SweetCarley

Open Stress Management

Since I turned 30... when it comes to Stress Management... the short version of my story is that "I don't!". I can't handle things that used to be simple and unstressful. Now it seems that everything is a major ordeal!

Treatments

Writing Working / Worked

Journaling helps... but to have it be 100% effective enough to solve the problem of my inability to handle stress... I'd have to be writing all the time!

Acceptance Working / Worked

Open Bipolar Disorder

I've never been officially diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder... but I've been convinced for years that it's my real problem. My mood swings are a killer and have ruined my whole life.

Treatments

Meditation Too Soon to Tell

Open Breakups & Divorce

I was divorced about 11 years go... my divorce hearing happened on my 30th b'day. Since then I've had 1 long term relationship that I truly believe was my soul mate. It's all over now mainly 'cause of my depression.

Treatments

Love Working / Worked

The love of a new mate helped to move on...but I always felt guilty that maybe I was doing the new man in my life an injustice.

Psychotherapy Working / Worked

Therapy helped a great deal...though my main issues were due to my religious beliefs... I read a number of books that eventually helped me put my divorce behind me

Support from Friends & Family Working / Worked

Love of friends and family are the main source for the reasons I'm able to keep going on.

Time Somewhat Helpful

Time... was somewhat helpful... but it wasn't what eventually helped me move on.

Open Bereavement
Type: Loss of a Relative

At the age of 16 I lost my first boyfriend to Cystic Fibrosis. Then a couple years later I lost my Grandfather. Over the years I've last a Great Aunt, 3 Aunts, the other 3 Grandparents, and a girl friend. I've also lost a few pets that I've loved dearly.

Treatments

Crying Somewhat Helpful

It helps...while I'm crying & then for a short time afterwards... but the pain still comes back leter.

Prayer Working / Worked

Prayer helps a lot...while I'm capable of thinking straight. Later when I'm not thinking clearly my faith falls and then I'm back to square one

Psychotherapy Somewhat Helpful

Psychotherapy helps... but it only helps me feel good for a day or two.

Remembering Somewhat Helpful

It helps, but I find that other people don't necessarily want to talk with me about my lost loved ones. I have people telling me to 'let them go' and to 'stop living in the past'

Open Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS)

My first cyst on my ovaries happened when I was 18... from there I had surgery 3 or 4 times. I've never had regular periods and they've always been painful. Doctors did not explain to me that this might affect my chances of having a child. I'm now 41 and I'm just finding out after 20 years of wanting to get pregnant that my chances were always slim to none of it happening. I've waisted my life on a dream that was never meant to be because doctors did not explain things as they should have.

Treatments

Oral Contraceptives Working / Worked

Spent many years taking contraceptives. 3 or 4 times for 3 - 5 years each. Trying in between to get pregnant. Had to stop taking them when breast cancer showed up in my family for the first time. Now I just live with the pain each month, though it's now where near as bad as it was 15 - 20 years ago, and I no longer have doctors telling me that I need another surgery to fix it. I started to refuse the surgeries after the 4th time.

Open Sexual Abuse

I was molested by my uncle when I was 16 and it went on until I was 18. At that time I moved away with my family to another province so I didn't see him anymore. I'm now 41 but in my 30's he came to visit us and he again wanted to have sex with me... he even wanted me to cheat on my boyfriend. By then I was strong enough to say no, but I still can't get past when he did when I was 16. I still have nightmares about it even all these years later. I feel like it's my fault.

Treatments

Music Somewhat Helpful

Music helps because it helps me drown out my thoughts. I turn it up loud so I can't hear myself think.

Talking Somewhat Helpful

I've talked about it with a very select few that I trust, and it helps, but none of them have been through it so I still feel alone. Most of my family does not know it ever happened, and if it comes out it will split my family, and we were always very close. I don't want to talk about it with them because I don't want the responsibility of destroying my family with this news, and I don't want to be outcast by them. He 'blackmailed me' into being quiet about it so I've told only a select few.

Open Physical & Emotional Abuse

I was mentally abused and emotionally blackmailed for 5 years by a roommate. Later I lived with a BF who was very controlling and limited my friendships and connections with my family, threatened to leave me any time I didn't agree with him, and hit me once. Before that, about 20 years ago, I had a BF for 2 years that hit me a few times.

Treatments

Group Therapy Not Working

Tried group therapy...it was a disaster. I couldn't handle listening to all the sad stories. Made me much more depressed than I could handle.

Music Somewhat Helpful

Music helps with much of my problems because I turn it up so loud that I drown out my thoughts.

Psychotherapy Somewhat Helpful

It helped some... but I feel that I need much more intense therapy, and that can only come from a doctor that charges a fee...which I cannot afford... the psychotherapy was done by my GP which, of course, in Canada I don't have to pay for.

Talking Working / Worked

Talking helps if people are willing to sit and listen... which I've found is nearly impossible... finding someone who cares enough to want to sit and listen and just be a friend.

Writing Working / Worked

Journaling helps with much. Its a great way to get your feelings out in a way that feels tangible.

Open Phobia
Type: Social Phobia

I suppose everyone is afraid of something. For me, it's people! I never considered myself a "people person" but in recent years I've discovered it's more than that. I've been painfully shy my whole life and in the past 10-15 years it's more of a social phobia. I don't work because of my depression and I'm afraid to find a job that might help the issue because I don't want to be around people (at times even on the phone) & I have no desire to fix it. I'm so alone, & I have no idea how to fix it.

Treatments

Meditation Too Soon to Tell

I have social phobia's. I'm just learning about meditation. I am hoping that it will change my life.

Open Seasonal Affective Disorder

I found my depression getting worse year after year during the winters. Now, winters are so bad I can hardly function. Summers are generally great, though I can still feel the "illness" of depression affecting my life... it's no where near the suffering that I go through in the winter.

Open Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

CFS started with Fibromyalgia for me... which in turn started from injuries from a car accident. The Fibromyalgia is no longer a life-controlling issue (though I still have some pain from it... it's not really bad anymore) but the CFS still is very much controlling my life (along with my depression). On a good day I have very little energy.

Treatments

Paxil Not Working

Paxil was great for my depression for a few years, but did nothing for my CFS. So far I haven't found anytthing to help CFS at all. Sometimes certain foods help temporarily... like spinach and green veggies (but that's only for a few hours or so).