Roll call

Coping...

I am very depressed and tired like someone going to school. I remember when I was I'm tiring school. Tired like hair. World peace is near but my cute bird is crying his head off. I have been hearing, seeing, smelling, and feeling things. Don't worry humans but out here in the middle of nowhere there are more cows.

I need to do the same. I'm sure I would be happier.

Good to see you, mgran.

feeling very sad today

Feeling very paranoid that my sister-in-law's ex-fiance is going to come over and try to break in while I'm here alone. She called and told me he might come by to get some of his things and that he wasn't allowed in the house. I have the phone right by me (even though I hate phones about as much as I do televisions) in case I have to call the police.

My experiences has taught me that if the gvt wants us to know something, we'll know it. If not, we ain't gonna find out. Don't believe everything on the news...

Still here. Heavy depression. Mind is buzzing and numb. Very uneasy feeling.
A friend of mine persuaded me not to cancel my FB account (he probably has better foresight than I do at the moment), but I have deleted other social networking accounts to get out of the overwhelming chaos.

Hello and good morning or we can wish. My true feelings are that maybe I should try to avoid animal products. This may help me feel better. Love to you all...

Sorry you're suffering so much, Tsunamisurfer. My son and I are experimenting with fatty acids from fish. That is we've been eating a lot of fish and also taking fish oils. I don't know how much fish you eat, but it's supposed to help with depression and anxiety.

If you want to try it, look for capsules with omega 3's - EPA and DHA. It's not enough just to take a few fish oil capsules. You have to simultaneously reduce the omega 6's which are extremely prevalent in processed foods - at least here in the U.S.

It's a bit early to tell if it will help my son. We're only a few days into the experiment. I'll let you know if it helps.



Edited to add: One other thing-- I've cancelled my facebook account several times. To reactivate it, all you have to do is log on. The only problem is that every time I do this, someone invariably notices and thinks I'm mad at them and defriended (unfriended?) them.

lol... Ok, I've just noticed brook's advice - essentially the opposite of mine! I say eat more fish; brook says avoid animal products.

I'm here today and in a much better mood than of late. Yes, I'm still broke, and, yes, the world is still going to hell in a handbasket if we believe the news, but I'm feeling more cheerful.

Just received an email from psychcentral with links to various articles. The top story was about the link between diet and depression - specifically junk food:

http://psychcentral.com/news/2012/04...ion/36798.html

Of course, it makes we wonder which is cause and which effect. I mean maybe the junk food isn't causing the depression. Maybe depressed people are more likely to grab junk food because they don't have the energy or interest to prepare a proper meal.

Thanks so much for that, Costello. Yes, I have been taking 3g of Omega 3 oils daily. Perhaps that isn't enough. I'm not a fan of fast foods at all, and prefer to eat mince on potatoes, or something similar, while avoiding products with wheat in them. (The exception is All Bran flakes for breakfast, for roughage). I think I need to see a nutritionist, because avoiding gluten is proving to be quite difficult.

I hope the Omega 3 route helps for your son. Feeding the brain the right fatty nutrients and reducing the irritants can only be a solid foundation to build on.

On the debate of "meat or no meat", I have a regular chuckle with my vegetarian daughter. She just hates the smell of meat, and would be quite happy with lentles and beans if it was sufficient for her. While I love my vegies (to eat) I feel sorry for them - they are defenceless and have no voice to communicate with predators to leave them alone. So I have started the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Vegetables. SPCV. Alas, I remain distraught with a ripped conscience, doing the very things I hate, and eating anything that I can justify as good for me (regardless of how good it is for my defenceless victims).

Facebook: I am so quiet on FB that I don't think anyone would notice if I vanished. But I suppose it is better not to have offended friends to deal with - the repercussions may be far worse to deal with than having a dormant profile.

TS

Here and doing well.

I think one reason the fish oil isn't helpful for some people is that they're still consuming too many omega 6's. It sounds like you're quite well versed about nutrition issues, though.

My son says he sleeps better when he's taking the omega 3. I know he zonked out last night - fell asleep on the couch watching tv. It was good to see, because he often has trouble sleeping. I'm not sure it was the fish oil that made the difference, though. It was a very sleepy day yesterday, very cool and rainy. I even took a nap on my lunch break at work.

Here and healthy. Thanks to PC for the info. Fast food is destructive, not only for the consumer, but for the employees. I know from experience. Love to you all...

All this talk about food, and I have so many problems eating. However, I have recently discovered I can eat vegetarian sushi, feel almost no guilt, no sickness, and it's relatively good for me.
Just my two cents.

Past couple sessions pdoc talked to me about increasing my meds with the last session I agreed, but now I'm running scared and am hesitant to increase. It's only 10mg initially, but I would feel that 10mg. I'm trying to convince myself that I might feel better as my pdoc had suggested but I just don't know. The thought of adjusting to a new normal is just stressing me out. I'm so confused.

here and clear. tks...

Here and feeling fantastic!

Ok, "fantastic" is a bit of an exaggeration, but I'm having that light feeling you get when you've been in a funk for a couple of weeks and suddenly it shifts and you feel better.

Why?

This is a new pdoc that is the Medical Director and also specializes in neurology. She feels that because of my schizoaffective diagnosis I should be in a more therapeutic range of 120-160 mg on Geodon. Currently, I'm at 80mg and don't feel I'm a textbook case. Sure, when I'm overly stressed, like I was over the Xmas holidays, I could have benefitted from an increase but currently I don't think I'm as stressed as I was. But I must admit that I did experience an olfactory hallucination just last month and the month before I was seeing the stripes on the shower curtain move, but I believe it was just residual from the holiday's. The other thing is that I just hate how I feel when my meds are messed with. Brain fog and apathy are high on the list and I have a fear of being over-medicated. But then there's still the pdocs side to this argument of going up 20mg. I did suggest a compromise of 10mg to see how that goes first and she said I can do that initially but would like me to go up to 20mg. But now I'm not sure that was the right decision because sometimes my decisions suck, thus why I'm confused.

It seems like a few break through symptoms shouldn't be a big problem. Wouldn't it be up to you to decide whether you want to increase or not?

I always think it's better if my son has some symptoms. It gives him some to "work with" - I mean applying CBT type techniques or developing coping strategies. The latest thing we're trying is omega 3's. How can he know if it's helping if he's so medicated he has no symptoms at all?

On the other hand sometimes my son is so out of control, and he doesn't seem to be aware that he is. Is there someone else in your life who's pushing the increase?

I've been on 2,126mg of omega-3 EPA & DHA (EPA 800mg; DHA 400mg) since I was last hospitalized in 2004 as that was what they had me on while I was there. I don't know if taking omega-3's is actually beneficial mentally although I do take them but it definitely is beneficial with lowering triglycerides.

Well, my T also feels that I could benefit from an increase because she reminded me last week that I was smelling things as recently as last month and the month before the shower curtain stripes were moving and I just remembered that I also had a meltdown in the dentist office because I became overwhelmed from a kid screaming. But other than those breakthroughs I think that I'm okay but pdoc and T think otherwise. Normally when I become indecisive about things I basically just do nothing/shutdown. So I will probably go to my next pdoc appt and will tell her that I chickened out but I'm sure she is going to try and convince me again because she believes I'm not at a therapeutic level. Round and round we go. I'm trying not to make this complicated.

here and sad. I need a hug. I am stable. Enjoy.

Here and happy. Saturday morning! Yay! (Actually I have to get out there a mow the lawn. Boo!)

Hugs to brook.

To cybermember: good luck with you medication decision.