To wish everyone knew how hard having anxiety/OCD/depression is?

[LittleMissGerardButlersMinion]

I have suffered from anxiety and OCD for about 25 years now and it's utterly exhausting.

I wouldn't wish it on anyone else, but I wish people could walk in my shoes for a day just to see how crippling it is.

One of my friends has openly admitted that before she suffered from anxiety and depression that she thought it was 'made up'.

I'm not saying everyone is ignorant, and some people are more understanding than others, but some people just don't get it.

My very helpful OH just tells me to relax and stop worrying, if only it was that simple. :(

I just think its a shame at this day in age that its still so taboo and misunderstood.

If anyone wants to add their experiences or ask any questions go ahead.

I won't be online for a couple of hours now, but will come back later.

I'm a very nervous anxious person, and although I'm much better now than maybe 7-8 years ago Im not calm by a long shot.

Any sort of confrontation or THOUGHTS of confrontation send me into panic mode and I have knots in my stomach and sick feeling for hours. I can mull the same thing over and over and over and worry about it.
Some close to me say "just forget about it" or "get a grip" but it's not that easy.
One example was a near car crash which was the other drivers fault, they got mad at me and I got so wound up etc that I refused to drive for nearly 3 weeks. The sheer thought of getting behind the wheel would reduce me to a cold sweat and from there I ended up going mad with the cleaning to keep busy to ignore the problem.
I notice my OCD tendencies with cleanliness and germs shows up when I am really anxious, or stressed. I can actually go mad about toast crumbs on a worktop and DH is magnificent tbh. He has learned my behaviour and never tries to change me, just leaves me be to get it out my system to calm down again.

It infuriates me when people roll their eyes or claim I'm being over sensitive, or ridiculous. Yes maybe I am compared to how you deal with life, but if you can show me a magic cure for that I'd be bloody grateful!

I genuinely feel for anyone with anxiety problems, depression, OCD... it can really crush your life and everything has to come after it x

Pirate I'm afraid my husband was only diagnosed to that specific extent after spending weeks as an in-patient on a specialist research ward under one of the country's leading experts, which/who just happened to be part of the NHS Trust we lived in at the time. Originally he was diagnosed with ME and the diagnosis has been changed and refined over time as he has seen various psychiatrists and psychologists.

It doesn't actually help or make much difference in day-to-day living with the condition or trying to treat it, it's just a label which speeds up the process of explaining what exactly is wrong with him when he changes medical practitioners.

moanstripes, your post resonates.

select, I understand how it doesn't make any difference to him, or the effect on you.

I would love it if some more knowledge of the types were more available to us when we see out gp's, or even the mental health teams.

Being a person who has depression, one of the most difficult thing is having no clarity generally, and having a bit more insight into the types, labels could actually help me. Bit like, 'hey, you've got a trapped nerve' or 'yes you have colitis' iyswim! xx

unmumsnetty ((((hugs))) for select and your dh x

I have a thread in CHAT about a problem and its to do with my OCD.

some posters have been understanding and brilliant but some.......have been deleted!

select how awful for you both.xx
I have melancholic depression which is well controlled now, thank God.
I've found that my biggest critic is myself. Because I went years undiagnosed as a kid (misdiagnosed as glandular fever) I still don't thik of myself as a person with a condition to manage, even though that's exactly what I am. My main coping mechanism when I'm ill is sleeping. So I call myself lazy, but if I wasn't sleeping, my 'coping' mechanisms would be much more destructive I'm sure.

I think I posted on that Let there were some very rude people. Was it the workmen one?

yes, it s that one. unless someone has it don't make rude remarks!

Is there a big differance in depression or anxiety please