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Mental Health (Expert Forum)
stress is it..depression or anxiety or something else
Answered by
Roger Gould, M.D. - Mental Health, Wellness
Questions posted in the Mental Health forum are being answered by Dr. Roger L. Gould, author of the Mastering Stress and Depression program and affiliated with the UCLA. Department of Psychiatry. Topics covered include anger, attention deficit disorder (ADD) , bipolar disorder , dementia , electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) , learning disabilities, memory, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) , panic , personality disorders, phobias , post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) , schizophrenia , stress , transitions, and work problems.
stress is it..depression or anxiety or something else
by alicat007, Jun 28, 2009 01:55PM
I have suffered from PTSD and anxiety for years. I am now more and more experiencing anxiety and agitation( I used to never get upset just sad) to the point of crying and wanting to hide in my room and just not deal with life anymore. I start pulling or cutting my hair out where it can't be seen when I am stressed. I rub my forehead till it turns red, the other day I could see myself just scratching it till it bleed. I ask for help from my family but they never do. I start having symptoms of depression with the hiding and wanting to stay in bed all day but it doesn't go full blown. When I get upset the doom and gloom sets in and I just want to give up because it doesn't matter what I do I am going to feel this way sooner or later. I have bad days and worse days never any really good days it has been a month now and I just want to give up. This has happened now three times in the last 2 1/2 yrs and it seems to last 6 months or so when it gets bad. I have never been able to go out alone, I am afraid of the door bell ringing, I can not answer the phone but that is normal for me.
Doctor's Answer
by Roger Gould, M.D., Jun 29, 2009 05:27PM
, Jun 29, 2009 05:27PMTo: alicat007
There is something you can do for yourself and that is to get yourself to a psychiatrist and ask for medication as well as psychotherapy. You can get a man's relief from your suffering. You're kind of depression is a very treatable disease. It is not something that you can treat by yourself.
Family often don't understand us or how bad we feel. Some people just aren't receptive to hearing about our vulnerabilities. Often people will get angry with us because they feel hopeless about being able to help us (as we need them to help us and not how they think we want and need help). Other people just think we're weak and need to snap out of it or pull our socks up.
The depressive symptoms could be protecting you against the underlying issues. They are there when our life isn't working as we want or need it too.
It happens when we are uncontained. It does run itself out eventually. Something happens and our thoughts and feelings change.
Are you in therapy?
To answer your question I think it is probably anxiety-related. But is made worse by stress. And probably does have depressive elements in it.
ptsd, complex-ptsd, bpd -they all seem pretty much the same.
J
I tried googling it but at best came up with the name, Reverend Mr John Flavel.
It's a bit scary seeing it and trying to interpret it, especially if the person has a history of abuse.
J