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General health

GP thinks I'm depressed, I don't think I am

31 replies

CrabbitArse · 13/01/2017 15:31

I've been exhausted since DD's birth 3 years ago, made total sense previously as she didn't sleep until she was 2. I nod off most evenings on the sofa, have no energy, no motivation, I have brain fog, memory problems and oddly can no longer climb up a ladder without getting light headed. I have also developed rosaeca. Prior to pregnancy I was happily functional on 5-6 hours sleep a night. However I still take great pleasure in various aspects of my life, I can still laugh and have fun, enjoy a nice meal or an interesting conversation. I do take propanolol for anxiety occasionally.

I decided enough was enough & booked an appointment to see the GP for some blood tests, the results of which have just come back as normal. Doctor raised the issue of DD being recently diagnosed with autism and I felt as though she had decided I was depressed before I walked in. Got a long lecture on the effects of long term stress on seratonin levels and I do get where she's coming from but I've been depressed before (20+ years ago) and this doesn't feel the same. I'm supposed to be calling to discuss the next step but she has already told me it'll be anti depressants which I'm not keen to take.

How can I convince her I'm not depressed? I'm not sure what exactly she tested for but can I ask for further tests? I've lost all my fight since this has been going on & it was a big deal for me to finally take my health in hand, I don't want to be dismissed as a stressed out mother of a SN child (which I am, but that's not all I am).

Any words of advice?

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JontyDoggle37 · 13/01/2017 15:33

Can I ask what contraception you are using? I felt exactly like this when I had the implant, got it taken out and felt like a new woman after 6 weeks. Even contraception you've used previously could have an impact on you post baby as your hormones may have changed.

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CrabbitArse · 13/01/2017 15:36

Wow that was quick Grin
No contraception taken for the last 2 years, no medication at all apart from the occasional propranolol.

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antimatter · 13/01/2017 15:38

Is it vertigo or dizziness that you are experiencing when climbing ladder?

Has she excluded diabetes, underactive thyroid, low blood pressure?

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TeaStory · 13/01/2017 15:40

Find out if they tested for vitamins B12 & D, they don't always check those but a lack can cause those symptoms.

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poohsticks13 · 13/01/2017 15:40

What did the blood tests look for? Did they check your thyroid/B12/vit D?

I was having problems with extreme exhaustion but was told everything was fine.
I took matters into my own hands and started taking some liquid iron- this has helped a lot. I still get tired but not the exhausted/can't function feeling.

It turns out that my iron levels were only just in the 'normal' range at the time of testing.

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CrabbitArse · 13/01/2017 15:40

That's another thing to add to the list of vague symptoms, have been having regular unprotected sex for 2 years and not even a late period to show for it, although I'm early 40's so could just be that.

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poohsticks13 · 13/01/2017 15:41

Oops cross posted!

Just wanted to add that I was getting dizzy too.

Hope you get to the bottom of it.

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TheFlyingFauxPas · 13/01/2017 15:42

Sometimes you can be so depressed you can't recognise you're depressed. How about giving th antidepressants a go for say 4 months. You may actually realise you feel better.

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CrabbitArse · 13/01/2017 15:42

Both vertigo & dizziness up the ladders. Only things she told me she was checking for were iron & thyroid but there may have been others, she wasn't the most forthcoming.

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georgedawes · 13/01/2017 15:44

Have you had vit d levels checked? I had similar symptoms and it was that. If Dr won't do it you can get it tested for about £40

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poohsticks13 · 13/01/2017 15:44

It might be worth getting a printout of your results so you can see for yourself what has been tested and what your levels are.

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CrabbitArse · 13/01/2017 15:47

That sounds sensible thank you, I didn't realise I could get a copy of the results.

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SloanePeterson · 13/01/2017 15:58

You don't have to take antidepressants if you don't want to. Your situation mirrors my own a great deal. My ds is 8 and was finally diagnosed with asd last year and it's been battle after battle ever since. It grinds you down. I had a bad miscarriage last September which knocked me for 6 physically, I needed a very large blood transfusion and I'd not felt well since. Exactly like you, no energy tired all the time and just constantly feeling like something was wrong. My blood tests always came back normal. I was prescribed antidepressants about 6 weeks ago, stuck them out for 2 weeks of hideous side effects and then stopped. The situation I'm in is rubbish objectively. Ds is never going to get 'better' and every day can seem like a battle. Before Christmas he was saying he wanted to kill himself 😞 But I reasoned that an antidepressant wasn't going to change any of that and tbh, if I started to take them I couldn't envisage a point at which I'd ever come off them.
It sounds very trite, but when my last set of bloods came back normal just before Christmas I was devastated as I'd been looking for a reason why I was feeling so terrible. And then I had a word with myself. All the tests were telling me there was nothing physically wrong with me. So I needed to try and feel better. I bought myself a Fitbit which I've quickly become a slave to, and I already feel much less tired. The temptation when you feel so rubbish all the time is to sit and rest, and actually that was doing me no good at all. Mines only set at 10,000 steps a day but that's enough to get me out every day, and I've always exceeded it. I've also started taking a b12 vitamin as well as an iron one, and sorted out my diet. Green leafy veg and only one caffeinated drink first thing is now the order of the day. I'm not saying it'll work for you, but it's worth a shot. I feel like a different woman than I did last month.
Lastly, everything you're feeling, both emotionally and physically is so so common for parents dealing with a SN child. Do you have any support? I go weekly to a support group and have made so many wonderful friends who totally understand it all. I hope you start to feel better soon x

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CrabbitArse · 13/01/2017 16:00

I've just rang reception (can't believe I didn't think to do this before!) and asked what was tested, she said "loads of things" but specifically mentioned full blood count, ESR, thyroid, B12, folate then a whole lot of other things.
I guess that sounds pretty comprehensive but I just don't feel depressed, there's a lot about my life I really enjoy. I'm going to have to just go with it as the pp suggested and take the tablets for a few months to see.

Thank you all for your prompt replies & the shove I needed to call to find out what was tested.

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CrabbitArse · 13/01/2017 16:07

Sorry x-post Sloane, it is proper crap isn't it?! I do have support which helps massively but I know it's a lifetime of issues ahead for us, that's kinda why I dragged myself to the doctor, so I can be the best me I can to fight the battles ahead.
I'm glad you've found something that works for you & I hope things have improved with your son Flowers

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LittleMissUpset · 13/01/2017 16:20

I didn't think I was depressed until I started anti depressants and realized how crap I had been feeling, it had just built up over the years. I'm not cured, but I have more motivation.

I know anti depressants aren't for everyone, and I still get anxiety sometimes, but I feel so much better. DS1 is awaiting assessment for ASD and I know he will always struggle, and my tablets won't change that, but I feel I can cope a bit better.

I'm not saying you are depressed, but I wouldn't have said I was depressed before, even though the doctor has been offering anti d's for years, I didn't think they would make a difference.

If you don't want to take them that's fine, it's your choice, I just wanted to share my story!

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georgedawes · 13/01/2017 16:27

A vit d test isn't a normal part of a full blood screen so I'd check if it has been done or not.

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ErnesttheBavarian · 13/01/2017 17:22

The doc told me I was depressed. I insisted I wasn't. Apart from the abject stress of my dc, was dx with thyroid disease, coeliac disease and multiple allergies, intolerances and deficiencies. Not depressed.

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Pleasemrstweedie · 13/01/2017 22:07

Another vote for getting a print out and learning how to interpret your results.

You wouldn't be the first person to be told they were depressed when they actually had real, treatable conditions.

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mumznet · 14/01/2017 10:26

You mentioned no period for two years.....
I would get a scan on ovaries to test for PCOS ploycystic ovaries syndrome, it produces cysts on ovaries
And can give irregular periods

Depression tablets is just another way to get rid of you if nothing else is found.....the side effects of these medications are severe which will show later on in life.....it's really just a business the NHS.....doctors give it to so many women who aren't really depressed too.....

So it's your body be careful what u put into it.....

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mumznet · 14/01/2017 10:29

Vit d it's not a huge issue if you made the most of the sun in the summer.....if it is low to start with then fine tKe some tablets but in summer just sit 20 min in sun
Or 15 if you are very fair because you don't want to burn

It got my levels up and u threw away the tablets after another blood test

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mumznet · 14/01/2017 10:29

I meant I threw the tablets away

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mumznet · 14/01/2017 10:33

Doctors will not tell you everything and sometimes you have to be your own doctor
Whenever I went in the end I decide on the path or further treatment
I always felt they didn't ask enough questions
For example once I kept seeing them for pain and all aLong it was a trapped wind/gas problem which none of the Drs ever mentioned or asked me about I figured it out later

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littledinaco · 14/01/2017 10:35

I agree with getting a printout. Doctor can say your results are 'normal' as they may be within the normal range but on the very bottom of it, which may explain certain things. You then may be able to try working on these areas before trying antidepressants.
Good luck.

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Lushmetender · 14/01/2017 10:40

I have felt like this when I gave birth to my 3 kids. I feel I'm only starting to have more energy now and looking back, I think I might have bee depressed. Not as in sitting there miserable in a chair but I defo had to take things day by day. I had non specific symptoms with nothing really coming out of the tests. I do have sleep apnoea so that may have contributed but I feel so much better now, I did wonder if I'd had glandular fever as if had a spate of really bad sore throats prior. But who knows, mystery to me. I personally would avoid antidepressants too. See if you can go via online cognitive behavioural therapy or counselling if it helps. Dealing with an autistic child is v stressful (my friends boy has been diagnosed and I know how stressed she is). I don't have the answers here but be open to it maybe being depression as it may help you recover quicker if it is. Take it day by day.

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