Author Topic: How is everyone doing  (Read 11890 times)

Dragonfly

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How is everyone doing
« on: January 25, 2018, 07:41:50 pm »
Hi everyone,

Just wondering how everyone is doing. On the whole I am doing well. I still have my ups and downs. I am not complaining though.

I think everyone that is a mother or father worries about their children. Today my son went to the hospital. He was in real pain. The doctors found out he has a large kidney stone. He is a strong man though. So glad that my son has a girlfriend who was with him and really cares about him. He and his ex were separated a few years ago.

I went for the first time to a group from MDAO that does crafts. There were maybe about 10 of us and I sat beside an older gentleman. His mind was very sharp and I really enjoyed his humor. We talked more than we did crafts. It was very enjoyable.  I was very tired at the end of it. When I feel up to it I will probably go again. It is on every wednesday morning. I have a support worker who drives me. I don't like driving in my busy city. My concentration is not good.

Please feel free to post. We are a caring, non-judgemental group. Everyone's experiences are valuable. We can learn from each other. I have had great support on this forum and have learned a lot from others. This has greatly helped me.

Dragonfly

Peace

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Re: How is everyone doing
« Reply #1 on: January 26, 2018, 11:04:45 am »
Hi Dragonfly  :)

I'm SO happy to read that on the whole you're doing well! It's nice to hear about the craft group, too. We really do need socialization. I made going to one more event per month at my social group one of my goals. If I could access some of the MDAO groups, I would definitely be at some of them.

I'm home from my OCD treatment. The treatment did me a world of good. I no longer let my thoughts upset me, I use some techniques I learned help me take the power away from the thoughts. I also continuously fight my compulsions, but try to not beat myself up for them. I'll never be cured of OCD, it's a brain disorder that is a lifelong affliction, but I can still live a good life and have OCD.

Looking forward to hearing from everyone, new and old.  :)


Dragonfly

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Re: How is everyone doing
« Reply #2 on: January 27, 2018, 05:07:02 pm »
Hi Peace,   I have been thinking about you and wondering how you were doing.

I am so glad that you finally found some help for your OCD. You persevered after many tries and research.

Dragonfly


momfellinglost

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Re: How is everyone doing
« Reply #3 on: January 30, 2018, 09:40:43 am »
  How very kind of you to ask about other and how they are doing. We have a lot of really great people here. I have taken up beekeeping and that is my new obsession learn and hoping my hives get through the cold winter. So far so good but they can turn at a moments notice. I find watching them in the warm weather so relaxing and do it often when I feel stress. My dogs also help me when things are getting out of control in my world they don't comment only cuddle with me. There are stress not in my household but with people I care about and support. Winter is not my fav time I don't like the cold at all. But spring I hope will be here before I know it

paulm

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Re: How is everyone doing
« Reply #4 on: January 31, 2018, 08:47:04 pm »
Hello Dragonfly. I'm doing not to bad. 2017 was a bit of a bummer and it seemed like there were only downs and no ups. However 2017 ended in a good way with the birth of our second grandchild at the end of Dec. 2018 got off too a good start when I rec'd the Ontario medal for good citizen ship from the Lieutenant Governor in a recent ceremony for all of the volunteer duties I have preformed over the yrs.

 I`m glad that you found the MDAO group interesting. Wish your son well for me, I understand that kidney stones can be very painful. Take Care. paul m

Dragonfly

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Re: How is everyone doing
« Reply #5 on: February 05, 2018, 08:31:25 pm »
Momfellinglost,
 Beekeeping seems like a very interesting hobby. Yes, animals do give unconditional love. I have two cats. I can't wait for spring. Then my family and I can go camping again.

Paul,
 I am so glad that 2018 is starting better for you. Congradulations for the Ontario medal you received for good citizen ship. I am sure you are very proud as you should be.

Dragonfly

MARK HEITHORN

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Re: How is everyone doing
« Reply #6 on: February 19, 2018, 04:52:22 pm »
so so. Thinking of changing meds. Currently on 150 mg on Sertraline and 100mgs
of Lamotrigine. Having issues coping with Depression. Can anyone suggest new meds?

Peace

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Re: How is everyone doing
« Reply #7 on: February 21, 2018, 11:21:55 am »
Hi Mark,

Nice to meet you! Welcome  :)

I didn't answer your question right away because I was having a not very good day when you first posted, so I was hoping someone else would reply.

I looked back on your previous post because different meds help different conditions, and saw that you said you struggle with depression with an alcohol problem. I am alcohol dependent and had treatment for it myself last year, so anything I say to you in relation to alcohol is in no way judgement of you.

My diagnosis are OCD, agoraphobia with panic, PTSD, and depression in order of severity. If you can and haven't already, try to find an experienced psychiatrist who will take the time to talk to you. I wasted many years receiving treatment for depression and anxiety only which did nothing to help, and in fact was detrimental, to my primary diagnosis of OCD. I've heard many stories of people who have bipolar disorder getting treatment for depression alone, which only makes their condition worse because anti-depressants trigger mania. An accurate diagnosis is crucial.

On to medication. Each of us is different. Sertraline has always been the best medication for me. I've been tried on many, and always return to Sertraline. A higher dose is known to treat OCD, but the problem with that is I've had instances of medication induced mania, and I'm also highly sensitive to medication, so higher doses make me very ill. None of us have the same chemicals or the same conditions, so what might work for me, could be detrimental for someone else. I know someone who prozac has helped their OCD, whereas prozac made it so I couldn't leave my home to even go into my neighbours backyard, I was having so many panic attacks.

Does anyone else in your family of origin have mental health or brain disorder conditions (OCD is a brain disorder). If yes, and they are taking medication, it's known that what helps one family member has been known to help another. My sister and brother's depression are/were both helped by Wellbrutin.

Not a lecture at all, as I said I'm alcohol dependent, which is in remission - please try to work on alcohol intake if it's still a problem. Alcohol and medication together can be very dangerous, and decreasing my alcohol intake has drastically improved my mental health. Alcohol is just a very temporary fix that in the long run is detrimental.

Medication on average is at best 20% of recovery. Recovery includes medication, lifestyle changes, and the therapy that treats your diagnosis with the right person.

I apologize for not listing medications you could try, our diagnosis are different, and we are all different. Hopefully someone diagnosed with depression will also respond.

Good luck to you!!! We are all in this journey together and we all understand.





paulm

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Re: How is everyone doing
« Reply #8 on: February 21, 2018, 06:50:04 pm »
Hello Mark. Peace has given you a pretty good answer. I'll try and add a little. My experience has been that everyone is different, but sometimes docs try and treat us all the same. It's been my experience that each doc has several medications that they prescribe first. That is fine as long as they are willing to change them up when they don't work. I would have gotten a lot better , a lot sooner if I had made my docs change my meds quicker when I was really ill.  If a medication is going to work for you, you will generally show a large improvement in how you feel within 60-90 days from the time you reach maximum dose. I don't know how many times I went 6mths or even more than a yr(s) with a medication that only slightly improved my moods.

 Basically if I wasn't suicidal my doc didn't want to change my meds. That can still leave a person feeling pretty low. In order to get better I had to try many different meds in a variety combos and I went with the "if I don't feel vastly better in 90 days I want something different " attitude and that helped a lot.

 Of course I had to do some difficult things myself , like life style(exercise , sleep habits, etc) and diet changes (less booze, less sugars and chips etc) in order to make it all work, but changing my meds helped considerably.

 Which ones to take? Unfortunately everyone is different, so what works for one won`t work for another, however it may help to try different classes of medication. For example Sertraline is classed as a  SSRI, so maybe an NDRI (wellbutrin) may work for you. Each class of medications anti depressants works in a slightly different manner. That doesn`t mean that another SSRI may not help you (such as cipralex).  Wikipedia has a not bad primer on various classes of antidepressants https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antidepressant . It certainly is not the last word in antidepressants, but it may help. Take Care. paul m