Topic Title: professionals with anxiety/depression
| |  "professionals with anxiety/depression"
, Sat 23 Aug 15:46
Hi
Just wondering if any of you are working professionals who suffer from anxiety/depression. I am finishing up graduate school and I wonder if I should be doing this since I am so anxious-like I dont deserve it or wont be as good as everyone else. I know this is an irrational thought but was wondering if anybody else could relate.
Thanks
Posts: 2 | | Registered: Fri 22 Aug 2003 20:51 |
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| | "Re(1):professionals with anxiety/depression" , Sat 23 Aug 21:04
Hi, I'm not a working professional, but I'm a college student if that counts. I also suffer from anxiety and depression, mostly my depression stems from my anxiety. I understand your feelings of guilt and inadequacy--I am constantly worrying that I am wasting my parents' money because sometimes I think I'm just fooling myself, thinking that I'll ever be able to get a job as a graphic designer. Deep down, I know I'm talented and creative, but sometimes it's hard to realize that since it's really easy for me to get bogged down in the "what if"s. I've found that doing some positive self-talk can help to lift me out of these moods. The following web address is to a site that has various articles on managing anxiety.
http://www.webheights.net/controllinganxiety/articles.htm
I hope you find something that can help you. Good luck, and take care.
judyjudy
Posts: 8 | | Registered: Tue 19 Aug 2003 21:51 |
| | |  "Re(2):professionals with anxiety/depression"
, Sun 24 Aug 04:11
I am a working professional (military actually). I suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, alcoholism and depression. The PTSD came on after I returned from Yugoslavia (peacekeeping) in 1998 and I drank to self medicate (although I didn't realise what I was doing) and then I got moderately depressed. The Navy was excellent and really looked after me. I went into hospital earlier this year and I have been alcohol free for 8 1/2 months now. I am well and truly on top of my depression and my girlfriend has stuck by me. My bosses have told me that they admire me for what I have done and my career is assured (even more so, because I put up my hand for help). They have given me so much and I am very grateful. I now want to give more to the Navy and help others who have suffered too. Life is pretty good. You can choose to feel guilty, or choose to do something positive and turn your depression around. You have the power and the choice.
Posts: 16 | | Registered: Sat 9 Aug 2003 17:28 |
| | | "Re(3):professionals with anxiety/depression" , Sun 24 Aug 05:49
Wow that is really neat to see how you two have gotten control of things. I am a graduate student with just one more yr left of school and of course I am self doubting myself. My main problem is that i had OCD and a kid and I find it hard to shut down my thoughts when i get anxious....as a result I get drained emotionally and can sometimes get depressed because of it. I know you can do it judy! Have you guys decided to stay off of meds and just go with SJW? I am debating whether i should j ust get back on because i feel so much better when I am. Although I dont like the side effects.
Posts: 3 | | Registered: Fri 22 Aug 2003 20:51 |
| | | "Re(4):professionals with anxiety/depression" , Tue 26 Aug 17:52
Hey I had OCD as a kid too. I don't have the compulsive aspect so much, but I definately still obsess. By any chance did the ocd start just as hormonal changes began and end when they settled down? That's what happened for me. It's just interesting to meet other people who used to have ocd as kids but now just have some anxiety and depression. I wonder if there's a certain sub-group of us, and what we might have in common.
My personal response to the whole meds/no meds issue is do what makes your life better. The side effects do suck, but it's much better than being miserable emotionally. Then, while you're on the meds, you can look into other alternatives while feeling reasonably good, instead of desperately floundering. That's what I'm doing anyway. Tell me a bit about the OCD. How long did it last? What were the obsessions about? (if you don't mind that is)
Sara
Posts: 42 | | Registered: Wed 23 Apr 2003 14:48 |
| | | "Re(5):professionals with anxiety/depression" , Tue 26 Aug 18:32
Hey
well i grew up in another country and its interesting to note that as a kid I would avoid certain things etc (like cracks). But no one really knew what that was all about. Anyways, my OCD started in around grade 4 i think and came on and off ever since. it wasnt until my sophmore yr in college that I decided to get help. Now I always tend to be anxious, however, i think it is still due to my OCD as I ruminate on the same things over and over. My obsessions change all the time. Lately it has been if I will be able to surive if someone close to me died etc. What about you?
Posts: 5 | | Registered: Fri 22 Aug 2003 20:51 |
| | | "Re(6):professionals with anxiety/depression" , Wed 27 Aug 16:30
I definately don't have ocd to the extent that I had it as a kid. But I can think of at least one thing about which I obsess to a ridiculous extent. I wonder over and over whether the men I date are actually right for me, even when they make me happy. It's been driving me pretty crazy lately. It mostly happens when I'm depressed or out of sorts for some reason. I also sometimes obsess about whether I am a good person or not, whether I'm worth loving, or whether I'm a success. But I guess that perhaps falls more within the depression categoty than the ocd. I also tend to reapeat phrases or songs over and over, especially when I'm nervous. When I was a kid, I would obsess about death: I wondered whether I would live through the night, or whether I would ever see my parents again. I had to perform all sorts of bizarre rituals in order to prevent this. It lasted about two years. Although depression is terrible, it doesn't go on and on for me the way the ocd did. I am depressed in stints, and I sometimes feel normal. When I was doing the rituals of OCD I was in terror every waking moment. I was in therapy at the time, and I think that helped. What I finally remember happening is that I'd breathe, and move past whatever object I was supposed to touch, and think "I can come back to that later if it's really important" and after a while I'd have left behind a string of compulsions, and I'd even begin to forget what I was supposed to do. I think it also came down to accepting that if death was coming for me, there wasn't a damn thing I could do about it, though it wasn't really likely as I was only eleven. But, on the physical side, It also stopped when I got my period at 13, so there may have been a biological factor as well. What have you done to help your OCD? Have you tried meds as well as herbals etc?
Sara
Posts: 43 | | Registered: Wed 23 Apr 2003 14:48 |
| | | "Re(7):professionals with anxiety/depression" , Thu 28 Aug 04:42
Hey
Fears about dying are scary. I used to be like that too and lately I have had those same fears. Seems like when i get over one fear there is a break in anxiety and then i obsess about something else. I just started lexapro for the first time. Hopefully this will reduce my obsessions. Other meds like paxil have done wonders as well. I dont know if SJW works for OCD or not.
Posts: 6 | | Registered: Fri 22 Aug 2003 20:51 |
| | | "Re(4):professionals with anxiety/depression" , Sun 24 Aug 07:16
Sometimes I get those times when I can't stop the negative thoughts..it gets really bad and I usually cry hysterically for a couple hours. But, I've found that sometimes if I write out every possible thing that's bothering me, I feel a lot better. It's almost like your brain doesn't want you to forget this horrible stuff, but then once it's on paper, it's ok if you do. It's kind of a variation of a method I use for my insomnia, where I write down everything that I have to do the next day so that worrying about remembering it won't keep me awake. Another good thing I've used for my insomnia for years is to use a sound of nature to push your thoughts out. Since it's easy to remember what waves at the beach sound like, I usually use that and concentrate on that "sound" and that helps me sleep.
As far as using meds for my problems, I have never been on prescriptions for anxiety or depression. I was only recently diagnosed, and after much, much, much research (thank god for my anxiety..hehehe) I decided that I would not be comfortable taking an SSRI. I figured, If I've dealt with it for this long and it hasn't gotten any worse, I don't need medication. Because of the anxiety, I think I'm kind of a hypochondriac and taking meds when I know some people have reacted so badly to them would make me crazy worrying that I might be going crazier. It just wasn't worth it for me.
I had been taking sjw for about 2 weeks but I'm really impatient and I wasn't noticing any changes (I know, I know..6+ weeks..), so I decided to try rhodiola, as it's supposed to be good for depression and anxiety and energy and concentration and memory and attention..a little expensive compared to sjw, but worth a try I think. Today's only my second day and I noticed a few minor changes yesterday in my irritability threshold and energy--and had virtually no anxiety.
I think herbals are worth a try. I, personally, like the fact that while they're making me feel better with practically no side effects, they're also making me healthier..cleaning out the bad stuff in me. As far as what you should do--only you can really decide that. You should talk to your doctor about it if he's knowledgeable about alternative treatments. And doing research on it might help you make up your mind. Whatever you do, don't let your anxiety go untreated..I read that excessive long term stress and anxiety can increase your chances for other health problems like heart disease and other things I’ve forgotten at the moment.
Good luck on making your decision! Keep in touch.
judyjudy
Posts: 9 | | Registered: Tue 19 Aug 2003 21:51 |
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