my councellor told me to think positive?!?

[divastrop]

ive been seeing a councellor for over a year,since i was about 9 wks pg with dd2 and suffering from bad depression.
im 11wks pg with no.5 and been feeling pretty low the last 2 weeks especially.i saw my councellor today and although shes always been helpful and supportive she said that im not allowing myself to be happy even though ive got many reasons to be(or something like that)and that if i think only good things then i will feel happier.i dont know if ive taken what she said the wrong way but i was quite shocked as ive been struggling with thinking obssesive and negative thoughts and am finding it really hard work to stop them even though i desperatley want to.if i could just switch off the crap things in my head and ignore negative comments,and just think positive thoughts and accept praise and compliments then i would do it,but i need some help in learning to do this.it was as if my councellor had had enough of me feeling sorry for myself and was telling me things could be worse and i should pull myself 2 getha.
i know that i should be able to do that but how?i feel as though nobody understands now.sorry for the rant i just was upset and needed to get it off my chest

I think you need to tell your counsellor this

and ask her to suggest ways to retrain your thinking in order to do what she's asking of you

No 5 Good on ya lady...

Are you taking AD's?

have you thought about Cognitive Behaviour Therapy? your counsellor sounds like they may have a lack of expertise as far as understanding your thought patterns goes. imo

absolutely noonar

unfortunatly,i live in the last refuge of the damned,a small town in the north where councelling and psychotherapy have only been around since thatcher had all the main industries done away with and all the men got depressed(this is the impression i get,ive only lived here 9 years myself),so concepts such as CBT etc are unheard of and the waiting list for the psychology service is about 3 years.
my dp thinks that person-centered councelling isnt helping me as im just going over the past when i already know how the past has affected my thinking and i need to find ways to move forward and re-learn my thinking.ive read self-help books and many websits but putting the theory into practise is a different matter.i just feel like im back to square one as even a councellor reckons i should be able to pull myself together.i feel like screaming

ps thank you for your helpful replies btw.
pps im not allowed ad's till i get past 12 weeks

no cbt would seem to be the way to go

but I'm losing sympathy for you when you describe the north as 'the last refuge of the damned'

I am depressed too, 11 weeks pregnant with no.4 depression is such a horrible thing, I am usually a positive person but at the moment my brain is not working well. The whole positive thinking thing seems to be the new approach. A while ago I did try paul mckennas book change your life in 7 days. sounds simple doesn't it? it has a cd you listen to that talks you into positive thinking. i might try it again now because i cant manage anything more complicated than that in this state.

You sound like cbt might help (its about changing the way you think). I think I heard the NHS are offering a computerised verison of CBT!! Might be worth going and asking your GP......

cappuccino-i was describing the town i live in as that not the north in general....and i only say that because it feels as though nearly everybody who lives here is suffering some kind of mental health problem(hence the long waiting lists)which is understandable in an area of high unemployment etc.sorry if i offended you,i didnt intend to cause offence.
i did read on a benefits website that the dwp are meant to be introducing online CBT for ppl claiming incapacity benefit for dpression etc but i didnt think it could be true?!

Apparently the approved programs are quite good. There are good books out there as well (not suggesting you should treat yourself from a book, but a good way to get an intro to the technique). I have no "practical" experience of CBT, it's just interested me since hearing something about CBT and OCD on John Peel on Saturday morning!

your counsellor doesnt sound very helpful

I think your counsellor has done all she can do for you. Its all very well talking about it alot but I do think help needs to be practical. cbt sounds like it might be good. It is hard for people without depression to understand because it doesn't usually make sense. you end up thinking its your personality, it does affect your personality but I know this ee-or is not my true self. I am perfectly positive when not depressed.But the very nature of depression makes you feel incapable of pulling yourself together. It is a chemical imbalance which can be solved but not easily. Its physical. I feel that I need a crane to pull me out. I know that I need to be creative to feel better. Maybe art therapy is the answer, or dance or music therapy? All i need is the crane to get me there and I'll be flying.

there are already online resources for cbt

someone posted one a while ago.. try googling moodgym

exactly rosy,its impossible to understand how depression feels unless u've been through it.last time i was pregnant ppl(even my gp)siad it was understanable that i felt depressed as i was going through pg alone with 3 kids to look after and i was like,no,i feel DEPRESSED ,not just stressed or finding it hard to cope.when i feel down cos something bad has happened or ive had a bad day then i can cheer myself up by doing something nice like watching a good film or chatting to a friend,when im depressed i cant see the point in watching a film and think that my freinds wont want to know me cos im such a pain.i tried to explain this to my councellor last year and i thought she understood.i think im going to have to go back on the prozac like my gp said.i will have a look later 4 the cbt stuff.thanks again everyone