How BAD can it get???

[kristo]

Originally Posted by Fortune

Straight depression won't allow that rubbish. That's why it's a mental illness and not just a sad mood.

I've suffered with chronic major depression since childhood. I know what it feels like and I know what I'm talking about.

[Unmanagable]

Originally posted by Verile:

I personally always learned best from negative reinforcement. It's not for everyone but it's all I know.

This spoke volumes to me. But I can't find the right words to express what I want to go along with what's on my mind. The other words I'd like to express would only be starred out, so I'll refrain.

[Drewbacca]

Originally Posted by kristo

I've suffered with chronic major depression since childhood. I know what it feels like and I know what I'm talking about.

Your personal experience is at odds with what most people experience.
Are you sure that you don't mean dysthymia?
Major depression is rather debilitating, but usually short lived.

Major Depressive Episode

Note: This is not a codeable disorder.

A. Five (or more) of the following criteria have been present during the same 2-week period and represent a change from previous functioning; at least one of the symptoms is either (1) depressed mood or (2) loss of interest or pleasure. Note: Do not include symptoms that are clearly due to a medical condition.
1. Depressed mood most of the day, nearly every day, as indicated by either subjective report (e.g., feels sad, empty, or hopeless) or observation made by others (e.g., appears tearful). Note: In children and adolescents, can be irritable mood.
2. Markedly diminished interest or pleasure in all, or almost all, activities most of the day, nearly every day (as indicated by either subjective account or observation)
3. Significant weight loss when not dieting or weight gain (e.g., a change of more than 5% of body weight in a month), or decrease or increase in appetite nearly every day. Note: In children, consider failure to make expected weight gain
4. Insomnia or hypersomnia nearly every day
5. Psychomotor agitation or retardation nearly every day (observable by others, not merely subjective feelings of restlessness or being slowed down)
6. Fatigue or loss of energy nearly every day
7. Feelings of worthlessness or excessive or inappropriate guilt (which may be delusional) nearly every day (not merely self-reproach or guilt about being sick)
8. Diminished ability to think or concentrate, or indecisiveness, nearly every day (either by subjective account or as observed by others)
9. Recurrent thoughts of death (not just fear of dying), recurrent suicidal ideation without a specific plan, or a suicide attempt or a specific plan for committing suicide
B. The symptoms cause clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning. (Language regarding “impairment” may change for consistency with DSM-IV conventions)
C. The episode is not attributable to the direct physiological effects of a substance or another medical condition
D. The Major Depressive Episode is not better accounted for by Schizoaffective Disorder and is not superimposed on Schizophrenia, Schizophreniform Disorder, Delusional Disorder, or Psychotic Disorder Not Elsewhere Classified.
E. There has never been a Manic Episode or a Hypomanic Episode.

[Fortune]

Originally Posted by kristo

I've suffered with chronic major depression since childhood. I know what it feels like and I know what I'm talking about.

I've been dealing with chronic major depression for the past 16-17 years, and "willing myself better" has a success rate of about 0%.

[Fortune]

Originally Posted by Drewbacca

Your personal experience is at odds with what most people experience.
Are you sure that you don't mean <a href="http://www.dsm5.org/ProposedRevisions/Pages/proposedrevision.aspx?rid=46#">dysthymia</a>
?. Major depression is rather debilitating, but usually short lived.

I was diagnosed with chronic major depression after a decade and a half (at the time) of chronic depression. I don't think it's defined by being "short lived."

This is likely just a difference in experiences, but both are likely valid. Too bad I didn't get the "will myself out of depression" trick, though.

[Drewbacca]

Perhaps I placed too much emphasis on the choice of words, i.e. chronic. I wouldn't call a major depressive episode "chronic" or else, that sort of defies calling it an episode?
I'm not saying that a single depressive episode can't last for years... I'm not sure what, if any time-limits exist.

I'm guessing that this would be a treatment-resistant sort of depression?

Interesting:
Results The median duration of MDE was 3.0 months; 50% of participants recovered within 3 months, 63% within 6 months, 76% within 12 months and nearly 20% had not recovered at 24 months. Determinants of persistence were severity of depression and comorbid dysthymia. A recurrent episode predicted shorter duration.

Conclusions Although half of those affected with MDE recovered rapidly, the risk of chronicity (duration 24 months or more) was considerable. This underlines the necessity of diagnosing and treating those at risk. http://bjp.rcpsych.org/content/181/3/208.full

[Verile]

Jesus, I completely misplaced my soul last night.

Samson, if you can, just disregard everything I wrote as the ramblings of an emotionally distant, broken man. You're in pain, you want relief, and you don't need my **** right now. My link with my humanity is touch and go but it's clear to me for the moment I was being unnecessarily callous about your situation.

Keep the faith that things will get better and keep doing what you can.

[ginniebean]

Actually Verile, you were just following what I call the 'script of wellness'. If someone does post something that deviates our job is to kick them in the bum, tell them they need to pull up their boot straps. It's in all the books! It's everywhere.

Just mentioning, 'how come my life doesn't look like the way it does in the books?" is cast as negative, blaming, self pitying. Certain questions we're not supposed to ask. It keeps us from focusing on reality when we're supposed to be focusing on pie in the sky.

I'm all for encouraging people, and giving hope and I think my posts speak to that, but there is a nasty side to all the advice churned out by these merchants and that is, that we aren't allowed to tell it like it is, it's fear driven, why if we start talking about how ****ty things are we'll fall into a well of self pity and never crawl out.

It alienates us from our own experience, it keeps us afraid and silent in our own private not to be spoken of hells. It's a great big honking shut down.

I'd rather see this stuff come to air, so it can actually be dealt with, so on a forum for support we don't have to have pretence that 'we're getting better and better everyday' for some of us running in place is success. Not sliding down that extrmeely slippery slope.

We need to talk about our reality, repressing it won't do any good, we need to even encourage people to talk about it because they're afraid to. They're afraid, am I the loser person with adhd amongst all these people with adhd who are doing so well?

No, people are hiding their fears, their pain and their struggles because they're terrified of being called a whiner.

I think your posts served this thread well, even if you feel bad about them now. So, a very sincere thank you from me.

[Verile]

I think it's just a matter of time and place. As some others mentioned he came here looking to share his experience and seek comfort in knowing others have it rough too. I coldly sabotaged that for him. Sometimes it's just better to give someone a hug and tell them it'll be okay.

[samson2211]

Thank you Verile,

I think you have more empathy than maybe you realise, maybe it misfires and goes astray (???), but your ability to either believe, accept or realise that you may have made a mistake, says more positive things about you than you realise. If you didn't have empathy you wouldn't ever, ever be wrong and you wouldn't ever apologise, so you underestimate yourself - you might be too hard on others, or too quick to jump the gun because you're too hard on yourself.

[CheekyMonkey]

This thread needs a group hug.

[Spacemaster]

I was just thinking an "awwww" in my head before I scrolled further down! Great job guys, and well said by all!

[ginniebean]

Originally Posted by addcolin

The ADD-PI Disorder is called a disorder, because it affects the life of the sufferer in all different pathways of life,

There is no ADD_PI disorder, ADD-PI is a subtype WITHIN a disorder called AD/HD. We all have the SAME Disorder just varying amounts of symptoms.

[Unmanagable]

Originally posted by samson2211:

Thank you Verile,

I think you have more empathy than maybe you realise, maybe it misfires and goes astray (???), but your ability to either believe, accept or realise that you may have made a mistake, says more positive things about you than you realise. If you didn't have empathy you wouldn't ever, ever be wrong and you wouldn't ever apologise, so you underestimate yourself - you might be too hard on others, or too quick to jump the gun because you're too hard on yourself.

[Fortune]

Originally Posted by Verile

I think it's just a matter of time and place. As some others mentioned he came here looking to share his experience and seek comfort in knowing others have it rough too. I coldly sabotaged that for him. Sometimes it's just better to give someone a hug and tell them it'll be okay.

Thanks for posting this.

Sorry about being harsh last night, btw.