[Kaylord]

Hello everyone!

I am new here, so I hope I am doing this right.

I have struggled with depression most of my life, but it is usually very manageable. The past couple of months have been particularly hard though. Less than a year ago I lost my mom very unexpectedly. She was very young and had no real health issues, so it was a surprise when I got that call. She was an only parent to my sister and I, so she was also our best friend. Well, the year anniversary of her death is coming up next month and I have turned into an anxiety ridden depression monster. Not to mention that I have had a very comical string of misfortune over the past few months.

Even though I can logically and rationally tell myself that everything will be fine, that this is just something that will pass (hopefully), I cant seem to help it. I over analyze everything, think I am going to get fired, lose my house, husband... the whole 9. My panic attacks are terrible and affect my body big time.

Has anyone else gone through something similar and made it out? I would love some advice on this.

Thank you!

[gayleggg]

I'm sorry to hear about your mom. Anniversaries, birthdays, mother's day and holidays are the worst days to get through. It is quite normal for you to be feeling depressed and anxious with the anniversary of her death coming up.

Have you sought counseling? Grief counseling can be a lot of help to help get past the worst times. And to help with the anxiety. I have trouble with anxiety and it stops me from doing a lot of things that would benefit me, but I can't seem to shake it. I'm in counseling and it helps but there is so much to face in daily life that it gets overwhelming. That sounds like what's happening to you. I would suggest outside help, if you are already.

[Fuzzybear]

[Kaylord]

I actually started EMDR before my mom's passing, and continued to go after as well, but with financial problems and me being in denial for a little but, I stopped going. You are so right though, daily life does get overwhelming, and I need to just power through it and get some help!

Thank you for the reply

[vital]

Originally Posted by Kaylord

I actually started EMDR before my mom's passing, and continued to go after as well, but with financial problems and me being in denial for a little but, I stopped going. You are so right though, daily life does get overwhelming, and I need to just power through it and get some help!

Thank you for the reply

Hi Kaylord,

You might find this zero cost option helpful

http://egg.bu.edu/~youssef/SNAP_CLUB...0164151576.pdf

and there are some more healthy and/or free options listed here

http://forums.psychcentral.com/4262681-post105.html

Was EMDR working for you by the way?

- vital

[Kaylord]

Hey Vital,

First of all, thank you for the reply!

EMDR is very, very difficult. I had only been trying it for a couple of weeks and really couldn't get myself to a place to make it useful for me. But I often hear from others that it's very frustrating in the beginning because we tend to put too much pressure on ourselves just trying to be good at it. Once you get passed that, I have heard that it is absolutely amazing. I am definitely going to try it again myself.

[waterknob1234]

Hi Kaylord. It sounds like you have had a lot of hard stuff to deal with. Anniversaries of the passing of a loved one is hard. It was hard for me when I lost my mom, and she was old and sickly when she passed away. It was her time. But still you miss that person you knew would always love you no matter what.

Depression is a B*****. I agree. I hope you can find some counseling or something helpful.

[meganb22]

I'm so incredibly sorry for your loss. My mom is one of my best friends and such a comfort to me. I can't imagine ever losing her.

A big anniversary like this can definitely effect your mental health. Counseling might be beneficial or just talking to someone and letting everything out. Do you have some kind of hobby that you can do to take your mind away from your anxiety and maybe help lighten your heart a bit? I know how difficult that is, I suffer from Bipolar depression and trying to do anything pleasurable in the midst of an episode is very difficult.

I've recently found support groups and I found that I really like it. Maybe try to find one in your area?

Hope this helps

[Kaylord]

I definitely need to get back into some sort of therapy. I live far from my family, so family support is often a game of tag.

I have many hobbies actually, I just don't care about them at all right now. I pretty much use all my energy getting out of bed and in to work.

I know I'll get past this eventually, it's just going to be an uphill battle.