**The Mental Health Thread**

[Ayahuasca]

Good thread, this place has some very nice folk as well as individuals who’ve been through a lot which can be of massive help.

I know mental health is now taken more seriously but I think we’re a long way off in terms of getting people the real help they need, with rates increasing year on year and the figure is likely way higher than what’s reported.
I’ve became quite fascinated with the causes behind it, I mean just 100 years ago life was far worse for many, maybe it’s always been an issue but it hasn’t been till recently where we’ve been able to recognise and diagnose.

 

[MrRockliffe]

Mental health plays a bigger part in my family than I wish - I barely know anything about yet, yet myself, my mother, grandmother and grandfather all suffer from depression. We keep it to ourselves, and all cope with it well enough.

I've had counselling over the years, as I found it can get a little too much at times. As I've got older, and outgrown my adolescent years, I've had a better understanding of what it means, and how it affects me.

My father is one of those 'you chose your mood'. And I agree somewhat. From his point of view, you always have a choice to look at a situation half full or half empty, but anyone that knows someone who has depression or has it themselves would understand its not about the feeling in the moment. It's a long term effect.

For me, the worst part is vitality (or lack of). I can cope with the extreme feeling of despair and hopelessness, as I can usually sleep it off. But the lack of enthusiasm towards everything I loved as a kid, like gaming, reading, music and many sports is hard.

I used to be one of those teachers pets who'd study loads, not because I wanted good grades, but because I enjoyed learning. I loved it, in fact.

I excelled at my GCSEs, purely because I enjoyed learning.

Now I never have the energy. I finish a day at uni, and I'm exhausted. I nearly failed my first year because of it. I don't sleep more than 5 hours in a night, yet I used to be renowned for being that person who could fall asleep in a nightclub.

I don't socialise, nor have anyone to socialise with anymore (no fault but my own - no excuses here!)

But I deal with it. I don't think anyone would know I was unless I told them. I wake up every morning and put a brave face on.

Summer was tough, for me. I wasn't lucky enough to get a job, so put my summer rent on my overdraft, and borrowed the money for a holiday I had booked last year from my parents, then got robbed and had all of it stolen (changed all of it up before hand in the UK due to getting a really good exchange rate - 1.11 GBP to EURO I believe). Insurance company haven't paid up either the muppets

This uni year, I've become a peer mentor. It essentially means I'm the first point of contact for the new students. I can help them with most stuff, or point them in the right direction (stuff like course related questions, or if they're not adapting to the new lifestyle well). I'm really excited for it, and meet my mentees on Tuesday

I'd like my post to be a message to those in need of just someone to talk to. Drop me a message if you just need someone to chat

 

[kwerk]

Yes I'm officially mental now. Been prescribed "mixed amphetamine salts" and seems to work ok. At the therapeutic dose it's like coffee but much smoother and lasts 3 for 4 hours per dose.

Before it was like having a sportscar but with the wrong gearing. Now it's like having a normal car but with correct gears.

 

[dowie]

I know mental health is now taken more seriously but I think we’re a long way off in terms of getting people the real help they need, with rates increasing year on year and the figure is likely way higher than what’s reported.
I’ve became quite fascinated with the causes behind it, I mean just 100 years ago life was far worse for many, maybe it’s always been an issue but it hasn’t been till recently where we’ve been able to recognise and diagnose.

Well I suspect that there will never be 'enough' to give what some people would think they're entitled to receive from the state. Serious cases obviously do need to be taken care of, especially where there is a suicide risk but in general it isn't an easy problem to solve. I think you're right also to point out that 100 years ago life was far worse, thing is people just got on with life, there wasn't really the option to sign off sick from work for 6 months with depression and still receive a pay check.

You're right re: the increased understanding of it I think and the reality is that most of us at some point in our lives will experience mental health problems, depression and anxiety are incredibly common, though how people deal with them or are affected by them varies considerably. I don't think there is any way we're going to get a situation where a vast army of mental health practitioners is able to offer CBT, counselling etc.. to so many people to the point where everyone with one of theses issues can go to their GP and then get hours of time from such a professional. Lots of people are going to have to settle for the advice to go read up on mindfulness, get the headspace app, do regular exercise or eliminate the things causing the issue (hard to do if work or health related etc..) and then learn to cope with it... and if that fails then cheap and widely available medication is often offered. I think some of it is a bit of a lottery, some people will get referred for CBT/therapy etc.. where others in the same situation won't and it isn't exactly something easy to triage the severity of either, GPs can mostly go on self reported symptoms from people. Also no doubt, just as with physical illness, different people will put different amounts of effort into trying to recover.

I do wonder also if we're going to see the increase of diagnosis of certain conditions, not necessarily though greater awareness of those conditions but simply through a change in approach from medics. I mean with stuff like ADHD in kids for example it seems to be a bit of a case of drawing a line in the sand when deciding which people to label with it and which people to not. The vast majority of American kids with ADHD in the US for example wouldn't have ADHD in France... it's not like a physical illness where the diagnosis is much more objective but rather US doctors simply seem to be more prone to diagnosing it. AFAIK the UK is heading towards this direction a bit and we might well see more kids who would have previously simply been naughty kids now get labeled as having this condition. This then proves to be controversial as people become skeptical of such diagnosis and others get irate as they see such a diagnosis as part of their identity and want to cling to it.

Likewise Aspergers doesn't exist in the US but does exist in the UK. In the US it is now just thrown in with Autism. We don't generally screen for this stuff by default either, plenty of poor kids who might otherwise have been classed as having mild autism/Aspergers, ADHD etc.. could easily have been missed whereas if you've got middle class parents who push for this stuff you're much more likely to be diagnosed and end up with these labels, ditto to dyslexia etc..

Anyway these are useful for stress related stuff IMHO:

https://www.headspace.com

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mindfulness-practical-guide-finding-frantic/dp/074995308X/

And I'd also recommend a good yoga class too... even if you don't get on with the meditation at the end just doing some exercise is beneficial and the sight of girls in yoga pants* can help release some testosterone and cortisol


(*just kidding, don't go to yoga to perv, you should go for the health benefits/relaxed feeling you get after a session)

 

[LOAM]

My Anxiety started when my dog died right in front of me in august of 2015, Never felt a sadness like it, it was crippling, I am guessing that's where the mental side of things has stemmed from, in November that's when the physical symptoms started, Adrenaline rushes out of nowhere, Panic attacks, Heart beating a million times a second, Trouble sleeping could stay awake for days feeling tired but unable to sleep, Trouble breathing with chest pains everything under the sun, I think my condition is like a hybrid between PTSD and Anxiety.

I am nowhere near as bad as that now I was having panic attacks about three times a day up until about second half of 2016, It was an absolute nightmare, I am still Anxious about my breathing a bit and I still get sad sometimes (I am just glad i'm not having many panic attacks nowadays) those are really terrible things, I've never been suicidal though.

When the doctor told me anxiety could be the cause I was dumbfounded as up till my dogs death, I was very arrogant in my ways of thinking, Like a hard layer of "Thick skin" was eroded away to reveal a million different emotions.

Mine started from loss anxiety and the catalyst was getting cats. It seems quite strange when I actually admit that but it all started from fear of loosing them (I'm mid 40's with a wife and family). As cats do they would disappear for hours on end and it would set me off thinking they were laid dead somewhere or suffering etc.

This is the hypothetical problem that I try to solve and its not solvable by anything that I can influence. A cat will come back when it wants to, or it might not and I would get terrible panic attacks at these times. Eventually it spilled into other aspects of my life. When we had our first daughter in 2015 I couldn't manage not knowing what she needed when she was crying and thats when the self harming started. I couldn't deal with minor stressful occasions because I was/am living at a level of stress capacity and I went to some very very dark places, It's very much like trying to pour water into an almost full glass, it cant take even the smallest amount without it spilling out.

For me what I wanted was just a reduction in the anxiety I felf/feel, no matter how small so that I could deal with just the day to day stuff. Conversely practical problems and work stress dont effect me at all because I can see the problem, formulate a plan and execute it. Practical stress causing problems are not my issue, problems that I cant resolve or influence cause me problems.

 

[MrRockliffe]

Anyway these are useful for stress related stuff IMHO:

https://www.headspace.com

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mindfulness-practical-guide-finding-frantic/dp/074995308X/

And I'd also recommend a good yoga class too... even if you don't get on with the meditation at the end just doing some exercise is beneficial and the sight of girls in yoga pants* can help release some testosterone and cortisol


(*just kidding, don't go to yoga to perv, you should go for the health benefits/relaxed feeling you get after a session)

Is headspace worth the investment?

 

[CREATIVE!11]

Yes I'm officially mental now. Been prescribed "mixed amphetamine salts" and seems to work ok. At the therapeutic dose it's like coffee but much smoother and lasts 3 for 4 hours per dose.

Before it was like having a sportscar but with the wrong gearing. Now it's like having a normal car but with correct gears.

ADHD?

 

[xldeane]

DELETED

 

[wedrum]

Had anxiety and panic attack’s for around 12 years now. After seeing around 5 different doctors in those years I was finally prescribed Prozac, well I lost the plot on them and plotted to end my life as I just could not bare the horrible way I felt anymore I had to stop taking them, That was around 18 months ago. Now I am taking more care of myself exercising and eating better foods which has helped a lot. Still feel like I’m going to die some days etc etc but I’m still here go figure. Don’t think it will ever fully go away the over thinking of everything and ending up in a rut. It’s a horrible thing to go through it really is.

 

[doodah]

Can I ask, how are people's experiences with their local councils and authorities when it comes to support and care?

 

[FoxEye]

How do you know that you are depressed? I mean, at what point do you say to yourself, "I have a mental health issue." Some people seem to think that depression is having a bad day (or week, or month). But can be something much more insidious than that. Like living your whole life feeling that normal, expected outcomes can never happen to you. But not knowing why.

I myself have a good dose of this and that. I suspect I'm more mental than most here I will never take meds for anything tho.

I just want to know how you measure these things. Can I legitimately claim to be more mental than everyone on OcUK, or am I minor league compared to you guys?

I always like to think that I can fix myself by willing myself to be normal. That I've lived my life the way I have due to my own efforts (or lack of them). The trouble is, I don't know any different. I don't know if I could feel any different. 37 years have passed by and I've only experienced the mindset I have today. Could I be depressed for at least two decades? I'm sure I am/was/could be!

But how the heck do you know for sure... online tests are a (bad) joke. But surely - surely - to have ended up in such an odd place, requires some sort of underlying illness.

Or can normal people end up totally socially dysfunctional, with no underlying causal health problems? Can previously healthy people give themselves mental problems by practising bad metal habits? What was it Ghandi is supposed to have said... "What you think is what you become." Or something.

And if you consider yourself ill, what outcome defines a time when you have recovered? When you can look at yourself and not feel ill?

 

[kwerk]

ADHD?

Yes, primarily-inattentive type.

Anxiety and adhd both happen in the prefrontal cortex and are very closely related. Basically too much thoughts, over-thinking and poor ability to make decisions. I get an anti-anxiety effect from the medicine (generic version of adderall) because I can come to decisions and plans without a million what-if thoughts. It blunts creativity though IMO.

http://www.heysigmund.com/anxiety-interferes-decision-making-stop-intruding/?c=244c84852205

Research published in The Journal of Neuroscience explains how anxiety works to disengage the part of the brain that is essential for making good decisions. The area is the pre-frontal cortex (PFC), at the front of the brain, and it is the area that brings flexibility into decision-making.

The PFC is the part of the brain that gets involved in weighing up consequences, planning, and processing thoughts in a logical, rational way. It helps to take the emotional steam out of a decision by calming the amygdala, the part of the brain that runs on instinct, impulse and raw emotion (such as fear).

Researchers looked at the activity of brain cells in the PFC of anxious rats while those rats were encouraged to make a decision about which behaviour would get them a sweet reward. Rats share many physiological and biological similarities to humans which is why they are often used in these sort of studies. The researchers compared the behaviour and brain activity of two groups of rats – one that received a placebo and one that received a low dose of a drug that induced anxiety. Both groups of rats were able to make sound decisions, but the anxious rats made a lot more mistakes when there were more distractions in their way.

Anxiety rolls good decision-making by reducing the brain’s capacity to screen out distractions. Distractions can be physical, as in things in the environment, or they can take the form of thoughts and worries. Anxiety interrupts the brain’s capacity to ignore these distractions by numbing a group of neurons in the pre-frontal cortex that are specifically involved in making choices.

‘We have had a simplistic approach to studying and treating anxiety. We have equated it with fear and have mostly assumed that it over-engages entire brain circuits. But this study shows that anxiety disengages brain cells in a highly specialized manner.’ Bita Moghaddam, lead author and professor in the Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh.

This new finding challenges the conventional theories that anxiety intrudes on life by overstimulating circuits within the brain. It seems that when it comes to making decisions at least, anxiety selectively shuts down certain connections, making it more difficult for the brain to screen out irrelevant information and make better decisions.

 

[Gabbatek]

I have developed anxiety issues over the last few years which I have learned is because I have a highly analytical mind which is conflicted when I try to solve hyperthetycal problems in the same way as you would a practical problem.

GP was amazing, totally understanding and referred me really quickly to speak to someone. Talking about it and getting help was the best thing I ever did.

Seeking help is always the best option

 

[Gabbatek]

Had anxiety and panic attack’s for around 12 years now. After seeing around 5 different doctors in those years I was finally prescribed Prozac, well I lost the plot on them and plotted to end my life as I just could not bare the horrible way I felt anymore I had to stop taking them, That was around 18 months ago. Now I am taking more care of myself exercising and eating better foods which has helped a lot. Still feel like I’m going to die some days etc etc but I’m still here go figure. Don’t think it will ever fully go away the over thinking of everything and ending up in a rut. It’s a horrible thing to go through it really is.

I'm glad you haven't done anything deadly or suicidal, it is never the way to go no matter how overwhelming it can be.

It's so horrible to go through but this is what this thread is for, to support each other

 

[Rifte]

How do you know that you are depressed?

Its a hard one.

I went through moderate depression and anxiety in my late teens and early 20s, and it came back some what when my father passed away a few years ago.

What one doctor sees, another doesn't. Also some doctors will prescribe, and another wont.

There are various types of questionnaires which I completed back then, and this can can apparently assess the scale of your depression and if meds are the right option.

I was on meds for some time earlier in life, and it was a great help at the time, when I felt I could cope I came off them and nothing for 15 years until my father passed away.

If I ever got that way again I wouldnt hesitate to go on the same meds I was back then because I have a family now to think about, and I would hate to impact them.

 

[Gabbatek]

Can I ask, how are people's experiences with their local councils and authorities when it comes to support and care?

My doctors are great but my area has really bad funding for mental health thanks to all the cuts over the last 7 years.

There's a 3 year waiting list just to see an nhs specialist in Norwich at the ADHD clinic. But I have spoken to my local MP about this to see what can be done, but that is another story.

So for some things i have to go private

 

[Hiijinx]

Nice to see a thread like this! It really does help to talk about mental health.

I've suffered pretty much my whole life with anxiety and low moods and am currently in counselling.

I lost my Father when I was very young in quite a horrific accident from an old WW2 mortar he found whilst farming (lived in Germany at the time).
I still can't get the images out of my head.

Fast forward a few years now in the UK, I grew up with a single Mum who had to work long hours to keep us warm and fed and while she loved us greatly the lack of a parent figure really effected me I believe.

Under great stress at school i fell ill with a mystery illness which had me bed bound for weeks, I can't even remember my 14th birthday it was so severe. Eventually diagnosed with ME/CFS I spent the remainder of my school years home tutored as I could barely get out of bed my energy was so depleted. Got a few GCSE's but lost all my friends, had to give up football which was my greatest passion in life and basically became a recluse.

Moving on, I have semi-recovered from the CFS but it has left lasting impressions to my life, Doctors believe it to be mental but it still leaves me with physical symptoms. Whoever first coined the phrase "its all in your head!" was talking out his/her arse.

I shoot out of bed frequently which gives my partner such a fright i have recently turned to sleeping in the guest room so I don't disturb her. The slightest stress in life is a trigger for me so I have to try and eliminate as much as possible in terms of life style and employment. While I am no where near my dream job, I am content and stable but still have this tedious nagging in the back of my head telling me I am under achieving.

I have never really talked about any of this before but recently been encouraged to by my therapist and i have to say, it really does help just having an outlet and not bottling it up instead.

Its basically left me feeling lost in life, the only memories I have are either of loss, illness or the hurt of my friends abandoning me - thank god for the internet and gaming, I believe its the only thing which kept me sane.

 

[dowie]

I just want to know how you measure these things. Can I legitimately claim to be more mental than everyone on OcUK, or am I minor league compared to you guys?

you can't very well a lot of it is just done to patients self reporting symptoms AFAIK

also even then how two people cope with the same feelings would be different too - just as two different people might cope completely differently to say the same physical pain/injury or illness two different people with the same mental state, same level of depression/anxiety etc.. may well react/deal with it in different ways... just as with anything else in life

Or can normal people end up totally socially dysfunctional, with no underlying causal health problems?

Probably, if you're introverted and barely leave the house as some Japanese men are starting to do then I don't doubt that you can end up being socially dysfunctional. Then again this sort of stuff could probably lead to people being more likely to become depressed etc..

Can previously healthy people give themselves mental problems by practising bad metal habits?

Very possibly, as per the above example for example.... There are plenty of things like stress (from say work or perhaps lack of work/financial pressure), losing loved ones, being lonely etc.. that can contribute to this stuff.

 

[Bassmansam]

For people saying they have depression. Is it just feeling down or is it something more than that? How would you know if you actually are?

I definitelty suffered with health anxiety badly a couple of years ago after i had a panic attack in a cinema and thought i was having a heart attack or something. I was overweight and had a bad diet and i have always been a worrier anyway so i think it all built up. Much healthier these days though but i still get anxious occasionaly.

 

[Ayahuasca]

For people saying they have depression. Is it just feeling down or is it something more than that? How would you know if you actually are?

I can't speak for everyone but it's when it comes to the point you have these feelings even when things are going well, you can wake up one day, not have anything to worry or be stressed about but still feel hopeless and a sense of pointlessness to it all. Apart from some extreme cases I don't think there's a sure-fire way to tell if someone is actually depressed or whether elements of their life are causing those feelings, lack of employment for example could cause similar feelings but chemically you might not actually be depressed.