I definitely don’t think less of you. I am glad you spoke out. I think so many of us struggle with depression, but we are afraid to speak out for fear of what people will think. I came out last year about my depression on my blog and Facebook, and I was so surprised at the support I received. Some women emailed me privately with their struggles, but others spoke up. I am still on medication, but hope after my dh comes home from his deployment that I might be able to wean myself off.

thank you for being honest and putting yourself out there. I too struggle with depression. each day is a struggle for me.

The title of this post brought me to your blog, and no, I do not think less of you. I think you are brave to speak openly about it. I have battled depression for fifteen years, mine too is chemical. I was first put on medication just after graduating high school. It was a time when I should have been on top of the world, getting ready to go off to college, but I was crying all the time, not getting off my parents couch. My mom encouraged me to see a doctor and for the first time I was diagnosed. Since then it has come in waves, after getting married, after the birth of each of my children. I have come to the realization that this will be a life-long battle.

My first thought was that I absolutely do not think less of you. I think you’re brave and strong to discuss this issue and I know there are many people who will benefit from what you say and open up and gain strength from it. God bless!

You are definitely not alone.

I couldn’t possibly think less of you; I admire your brave admission. Whether you’re living with anxiety and depression yourself, or whether you’re living with someone who struggles with it, it is a daily challenge. Sending you a hug:)

I have anxiety and have the bottle of Xanax to prove it There is no shame here.

No, I don’t think less of you. In fact, I think you’re incredibly brave.

I wrote this a few months back, which explains more: http://resolvingtimelineissues.wordpress.com/2009/08/17/so-yeah-anyways-or-why-this-space-has-been-blank-and-i-havent-been-shredding/

And I feel better than I’ve felt in YEARS.

Hey, the Anxiety Captain here…

I’m not an expert, although I do have my M.A. in Counseling. And, I too take a cocktail of medications to counter the depression and anxiety. I thought I would throw in a few things you may or may not already know but….just offering a word of support really.

1. Paxil was the least effective drug I ever took. I took it while pregnant because it was deemed “the safest” if you can consider any of them safe, that is.

2. Finding a psychiatrist and not just a psychologist was key for me.

3. I take a combination of prozac and wellbutrin. Low doses of both but they are made to help with different issues. This happened when increasing one medication and increasing it and increasing it some more simply wasn’t effective. A good doctor knows how to mix you a chemical cocktail to help your chemical imbalance.

4. My life turned around substantially with 2 events in particular. The first one was seroquel. And, depending on your weight, you may be taking too much. I am big and I take a good dose of it but you body type may prevent you from using up the drug at night. I’ve seen you and you are about one person smaller than me. I mean that jokingly but it’s true, I weight enough to be 2 small people. So, be sure you aren’t over-medicating with seroquel but the paxil is probably not an overmedicated issue. But the seroquel will make you lethargic if your body can’t metabolize it all as it should.

And, I went to a sleep clinic. I had sleep apnea. I was waking 16 times an hour. I never entered a deep sleep, even when I returned and wore the CPAP machine the first night. The sleep specialist said that he had no doubts that I was waking exhausted. He said my brain never actually entered deep sleep to rest, I maintained 95% activity in my brain all night (even with the cpap the first night) and my legs were moving 80% of the night (restless leg syndrome).

So, my psychiatrist and my sleep specialist worked through the balance of wellbutrin, prozac, seroquel, provigil and requip.

Sounds like a lot of medication?

Of course it does. But to go from sleeping about 14 hours a day to functioning well on 7 hours and functioning for days at a time (like on vacation) on 5 hours. Do you realize what sleeping 14 hours a day does to your life? Yea, I know you do.

One thing that you don’t actually want to do is find a doctor who is “prescription happy” and gives you medications that you can become addicted to so that you must return to see him because of the addiction. And, some of these drugs are highly addictive.

One thing you do DO want to do is find a psychiatrist who is not afraid to write prescriptions. Sounds counter productive I know but the fact is, if you have someone who has your best interest at heart, being addicted to any of those medications is not the end of the world.

Now, that said, there are rounds of depression that people suffer from that taking medication short-term and then weaning is possible. And, other people, like you and I, have chemical imbalances that simply do not go away just because you will them to.

Now that I’ve written a novel, I would be glad to talk with you more about this if you want. I have wrote about it in depth in the past on a few blogs and I always jump at the opportunity to make sure people understand that depression and anxiety, OCD, ADD, etc are not simple issues, they are diseases, like diabetes, thyroid dysfunction…you wouldn’t quit taking insulin or thyroid medication just because it seems like the thing to do and you shouldn’t do that with medications involving your mental health either.

Really, shutting up now.

You are a heroine by speaking out loud when at the same time deeply fearful of what might happen when people hear your words. That is the definition of courage.

Women who are suffering from postpartum depression, as well as those who suffer anxiety and/or depression outside the postpartum period, will surely benefit from your honesty. If you would be willing to write a piece for the women who suffer from PPD, please email me. I’d like to talk to you.

WOW! – thank you for such a raw insight and WOW! again for such a spooky sense of connection as I read through this post. I am also working through a medication change for the depression and anxiety I have been living with for more than ten years at the moment, whilst getting to know my first baby (Byron) who is now 5 months old. I appreciate your sharing SO much and cannot agree more that we need to get out there and share despite the fear of being judged. I am inspired to carry on with my mission of connection!!
With gratitude and much encouragement,
Lisa (and Mini Ginger).

I’ve had this post bookmarked for a while and read it about once a week — including the encouraging comments. I have felt a burden to write about my struggles with anxiety on my blog, and am preparing to begin doing that this very week. It is all a part of a series I began on my site called “The Real Me Challenge.”

Far too many are silent about these issues, and far too many negative stigmas and judgments are attached to them. I am hoping, in my own little way, to shed some light on this topic and spread awareness….as well as let others know that they aren’t alone, just as you have here.

Thanks for your candid post.