Does anyone suffer depression?

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Icey

Icey

Well-Known Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 2
Hi,

I realise to some people it's a very taboo subject and it's something I don't openly talk about very often with anyone.

I'm just curious if anyone also suffers depression and how does it effect your diabetes - eating, exercising and such like? Do you find it hard to eat or find it hard to stop eating?

I'd be grateful for any replies, and if you'd prefer to just PM me then that would be fine - I'm just seeking someone to talk to about the combination.

Thank you
 
I do indeed. The doctor has me on 'happy pills'. Why do they call them that when the last thing they do is make me happy? I have trouble getting interested in anything, including food and have to make myself eat. I do this by finding things I used to love eating before the depression set in and I gave up cooking. It's also easier for me to eat a decent meal if I have company than if I have to eat on my own. I have to force myself to exercise as well, especially in this freezing weather, I'd rather hide under the duvet till spring.

Do you find it hard to concentrate? I do, I can't seem to focus for more than a few minutes on anything and I could enter the Olympics as a champion sleeper.

Depression and Diabetes go hand in hand I'm told, hardly surprising considering we have the disease for life. I'm sure it's the same for folk with any kind of lifetime or life threatening condition. I have no problem talking about it in the open forum, especially if it will help others who may be in the same boat.
 
Depression makes everything harder to deal with. Small problems can get inflated to impossible proportions and our self-image can be very low indeed as a result. As diabetics we have a big enough task just managing our condition, adding depression to the load makes life that much tougher. No-one has to cope with it alone though, if you feel this way, you should mention it to your medical team. There's no shame asking for help when you need it.
 
AlisonM said:
Depression makes everything harder to deal with. Small problems can get inflated to impossible proportions and our self-image can be very low indeed as a result. As diabetics we have a big enough task just managing our condition, adding depression to the load makes life that much tougher. No-one has to cope with it alone though, if you feel this way, you should mention it to your medical team. There's no shame asking for help when you need it.
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see, i feel like I can't mention it to my doc. I'm always there and feel like he's getting totally fed up with me. I don't know if it is a kind of depression or whether I'm just going through a rough patch...but i really feel like I can't mention it...
 
I reckon I do in some obscure way. There are times when I just end up really hating things and not being arsed with anything. Sometimes it's as a direct result of the diabetes and a few days/weeks of bad numbers. Other times it can be a combination of many things. Last time it happened was when I'd just come to university and I'd been rejected out of hand by the UOTC for being diabetic.

Tom
 
salmonpuff said:
see, i feel like I can't mention it to my doc. I'm always there and feel like he's getting totally fed up with me. I don't know if it is a kind of depression or whether I'm just going through a rough patch...but i really feel like I can't mention it...
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Sam, i totally get what you mean. I half mentioned it the other day but played it down so much whilst i was talking about it that my doc said "its totally normal to have down days". Its not his fault, it was me practically talking myself out of it whilst trying to talk to him.

I know the way i feel at the moment is not normal for me but dont really know what i want to do about it right now.
 
salmonpuff said:
see, i feel like I can't mention it to my doc. I'm always there and feel like he's getting totally fed up with me. I don't know if it is a kind of depression or whether I'm just going through a rough patch...but i really feel like I can't mention it...
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It's his job Sam, it's what he's there for, I bet if you tell him he'll try to help. Negative thoughts and impressions are a sign of depression, so is feeling like you're a nuisance. Years ago depressed folk were expected to 'suck it up' and stop 'wasting time', there was a huge stigma attached to being depressed as a result. Now though we know depression is a real problem and needs to be treated just like any other medical condition. Tell him Sam, I promise he won't think you're wasting his time. PM me if you feel the need to rant.
 
Talking to the doctor can help you determine the cause/source of the depression. There are many types - situational (no job, bereavement, money worries etc.), bipolar (brain chemicals gone crazy - used to be called 'manic' depression), dysthimia (mild feelings of sadness and despair, lack of focus).

Of course, we can suffer from all of these, or one of them, they're not mutually exclusive. Some will pass as lif improves around you, some can be held at bay with CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy), some can be helped with medication to help balance the brain chemicals. Identifying the root causes can put you in a much stronger position to tackle it.
 
Yep, but I had it before the diabetes. The only way it affects my diabetes now is that my medication (amitriptyline - which is actually prescribed for my pelvis pain but also helps depression/anxiety) causes the thirst to be worse.

I've been lower since diagnosis, but I dont think this is a diabetes/physical thing, just an emotional reaction to yet something else going wrong with my body lol. 😱
 
I've had it for as long as I can remember.

Thanks for everyones replies - it has been really enlightening to know that I'm not alone!

I've had a fair few low moments after I was diagnosed with diabetes - lots of tears have been shed and I did feel like bursting out in tears when the doctor told me, sometimes it's one thing after another.

Alison - I am the same, if I have to cook for myself I find it a real struggle and think 'why bother'. I too am a champion sleeper - any chance for a nap whilst no ones looking 😉

Thing I'm having trouble with most is doing excersise due to low motivation and going out is hard because have agoraphobia.
 
us diabetics gotta stick together 🙂
 
Northerner said:
Talking to the doctor can help you determine the cause/source of the depression. There are many types - situational (no job, bereavement, money worries etc.), bipolar (brain chemicals gone crazy - used to be called 'manic' depression), dysthimia (mild feelings of sadness and despair, lack of focus).

Of course, we can suffer from all of these, or one of them, they're not mutually exclusive. Some will pass as lif improves around you, some can be held at bay with CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy), some can be helped with medication to help balance the brain chemicals. Identifying the root causes can put you in a much stronger position to tackle it.
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northe there is another type of depression that i suffer from its due to the serotonin hormone being taken up to quickly by my liver....i thus take a serotonin uptake inhibiter...serotonin is the happy hormone that keeps us all on the straight and narrow in terms of our emotions...i loose too much thus take medication to stop it...i still suffer and can totally appreciate the need just to sleep......
i have been diagniosed with this problem for the last 12 years although i have suffered since i reached puberty and my hormones went wild... the resulting depression caused me to over eat sometimes as a self punishment cos i felt so low...the over eating crap esaperated my diabetes which i beleive has been an underlying problem for years as i have said in different threads its a vicous circle...
Icey or anyone who sufferes from this Pm me if need be and i will try and help
amx
 
I'm not sure if it is depression or not. I get times when I feel very down and the world is against me. When I am like that I want to lock myself into a room on my own and have a good bawl because it feels like no one else would understand. Most of the time I am OK.
 
Caroline said:
I'm not sure if it is depression or not. I get times when I feel very down and the world is against me. When I am like that I want to lock myself into a room on my own and have a good bawl because it feels like no one else would understand. Most of the time I am OK.
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thats like me :(
 
I have depressive personality disorder, which means I have a tendency to depressed and have a low level of depression most of the time. I can also get actute perios of depression but lucky not to have had one in a while. For me therapy is the best thing, talking therapies really help. I am waiting on a psychologist assessment at the moment.

Clinics should have access to psychology services, my clinic has one and I have been offered to see them but I don't think it's so much diabetes that I need hep with.
 
Hi I have suffered on and off with depression and eating disorders for years. I have recently had to admit the depression/anxiety had come back and I am back on the happy pills, seeing a psychiatrist through the diabetic clinic and hopefully should be getting see the wonderful CPN I have seen before again.
 
Yes I suffer with depression and have been on the "happy pills" for ages. I try to put the happy face on but underneath I do struggle. I often feel a total nusience to everyone and I'm sure that's part of it. It's horrible.
 
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