the rest:
Yes, tools can be "hit and miss" sometimes, and sometimes it can be about hitting on the exact right combinations at the right time, about hanging in there, pushing through regardless, hoping, clinging to, waiting for.....................often nowhere near as easy as it "should" be, right?
But it is good that your meds are mostly working for you now, hopefully they're not going to stop any time in the near future. And remember we're here for you in the darker days (as well as anytime, of course!!).

Alison

Thank you so much. that means so much to me from all of you.

Hi Zinco. You have helped me when I have been at my worst. Don't think you are not helpful, you are. I have been looking for some great "cure" for depression myself and have not found it yet. I have battled depression off and on since childhood I think. I should be thankful I had a 21 year break from it. I am thankful for your kindness to me and others on this site.

I can totally understand...DEPRESSION...i know nothing else.

I find reading other people's posts reassuring, not because I want to find someone else unwell, but because I find it so easy to slip into the habit of viewing my depressive symptoms as either made up or as character defects. Other people struggling with the same issues helps remind me that this is a disease and not something anyone would do for kicks.

My toolkit is somewhat limited because of poor NHS organisation, basically I have medication from my GP. I need so much more than that, but it is all that is available so PC is my lifeline. Posting doesn't help overly much, mostly it feels like whinging, but replies do help. One good thing about posting is that I now have a portfolio of evidence about how poor my mood has been for the last month. (I'm too apathetic to keep a proper mood diary).

What else can we offer ourselves??? I wish there was a way to offer hope.

I guess maybe I am discounting the power of not feeling alone and the power of the validation that what we have is real and we can't help it. It sure is easy to forget and be all ashamed all over again.

@TheOriginalMe I can't for the life of me understand why you guys in the NHS can't get in to see a pdoc and get therapy. That is a messed up mental health system. I think I would fake severe crisis just to fit in their little boxes. I feel like faking suicide crisis and going to the hospital just to fit into social security's little box her in the US. As mental health patients we need a bigger lobby and better services. Not to disparage any other disease but we get short shrift.

Well...you forgot the tool that I think is the most effective one... :/ So I will share some with you...

HUGS!!!!

Accepted and Thanks

Too true. I have thought about making "a grand gesture" just to tick the right boxes, but I don't have the motivation to be proactive in any way, shape or form. Mind you, my new med (Valdoxan) is starting to work and now I'm feeling foolish for having been in a total funk for a month.