Shocking mood swings

[leehow79]

Wen i lst saw the crisis team they said the problem wiv me is that my emotions can b extreme. i can b totaly normal 1 minute(laughing + jokin) then in a split second can feel my mood drop so low, its a really strange feelin. can go frm a ten 2 nothin in a split second, jst go in2 suicidal mode 4 nothin at all. can b totaly normal 1 second then go in2 a depressive trance like state were i cant function + feel like im on my own planet inside my brain. it can also go the other way + go frm this 2 feelin euphoric. does any1 else get these extreme mood swings wiv depression? jst wondering if there normal reactions 2 depression. leeanne.x

[Lions13]

Hi Leeanne.

It's not unusual to experience mood swings, and everybody will experience them, but it can be frightening when the mood swings are so extreme and sudden.

You mentioned you have been in touch with the crisis team. In Scotland there are also helplines like Breathing Space that can be very helpful to just chat when you are feeling low/suicidal. I'm not sure where you are, but there may be charities such as Mind that run similar phone lines or know of other organisations that may be helpful.

Are you undergoing any therapy at this time? If you are, it is always helpful to bring up these thoughts and look for strategies that you can employ when they do raise their ugly head. Mood diaries and Activity Schedules can be useful as they can sometimes help to identify cues and triggers that we are not aware of at the time.

Take care

John

[leehow79 in reply to Lions13]

Thanku very much. live in northwest of england. hav bin told 2 keep a mood diary so i will definatly do this. i know i need phycopherapy, they also want me 2 do CBT but said im not well enough 2 do any of these yet as im in 2 much a vunerable state yet. will i ever b able 2 hav these as feel will hlp me + i really want 2 make steps 2wards recovery but wot can i do wen they say cant hav treatment yet. kindest regards leeanne.x

[Lions13 in reply to leehow79]

Whilst you may not be in the 'correct' state to go through CBT, there are some practical tools that CBT has that are helpful. The Mood diary is one of them.

I was trying to find a STOPP card there, but couldn't find one so I am going from memory. STOPP is a technique you can use any time your thoughts start to trouble you. And I know STOPP is spelt incorrectly, but hopefully it'll make sense in a minute. It involves 5 steps.

Step 1 - Stop!!!

Step 2 - Take a breath

Step 3 - Observe - What am I thinking? What am I reacting to? What am I feeling?

Step 4 - Pull back -Put it in some perspective. See the big picture. Are my thoughts fact or opinion? What would I tell my best friend if they were thinking this?

Step 5 - practise what works - What's the best thing to do for me, for this situation?

Hope this is of some use

John

[leehow79 in reply to Lions13]

Thanku john. i really teally strugle wiv my thoughts am such a negative thinker wiv very ridgid thinkin. The crisis team hav said that im wot u would call an analitical thinker, my thoughts r racin at a hundred miles an hour(hence the constant anxiety). hav tried 2 fight this negative thinkin but really strugle. i think im the worst negative(ridgid thinker) in the world so how can i ever change this. i feel like my thoughts r so automatic so how can i ever change them. lst nite i had 2 go out + legs turned 2 jelly, was really frightened but i dont know why bcause ive never bin frigjtened of goin outside, i normaly walk all over by myslf + hav never bin scared so i made myslf do it + all the time i was walkin was fighting my negative thoughts + try 2 turn them in2 possitive 1s but seem 2 find it impossible. will i always b like this now wiv this negative thinkin or can som1 as bad as me change my thought pattern + b more possitive. i am also depressed at the moment which isnt hlpin the situation. also how can som1 who has bin through everythin + come out the other side, is normaly really tough, wont ever cry in front of my own mum or any1 go frm this + do a total u turn, havin a brkdwn cryin in front of strangers in the street. its allso new + terrifyin 2 me all this. thanku 4 ur kind replys wiv kindest regards leeanne.x

[Lions13 in reply to leehow79]

HI again, and apologies for the delay in replying. I was desperate to reply quicker, but had a couple of counselling sessions this evening.

What is very positive about what you've written is your identification of your negative thinking, and rigid thinking. In CBT it's not about turning your thinking on its head. It's about introducing a more flexible way of thinking. It's not about fighting your negative thoughts; it's about challenging them.

You also talk about your thoughts being automatic, and we call them automatic thoughts in CBT. When they are negative we call them Negative Automatic Thoughts. If you try to stop your thoughts, you will fail. We can't stop them. We are thinking all the time. What we can do is take time to look at them and challenge them. This takes a bit of practice, but everyone can do it with a little time and patience. One of the best things to do is to write down your thoughts. Luckily we tend to write slower than we think and this can help to slow down our thinking as it often feels like our thoughts run away with themselves. When you have written down a thought ask yourself "Is it a fact or an opinion?". A lot of our thoughts are just opinions, they may not be positive opinions but they are opinions nonetheless.

Imagine your friend said to you "I'm a terrible person, I never do anything right" Would your response be "Yes, you are absolutely right" or would you take time to point out some of the things they have done well. Take the time to do this with yourself. Be your own best friend, even if it's only for 5 minutes to begin with.

Think about everything you have managed to do today. If you break your day down, and look at every little thing you have done you will be amazed at how much you have achieved. Unfortunately, we don't always give ourselves credit for simple things like getting out of bed, or taking a shower, making a cup of tea, or eating our lunch, but these are all achievements. We take them for granted yet they all take a degree of effort. When we are feeling depressed or anxious they take even more effort so why not give ourselves a pat on the back for being able to do it when we are feeling crap. God knows you've earned a pat on the back.

When you wrote about how can someone who has been through so much and come out the other side, is normally tough...all I could think of was this phrase.

"Mental illness is not the sign of a weak mind, it is a symptom of trying to be strong for too long"

I can't remember who said it, and I've probably paraphrased,

I hope you have a restful night.

Take care

John

[leehow79 in reply to Lions13]

Thanku so much john. wen i can eventualy start therapy i am gonna go wiv an open mind. know matter how bad i am at the moment i am goin 2 fight this, i cant give in. didnt want 2 leave the house this week but hav eventualy made myslf no matter how hard things r i know u cnt jst giv in. dnt eant 2 eat but i make myslf eat small amounts, its jst so frustratin bein in this position but am gonna try. goin 2 get som diarys + write things dwn. thanku 4 ur replys, hav really helped.x

[LizzyR]

Hello,

yes, it is normal. My moods are so extreme it makes my anxiety and depression worse as I don't understand what is going on. One minute I am fine, next I think about ending it all and fall to sleep hoping to not wake up. the next week I am scared to die and promise myself that I will not have these bad thoughts again but week after I start thinking that maybe it is for the best? It can be very confusing and scary. You're not alone and we will get through this.

[Cleaner in reply to LizzyR]

That's just how it is with me to , at the moment I'm in the wanting to die thoughts it's so hard not to act on them. It's nice to no I'm not alone .

[leehow79]

Thanku every1 4 ur comments, hlps 2 know ur not alone. wen i was younget i used 2 think i had bipolar but now i do know theres a huge difference. i actualy hav an uncle wiv true bipolar + in mania mode he can be a real nutter + the difference is they dnt realise this, were as bad as we can get we r actualy as sane as any1. I somtimes question would it not b better 2 b mad as they dnt tend 2 know wots goin on + arnt actualy unhappy. my uncle has done some crazy things + bin sectioned loads but he doesnt seem 2 b that unhappy. but all said + done we dnt know wot goes on in any1 elses head + any form of mental illness has its price 2 pay. there is a difference 2 mild depression which ive had + full blown major depressive episodes were u feel like u r completly mad + on a different universe. my mum was keep on complainin of this intense presure on her head, wen she told the Dr he said that bcause she was so depressed her brain was actualy constricting + causin this feelin of presure. mad isnt it the things mental illness can cause. ive never had these but hav also heard of somthin called brain zaps, sounds scary! Hope u all well wiv kindest regards leeanne.x

[Hidden]

Hi , I'm exactly like this , I'm on the verge of losing everything , I go so low I just wanna end my life