People with depression

[Greedo]

I've noticed on here that a lot of people suffer from the above.

Even on the "your worst feature thread" a lot of people put down things and said it was connected to there depression and also on past threads it has been mentioned by various people.

I'm just wondering if you are suffering from depression or just prone to getting pissed off from time to time.

I genuinely am really surprised at the amount. I have read that physical exerscise is a great way of beating this illness and given the fact most people on here are regular cyclists does this not help?

I'm not taking the piss for once and would be really interested to know if you do suffer has it been properly diagnosed or is it a lazy/not clued up GP just taking the easy option and saying you're depressed?

 

[gratts]

I noticed exactly the same thing, and wondered the same!
Or whether people self diagnose themselves as depressed when they just have a bad day/week/whatever. I seem to remember it affects about 10% of the population to some extent, but it seems higher than that here

 

[BigonaBianchi]

I'm not taking the piss for once and would be really interested to know if you do suffer has it been properly diagnosed or is it a lazy/not clued up GP just taking the easy option and saying you're depressed?

I was hospitalized for it.

I have been medicated for ten year approx

I have a 'proper' diagnosis' supported by 2 GPs and a specialist psychiatrist

I have had therapy CBT

The answer to your question is that...no this isnt just about being a bit pissed off.

 

[cheadle hulme]

I think its linked to the thread in P&L about people who think too much/more than average = more prone to depression.
People on here are generally more intelligent than average I reckon, this is also a factor in depression.
Could also be you're blood group if you believe the Japanese. I'm type A which is spot on from this article.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/dec/04/japan-world-news

 

[FBOAB]

Yup, properly diagnosed here. It surprises me how many people suffer the same too. I took up cycling again as I was told by doctors/therapists that it does help. I does, most of the time, help me get out of the periodic troughs I can get into but at the moment I'm off sick with no will or want to even get out of bed, let alone get on my bike. Mabe I should and it'll give me the kick up the arse that I probably need.

 

[wafflycat]

I was hospitalized for it.

I have been medicated for ten year approx

I have a 'proper' diagnosis' supported by 2 GPs and a specialist psychiatrist

I have had therapy CBT

The answer to your question is that...no this isnt just about being a bit pissed off.

Aye. Depression has this stigma attached to it (which narks the heck out of me) where you'll get the 'pull yourself together' brigade coming in with the 'it's a bit down' 'get some exercise' and the like. Depression is a very real, very serious illness. They don't tell folks with broken legs, cancer, heart attacks etc. that they're just feeling a bit down... if there's blood spurting all over, it's recognised as a 'real' illness but depressin is a hidden illness and the sufferers suffer from more than just the illness due to this.

 

[Twenty Inch]

Greedo I'll accept that you're not taking the piss, but depression is very far away from feeling a bit pissed off. I'm generally a positive self-aware individual, aware of my emotional state and able to find the inner resources to look on the bright side.

Which makes my depression episodes all the worse. As someone on here said, it's like being in a glass box, isolated from everything that is meaningful to you.

My first episode lasted a year and was linked to thyroid malfunction. It responded to diet and iodine. My second episode was shorter before I went to the doctor and got prescription meds, which gave me the space to have a look at other issues in my life. Things are getting better, but it's long term and hard going.

 

[FBOAB]

Aye. Depression has this stigma attached to it (which narks the heck out of me) where you'll get the 'pull yourself together' brigade coming in with the 'it's a bit down' 'get some exercise' and the like. Depression is a very real, very serious illness. They don't tell folks with broken legs, cancer, heart attacks etc. that they're just feeling a bit down... if there's blood spurting all over, it's recognised as a 'real' illness but depressin is a hidden illness and the sufferers suffer from more than just the illness due to this.

Couldnt agree more. Lost friends, money, possesions, you name it. It's amazing the deafening silence from work collegues and friends you get when you have to have time off because of it. Believe me if I could just 'pull myself together' as I've heard many times from family and others I know I would have done that years ago and probably not made such a hash of my life as I have done so far.

 

[Willow]

I wonder whether there is a simple case that sometimes when we are depressed or say we are it is taken as we have depression. I think being depressed is more than being pd off but it is not necessarily depression.

That being said I know nothing about it except how I feel. Many years ago I had a major supply of paracetemol which I had ground in the food processor ready, now I'm sure if I went to the docs that would have been cause enough to diagnose me with depression but I don't go to the docs for anything (except when I had my children) Thankfully I didn't take anything because I didn't want to let down those I would be leaving behind. Being with my ex changed my life totally and I remember to this day the tears (relief?) when I tipped that dust away because I didn't need it any more. We had a great time for 12 years. During the last 2 years since he left I would say I have been depressed seriously for quite a long time but I don't think I had depression in the same way I did all those years ago.

 

[Flying_Monkey]

Also properly diagnosed (twice), been suicidal, it helped end my last relationship, two years of therapy... but always refused to take any drugs. It's not fun, but I've learned to live with it.

 

[Noodley]

I think it may be a simple representation that an awful lot of people suffer from depression.

 

[Peter]

Well, how do you define depression?

I don't think I've ever suffered more that a few bad days and I'd hardly call that depression.

I read with dismay that so many people in such a small forum are suffering.

 

[tdr1nka]

8 years on low meds after being diagnosed with post traumatic stress followed by a breakdown due to nervous exhaustion.
It lost me my job, my home and it split a relationship of some long standing.

Only in the last couple of years has life resembled something 'functional', thanks to my beautiful daughters, the love of friends & family and getting back on a bike again after 5 years absence.

 

[Kovu]

I know i'm only 16, so maybe not the most experienced when it comes to matters like this.

BUT depression is not "just feeling a bit pissed off" at all. I know people who have suffered from it, and it is a real illness ... it hurts for other people to see someone to go thorough it alone and without them talking about it as well. IT is not just being a bit under weather at all.

 

[asterix]

My brother's depressed. He started sounding over-cheerful on the phone and sending joke e-mails; yup, he's on prozac.

He's got good reason to feel down since his wife (regular smoker) was diagnosed with lung cancer last year, has had aggressive ops to remove first tissue from lungs and later a secondary growth from the brain. Now it's back to her lungs and she's undergoing chemo. It's hard to be optimistic.