I haven't done the PHQ-9 test but I might try it later and see what it says. I did the Goldberg test, created by some American psychologist.
Thanks. It's something I want to stick at.
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I haven't done the PHQ-9 test but I might try it later and see what it says. I did the Goldberg test, created by some American psychologist.
Thanks. It's something I want to stick at.
I scored 11 on the phq-9 test, giving me a minor-moderate result. Recommended treatment - support from my doctor, anti depressants or therapy.
Davey.. I just did it now and i scored 16 but I am not what I would call depressed.. I am more stressed than I usually am..Quote:
Originally Posted by DaVeyWaVey
wow, i've struggled to find a version online, I swear there used to be one on patient UK.
It can, as Siobhan's found manage to diagnose anyone, but I think to complete it in the first place, you may have cause for concern- Maybe a doctor could help; not to throw meds or whatever at you, but then you'd at least have a proper diagnosis.
How can you get hold of the phq-9 test?
I just did the PHQ-9 test and scored 18.
I found mine here http://muskie.usm.maine.edu/clinical.../DHHS/phq9.pdf
I've not been so bad lately, I don't think.. not until this week anyways, I know it's natural for womens hormones to be all over the place when they're due on/are on. But surely I shouldn't feel THIS bad to the point where I don't want to go out or speak to anyone or do anything at all.
If you feel like that you need to see a doctor. I think there's a type of depression which is specifically linked to the menstrual cycle.Quote:
Originally Posted by Kirsty :]
Through personal experience, I would advise anyone who feels depressed for a prolonged period of time to speak to their gp.
I'm going to be totally honest and open here and whilst I haven't posted regularly for a long time, what I say might help you understand why to a degree.
Two months ago, my husband and best friend of almost 20 years walked out on me and my four sons. No explanation bar there not being another person involved, that he still loves me and the children, but we just "don't get on".
I have had several visits to my GP and am now on anti depressants and sleeping tablets. My life has literally been torn in two and I have no idea who I am anymore. Its early days on the anti-d's and they aren't miracle workers, and I feel a complete failure for having to go on them in the first place but after losing 2 stone in weight since September (1 and 1/2 of that since he left), and not sleeping for more than 3 hrs a night since he left, I have no real other option.
Depression is an illness, it can be treated through many ways, but speak to your GP and get any and all the help that they can offer you and that you need. Many women become depressed/emotional etc during the time when their period is due etc, but if you have a GP to talk to, they can help.
xxx
Hi JoJo, thank you for sharing that with us, that was very brave of you.
Taking anti-depressants is not a sign of failure, rather is it aknowledging there is a problem and doing something about it. That is much better than sticking your head in the sand and ignoring things because problems will not go away.
I really hope things get better for you soon.
xxxxxxx
I think the one linked to menstrual cycle is PMDD- pre menstrual dysphoric disorder. I'd see your doctor, as Abigail said.
There used to be a PHQ-9 on patient.co.uk which was interactive and calculated it for you, but I can no longer find it!
Jojo, I'm sorry to hear this. I hope they kick in soon.
I have had that for years.. mood swings, crying, depression once a month... I am just use to it now and thought there is nothing that can be done as it is just hormones.. I also get very agressive at times and yell at people for no reason... didn't realise you can get help for this.Quote:
Originally Posted by Tori
I am really sorry to hear of the tough times you have gone through JoJo. I noticed that you haven't posted much lately. Please feel free to speak to me on Facebook if you ever want too. I am willing to listen. Hope you make a recovery soon xxxQuote:
Originally Posted by Jojo
I think it depends on how bad it is; I've known people who's lives actually stop and sink into a deep depression around that time of the month, then are actually fine afterwards. Good old wikipedia explains hereQuote:
Originally Posted by Siobhan
Thanks for this.. I have 5 or more of those every month, especially this one: lasting irritability or anger, increased interpersonal conflicts. Typically sufferers are unaware of the impact they have on those close to themQuote:
Originally Posted by Tori
it is commented on at work that I can get very agressive and I don't even realise I have been
well i know im goin to sink deeper into depression next weekend - Valentines weekend :( i actually hate it, why do they need a day to celebrate love and all that crap? :( I wish there was a singles day, so single people can flaunt their independance in the faces of all those couples :( god i really dont want next weekend to come :(
Bryan.. one of the best days I have had was when I was single on Valentines day... I worked out a simple logic.. All the couples are going to be out doing couple things like dinner, cinema etc.. so all the night clubs are fully of single people all looking for someone to spend Valentines night with... I met loads of single people and there was hugs and kisses going everywhere.. Brilliant night out I had.. better than any of the other valentines days I had as a coupleQuote:
Originally Posted by Bryan
I hate it too, and I'm meant to enjoy it because I'm in a relationship. Why is a day needed anyway, shouldn't you love someone all the time?! Hopefully it can pass for us both very quickly!Quote:
Originally Posted by Bryan
i agree with Siobhan there and the theme isQuote:
Originally Posted by Siobhan
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M5qx-MVrXfk
Not been too bad at the moment. I've had up and down moods. I feel on top of the world, then I'm on a downer. The one thing I never understand is how I could possibly feel down if everything is going OK for me. Everything in life is perfect, if I look at it from an objective point of view. But then there's something there that always clouds my brain and makes everything upsetting. I've avoided going to the doctors so far and I want it to stay that way.
The funny thing is people have said how "funny" I am, how I'm always really happy and my presence brings laughter to everyone and how things wouldn't be the same if I wasn't there... those are my flatmates' words to me, not mine! I even have an appreciation group for myself on Facebook lol which my flatmate created! and people have commented saying "legend" etc etc, and yes I like making people laugh but it's just when I'm on my own, I feel myself crumble a little bit. I would never ever dream of sharing this with the friends or family in my life, as I feel deeply ashamed when I feel down... that's why I always slap a smile on my face when I go out and face people. I crack jokes, appear confident... and it works!
Hi Davey, it seems as if you wont let yourself be happy that you feel as if you dont deserve it. Why cant you believe that all these people find you warm and funny? Is that not the real you or are you sticking on a mask everytime you go out?
I'm procrastinating so here's an update.
General mood is constantly up and down. Its annoying to be quite honest. I saw my doctor last week as I had a migraine and we ended up talking about my aversion techniques. Needless to say I wasn't in the mood so next week we're having a chat about my drinking. I'm not looking forward to it.
It doesn't take a genius to work out that there's a direct link between my alcohol and drug consumption and what's going on in my life at the moment. In the last six weeks I've had about seven days where I haven't had any mind/body altering substances (and that's not just because I'm a student).
I want to start some therapy to enable me to at least stop drug abuse. I'm not ready to stop drinking yet and I think its unreasonable to attempt it when I'm still a student and surrounded by alcohol every day. However I'm moving back home next weekend so I might have to put it on hold until October. Whilst my family GP is brilliant, I don't feel comfortable talking to him about my depression which is something of a problem. I would tell my uni doctor everything that I get up to but I know he documents everything in my notes and I suspect my family GP would tell my mum once he read these.
So I'm presented with a dilemma. Its taken me years to reach this point where I'm ready to get help but its come at the wrong time of year. I can't travel back to uni every week as its a three hour train journey. I don't want to transfer therapy when I'm finally getting somewhere so I guess its got to wait.
Abigail, your family GP is not allowed to tell your mum anything that's in your medical notes - he could get struck off if he did.
I know but he might let something slip. Its not that I don't trust him, I don't trust my mother not to ask questions as she seems him almost every week for something.
He's probably well used to dealing with nosy relatives and will be able to fend her off. I do understand why you're nervous about it though.
You're right, I'm probably worrying about nothing.
I noticed in the Shoutbox that you're going out tonight. Hope you have a good night and manage to forget your worries for a few hours :)
As Dazzle said, your doctor cannot say anything. I totally understant your worries though - I'm totally the same, so moving away was so good for me! Are you on any waiting lists for therapy? Last summer all I did was put things on hold, then about every month travel back for the day to see either the therapist or my psychiatrist or doctor, so people were always kept in the loop. Is that something possible for you?
I'm not on any waiting list at the moment. The doctor said he would refer me for any therapy I like and I was considering neuropsych as I did suffer a lot with pain before I started on meds. The pain how now almost gone so I think that was a physical side effect of depression. I refused any sort of counselling, I've seen a CAMHS psychologist about four years ago and I hated it.
I'm seeing my doctor next week. I don't know how long the waiting lists are around here (West midlands), if its a six month wait then I will ask him to refer me. I don't want to see the university counsellors as they're very generalised and focus on educational aspects rather than anything I need. I've been told this by several people that they are good for general stuff but for severe depression they're not much use.
My doctors surgery at uni is an outreach centre that only runs term time and we can only visit the main surgery if its an emergency (no idea what those who stay on do during the summer). The train fare is £30 return which I can't afford at the moment. I also can't do a return journey in one day as it makes me really ill.
Oh, okay, so that isn't really a posibility. I'm also in the west midlands, in Bham, and it isn't bad but it depends from place to place - whether NHS based or private but funded. As you said, you'd be best off speaking to the doctor as only they may know (although I've always been told at least 3 months).
Whatever happens, I know I need something. Either medication change/increase or therapy. I'm on a slippery destructive path and I just can't stop myself. I can't stop drinking on my own.
Is there any type of support you could get at home that isn't through your doctor?
I can't take these nightmares anymore. Last night I had four, every time I woke up and went back to sleep, another one would start. The last one started like a normal dream. It was part of a dream I've had before (they all start like this), then somebody told me that a bomb had gone off where my dad works. I rang him and he said he wasn't good and he was going to lose his head. I thought he said he would lose his leg at first so I asked him to repeat it. I misheard him the first time.
They're all about bombs going off, people being killed, stabbing people with knives, having a shoot-out without any ammunition, being trapped. The thing is, I can deal with people being killed, blood, guts and disfigurement when I'm awake. I love examining dead bodies and terrible injuries.
I was up and about at 8am this morning because I couldn't take any more nightmares. I don't want to go to sleep, they're getting worse each night. It must be the reduced Citalopram dose and I can't see my doctor until next Wednesday to get my regular prescription. Another 11 days of this is going to send me crazy. I'm so tired but I'm scared to sleep. I've tried amitryptaline (amongst other things), which helps a bit, but as I don't have a prescription for it I don't want to become dependant on it. My sleep is worse the next night so it doesn't help in the long run.
This afternoon I had my first depressive feelings in several months. I'm really worried that I'll be a jibbering wreck by next Wednesday and back to square one, all because I didn't get enough drugs to last. I know worrying won't help. I haven't told anybody about the nightmares, I feel embarrassed that I'm so scared I wake up crying, I get palpitations and a pounding headache. Sometimes they're so real, I get confused and don't know if something really happened or if it was just a dream.
I don't think I'll be able to stay awake much longer :(
Have you run out of citalopram? Normally you can take your white bit of the prescirption to a pharmacist and they can give you an emergency 3 day supply. May be worth a try, if the reduced dose wasn't intentional. Hope they go away soon, if this is what happens coming off or reducing dose, I'm rather worried!
Don't feel embarassed about the nightmares, Abigail: my mum gets exactly the same thing when she's depressed.
Have you tried over-the-counter sleep remedies? I don't know if they work 'cos I've never taken them, but it may be worth a try. Even if they put you in a slightly deeper sleep it may stop the nightmares.
I'll be thinking of you.
I've only just seen the two replies above. Thanks guys :) My old GP gave me a month's prescription to tide me over. He wasn't happy about the high dose and he wouldn't prescribe my migraine meds either, too much risk of serotonin syndrome. I saw my new GP when I got back and he gave me more plus migraine meds. OTC stuff doesn't help as I've built up a tolerance to them. Kalms, nytol, sominax are as useful as sweeties in aiding sleep.
Anywho. The nightmares stopped after a while then I started on Amitriptyline for migraine prevention and they started again. I wouldn't say they were as bad but they were certainly... strange. Its settled down over the past month as I've gotten used to them but I did have a strange dream last night.
Time to confess... I've stopped taking citalopram. I lost them for a few days last week in between leaving my mum's and getting home then when I found them, couldn't really be bothered to take them. I know the risks, I know I'll crash in a few days (usually happens around the 3-4 day, it's been 5 so far) but that doesn't make me want to take them. I will take them when I crash, I guess I'm testing myself to see how long that takes. I also spent the weekend incapable of doing anything as I was either high or coming down. That's probably why the crash hasn't happened yet as I was taking serotonergic drugs. I'd had a difficult week with my mother then lost the ADs, also had a really bad migraine Wednesday night and I was fed up. There was another court
I tried to book an appointment with my GP for tomorrow but he's not in until next Monday. *sigh* I need to see him about my kidneys so I've got an appointment. I'm fully expecting him to tell me that he spent the weekend getting high too! He tells me about how he got prescription drugs "from a friend" once for a bad back and he gets smashed at the weekend. Completely the opposite of what you'd expect from a doctor but at least I don't feel he's judging me when I tell him what I've done.
So yeah. Sleeping a lot, tired, not doing much work. Waiting for my chemicals to get fudged up again.
I'll be thinking of you, Abigail.
Hugs and Kisses Abigail, take it easy babes.
Thank you :) I think writing it all down cleared some things up for me. I realised I was being an idiot and starting taking the meds again. I've had a few mood swings today, I'm currently in the "you're annoying me" phase right now (that's a polite way of putting it) so I'm avoiding my house mates in case I blow up at them.
Tomorrow I have to go shopping for a new coat so I'm going to have some time to myself, maybe have dinner out and just relax.
I sent you a PM
I have mild depression... I don't tell many people, it's not something I like to talk about but I basically have good days and bad days. I've told one friend about it and now I'm telling people on here, I suppose.