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Honored Contributor
Posts: 10,620
Registered: ‎09-22-2010

With everything that is going on in the world and the change in our lifestyles, I would think everyone is a little depressed.  

Trusted Contributor
Posts: 1,665
Registered: ‎10-25-2016

@gellen wrote:

I am two months into a serious depression.  It began with isolation  (solitary) during the beginning of Covid.  My depression began in June.  I have tried many different meds and therapy.  Was there any one thing that got you through? 


Although it can be difficult to do at times when you're struggling and you're not feeling well, I've personally found that it helps to reach out to someone else when I'm feeling down.

 

It gets me out of my own head, and it lets them know that I care about them and that I care about what's happening in their life, too.

 

I'll take a little time to send a note card in the mail.

 

I've always liked sending cards or letters to others when there's no particular reason for it, like when it isn't a birthday or a holiday, for example.

 

Also, taking care of a pet or a plant can also really help.

 

It also gives you something else to love and to focus on.

 

If you can, maybe you can try and focus on small things that might make you feel a bit better.

 

Others mentioned reading or watching TV or doing puzzles.

 

I like to color for adults, and that relaxes me and I find it therapeutic, too. 

 

I switch around what I color and what I use, so one day I might use crayons on a large picture, and then another day it might be neon gel pens on a dark background, for example. 

 

I also like to be outside and to enjoy nature.

 

Sometimes I'll just quietly listen to the birds outside of the window.

 

I could hear a new baby bird chirping nearby recently. It was really sweet and endearing.

 

It's little things like that that can suddenly brighten up our day. 

 

 

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Respected Contributor
Posts: 3,875
Registered: ‎04-27-2015

@MindyD I read your post and can relate to so much you have said. My daughter suffers from major depressive disorder and none of the meds have helped her, she is drug resistant. She did do a treatment which also did not help but may help you. It is called TMS and is similar to EST but uses a different technology. It is a commitment, five days a week for seven weeks. Each session lasts for one hour. Just thought you might be interested.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 10,371
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Please keep trying to find a medication to help you. Talk to your doctor or go see a psychiatrist who can prescribe medicine.  He/She can write a letter to your regular doctor who can then handle follow ups and refills etc if you want.  

 

Every person is different and it can take trying several medications to find the one for you.  It takes 2-4 weeks for medication to really kick in.

 

Often, people need 2 medications.  I have struggled with depression and PTSD.  I take an antidepressent at night and another add-on anti-depressant in the morning.  The combination allows me to live a normal life.  It's freeing!

 

Find a counselor too!  It made a huge difference when I was struggling at the beginning and I go back a few times every now and then.  

 

My counselor uses EMDR therapy which is 100 times better than plain talk therapy for me.  It gave me real tools to use if things get too crazy or if I'm having a bad day/week.

 

 

Honored Contributor
Posts: 8,955
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

@gellen wrote:

I am two months into a serious depression.  It began with isolation  (solitary) during the beginning of Covid.  My depression began in June.  I have tried many different meds and therapy.  Was there any one thing that got you through? 


You may want to take a serious look at music therapy and/or dance or art therapies.

 

The "science" of music therapy has been formalized since before

WW2, and there is a massive body of research supporting its use.

 

I have had the good fortune to be able to attend 3 rehearsals in the last 6 weeks or so, and although we've had to cancel our standard concert schedule, the lift in my spirits is amazing.

 

MOST IMPORTANT- YOU DO NOT have to be a musician,or even a participant, to benefit from music therapy. Listening alone can be very helpful, especially if the musical selections are chosen for your specific needs and issues.

 

If/when you're open to it, do a little online research about the art therapies and see if you can find any local providers. Hoping giving your brain a routine of new activities can help you shove the dark thinking away and find a light shining through!

Valued Contributor
Posts: 567
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

@Catty2 wrote:

@gellen 

 

Two months is a very short time to give any meds time to work for depression.  Are you in counseling?  I think there is over the phone or Facetime/Skype counseling available.  Give this time and take good care of yourself.  


         

         takes time to get into your body, I know trust me.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 17,476
Registered: ‎06-27-2010

Re: serious depression

[ Edited ]
 
Hi, @gellen.❤️   You've been on my mind since your earlier thread.   I wanted to ask how you were doing but was reluctant to "shout out" since sometimes we don't want to be put in the spotlight.   With years of inpatient and outpatient treatment for depression, for me it's been true that not just one thing or even a couple of things work alone...  it takes a combination of things, and what is helpful one day might not be the most helpful the next day.
 
Everyone here has offered thoughtful, important, compassionate advice, experience, and they all exemplify the generosity of spirit we so often see here when we pull together as a real community.   My heart goes out to all of you, in gratitude for the way you open up and share yourself to help others and also in support of those of you who are working through depression.❤️    I posted on the other thread -- I'll repeat some of it here and also add a link to the other discussion because so many posters shared valuable insight at that time.
 
@gellen,  Do your best to keep moving, to try and keep to a schedule, even if just a very basic, simple one -- it can help since maintaining better mental health involves getting and keeping ourselves organized, consistent, active, engaged, and disciplined...  all of which is counter to what we want to do when we feel so miserable and hopeless.    Also, even light exercise can generate physiological changes that help clear our mind, lift our spirit, and careful mindful attention to our breathing makes a difference, too.
 

There are some wonderful books, some will speak to you others will not.   In my first hospitalization, we used a daily meditation book with a simple short positive affirmation to focus our thoughts.   However, the irony is that at the very time we need to be able to read, process, hear, and express ourselves, our mind has trouble concentrating, focusing, and functioning as it should.    

 

Our brain is powerful -- it can work for or against us...  so use anything that speaks to you in a calming way.   For me, these have been helpful:  meditation, biofeedback, faith-based scriptures or quotes, prayer, guided imagery, EMDR, calming breathing techniques, self-hypnosis, positive affirmations, and "guided active journaling, or speed or timed journaling."

 

The simple act of writing 3 things we're grateful for, for 21 days consecutively, has been found to actually create measurable changes in our brain, and it lifts our spirit.   Nothing is too simple or too small to add to our list of gratitudes.

 
Please, stay in touch with your medical team, be very, very sure they know how you're doing.   This is essential.   It comes from your personal place of courage and strength that you ask others for support and guidance.   You exhibit that courage and strength when you ask here, or ask your friends and family, or ask your professional support team.  Don't forget that.   Stay connected.
 
Also, focus on small steps, simple actions, and be kind to yourself -- don't beat yourself up for falling back a step or two now and then or for not moving forward as much as you think you "should."   It is a delicate balance, and sometimes we push ourselves but other times we need to pause.   Be kind to yourself, and speak to yourself and about yourself with love, the same way you speak to and about those you love.   You are doing your best, each moment of each day, so give yourself credit for that.   I wish you peace, healing, and comfort, (((@gellen))).  You have friends here and we care about you.❤️
 
(earlier thread, "when you have given up on yourself" at
 
Few things reveal your intellect and your generosity of spirit—the parallel powers of your heart and mind—better than how you give feedback.~Maria Popova
Valued Contributor
Posts: 513
Registered: ‎04-21-2015

I am sorry that you are going through this difficult time. I had post partum depression and they didn't know how to treat it back then. Time was the cure for me. Another time when I was feeling down I took up crossword puzzles and I am addicted to them now. It really helped but they have to be on the difficult side. Prayers and best wishes that some of the wonderful advice you've been given helps.

 

Respected Contributor
Posts: 3,970
Registered: ‎03-16-2010

@gellen, I am glad to "see" you and have been thinking about you since your earlier post.

 

I have a very dear friend that is well known as a psych/mental health ARNP.  She has talked about in general how her patient load has really increased over the course of this pandemic.  I can pass on some things that in general I know she encourages her patients to do that are broad and general.  These are strategies she starts with until she gets to know her patients well enough to fine tune some of them into more specific actions or come up with other suggestions for them.

 

First, keep in contact with your therapist and medical team.  Also, keep taking your medication.

 

2.  Really keep to a specific schedule with taking your antidepressants.  Make sure to take it at the same time very morning or evening.  For example if it is prescribed once a day and you take it in the evening, take it exactly at the same time each evening.  Sometimes when we take medications it might be 9 pm one evening, 10 the next evening, 8:30 the next, and so on.  When starting on these types of meds it really helps to take it at the same time consistently.  That helps maintain a steady blood level  without ebbs and flows as you start taking something like an antidepressant. 

 

3.  Someone else mentioned the Calm app that costs a fee.  They also have a free Calm app that she recommends.  It is a free trial period, but when the free trial is up you are able to still use many of the components and are not required to pay.  She really recommends this to her patients with depression and has been impressed with the app and the way they allow free access.

 

4. She also recommends purchasing an audio book, especially for those that are alone.  It has to be an audio book.  Not that she has anything against a book in print, but having another human voice you listen to every day is important.  So you might think about some type of a book you think you might like (or tolerate, lol) and purchase an audio book.

 

There are many other suggestions here.  I will just encourage you to try and pick a couple and be realistic in your expectations at this time.  Don't be too hard on yourself.  A certain activity you enjoyed before the pandemic or onset of your depression might not be something you are excited about trying again.  Remember, that is part of the process of depression.  Things just don't have the appeal they did in the past.  That is ok.  But pick something and stay determined to keep doing it.

 

Also, remember that things aren't going to make a big difference immediately.  You might spend time doing something like coloring in an adult coloring book and think it isn't helping you or that it is just wasting your time.  That is ok, but just keep with it and don't expect it to make a big difference right away.  Sometimes it takes persistence and quite a bit of time before you recognize it is helping to a degree.

 

Hang in there and know that there are people that care.  HeartHeart

 

 

 

 

 


* Freedom has a taste the protected will never know *
Honored Contributor
Posts: 13,510
Registered: ‎05-23-2010

@panda1234 wrote:

@MindyD I read your post and can relate to so much you have said. My daughter suffers from major depressive disorder and none of the meds have helped her, she is drug resistant. She did do a treatment which also did not help but may help you. It is called TMS and is similar to EST but uses a different technology. It is a commitment, five days a week for seven weeks. Each session lasts for one hour. Just thought you might be interested.


@panda1234 @thank you for trying to help me. I think I wasn't very clear. I'm not much of a writer. My medication does work for me. I'm sorry your daughter is suffering with drug resistant depression. I did have second cousin with drug resistant depression. This was many years ago. He had ECT, which finally helped him. I have heard that ketamine is now being used to treat drug resistant depression. Even when a medication is working, sometimes there can be a symptom that does not resolve when on the medication. This is called an unresolved symptom of depression.