Depression and anxiety

No problem, as per above.

I wouldn't be vexed if I were to be quoted or paraphrased.

“I think I've discovered the secret of life -- you just hang around until you get used to it.”
― Charles M. Schulz

Thought I'd try and resurrect this thread. I've been prescribed 75mg of Venlafaxine and took my first tablet this morning. Has anyone used this drug? I have felt very ill all day.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by stranraerhibby

Thought I'd try and resurrect this thread. I've been prescribed 75mg of Venlafaxine and took my first tablet this morning. Has anyone used this drug? I have felt very ill all day.

---

I have been on and off it for years, always at 75 mg.

It takes a while to build up a tolerance to it, and you will feel pretty crap until it kicks in.

The side effects are, at least for me:- night sweats, weight gain (watch your cholesterol), crappy dreams and loss of libido.

It does work for me, though.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by CropleyWasGod

I have been on and off it for years, always at 75 mg.

It takes a while to build up a tolerance to it, and you will feel pretty crap until it kicks in.

The side effects are, at least for me:- night sweats, weight gain (watch your cholesterol), crappy dreams and loss of libido.

It does work for me, though.

---

Thanks for your response. Last night was the first night in over a year without Mirtazapine so my sleeping pattern is well and truly messed up.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by stranraerhibby

Thought I'd try and resurrect this thread. I've been prescribed 75mg of Venlafaxine and took my first tablet this morning. Has anyone used this drug? I have felt very ill all day.

---

I was prescribed it a few months ago for my problems. Started at a low dosage and ended up increasing gradually to 150mg a day (maybe more, I forget). I'll be honest with you, the illness never went away for me. It didn't last all day, but after taking a tablet, I'd be left feeling sick and with no appetite for a couple of hours. Everyone reacts differently, though. Good luck!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by cynic

I was prescribed it a few months ago for my problems. Started at a low dosage and ended up increasing gradually to 150mg a day (maybe more, I forget). I'll be honest with you, the illness never went away for me. It didn't last all day, but after taking a tablet, I'd be left feeling sick and with no appetite for a couple of hours. Everyone reacts differently, though. Good luck!

---

Thanks for that. I've been on it three days now and I just can't stop sweating so if that's the worst side effect I'll be happy.

Anyone else suffer from BDD and have any good coping strategies?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by cynic

Anyone else suffer from BDD and have any good coping strategies?

---

:agree: I do to an extent. I found University more intimidating when it comes to this and I remember trying to cover my face/ look at the ground. This was brought up at the CBT meeting I had and the doctor said there was more chance of people looking at me strangely if I covered my face.

I suffer with tinntius. When you are stressed or anxious the noise gets amplified in your brain. It's a cruel trick the brain plays on itself. Had it for 7 months now, the first few were the hardest I've ever experienced. I'm generally ok now, but still wary of loud noises. I moved seats away from the singing section over to the west. Even then I wear earplugs.

Best advice I can give it wear earplugs at nightclubs and gigs.

really interesting to hear other peoples experiences with depression and mental health issues. Ive suffered from what i would describe as chronic but low level depression all my adult life. I have been on anti-depressants a few times but they didnt really work for me, but everyones experiences are different. I am going to see someone about CBT next week. Does anyone have any experiences of it?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by mrdependable

really interesting to hear other peoples experiences with depression and mental health issues. Ive suffered from what i would describe as chronic but low level depression all my adult life. I have been on anti-depressants a few times but they didnt really work for me, but everyones experiences are different. I am going to see someone about CBT next week. Does anyone have any experiences of it?

---

I tried CBT some years ago. It didn't work for me, for various reasons. However, I know others that it has worked for.

Good luck.:aok:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Lofarl

I suffer with tinntius. When you are stressed or anxious the noise gets amplified in your brain. It's a cruel trick the brain plays on itself. Had it for 7 months now, the first few were the hardest I've ever experienced. I'm generally ok now, but still wary of loud noises. I moved seats away from the singing section over to the west. Even then I wear earplugs.

Best advice I can give it wear earplugs at nightclubs and gigs.

---

is that why that happens? dammit. i love the danve music scene i live for trance and i go to plenty of gigs/club nights and festivals. now i know next time im taking plugs. somtimes the noise in my ears causes massive pain :(

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 2

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by CropleyWasGod

I tried CBT some years ago. It didn't work for me, for various reasons. However, I know others that it has worked for.

Good luck.:aok:

---

Thanks CWG
It's great that forums like these can be used to share experiences in this area.

One book I've found very helpful - "Overcoming Depression for Dummies". You'll get it from Amazon; it works both for sufferers from depression and for those who're concerned about a family member or friend.

Explains stuff simply; clear, easy to use table of contents; and you don't have to read the thing straight through from cover to cover - you can dip into it from place to place. Lots of good stuff in it. For mild depression, the book itself will be a huge help. For more serious cases, you can use it along with counselling and/or therapy. One thing it does say - first step is to talk to someone, and to keep in touch with your GP.

Thanks Doddie, it's now ordered.

On CBT, while difficult, for me at least, to get my head around it, I found it made a big improvement in my life. As others have said I've found I need to revisit it but I believe this is all part of conditioning yourself appropriately.

On another note, Hibs.net has also helped me :-)
Argument, laughs, discussions etc from (sort of) like minded individuals... Thank you .

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Sir Alf R

Thanks Doddie, it's now ordered.

On CBT, while difficult, for me at least, to get my head around it, I found it made a big improvement in my life. As others have said I've found I need to revisit it but I believe this is all part of conditioning yourself appropriately.

On another note, Hibs.net has also helped me :-)
Argument, laughs, discussions etc from (sort of) like minded individuals... Thank you .

---

You're welcome. Hope you find it helpful.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Filled Rolls

Been thinking about the way depression can take over your life, and send you into a vicious spiral. You often end up with so many problems, caused by and exacerbating the problem that you find it hard to put them right.

For example: your house is a mess, and you are embarrassed to see people; your finances are in a mess; you have neglected your appearance, your clothes might be dirty and worn out; you drink too much, and when you wake up you feel worse, and even less prepared to tackle your problems; you are unhappy in relationships and treat people the wrong way.

All of these things impact on each other, and the weight of them ways you down more and more. One of the best things you can do is take just one problem, and break it down into components. Then set yourself a goal to fix just one of those small parts.

An example might be, your whole house is filthy and untidy. You know you don't want it to be like that, but you just cannot get started on the job. Why not concentrate on your bedroom? You might not feel up to doing the whole job - so start off by changing your bed and give yourself a lot of praise for completing that one task.

Keep going in small steps, and do it at a pace you can cope with (it might take you a week or more) . Recognise that you are taking control of the illness, and praise yourself everytime you achieve something.

Your whole way of thinking has been that you are worthless, but I bet you haven't always felt like that. I also bet you are saying "yeah big deal I made the bed". You learned to worry, it happened in small steps without you knowing it. You can teach yourself to like yourself again in the same manner.

It's not easy, you have to tell yourself you are doing well, when you don't believe it yourself. Ever taught someone to drive, or play guitar, or to plaster a wall. I bet there were times you praised that person, even though you knew they could improve.

Treat yourself in the same way. If you work at it, and keep repeating it, your brain will learn to be confident.

---

I appreciate you starting this thread.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Filled Rolls

Been thinking about the way depression can take over your life, and send you into a vicious spiral. You often end up with so many problems, caused by and exacerbating the problem that you find it hard to put them right.

For example: your house is a mess, and you are embarrassed to see people; your finances are in a mess; you have neglected your appearance, your clothes might be dirty and worn out; you drink too much, and when you wake up you feel worse, and even less prepared to tackle your problems; you are unhappy in relationships and treat people the wrong way.

All of these things impact on each other, and the weight of them ways you down more and more. One of the best things you can do is take just one problem, and break it down into components. Then set yourself a goal to fix just one of those small parts.

An example might be, your whole house is filthy and untidy. You know you don't want it to be like that, but you just cannot get started on the job. Why not concentrate on your bedroom? You might not feel up to doing the whole job - so start off by changing your bed and give yourself a lot of praise for completing that one task.

Keep going in small steps, and do it at a pace you can cope with (it might take you a week or more) . Recognise that you are taking control of the illness, and praise yourself everytime you achieve something.

Your whole way of thinking has been that you are worthless, but I bet you haven't always felt like that. I also bet you are saying "yeah big deal I made the bed". You learned to worry, it happened in small steps without you knowing it. You can teach yourself to like yourself again in the same manner.

It's not easy, you have to tell yourself you are doing well, when you don't believe it yourself. Ever taught someone to drive, or play guitar, or to plaster a wall. I bet there were times you praised that person, even though you knew they could improve.

Treat yourself in the same way. If you work at it, and keep repeating it, your brain will learn to be confident.

---

Missed this earlier, FR - apologies, I should have read the whole thread. Very good, thoughtful post - :top marks

Been reading through this thread again - one of the best I've ever seen on here and well worth a bump. Quite humbling and inspiring to read some folks' stories - makes me feel lucky that I've never really been in these places and gives me just a little understanding of how bad people can feel. One recurring theme seems to be that even when it looks like there is no hope, that there always is, and you should never give up.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Hibs Class

Been reading through this thread again - one of the best I've ever seen on here and well worth a bump. Quite humbling and inspiring to read some folks' stories - makes me feel lucky that I've never really been in these places and gives me just a little understanding of how bad people can feel. One recurring theme seems to be that even when it looks like there is no hope, that there always is, and you should never give up.

---

:agree:

All you can do is hope that those effected by depression understand this before they let things get out of hand.

I thought this thread deserved a bump. Ive been going through a hard time recently following a difficult break up. Having had a few mild episodes of depression before, I have made an appointment to see a dr on Monday.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by mrdependable

I thought this thread deserved a bump. Ive been going through a hard time recently following a difficult break up. Having had a few mild episodes of depression before, I have made an appointment to see a dr on Monday.

---

Sorry to hear that.

We are here, of course, if you want to vent, or PM. You know, though, that you have already made 2 small but significant steps. The first was to make the appointment. The second was to come on here and talk about it.

Hi. Does anyone else suffer from anxiety? I'm on citalopram 30 mg after having been on paroxetine for about 10 years. My anxiety comes in episodes and can last about 3 months but this time it's been about 6 months and there's days and nights when I feel so bad I just want to run out the house. I have a constant fear of dying, with any niggles or pains suddenly becoming (in my mind) life ending illnesses. It gets so bad that I panic and have the physical effects of a panic attack which in turn adds to the anxiety like having a heart attack or something wrong with my breathing. Dr has referred me for CBT but as yet I've not heard anything. I just need someone to tell me I'm not going to die ( well not yet anyway) I'm only 41.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Sweep

Hi. Does anyone else suffer from anxiety? I'm on citalopram 30 mg after having been on paroxetine for about 10 years. My anxiety comes in episodes and can last about 3 months but this time it's been about 6 months and there's days and nights when I feel so bad I just want to run out the house. I have a constant fear of dying, with any niggles or pains suddenly becoming (in my mind) life ending illnesses. It gets so bad that I panic and have the physical effects of a panic attack which in turn adds to the anxiety like having a heart attack or something wrong with my breathing. Dr has referred me for CBT but as yet I've not heard anything. I just need someone to tell me I'm not going to die ( well not yet anyway) I'm only 41.

---

Mate, you learned how to worry, and you can unlearn that with CBT. Hang in there.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by CropleyWasGod

Sorry to hear that.

We are here, of course, if you want to vent, or PM. You know, though, that you have already made 2 small but significant steps. The first was to make the appointment. The second was to come on here and talk about it.

---

thanks CWG. I am already feeling a little better for having made these steps. Ive been on antidepressants before but this is probably the lowest ive been. Id recommend anyone with feelings of depression, anxiety to go and see their GP

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by mrdependable

thanks CWG. I am already feeling a little better for having made these steps. Ive been on antidepressants before but this is probably the lowest ive been. Id recommend anyone with feelings of depression, anxiety to go and see their GP

---

:aok:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Sweep

Hi. Does anyone else suffer from anxiety? I'm on citalopram 30 mg after having been on paroxetine for about 10 years. My anxiety comes in episodes and can last about 3 months but this time it's been about 6 months and there's days and nights when I feel so bad I just want to run out the house. I have a constant fear of dying, with any niggles or pains suddenly becoming (in my mind) life ending illnesses. It gets so bad that I panic and have the physical effects of a panic attack which in turn adds to the anxiety like having a heart attack or something wrong with my breathing. Dr has referred me for CBT but as yet I've not heard anything. I just need someone to tell me I'm not going to die ( well not yet anyway) I'm only 41.

---

The first anti-depressant I was put on was citalopram and it made me a lot worse. I ended up trying to top myself on it so I've been on 6 or 7 different tablets since. I'm now on Sertraline 150mg and diazepam as and when. If you ever want to talk about it please send me a PM. I've been through the mill and am currently at the start of what I predict will be another bad turn.

Folks on this forum have been extremely supportive.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by stranraerhibby

The first anti-depressant I was put on was citalopram and it made me a lot worse. I ended up trying to top myself on it so I've been on 6 or 7 different tablets since. I'm now on Sertraline 150mg and diazepam as and when. If you ever want to talk about it please send me a PM. I've been through the mill and am currently at the start of what I predict will be another bad turn.

Folks on this forum have been extremely supportive.

---

SSRI drugs, of which citalopram is one, can be effective but they can vary from person to person so finding the right one can be hard and the wrong one can make things worse short term. Thing about any drug therapies is that they don't fix things totally. It's not like taking something for physical pain and as others have said here things like exercise and watching what you eat need to be utilised too. Some parts of the country are better than others for NHS support so you can't rely on that. There are good things on the web about this and bad things. Search for the good stuff and realise that there are even phone lines you can try if your local GP/services are not working.

Good luck in fighting it sir!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Sweep

Hi. Does anyone else suffer from anxiety? I'm on citalopram 30 mg after having been on paroxetine for about 10 years. My anxiety comes in episodes and can last about 3 months but this time it's been about 6 months and there's days and nights when I feel so bad I just want to run out the house. I have a constant fear of dying, with any niggles or pains suddenly becoming (in my mind) life ending illnesses. It gets so bad that I panic and have the physical effects of a panic attack which in turn adds to the anxiety like having a heart attack or something wrong with my breathing. Dr has referred me for CBT but as yet I've not heard anything. I just need someone to tell me I'm not going to die ( well not yet anyway) I'm only 41.

---

Maybe the good thing about this thread is it might show how many people have endured similar. You're not alone and you're not on your own.

For a long period of time anxiety and depression totally paralysed my day to day life. All sorts of thing, including a time when I couldn't leave the house without ironing my clothes. I also became convinced that any time I drove, I'd knocked someone over and not realised. Things came to a head one day when I spend a full afternoon driving in circles, going back to check then becoming convinced it had happened again. I also had the headache = brain tumour, feeling under the weather = a mortal illness. It's exhausting and drains your life.

CBT was the way out but I had to persist with the doctor. First one I saw was useless. Second one I saw was tremendous.

Still get extremely anxious at times but the OCD has never been an issue again.

The drugs are a crutch, I'd say, until you can fly solo and deal with things yourself. IMHO I wished I'd got off them a lot sooner than I did.

Be brave - CBT is useful and can get you out of it. In the meantime, you can find info online about the kind of things and techniques CBT involves: mood diaries, rationalising your thoughts etc etc.

If you get a chance to see the programme about Frank Brunos daughter, it's well worth it. It both gives an explanation of the true misery of Bi Polar, and explains how recovery is possible.

With most illnesses, every time it recurs, you are more clued up about how to get back to where you want to be.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Lester B

SSRI drugs, of which citalopram is one, can be effective but they can vary from person to person so finding the right one can be hard and the wrong one can make things worse short term. Thing about any drug therapies is that they don't fix things totally. It's not like taking something for physical pain and as others have said here things like exercise and watching what you eat need to be utilised too. Some parts of the country are better than others for NHS support so you can't rely on that. There are good things on the web about this and bad things. Search for the good stuff and realise that there are even phone lines you can try if your local GP/services are not working.

Good luck in fighting it sir!

---

:aok: Thanks mate I appreciate it.

I've got a friend (seriously I do, its not me) who had a bit of break down infront of me and told me that they were depressed and a bit ashamed about it. I told them not to be of course, nothing to be ashamed about and that I was there for them and so was another friend they'd told. They didnt want anyone else knowing and has only told 2 of us.

They been to the docs and is on medication but i'm not sure how much this is helping.

I was just trying to give some reassuring chat but wasnt too sure what to say.

I remember reading this thread a while back and thought i'd look here for some advice in how I can help my friend. Its kind of different in that its not affecting me directly but this person has confided in me so i'd like to help.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by sambajustice

I've got a friend (seriously I do, its not me) who had a bit of break down infront of me and told me that they were depressed and a bit ashamed about it. I told them not to be of course, nothing to be ashamed about and that I was there for them and so was another friend they'd told. They didnt want anyone else knowing and has only told 2 of us.

They been to the docs and is on medication but i'm not sure how much this is helping.

I was just trying to give some reassuring chat but wasnt too sure what to say.

I remember reading this thread a while back and thought i'd look here for some advice in how I can help my friend. Its kind of different in that its not affecting me directly but this person has confided in me so i'd like to help.

---

Let them have a wee read of this thread, there's been a few folk that have been there and done that who have indicated they would be more than happy to assist folk in any way they can, you never know, a wee PM or two could well work wonders.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by HUTCHYHIBBY

Let them have a wee read of this thread, there's been a few folk that have been there and done that who have indicated they would be more than happy to assist folk in any way they can, you never know, a wee PM or two could well work wonders.

---

id be more than happy to assist anyone that PMs me, as im sure would others on this thread. Speaking personally, in answer to the poster with a friend who is depressed, id say just be there for them and keep in touch. When depressed it is natural to cut yourself off and not seek out company, but company is often what you need.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by steakbake

Maybe the good thing about this thread is it might show how many people have endured similar. You're not alone and you're not on your own.

For a long period of time anxiety and depression totally paralysed my day to day life. All sorts of thing, including a time when I couldn't leave the house without ironing my clothes. I also became convinced that any time I drove, I'd knocked someone over and not realised. Things came to a head one day when I spend a full afternoon driving in circles, going back to check then becoming convinced it had happened again. I also had the headache = brain tumour, feeling under the weather = a mortal illness. It's exhausting and drains your life.

CBT was the way out but I had to persist with the doctor. First one I saw was useless. Second one I saw was tremendous.

Still get extremely anxious at times but the OCD has never been an issue again.

The drugs are a crutch, I'd say, until you can fly solo and deal with things yourself. IMHO I wished I'd got off them a lot sooner than I did.

Be brave - CBT is useful and can get you out of it. In the meantime, you can find info online about the kind of things and techniques CBT involves: mood diaries, rationalising your thoughts etc etc.

---

Thanks for your post. I have just received my appointment for CBT so looking forward to that. I'm also starting to feel better with the citalopram kicking in although that has been around 3 months to really take effect.

Just giving this thread a bump, as I think it's an extremely valuable for one for those of us who suffer from depression etc. Ive settled down after being prescribed fluoxetine. Hope everyone out there is well

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by mrdependable

Just giving this thread a bump, as I think it's an extremely valuable for one for those of us who suffer from depression etc. Ive settled down after being prescribed fluoxetine. Hope everyone out there is well

---

It's worth bumping it, that's for sure. This is the time of the year when the light is disappearing and the blues take hold.

Good to hear you're settling down. Take care of yourself.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by CropleyWasGod

It's worth bumping it, that's for sure. This is the time of the year when the light is disappearing and the blues take hold.

Good to hear you're settling down. Take care of yourself.

---

thanks CWG

4 weeks and 2 days until i am 2 years 'drug free'.

Been pretty good on the whole. Had a funny spell about 5 months back with my health anxiety. Had a bit of a flu like illness and a few lymph nodes in my neck and under the jaw popped up so of course i had lymphoma! Was actually quite good in a way as i was able to get the silly thought processes under control quite quickly.

Hope everyone else is well.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Pretty Boy

Been a few threads on here about both and It's always good to talk.

I suffered from pretty severe depression for about 18 months to 2 years and had some very dark thoughts. There was a lot of horrible stuff going on in my life at the time. Eventually I found a brilliant doctor who referred me for cognitive behavioural therapy as anti depressants absolutely terrified me and worked me up into some awful states.

On top of that I have also had bother with health anxiety. Not the usual man flu type thing but genuine unfounded fears about my health. The strange thing about health anxiety is it causes genuine physical symptoms such as nausea, pins and needles, aches and pains, stomach upset etc. I was a habitual googler of symptoms and at various times was absolutely convinced I had MS, lupus, cancer, pneumonia, lymphoma, malaria and lyme disease amongst others. Sounds ridiculous but the fears are genuine. I had all kinds of blood tests and everything was negative but that only reassured for a short time before something else cropped up. Whenever I did have anything actually wrong with me I was terrified of taking medication because I was sure I would get side effects so it was a vicious cycle. Thankfully I'm slowly but surely getting over this as well.

You'll find there are a few people on this board only too happy to share their experiences which will hopefully help you. For all the silly arguments and whatever there are a hell of a lot of very good people post on here.

---

Sorry to quote such an old post PB but I was reading back over this thread and one of your points really struck true to me (bold).

I lost a very close friend of mine incredibly young - she contracted a rare type of cancer which started with incredibly small, unrecognisable symptoms and her passing seemed to spark my own HA and I'd Google my symptoms for the smallest things and come up with some horrifying conclusions before common sense (and my wife!) would prevail and slap me about the head. As ridiculous as I knew it was, I'd convince myself of all sorts.

I've managed to stop doing it but tonight I was trying to look up a diagram of the nerves in the hand, as I've had a twitch in my index finger and I recalled the Facebook page, I ****ing Love Science, posting a pretty neat graphic of the internal hand and I was curious to see how nerve concentration looked. Type 'nerve fingers twitch' into Google and you're greeted with early symptoms of Parkinsons, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (or Lou Gehrig's Disease), MS...the internet can be a scary place, particularly if you do suffer from anxiety and can't control the runaway thoughts and concerns!

www.moodgym.anu.edu.au

This is a recomended site, CBT course you can access from your smartphone. Particularly useful if you're on a long NHS waiting list for 'real' CBT.

I'm feeling very low at the moment. That being said I always find this thread a real lifeline - to know that others have gone through periods in their life feeling as if life isn't worth living.

2013 has been a write off for me and I owe a lot of people apologies (some on Hibs.net).

I've got no life here in Stranraer, I just wish I could turn back the clock and do things differently in Aberdeen and not have let my family down.

Anyway, this thread and the people of this forum in general have been a huge help, I owe many people on here a huge thanks.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by StranraerHibee

I'm feeling very low at the moment. That being said I always find this thread a real lifeline - to know that others have gone through periods in their life feeling as if life isn't worth living.

2013 has been a write off for me and I owe a lot of people apologies (some on Hibs.net).

I've got no life here in Stranraer, I just wish I could turn back the clock and do things differently in Aberdeen and not have let my family down.

Anyway, this thread and the people of this forum in general have been a huge help, I owe many people on here a huge thanks.

---

If it's any consolation, this time of year is the worst for me. The days are at their shortest. The solstice is just a couple of weeks away though.

Ever thought of a light box? I have one on in the office constantly just now.

And meditation? I swear by it. It's not a cure, but it helps to unravel the nasty thoughts and helps me to find some balance.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by CropleyWasGod

If it's any consolation, this time of year is the worst for me. The days are at their shortest. The solstice is just a couple of weeks away though.

Ever thought of a light box? I have one on in the office constantly just now.

And meditation? I swear by it. It's not a cure, but it helps to unravel the nasty thoughts and helps me to find some balance.

---

Thanks for the advice mate, never thought of meditation. Turned to the drink last night, just wanted to forget all my problems - definitely the last time I'm drinking on 150mg of anti-depressants!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by StranraerHibee

I'm feeling very low at the moment. That being said I always find this thread a real lifeline - to know that others have gone through periods in their life feeling as if life isn't worth living.

2013 has been a write off for me and I owe a lot of people apologies (some on Hibs.net).

I've got no life here in Stranraer, I just wish I could turn back the clock and do things differently in Aberdeen and not have let my family down.

Anyway, this thread and the people of this forum in general have been a huge help, I owe many people on here a huge thanks.

---

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by StranraerHibee

Thanks for the advice mate, never thought of meditation. Turned to the drink last night, just wanted to forget all my problems - definitely the last time I'm drinking on 150mg of anti-depressants!

---

Drink does make you forget but all it does in the long term is lubricate the slide. Anti-depressants or not I'm not sure you should be drinking at all if you are using it as some sort of self medication.

I wouldn't go beating yourself up about certain things you have done either. If you mix depression with drink or drugs, or heaven forbid all three, then it can be an extremely bad combination. People are going to get hurt. That could mean others or yourself both mentally or physically. At the very least you will probably come across as a total arse and when you look back you will be thankful that's all that happened. You say you're writing off a period of your life but I wouldn't...try and use it as an experience that you can learn from. Thinking about it, did you not start to open up on here in 2013?

As CWG suggests, maybe you should try a light box. They are surprisingly common and if they help in any way then surely it's worth it.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by peter douglas

Drink does make you forget but all it does in the long term is lubricate the slide. Anti-depressants or not I'm not sure you should be drinking at all if you are using it as some sort of self medication.

I wouldn't go beating yourself up about certain things you have done either. If you mix depression with drink or drugs, or heaven forbid all three, then it can be an extremely bad combination. People are going to get hurt. That could mean others or yourself both mentally or physically. At the very least you will probably come across as a total arse and when you look back you will be thankful that's all that happened. You say you're writing off a period of your life but I wouldn't...try and use it as an experience that you can learn from. Thinking about it, did you not start to open up on here in 2013?

As CWG suggests, maybe you should try a light box. They are surprisingly common and if they help in any way then surely it's worth it.

---

Thanks for the reply mate. I managed to apologise to the guy in town I insulted and he was dead understanding and forgiving. I appreciate all the advice - there has been an amazing response on here - it's sometimes hard to open up as a 21 year old man but I think it's been worth it with all the advice I've had.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by StranraerHibee

Thanks for the reply mate. I managed to apologise to the guy in town I insulted and he was dead understanding and forgiving. I appreciate all the advice - there has been an amazing response on here - it's sometimes hard to open up as a 21 year old man but I think it's been worth it with all the advice I've had.

---

Well done for apologising, must have taken a bit of bottle.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Filled Rolls

Well done for apologising, must have taken a bit of bottle.

---

It did, I've got a couple of Motherwell based Hearts fans to say sorry to then I think I'm all caught up. Not drinking again.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by StranraerHibee

It did, I've got a couple of Motherwell based Hearts fans to say sorry to then I think I'm all caught up. Not drinking again.

---

Well done on apologising- that's a big step. We have all done things we regret when drinking, so don't give yourself a hard time about it.

SAMH do good work -

http://www.samh.org.uk/get-involved/...g/what-if.aspx

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by mrdependable

Well done on apologising- that's a big step. We have all done things we regret when drinking, so don't give yourself a hard time about it.

---

:aok: Thanks mate, I feel a lot better having made it up to people, I'm surprised by others understanding and forgiveness!

I thought I would give this a bump as I know Christmas can be a difficult time for many. I wish everyone on this thread my best wishes at this time

Feeling low, who to turn to?

I've had one of the worst weeks of my life. Having been up in Aberdeen for the game last Friday, I ran out of Diazepam and wonder if the withdrawals are adding to my feelings of anxiety. I made the effort to see both my CPN and GP yesterday and I just felt a bit fobbed off. I would trade this diagnoses of a personality disorder for almost anything, maybe if I was bipolar I would be taken more seriously by my care team.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by StranraerHibee

Feeling low, who to turn to?

I've had one of the worst weeks of my life. Having been up in Aberdeen for the game last Friday, I ran out of Diazepam and wonder if the withdrawals are adding to my feelings of anxiety. I made the effort to see both my CPN and GP yesterday and I just felt a bit fobbed off. I would trade this diagnoses of a personality disorder for almost anything, maybe if I was bipolar I would be taken more seriously by my care team.

---

I hope you've had a better couple of weeks StranraerHibee. Hopefully you are getting the treatment you need

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by StranraerHibee

Feeling low, who to turn to?

I've had one of the worst weeks of my life. Having been up in Aberdeen for the game last Friday, I ran out of Diazepam and wonder if the withdrawals are adding to my feelings of anxiety. I made the effort to see both my CPN and GP yesterday and I just felt a bit fobbed off. I would trade this diagnoses of a personality disorder for almost anything, maybe if I was bipolar I would be taken more seriously by my care team.

---

I know this is an easy thing to say and a hard thing to do, but don't let yourself be fobbed off. I'm lucky in that I had family members who just basically refused to take no for an answer from the docs (I'd have just caved in), maybe if you can't do it you have someone who can help you like that? Some GPs are absolutely hopeless when it comes to mental health, others are literal lifesavers. if the first GP doesn't help you, go back til you find one that will.

I know this post was a long time ago and hopefully your feelings have moved on a bit, but withdrawal is almost definitely adding to your symptoms. At one point when I was on meds I forgot to get a prescription filled on the Friday of a bank holiday. I was that ashamed of myself for being so stupid I didn't say to anyone and ended up going a week without - it was absolute hell. At the time my mind wouldn't link the lack of my meds with the depressive thoughts, I was too busy calling myself every name under the sun and making myself as ill as possible but a couple of months later looking back it was pretty obvious!

Just remember that no matter how bad you feel, this isn't how you will always feel. It WILL pass. Stay strong if you can, and if you feel you can't then talk to people about it - there are people out there who will help you carry the burden if they possibly can.

Inspired by Stu in Nottingham's thread on his recent loss I wanted to add my thanks to those of others for the community that's been built right here.

This is going to sound ****ing stupid (especially when compared to the magnitude of the issues Stu is facing) but this website has played a genuine and definite part in saving my life. Two threads in particular, this one and another little known one called the calendar thread.

The calendar thread did many good things in its brief history. It came up with real and positive solutions to issues such as world hunger, nuclear disarmament and which of the young ladies from Girl's Aloud would be least welcome at a signing event*. But it did questionable things too and one of those was playing a part in saving me.

It came about at a time of my life when the world just seemed to be a place full of fear and pain, when I had a deep seated belief that I was a worthless human being who deserved nothing out of life. When I really believed that every other person in this world was someone who had a desire to do me harm - and that I deserved it.

But on the calendar thread I found acceptance (or at least tolerance for my stupidity!). It doesn't sound much, a bunch of dafties on the internet letting me post nonsense amongst their genius - but at that point in my life I was so low that it felt like the world. I was going through a period when I had very little other human contact, I wouldn't leave my house for weeks on end, I hid in the bathroom when people knocked at my door, I went to my bed and cried whenever the phone rang (bloody telemarketers :greengrin ). At times all I wanted was for it all to end. But then I'd miss the next landmark post :greengrin .

The calendar thread showed me that the world could bring smiles and laughter, that people maybe weren't as scary and awful as my imagination had built them up to be. I want to take this opportunity to say a big thank you to everyone who posted on that thread - it's impossible to name you all, but you know who you are. Thank you, you helped save my life (and you should all bear part of that guilt :greengrin )

During that period the only time I left the house was to go with my dad to Easter Road. My counsellor asked me a long time later what it was that allowed me to do that? And I said that it was the sense of community, of togetherness, of single minded love that a crowd of people in green and white all pulling in the same direction brought. As a Hibby at Easter Road I felt included, a part of something bigger than myself for maybe the first time in my life.

One thing all this taught me is to try and be mindful of the world around me - something that might seem tiny and insignificant to you, could be massively important to someone else. In the words of our greatest religious teachers we should all "be excellent to one another".

I don't post much anymore, I've still got social phobia and it still prevents me speaking as much as I'd like but I read just about everything. I think I can feel myself slowly spiralling back down towards a dark place again but I'm confident that this time I have mechanisms to cope with that - like many have said, there are no real cures for mental illness, just ways to cope.

I guess what I'm saying is that community is important. Sharing is important, listening is important, communication is important. The Hibee family is important.

And that means everyone here is important. Everyone reading this, no matter how low you feel - you are important.

You never know, by posting on hibs.net you might be saving someone else's life.



Has anyone else ever spilt some orange juice?




*against my arguments, I'd have welcomed all of them :na na:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by barcahibs

I know this is an easy thing to say and a hard thing to do, but don't let yourself be fobbed off. I'm lucky in that I had family members who just basically refused to take no for an answer from the docs (I'd have just caved in), maybe if you can't do it you have someone who can help you like that? Some GPs are absolutely hopeless when it comes to mental health, others are literal lifesavers. if the first GP doesn't help you, go back til you find one that will.

I know this post was a long time ago and hopefully your feelings have moved on a bit, but withdrawal is almost definitely adding to your symptoms. At one point when I was on meds I forgot to get a prescription filled on the Friday of a bank holiday. I was that ashamed of myself for being so stupid I didn't say to anyone and ended up going a week without - it was absolute hell. At the time my mind wouldn't link the lack of my meds with the depressive thoughts, I was too busy calling myself every name under the sun and making myself as ill as possible but a couple of months later looking back it was pretty obvious!

Just remember that no matter how bad you feel, this isn't how you will always feel. It WILL pass. Stay strong if you can, and if you feel you can't then talk to people about it - there are people out there who will help you carry the burden if they possibly can.

---

thank you for the reply barcahibs. I can't begin to imagine what Stu is going through - my thoughts are with him and his family at this difficult time. I've resorted to ordering my medication on the internet. Having begged my GP for months to proscribe me something for anxiety I have finally given up.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by barcahibs

Inspired by Stu in Nottingham's thread on his recent loss I wanted to add my thanks to those of others for the community that's been built right here.

This is going to sound ****ing stupid (especially when compared to the magnitude of the issues Stu is facing) but this website has played a genuine and definite part in saving my life. Two threads in particular, this one and another little known one called the calendar thread.

The calendar thread did many good things in its brief history. It came up with real and positive solutions to issues such as world hunger, nuclear disarmament and which of the young ladies from Girl's Aloud would be least welcome at a signing event*. But it did questionable things too and one of those was playing a part in saving me.

It came about at a time of my life when the world just seemed to be a place full of fear and pain, when I had a deep seated belief that I was a worthless human being who deserved nothing out of life. When I really believed that every other person in this world was someone who had a desire to do me harm - and that I deserved it.

But on the calendar thread I found acceptance (or at least tolerance for my stupidity!). It doesn't sound much, a bunch of dafties on the internet letting me post nonsense amongst their genius - but at that point in my life I was so low that it felt like the world. I was going through a period when I had very little other human contact, I wouldn't leave my house for weeks on end, I hid in the bathroom when people knocked at my door, I went to my bed and cried whenever the phone rang (bloody telemarketers :greengrin ). At times all I wanted was for it all to end. But then I'd miss the next landmark post :greengrin .

The calendar thread showed me that the world could bring smiles and laughter, that people maybe weren't as scary and awful as my imagination had built them up to be. I want to take this opportunity to say a big thank you to everyone who posted on that thread - it's impossible to name you all, but you know who you are. Thank you, you helped save my life (and you should all bear part of that guilt :greengrin )

During that period the only time I left the house was to go with my dad to Easter Road. My counsellor asked me a long time later what it was that allowed me to do that? And I said that it was the sense of community, of togetherness, of single minded love that a crowd of people in green and white all pulling in the same direction brought. As a Hibby at Easter Road I felt included, a part of something bigger than myself for maybe the first time in my life.

One thing all this taught me is to try and be mindful of the world around me - something that might seem tiny and insignificant to you, could be massively important to someone else. In the words of our greatest religious teachers we should all "be excellent to one another".

I don't post much anymore, I've still got social phobia and it still prevents me speaking as much as I'd like but I read just about everything. I think I can feel myself slowly spiralling back down towards a dark place again but I'm confident that this time I have mechanisms to cope with that - like many have said, there are no real cures for mental illness, just ways to cope.

I guess what I'm saying is that community is important. Sharing is important, listening is important, communication is important. The Hibee family is important.

And that means everyone here is important. Everyone reading this, no matter how low you feel - you are important.

You never know, by posting on hibs.net you might be saving someone else's life.



Has anyone else ever spilt some orange juice?




*against my arguments, I'd have welcomed all of them :na na:

---

If it's any small comfort, I enjoyed and looked forward to your posts on the calendar thread. I remember being particularly tickled by one (pretty sure it was yours) where you imagined Petrie getting Ivan Sproule on an exercise bike at East Mains to fire up the 'leccy, for some physics defying purpose.)*.:greengrin You're obviously witty, and have a facility with words. I hope that you're able to derive some comfort and confidence from that talent.

*I'm a bit shaky on the rest of the detail. It has been a wee while.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by barcahibs

This is going to sound ****ing stupid

---

No it's not! Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

I was having a read through the calendar thread the other week and some of your posts were just too witty for the likes of me but I tried my best :greengrin

Some really moving posts on this thread. Puts problems that I think I've got into perspective really - I can definitely put mines down to lazy-*******-itis!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Jones28

Some really moving posts on this thread. Puts problems that I think I've got into perspective really - I can definitely put mines down to lazy-*******-itis!

---

Perspective is important, of course, but I have a bit of an alternative view about stuff like that.

When you're in crisis, you're in crisis, and you feel the pain. No amount of people saying "you think you've got it bad... look at so-and-so" is going to alter that. Indeed, as I have found out myself, that can be counter-productive; you can end up feeling guilty about feeling depressed, and that just intensifies the pain.

Feel the pain, own it and embrace it is one strategy I have. Running away from it often makes it worse for me.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by CropleyWasGod

Perspective is important, of course, but I have a bit of an alternative view about stuff like that.

When you're in crisis, you're in crisis, and you feel the pain. No amount of people saying "you think you've got it bad... look at so-and-so" is going to alter that. Indeed, as I have found out myself, that can be counter-productive; you can end up feeling guilty about feeling depressed, and that just intensifies the pain.

Feel the pain, own it and embrace it is one strategy I have. Running away from it often makes it worse for me.

---

Yes indeed. downward social comparisons don't tend to work too well in trying circumstances and I think that's a fairly widely accepted view.

I agree, sometimes we just have to accept pain. One way to do that is to not be frightened of it and face it, live with it. We are mostly stronger and better at doing this than we imagine in my humble opinion.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by stu in nottingham

Yes indeed. downward social comparisons don't tend to work too well in trying circumstances and I think that's a fairly widely accepted view.

I agree, sometimes we just have to accept pain. One way to do that is to not be frightened of it and face it, live with it. We are mostly stronger and better at doing this than we imagine in my humble opinion.

---

It's probably accepted amongst professionals, and by those who have problems, but not so much by those who have no experience or expertise. The old cliche "och, pull yourself together" is still too prevalent, IMO.

Thought I should add my wee 2p worth, Stu, to your own story. Sometimes talking to a complete stranger is very therapeutic. I'm here for a chat if you need.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by CropleyWasGod

It's probably accepted amongst professionals, and by those who have problems, but not so much by those who have no experience or expertise. The old cliche "och, pull yourself together" is still too prevalent, IMO.

Thought I should add my wee 2p worth, Stu, to your own story. Sometimes talking to a complete stranger is very therapeutic. I'm here for a chat if you need.

---

Yes Crops, that's what I was trying to say (though not very well). Thanks for your thoughts and the very kind offer. I will bear that in mind, truly. I hope this thread remains an inspiration for many. I showed it to my Sue once and she took some comfort from it,

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by CropleyWasGod

It's probably accepted amongst professionals, and by those who have problems, but not so much by those who have no experience or expertise. The old cliche "och, pull yourself together" is still too prevalent, IMO.

Thought I should add my wee 2p worth, Stu, to your own story. Sometimes talking to a complete stranger is very therapeutic. I'm here for a chat if you need.

---

Sometimes I think back at my "treatment" & wished one of the so-called therapists had said that to me, as opposed to peering over his tick sheet & clip board & then consulting with his superior to then come back & up my dosage of anti depressants.

Each & every time I had to visit a different clinic & each & every time I met a different person with a different clip board but same old tick sheet & same old up or stabilize my dosage. No-one acted any different from another, all had the same monotone personality & asked questions from the generic tick list. How refreshing it was to attend a clinic in Craigmillar where I met with a brilliant therapist who didn't have a clip board or tick sheet & who cared not a jot about medication. That in itself lifted my mood, someone who knew what I was going through & knew the meaning of communication. Sometimes, as the old saying goes ..its good to talk. It certainly wasn't a cure nor was it a quick fix ..but it sure as hell was a bloody good start ..

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by GrumpyHibbie

Sometimes I think back at my "treatment" & wished one of the so-called therapists had said that to me, as opposed to peering over his tick sheet & clip board & then consulting with his superior to then come back & up my dosage of anti depressants.

---

Sadly, I've recently seen how futile that manner of treating somebody can be, K.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by GrumpyHibbie

Each & every time I had to visit a different clinic & each & every time I met a different person with a different clip board but same old tick sheet & same old up or stabilize my dosage. No-one acted any different from another, all had the same monotone personality & asked questions from the generic tick list. How refreshing it was to attend a clinic in Craigmillar where I met with a brilliant therapist who didn't have a clip board or tick sheet & who cared not a jot about medication. That in itself lifted my mood, someone who knew what I was going through & knew the meaning of communication. Sometimes, as the old saying goes ..its good to talk. It certainly wasn't a cure nor was it a quick fix ..but it sure as hell was a bloody good start ..

---

That's great. Sometimes we just need someone who can inject a little hope. Thankfully, there are still individuals around in this world who can do that.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by CropleyWasGod

. Sometimes talking to a complete stranger is very therapeutic. I'm here for a chat if you need.

---

This is a really good bit of advice...... For the past few weeks I've been doing this via the Royal Ed, still got a long way to go but defo on the up.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/b...el-review.html

Just finished this excellent book...I highly recommend it.

I have only mild experience with depression and it was a temporary experience related to the end of the long term relationship, so I'm probably not best placed to talk about that, but for a long time I have experienced anxiety (especially in social situations) and only really managed to get it under control in the past couple of years. What really helped me was being aware that the mind and body are inherently linked; anxiety is a future based emotion caused by negative thoughts in your head (which may or may not be generated by past experiences). When you think these thoughts and become anxious, your body tenses up, breathing becomes shallow, you may sweat more than usual and even experience palputations and severe symptoms of panic as your 'fight or flight' mechanism kicks in. A close friend once told me that what helped him defeat social anxiety was the realisation that if you change the way you think, your body will follow, if you change your body, the mind will follow. For me changing the negative thought process going on inside my head was almost impossible by itself - it's like trying not to think of a pink giraffe........all you can think about is a pink giraffe! I therefore took steps to start getting into shape, stopping the excessive drinking and recreational drug use and making quiet time every day where I would go through breathing exercises and practice the martial arts I had just started doing. It took time, but I got there. I'm now fitter than I've ever been and relaxed in most of my daily life. I still experience anxiety at times - probably a couple of times a week - but now that I can trick my body into feeling how I do when I do martial arts and meditative exercises, it is soooo much easier to deal with - and almost always passes within seconds or minutes after I realise that I seem to be getting really tense for no reason at all. If I feel 'a bit funny' when I wake up in the morning I also grab a blank piece of paper, focus on it and repeat "this is what I fear" whilst breathing in and out slowly - I alternate between saying it in my head and aloud. I also try to use positive reinforcement now and again by saying things to myself like "Look how awesome I am, I have a great group of friends, my family loves me, my love life is better than most people I know, I'm a fantastic programmer and martial artist and on top of all that I get paid a higher hourly rate and have far, far better job prospects than around 80% of my friends .".

None of this has been recommended professionally to me because I was too embarrassed to talk to anyone about it - the reality was that most people didn't really notice how anxious I really was and the people that did probably only thought I was a little weird, I had created my own personal hell where the only respite came from mind altering substances and eventually I grew to hate my daily dependance on them and the effects it was having on me the following day during my 'sober at work/school' time. I realised that only I can hear and control the negative thoughts in my head and therefore only I can change that thought process into a positive one. I hope some of the methods I have used to overcome my own problems in life can be of use to anyone suffering from anxiety on here. Feel free to PM me if you want to talk, I log on for a wee read on .Net most days and will try to respond as soon as I can.

Take care folks.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Dinkydoo

I have only mild experience with depression and it was a temporary experience related to the end of the long term relationship, so I'm probably not best placed to talk about that, but for a long time I have experienced anxiety (especially in social situations) and only really managed to get it under control in the past couple of years. What really helped me was being aware that the mind and body are inherently linked; anxiety is a future based emotion caused by negative thoughts in your head (which may or may not be generated by past experiences). When you think these thoughts and become anxious, your body tenses up, breathing becomes shallow, you may sweat more than usual and even experience palputations and severe symptoms of panic as your 'fight or flight' mechanism kicks in. A close friend once told me that what helped him defeat social anxiety was the realisation that if you change the way you think, your body will follow, if you change your body, the mind will follow. For me changing the negative thought process going on inside my head was almost impossible by itself - it's like trying not to think of a pink giraffe........all you can think about is a pink giraffe! I therefore took steps to start getting into shape, stopping the excessive drinking and recreational drug use and making quiet time every day where I would go through breathing exercises and practice the martial arts I had just started doing. It took time, but I got there. I'm now fitter than I've ever been and relaxed in most of my daily life. I still experience anxiety at times - probably a couple of times a week - but now that I can trick my body into feeling how I do when I do martial arts and meditative exercises, it is soooo much easier to deal with - and almost always passes within seconds or minutes after I realise that I seem to be getting really tense for no reason at all. If I feel 'a bit funny' when I wake up in the morning I also grab a blank piece of paper, focus on it and repeat "this is what I fear" whilst breathing in and out slowly - I alternate between saying it in my head and aloud. I also try to use positive reinforcement now and again by saying things to myself like "Look how awesome I am, I have a great group of friends, my family loves me, my love life is better than most people I know, I'm a fantastic programmer and martial artist and on top of all that I get paid a higher hourly rate and have far, far better job prospects than around 80% of my friends .".

None of this has been recommended professionally to me because I was too embarrassed to talk to anyone about it - the reality was that most people didn't really notice how anxious I really was and the people that did probably only thought I was a little weird, I had created my own personal hell where the only respite came from mind altering substances and eventually I grew to hate my daily dependance on them and the effects it was having on me the following day during my 'sober at work/school' time. I realised that only I can hear and control the negative thoughts in my head and therefore only I can change that thought process into a positive one. I hope some of the methods I have used to overcome my own problems in life can be of use to anyone suffering from anxiety on here. Feel free to PM me if you want to talk, I log on for a wee read on .Net most days and will try to respond as soon as I can.

Take care folks.

---

Great stuff, mate.

I have often found that sharing my experiences is therapeutic in itself. Just getting it "out there", spoken or written, can be extremely empowering. It gives you a sense of self-worth that you don't get by keeping it inside.

:aok:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by CropleyWasGod

Great stuff, mate.

I have often found that sharing my experiences is therapeutic in itself. Just getting it "out there", spoken or written, can be extremely empowering. It gives you a sense of self-worth that you don't get by keeping it inside.

:aok:

---

Talking through things can be very therapeutic although when it came to the breakup of my other half of 6 years I talked and talked and talked about the same **** without really getting anywhere - it was a complicated split that started with real confusion but as time progressed, lies and deceit came out the woodwork. It felt so good to talk about it but after a while I felt it was preventing me from moving on with my life. I have no idea if any of these principles can be applied to any other types of depression, so I'm just putting my experiences out there.

Positive reinforcement and visualising all the details about this new confident me that I knew I could become was what really helped pull me through my anxiety - supplemented by daily exercise and relaxation. Don't get me wrong, everyone gets a little nervous about things like first dates or giving a presentation, but worrying the hell out of yourself constantly is so destructive to your self confidence and achieves nothing positive. What makes things worse is that with anxiety, certainly in my experiences anyway, the more you worry about something the higher the chance of it becoming a self fulfilling prophecy - I used to do this ALL the time with things like providing training at work and it still scares the crap out of me sometimes, but I don't crucify myself for 'potentially' appearing nervous before its even happened. If I know of a big event that's approaching which I might get jittery about I try to prepare myself mentally a few days before hand - give it a week if you can. 10 minutes a day is enough for me where I'll try to visualise in great detail myself doing whatever it is with great confidence - how do I walk? am I breathing deeply? I'm making and holding eye contact with everyone as I speak... If at any point during the day you find yourself slipping back into that negative thought process stop yourself, and start visualising this confident you that you are working towards - get up and walk around if you have to, just break that chain of thought. If you prepare yourself mentally enough for anything your body should slip naturally into the 'mode' you've programmed into yourself - this may take a few attempts to achieve though!

Every day is a new day and although you might not feel that you are 'there' yet, you can be. Try not to dwell on the past because its already happened but every day you have another opportunity to prove to yourself how great YOU really are.

I hope I'm not sounding patronising because this sort of stuff really worked and continues to work for me. Once you have that one good experience you'll grow more and more natural confidence as time goes on.

Possibly distressing to read so please only do so if you're not easily distressed about incidents with kids.


Most of the advice on here rotates around sharing so forgive me for sharing this but yesterday I had a traumatic experience that I just can't get out of my head. Before I start I'd like to point out that I worked as a paramedic for 10 years and thought I'd been confronted with all life could throw at me. I was wrong.

Yesterday I was driving back from a long weekend at the beach with my wife and 5 year old son when we pulled over for a short break at a motorway service station. We were in the main foyer when an elderly lady came out of the restaurant with a toddler in her arms screaming for someone to help her. It turns out that the wee guy had choked on a piece of sausage he'd been eating and was already showing signs of extreme cyanosis. I told the staff at the kiosk to call the emergency services and then took the wee guy from his gran.

Instinct kicked in and I put the little guy face down on my left arm with his head down and started giving him back blows as I'd been trained to do and after the first five I turned him over to see if they'd been effective. There were a few very small pieces of sausage in his mouth so I did a mouth sweep and cleared these out, he then started to cry and I could hear him take in air with a high pitched whistling sound like an asthmatic and slowly but surely his lips started to regain colour. The noises he was making were quite distressing because obviously the blockage wasn't fully cleared but my logic was not to try to attempt a full clearance of the partial blockage because that would risk closing his airway again should the object move again.

At this point a doctor who'd been dining in the restaurant approached me and I told him what had happened, I gave him the wee guy so that he could asses his condition and before I could say anything the doctor started to carry out the Heimlich maneuver (whilst this is very effective with adults and larger kids it should be avoided with babies and small children). This resulted in the wee guys stomach content being thrust up into his wind pipe and the blockage was again complete. The result was that the little guy again started turning blue and was obviously in a bad way. I tried to persuade the doctor to let me have the kid back so I could again carry out back blows and mouth to mouth should it be necessary but the doctor was now screaming for someone to give him a pen. His intention was to carry out an improvised coniotomy to open the airway below the obstruction. It took an age for someone to finally bring a pen and even then it seemed the doctor was very hesitant to carry out the procedure.

The arrival of the paramedics took the decision out of his hands and the paramedics took the little guy into the ambulance to treat him. The last thing I heard before the ambulance left was that the little guy was still unconscious and had an oxygen saturation of only 91%. When I got home that night I rang the hospital to try and find out the condition of the wee guy but understandably the hospital were reluctant to give out any information regarding his condition to non family members. All that they would tell me was that he was still alive but there seemed to be an ominous tone to the STILL.

As I mentioned at the start I've seen more than my share of traumatic incidents and thought I'd been unscathed until now. I just can't get his wee face out of my head or get rid of the feeling that I should have battered the **** out of this doctor or reacted differently one way or the other. I also know that these are typical symptoms of PTSD which is probably the reason I'm sharing this on here. I'm scanning all the local news channels in the area where this happened to try and find something about his condition but as of yet there's nothing.

Apologies if anyone has found this distressing but I just had to get it off my chest, so far I feel little or no benefit for having done so but hopefully later.

Wow scary stuff. Given that you had to act in an instant I think you did a marvellous job, certainly shouldn't beat yourself up about what you would have done in hindsight.

Fingers crossed, hopefully the kid makes a full recovery.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Hiberlin

Possibly distressing to read so please only do so if you're not easily distressed about incidents with kids.


Most of the advice on here rotates around sharing so forgive me for sharing this but yesterday I had a traumatic experience that I just can't get out of my head. Before I start I'd like to point out that I worked as a paramedic for 10 years and thought I'd been confronted with all life could throw at me. I was wrong.

Yesterday I was driving back from a long weekend at the beach with my wife and 5 year old son when we pulled over for a short break at a motorway service station. We were in the main foyer when an elderly lady came out of the restaurant with a toddler in her arms screaming for someone to help her. It turns out that the wee guy had choked on a piece of sausage he'd been eating and was already showing signs of extreme cyanosis. I told the staff at the kiosk to call the emergency services and then took the wee guy from his gran.

Instinct kicked in and I put the little guy face down on my left arm with his head down and started giving him back blows as I'd been trained to do and after the first five I turned him over to see if they'd been effective. There were a few very small pieces of sausage in his mouth so I did a mouth sweep and cleared these out, he then started to cry and I could hear him take in air with a high pitched whistling sound like an asthmatic and slowly but surely his lips started to regain colour. The noises he was making were quite distressing because obviously the blockage wasn't fully cleared but my logic was not to try to attempt a full clearance of the partial blockage because that would risk closing his airway again should the object move again.

At this point a doctor who'd been dining in the restaurant approached me and I told him what had happened, I gave him the wee guy so that he could asses his condition and before I could say anything the doctor started to carry out the Heimlich maneuver (whilst this is very effective with adults and larger kids it should be avoided with babies and small children). This resulted in the wee guys stomach content being thrust up into his wind pipe and the blockage was again complete. The result was that the little guy again started turning blue and was obviously in a bad way. I tried to persuade the doctor to let me have the kid back so I could again carry out back blows and mouth to mouth should it be necessary but the doctor was now screaming for someone to give him a pen. His intention was to carry out an improvised coniotomy to open the airway below the obstruction. It took an age for someone to finally bring a pen and even then it seemed the doctor was very hesitant to carry out the procedure.

The arrival of the paramedics took the decision out of his hands and the paramedics took the little guy into the ambulance to treat him. The last thing I heard before the ambulance left was that the little guy was still unconscious and had an oxygen saturation of only 91%. When I got home that night I rang the hospital to try and find out the condition of the wee guy but understandably the hospital were reluctant to give out any information regarding his condition to non family members. All that they would tell me was that he was still alive but there seemed to be an ominous tone to the STILL.

As I mentioned at the start I've seen more than my share of traumatic incidents and thought I'd been unscathed until now. I just can't get his wee face out of my head or get rid of the feeling that I should have battered the **** out of this doctor or reacted differently one way or the other. I also know that these are typical symptoms of PTSD which is probably the reason I'm sharing this on here. I'm scanning all the local news channels in the area where this happened to try and find something about his condition but as of yet there's nothing.

Apologies if anyone has found this distressing but I just had to get it off my chest, so far I feel little or no benefit for having done so but hopefully later.

---

What a horribly distressing situation.

Din't think you have anything to feel guilty about. You acted decisively and, in my opinion, correctly in the curcumstances. You aren't responsible for someone elses panic and/or mistake.

Hope the wee man makes a full recovery.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Hiberlin

As I mentioned at the start I've seen more than my share of traumatic incidents and thought I'd been unscathed until now. I just can't get his wee face out of my head or get rid of the feeling that I should have battered the **** out of this doctor or reacted differently one way or the other. I also know that these are typical symptoms of PTSD which is probably the reason I'm sharing this on here. I'm scanning all the local news channels in the area where this happened to try and find something about his condition but as of yet there's nothing.

Apologies if anyone has found this distressing but I just had to get it off my chest, so far I feel little or no benefit for having done so but hopefully later.

---

The quicker you seek professional help for PTSD, the better. As always, start with your GP and discuss the symptoms. Don't sit on it.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Hiberlin

Possibly distressing to read so please only do so if you're not easily distressed about incidents with kids.


Most of the advice on here rotates around sharing so forgive me for sharing this but yesterday I had a traumatic experience that I just can't get out of my head. Before I start I'd like to point out that I worked as a paramedic for 10 years and thought I'd been confronted with all life could throw at me. I was wrong.

Yesterday I was driving back from a long weekend at the beach with my wife and 5 year old son when we pulled over for a short break at a motorway service station. We were in the main foyer when an elderly lady came out of the restaurant with a toddler in her arms screaming for someone to help her. It turns out that the wee guy had choked on a piece of sausage he'd been eating and was already showing signs of extreme cyanosis. I told the staff at the kiosk to call the emergency services and then took the wee guy from his gran.

Instinct kicked in and I put the little guy face down on my left arm with his head down and started giving him back blows as I'd been trained to do and after the first five I turned him over to see if they'd been effective. There were a few very small pieces of sausage in his mouth so I did a mouth sweep and cleared these out, he then started to cry and I could hear him take in air with a high pitched whistling sound like an asthmatic and slowly but surely his lips started to regain colour. The noises he was making were quite distressing because obviously the blockage wasn't fully cleared but my logic was not to try to attempt a full clearance of the partial blockage because that would risk closing his airway again should the object move again.

At this point a doctor who'd been dining in the restaurant approached me and I told him what had happened, I gave him the wee guy so that he could asses his condition and before I could say anything the doctor started to carry out the Heimlich maneuver (whilst this is very effective with adults and larger kids it should be avoided with babies and small children). This resulted in the wee guys stomach content being thrust up into his wind pipe and the blockage was again complete. The result was that the little guy again started turning blue and was obviously in a bad way. I tried to persuade the doctor to let me have the kid back so I could again carry out back blows and mouth to mouth should it be necessary but the doctor was now screaming for someone to give him a pen. His intention was to carry out an improvised coniotomy to open the airway below the obstruction. It took an age for someone to finally bring a pen and even then it seemed the doctor was very hesitant to carry out the procedure.

The arrival of the paramedics took the decision out of his hands and the paramedics took the little guy into the ambulance to treat him. The last thing I heard before the ambulance left was that the little guy was still unconscious and had an oxygen saturation of only 91%. When I got home that night I rang the hospital to try and find out the condition of the wee guy but understandably the hospital were reluctant to give out any information regarding his condition to non family members. All that they would tell me was that he was still alive but there seemed to be an ominous tone to the STILL.

As I mentioned at the start I've seen more than my share of traumatic incidents and thought I'd been unscathed until now. I just can't get his wee face out of my head or get rid of the feeling that I should have battered the **** out of this doctor or reacted differently one way or the other. I also know that these are typical symptoms of PTSD which is probably the reason I'm sharing this on here. I'm scanning all the local news channels in the area where this happened to try and find something about his condition but as of yet there's nothing.

Apologies if anyone has found this distressing but I just had to get it off my chest, so far I feel little or no benefit for having done so but hopefully later.

---

By the sounds of things you did everything you should have. I think you should be very proud of the way you acted. Hope the young lad makes a full recovery.

Sent from my GT-S5830i using Tapatalk 2

Cheers guys, someone suggested I leave my contact details at the hospital and ask them to pass it on to the parents with the hope that they'll contact me. I thought about this for a while but decided against it because this is really about them and not me.

Still it was good to talk and hearing your opinion makes it a little easier to believe I was limited in my options. Thanks.

I have just stumbled on this thread and wanted to say thank you to the OP and all subsequent posters for having the guts to raise these issues. It wasn't lost on my that the number of views of this thread seem to far outweigh almost any other on this bit of the forum...a telling statistic.

I suffer from panic attacks, which only appear when I am speaking in public (which my job requires me to do frequently). This isn't the jitters or nerves, this is full blown panic and it culminated on two occasions when I ran out of the room when presenting to colleagues. Up until that point I was an excellent presenter (still am apparently), a confident speaker and a natural extrovert who would lead meetings at the drop of a hat and was hard to shut up once I got started.

The panic attacks appeared from absolutely nowhere and from the moment the first one came it was a downward spiral which culminated in extra-ordinary periods of self doubt, self chastisement and utter terror in anticipation of the next speaking event and the next one after that and so on....given that I was speaking at events or chairing meetings once or twice a week at the peak of all this it was a hell of a time and a burden not just on me but my family. I note from many of the posts here that our families are often the ones who suffer most alongside us.

This downward spiral also gave rise to (or triggered) depression whcih was not as acute as many sufferers have to deal with but enough to seriously drain me and call into question whether I remainded in my career or gave it all away. With three children and a supportive wife this was not an option.

The point to this background was to allow me to explain what has happened to make things manageable as there were points in the last 15 years when I honestly believed NOTHING could fix this and NOTHING would improve. This was a dreadful time and the dark days seem like they will never end - but they do and they can.

What helped me gain control of the panic attacks and depression are as follows and I am simply telling this in case it helps anyone who may be at the "depths of despair" stage:

1. Telling someone: I had two panic attacks in front of several senior colleagues - no hiding place after that and the support I received from everyone was astonishing. I even had two colleagues speak to me confidentially about similar anxiety issues they were facing. The minute these supportive conversations took place a huge cloud started to lift. I was mortified at the time but looking back this was THE definining moment in gaining back some control and the analogy for other anxiety sufferers irrespective of how the anxiety manifests itself is to speak openly to trusted colleagues/family/friends. There is NO stigma no matter how guilty/ashamed/depressed etc you feel - all of these irrational feelings will melt away the minute you have an open conversation.

2. Professional help: My GP referred me to a psychologist. He didn't "fix me" but as he said on day one he didn't even try. What he DID do was explain what was happening, explain why and then explain that I needed to immediately stop fighting anxiety and start to accept it and manage it. Best advice I ever received and things improved from that point onwards.

3. Medication: I resisted meds for over 10 years and when I look back this annoys me so much. In MY case (and I appreciate we have all had very different experiences) and with the encouragement of professionals (psychologist and GP) I tool Xanax before major public speaking events. I started on 100mg and am now down to 12.5mg before "easy" events and no more than 50mg for "big" ones. The beauty of this for my problem is that a) I can practice managing my anxiety in a controlled manner by dropping the Xanax amount as I improve my control - this graded exposure type of approach is v.commonly used for anxiety/panic sufferers but is hard to put into practice in front of say 100 people in an audience when you are on the stage due to speak to them!! b) Having the Xanax as a crutch immediately and I mean immediately removed the anticipatory anxiety which was so debilitating and which lifted a cloud that had been over me for years and allowed things to be put into prespective. We can be so irrational at times especially when things are bad and this was a huge and positive benefit of having a drug that I new would "protect" me when I needed it. When depression struck I was less reticient about meds and took Lovan - now down to half a tab a day and it has worked wonders for me. Again this is just me, hundreds of others won't be so lucky or will need to try other combinations/drugs etc but for me the Lovan has helped and I want to work on coming off this med over the next few months and see how I feel.

4. Exercise/nutrition: Keeping fit, eating well as so many other posters will tell you is the key building block. Too much alcohol only makes things worse and in my personal view the absolute dread that accompanies a bad hangover is no longer worth it, no matter how hard it may be to keep a lid on things on a big night....given how Hibs have been playing these last few years this has been the hardest "rule" to follow of course as drowning my sorrows is hugely tempting...

5. Self help stuff: I reckon I have read every book on anxiety ever written. Just made things worse and 1-4 above much better (for me) as tools to gain some control back. One book however that helped me a lot is a book called "the curse of the strong" http://www.amazon.co.uk/Depressive-I.../dp/1847092357 which really puts things into perspective, offers absolutely no miracle cure and at the end of it makes you feel quite special to have these problems:-)! I also took up a recommendation from a recent post on here and am reading a book called My Age of Anxiety which so far has been a great read.

Apologies for rambling on but I was so surprised to see this thread on .Net and the purpose of posting is simply to share my experience, thank the OP and others for having the guts to raise this and hopefully offer encouragement to anyone who is in the darkest hole that things do get better (I don't believe they get cured) and that the support of people around you and on this forum will help. Happy to PM with anyone who wants to discuss further or via this forum whatever works.

Thanks again OP. Restored my faith in our club. Seriously.

Thanks for sharing that BH, really hope it helps others.

Mental health awareness week 12-18 May

Attachment 12579

@anxietyunited is a great twitter feed with links to resources and podcasts for sufferer, carers, family and friends. Worth a look.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by hibsbollah

www.moodgym.anu.edu.au

This is a recomended site, CBT course you can access from your smartphone. Particularly useful if you're on a long NHS waiting list for 'real' CBT.

---

i was recommended this site by my works doctor, helped me immensely.

My anxiety had seemed to be seasonal,with the benefit of hindsight, it starts every autumn, was weaned off the tablets last spring and started back on them in September.

However, the last month or so has been horrendous,not as bad as I've been, but definitely worsening, does being on the same tablet lose its effectiveness over time?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by cowiehibs

i was recommended this site by my works doctor, helped me immensely.

My anxiety had seemed to be seasonal,with the benefit of hindsight, it starts every autumn, was weaned off the tablets last spring and started back on them in September.

However, the last month or so has been horrendous,not as bad as I've been, but definitely worsening, does being on the same tablet lose its effectiveness over time?

---

Possibly, Some medications for unrelated conditions can also interfere with the way your body breaks down and uses antidepressants, decreasing their effectiveness, this is usually known as tachyphylaxis. If a resistance has been built up then your GP should cross check "contradictions" in your other medication (if you are on other meds) If not then it could just be a case of "tweaking" your dosage & getting you back on track again.

Good luck, stick in there ..:aok:

http://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/comment...ing-depression

Interesting interview with Limmy and his experience of depression in GQ.

I think that considering 1 in 3 people will suffer from a mental disorder at some point in their lives there is a disgraceful lack of recognition about it in this country. Depression and anxiety have been prevalent in my family. My old man suffered with both in his twenties and although he is alright now you can tell that it definitely changed him. My grand-parents used to say how confident he was but then after he went through what he did he became more withdrawn. My Dad's sister committed suicide 10 years ago and although no-one has ever said why she did it, logic says it was due to depression, she left behind two young girls who have had to grow up without their mother.

I've had problems myself, when I was 15 my Mam and Dad split up in ugly circumstances and six months later I found myself having to be sent home from school suffering from panic attacks. That continued for several months, the Summer was the worst part, I could barely leave the house. I started College in the September though and once I had got my mind off all my worries and threw myself into my College work I realised one day that I didn't feel anxious anymore. I think distraction and changing your thought pattern is the key.

So I was happy again for 2 and a half years and then it kicked off again, only worse this time. I have been struggling with it since I was 19 and I am 22 now. Although I can see that I have gotten gradually better over time there is still some way to go, I just have to be confident that like my Dad I will eventually find away out of this permanently.

I've said on many an occasion that I can deal with physical pain, but when its mental anguish you're going through there really is nothing worse. There is no quick fix and you just have to take it day by day and stay positive.

Stick in there. It is true that people don't acknowledge it because you can't see the "wound" or scar

Does anyone on here know how easy it is to get a second opinion on a diagnosis. I feel the label "Borderline Personality Disorder" is harming me in a way.

Over the past three weeks I have been having strange episodes at night. Hallucinations, "night terrors" and some sort of sleep paralysis. I have spoken to 3 CPN's and 2 out of hours doctors who all say it's nothing to worry about but I haven't had a decent nights sleep in almost a month.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by StranraerHibee

Does anyone on here know how easy it is to get a second opinion on a diagnosis. I feel the label "Borderline Personality Disorder" is harming me in a way.

Over the past three weeks I have been having strange episodes at night. Hallucinations, "night terrors" and some sort of sleep paralysis. I have spoken to 3 CPN's and 2 out of hours doctors who all say it's nothing to worry about but I haven't had a decent nights sleep in almost a month.

---

Sounds like you've had several second opinions already. You could ask your consultant to pass over your care to another doctor though.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Filled Rolls

Sounds like you've had several second opinions already. You could ask your consultant to pass over your care to another doctor though.

---

:aok: I was after a second opinion from another shrink, I would hate people to think I'm making this up at night in order to get certain medication.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by StranraerHibee

:aok: I was after a second opinion from another shrink, I would hate people to think I'm making this up at night in order to get certain medication.

---

I don't. :agree:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Filled Rolls

I don't. :agree:

---

I know man it's the doctors in Stranraer thinking I'm seeking medication of some sort :greengrin I've done a bit of reading on BPD and how people with it often manipulate things for their own benefit.

I'm seeking advice

I was wondering if people would mind sharing their experiences of certain antidepressants. I've been on 7 and Sertraline is the most effective but it has rather (embarrassing male-problem side effects).

Has anyone been on antidepressants that aren't SSRI's and if so, were they effective?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by yeezus.

I'm seeking advice

I was wondering if people would mind sharing their experiences of certain antidepressants. I've been on 7 and Sertraline is the most effective but it has rather (embarrassing male-problem side effects).

Has anyone been on antidepressants that aren't SSRI's and if so, were they effective?

---

Without going into too much detail, I had similar problems to yours on Fluoxetine.

The side effects of SRRIs are well known, and vary between drugs, and between individuals. The only way you can tell if you will get them, is to try the drug and see.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Filled Rolls

Without going into too much detail, I had similar problems to yours on Fluoxetine.

The side effects of SRRIs are well known, and vary between drugs, and between individuals. The only way you can tell if you will get them, is to try the drug and see.

---

Now that I've told the shrink to piss off I doubt the GP will change anything. This personality disorder malarky is getting in the way of everything that is said to me by professionals.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Lost_Mackem

I think that considering 1 in 3 people will suffer from a mental disorder at some point in their lives there is a disgraceful lack of recognition about it in this country. Depression and anxiety have been prevalent in my family. My old man suffered with both in his twenties and although he is alright now you can tell that it definitely changed him. My grand-parents used to say how confident he was but then after he went through what he did he became more withdrawn. My Dad's sister committed suicide 10 years ago and although no-one has ever said why she did it, logic says it was due to depression, she left behind two young girls who have had to grow up without their mother.

I've had problems myself, when I was 15 my Mam and Dad split up in ugly circumstances and six months later I found myself having to be sent home from school suffering from panic attacks. That continued for several months, the Summer was the worst part, I could barely leave the house. I started College in the September though and once I had got my mind off all my worries and threw myself into my College work I realised one day that I didn't feel anxious anymore. I think distraction and changing your thought pattern is the key.

So I was happy again for 2 and a half years and then it kicked off again, only worse this time. I have been struggling with it since I was 19 and I am 22 now. Although I can see that I have gotten gradually better over time there is still some way to go, I just have to be confident that like my Dad I will eventually find away out of this permanently.

I've said on many an occasion that I can deal with physical pain, but when its mental anguish you're going through there really is nothing worse. There is no quick fix and you just have to take it day by day and stay positive.

---

Very interesting post containing many truths.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by HibeeN

I posted earlier in the the thread about my anxiety, I've always been able to control it and manage it but recently things have taken a turn for the worse and I have no idea why. I've recently started a new job which I love and is on the career path I want, I have a very close group of friends who understand me and care about me and objectively I know I am very lucky but I just feel constantly anxious. I keep thinking about dying - it's silly things like getting in a lift and thinking it's going to fall or getting on a plane and thinking it will crash or thinking about being in a terrorist attack. I can barely sleep at nights because all these horrible thoughts run through my head. I used to self harm when I was younger and fortunately I don't feel myself drawn to doing that again but I just feel there is something as equally messed up in my head going on and I don't know how to stop it. I am usually very objective and logical and can tell myself that I'm being silly but for some reason I can't shake all these irrational fears and it's becoming increasingly crippling for me.

I've never been to the doctors for my problems before I've always stubbornly tried to work through them myself but I don't know if that's the best course of action any more.

---

I was in the exact same place, hoping planes, trains etc would crash on way to meetings.... It took me a looong time to do it but I really, really recommend seeing the Doc, I was referred to a mental health nurse and over the course of a few months it really helped me turn myself around. I'm not out the woods yet, might never be totally, but now I have the tools to understand what's happening and can take steps to get me back on track. Go see the doc, once you've done it you'll wish you been much earlier.

I've been struggling a bit myself recently, I wondered if anyone knows how easy (or difficult) it is to change GP surgeries?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by <3Morrissey

I've been struggling a bit myself recently, I wondered if anyone knows how easy (or difficult) it is to change GP surgeries?

---

It should be easy mate, go online to read up on GPs as there should be feedback from service users. Also talk to folk in your area to see if they recommend their GP. Once you decide who you want to go with ask to register with them. Any problems you can contact the CCG who should be able to help.

Can I just say, this thread is quite comfortably the best on the site. I've re-read it so many times and it just reminds me how fantastic the people on here are.

:top marks