I'm New Here...

[bluealien84]

Hi, I'm new to this forum. I've been searching for some time now for affordable therapy to no avail. I'm not so bad right now that I need a suicide hotline, but I know where my current state will lead me to. And so I hope that by being able to talk to someone, anyone, that I may be able to relieve this terrible pressure building inside. I've had clinical depression for 10 years. I've just been coping on my own, no meds, no therapist. Most days the anxiety and depression builds up to where I feel like I'm being choked. I work a full time job, but can't afford a therapist and I have no medical insurance. Ten years ago when I was diagnosed with major depressive disorder, I could hardly get out of bed. It has been a slow crawl out of that muddy pit of depression over this last decade but I feel myself slipping back. And every day now is getting harder and harder to get out of bed.

[blackcat64013]

Welcome to the forum.

The members can be an excellent source of tips for locating low cost service providers if you give the area you are living in e.g. a university might have psychology students who need on the job practical experience, a community centre might offer sessions or you can self refer to an employee assistance program.

We can also provide some self-help tips e.g. when it's hard to get out of bed, do the opposite (get our and see how much you can achieve in the first 60 minutes - it could just be a walk or a shower and breakfast).

The usual recommendation is to consult your doctor for some medication and talk therapy. You might even call in to ask the reception team for some recommendations.

There is new term called "high functioning depression" worth exploring on Dr Google.

Fawn Fitter wrote an excellent book called "Working in the Dark" which talks about being in the workplace with depression and asking for some accommodations to help you cope.

There are a number of online therapy sessions which you can complete at your leisure and phone apps to monitor how you are travelling.

So there you have it. Many more ideas sure to follow