Little lugs, nicely put, I to suffer with depression, and am now (as of Saturday) off the medication for the first time in five yrs.
I think, despite the help of the Priory (who in my opinion are the best), that the biggest help over te years has been doing things for myself, I.e. looking after my animals, working for myself, this has given e a reason to do things and most importantly self esteem, I now believe in me. I still have moments when things go wrong but I possess a 'toolkit' that consists of solutions to manage those situations that occur in my head that are likely to set me back, doesn't matter what the triggers are.
I also have (fingers crossed) suffered from acute agoraphobia, the fear of the unknown, basically I run my life now managing out all unknowns as far as humanely possible, this just makes sense, it takes a lot of effort, but after 5 years I think I'm about there win it
Biggest things to remember are
Put yourself first, really, take time for you, enjoy it
Challenge every negative thought you have about yourself, it's difficult, but you will find your wrong about yourself
Do something different, if its bad ding wallow, go out, do something ese, you'll enjoy it more than you think
Make lists of things to do the in the evening, just 4 things, one you must do, the rest are for you, the next day do them, you will achieve, you will feel better
Talk to someone you don't know, ring Samaritans or someone, you can't tell the closest people because I'd guess they're part of your problem
Be brutally honest with yourself, identify your coping strategies, identify the ones that have gone wrong and relearn them
Oh ad see the doctor, get help, the long you leave it the longer it takes to get better, it doesn't take half an hour, remember, it's cased by a chemical imbalance, you are ill, you need to stabilise the mood swings,
The above is what I've learnt after 18 months of cognitive behavioural therapy, get some, if your not ill get some, you'll be a better person for it
Oh ad you can pm me to
