[ladybug5]

I have had depression and mania symptoms since early childhood. I have been hospitalized 8 times, and i am in my mid 40's. I have not had great experiances with therapy and went many years just seeing a psychiatrist. I have tried 5 therapists and only 3 helped, but only somewhat. Am I a lifer? I posted a trigger warning because I dont want people to think they will never get better either. I seem to have gotten worse in the last 10 years. I was suicidal a week ago and have trouble in social situations, getting involved or working. I have been diagnosed with depression, ptsd, schizoaffective disorder and now bipolar 1. I hear voices in my head. Do some people just not get much out of therapy and so never get better?

[Silent Void]

It's not the therapy. It's the drugs. I'm treatment-resistant. I've tried just about every drug out there and only a couple of them work.

Have they tried a lot of different drugs on you?

[lozza89]

I am the same.. and still trying to find that perfect med/meds and dosage. My body seems good at building up a tolerance to medications too so even though it may work to begin with over some time it just stops doing anything (even if the dosage is increased *cries*)

you are definitely not alone. Hang in there

[pegasus]

Hello ladybug5, for some of us, it is about learning to cope as best we can. Some people are lucky and have depression that is situational and it goes away but for others we have to build up a good toolbox to get through those dark times. It's not your fault, no don't give up, I think it can help to accept it and then understand it and cope with it better. I hope this makes sense.

[Sadley]

Hi, I'm only 24 but I have had depression all of my life and have had many therapists, medications, and hospitalization and for me, I don't get much (if anything) out of therapy, meds have no effect on me except making me more suicidal than before, and I never seem to get better. Life sucks and that is why I'm going to get sterilized so that I can do my part and make sure I can't force someone else to experience this miserable existence.

[Altered Moment]

I have suffered from depression my whole life. I am 50 and still do. I would not at all say meds and therapy haven't helped me a great deal. They have. But have not cured me. They have allowed me to live with, accept, and manage this disease the best I can. Its horrible to have it but we have to keep on trying.

I am considered treatment resistant. My depression is very stubborn and always comes back around. That doesn't mean I have stopped treatment or given up. In fact 5 months ago I started a new med called Fetzima that has worked better than anything ever. In Sept. I start therapy again after many years. For some of us learning to live with and manage it is the best we get but I need all the help I can get with that.

[bluetriangle]

Originally Posted by ladybug5

I have had depression and mania symptoms since early childhood. I have been hospitalized 8 times, and i am in my mid 40's. I have not had great experiances with therapy and went many years just seeing a psychiatrist. I have tried 5 therapists and only 3 helped, but only somewhat. Am I a lifer? I posted a trigger warning because I dont want people to think they will never get better either. I seem to have gotten worse in the last 10 years. I was suicidal a week ago and have trouble in social situations, getting involved or working. I have been diagnosed with depression, ptsd, schizoaffective disorder and now bipolar 1. I hear voices in my head. Do some people just not get much out of therapy and so never get better?

Hi Lady Bug... Sorry to hear you're having such a hard time. I certainly can empathize. It's certainly known that meds + therapy (I'm going to include CBT and DBT in this group) are better than either therapy or meds alone. And that each can help the other. There's likely no perfect med, but there are things we can do to help our meds work better and thus feel better. E.g. sleep, gratitude, mindfulness, talk therapy, DBT, hitting balls at the golf range, whatever, works for us. Even though we may not want to do them, if there are things that can help us feel a little better then we owe it to ourselves to invest the time in doing them. Hang in there!

[Hellion]

So far therapy and meds have not really done a lot for me...I know I've had Depression and Anxiety since a young age just not sure when exactly I first started experiencing symptoms of those. But yeah was going to therapy for that during high school, for a time thought I was doing well enough to quit the therapy...then of course rather soon after that something happened that caused me PTSD which entirely set me back and since then it doesn't seem like anything really helps. I take valium for anxiety, which is nice for when I'm on the verge of a panic attack or need to mellow out because my minds trying to re-inact the traumatic event. Haven't been helped by any meds for the depression though, only thing so far I find to provide relief from that is cannabis but still giving the pharmacutical crap a go...if they've got something that actually makes me feel better I am all for it, but thus far its not a pill that helps me through the depression.

I think I could be what one could refer to as treatment resistant though the term itself irritates me a little since it seems to almost imply the individual is refusing helpful treatment or intentionally resisting improving their mental state or something....though I know it actually means when various treatments/therapy aren't working to alleviate the symptoms. I don't really expect my mental problems to 'go away' just still working on trying to cope with it and handle it as best I can.

[msandsm]

I am also considered treatment resistant. I can't even count the number of meds I've taken over the past 30 years (including over 70 ECT treatments, which do work for me) - currently it's down to five (Lamictal, trazodone, Thorazine, Klonopin, and Adderall XR). They keep me fairly stable, since I haven't been hospitalized for 9 months, almost a record for me. I'm also treatment resistant to therapy, and I really struggle with that, because it makes me feel like I don't want to get better or I'm doing something wrong.
But try to stay positive. You will eventually find a combination of therapies and meds that will work for you. Treatment resistance is not your fault - it simply means you and your doctor need to continue to look for the right way to overcome it. For your sake, I really hope that happens soon!

[Restin]

Please don't give up. Like you, I'm "older" (whatever that means) was repeatedly in the hospital over a decade, and went through 6 or 7 therapists. Medication doesn't work for me, either, even makes me worse.
I just want to say, I think you should try psychotherapy again even tho not successful in the past. Try it with a dynamic relationship therapist, the modern style of psychoanalysis that is common these days. Talk to T on the phone and ask how they do therapy first. I don't thing silence and stoneface is right for you, certainly wasn't for me. Try a therapist that's very kindly and disarming, that you can open up to. I found a good T at last and gradually have been able to share my deepest Transference feelings and problems. I believe this is what it takes.

[ladybug5]

Originally Posted by Silent Void

It's not the therapy. It's the drugs. I'm treatment-resistant. I've tried just about every drug out there and only a couple of them work.

Have they tried a lot of different drugs on you?

yes, ive been on many of them. they either make me a zombie and gain too much weight, or dont work at all.. i got tardive dyskinesia from abilify. i had been sstable on it for 7 years. im off it now and so my voices are louder at times.

[ladybug5]

Originally Posted by Restin

Please don't give up. Like you, I'm "older" (whatever that means) was repeatedly in the hospital over a decade, and went through 6 or 7 therapists. Medication doesn't work for me, either, even makes me worse.
I just want to say, I think you should try psychotherapy again even tho not successful in the past. Try it with a dynamic relationship therapist, the modern style of psychoanalysis that is common these days. Talk to T on the phone and ask how they do therapy first. I don't thing silence and stoneface is right for you, certainly wasn't for me. Try a therapist that's very kindly and disarming, that you can open up to. I found a good T at last and gradually have been able to share my deepest Transference feelings and problems. I believe this is what it takes.

i really do not want to try therapy again. it doesnt work. I thought my church was helping but today it didnt. Also, i didnt mention that i have cheated many times on my dh, and that sets me backwards too.