Please or to access all these features

Mental health

Mumsnet hasn't checked the qualifications of anyone posting here. If you have medical concerns, please seek medical attention.

Please help - am I heading for a breakdown? Does a nervous breakdown even exist anymore?

33 replies

Wormysquirmy · 27/08/2017 14:49

I'm not depressed - I don't think. I can sleep. I eat well. My kids are fed and looked after and homework is done. I hold down a busy and stressful part-time job. I take on most of the childcare outside this as well as the "motherload" of the organising. I look fit and well.

I'm falling apart. I feel like I'm unravelling. It started at work with increasing anxiety about getting everything done. I'm constantly having to live at break neck speed to get everything done. I have stopped feeling joy like I used to. I'm on a never ending treadmill of constant slog. I have tried the usual "take time to yourself" things as much as I can but I'm unravelling like a ball of wool.

I feel like I'm hugely anxious. I want to cry and sob and scream. I fantasise about running away with the dog and a tent. I adore my children and hate myself for how I'm feeling. I hate that I'm not coping better when others have worse burdens to bear. The NHS can't help people like me - I know that. I'm terrified to take time off work as I will forever be labelled and then be made redundant. I feel I can't even tell my friends. I have tried to tell my husband who says helpful things like a couple hours out.

Even typing this I feel like a self indulgent idiot.

I'm taking St. John's wort and some evening primrose. Exercising. Trying to look after myself.

Any other thoughts?

I have a nice family who are dysfunctional. Parents divorced. Siblings anxious too. I don't want to tell them I'm cracking up. They talk about this stuff a lot and I don't want to be part of the negative spiral down.

Thanks to anyone who can help and for reading.

OP posts:
nixnjj · 27/08/2017 16:42

I can't think to type a useful post but please see GP sound like anxiety and if ignored will get worse. The worry about work is part of the anxiety. Take care

incogKNEEto · 27/08/2017 17:39

I sounds like anxiety to me too, what you are describing is exactly how l felt before l went to see my GP and was prescribed beta blockers (propranolol) which take care of these horrible physical symptoms and make me feel much better able to cope.

I would recommend going to see your GP and describe your symptoms, you don't have to feel like this Flowers.

user1483981877 · 27/08/2017 17:48

First of all, I think you are amazing, as, unlike me, or didn't even realise everything was unravelling until it, well, unravelled, you are in the process of catching yourself which is fab in itself. I wanted to highlight this statement for you though:
'Even typing this I feel like a self indulgent idiot.' I would take some time to consider why you feel like this, I get that you don't want to become part of the 'negative spiral' in your family, I felt the same, but unfortunately it didn't give me immunity from the same feelings that I had distanced myself from. So, I hope my experience can help you, because I am currently having therapy that is HUGELY painful, but I can only hope is helping and I am also taking a low dose of antidepressants. And, most importantly, prioritise you own need to find joy. Do WHATEVER you need to do to find this for yourself. Before it is too late. It will be completely worth it. You are worth it.

Wormysquirmy · 27/08/2017 18:02

Oh god - I can't believe anyone responds don't. Thanks so much.

I have spent most of the afternoon crying. In front of the kids which I'm ashamed about. DH is useless. He doesn't "get" mental health issues. I just want a cuddle.

I'm not definitely not amazing - utterly self indulgent as I feel I should keep a lid on it till the kids are in bed.

User - you sound positive - that's amazing you have emerged from this. Is the therapy on the NHS?

I am so worried I go to the GP and unravel completely. I guess I could go and say I'm struggling and ask for a referral for therapy but have no one to watch the kids. I feel so hopeless. I have beta blockers in my bag (I'm a part time musician) but rarely take them but maybe should.

Thanks for your responses and I'm sorry for anyone who feels this way too. Flowers

Did you tell friends?

OP posts:
surferjet · 27/08/2017 18:17

Hey op!

Firstly, I'm so sorry you're feeling so overwhelmed at the moment. it's awful isn't it.

You say your problems stated at work. Have you spoken to your boss about how you feel? I think it's your job that's causing your stress I really do. Please talk to your bosses as they have a duty to make sure you don't ( literally ) keel over at your desk!

And you are not an indulgent idiot - far from it. It takes strength to admit you need help.
Flowers

Wormysquirmy · 27/08/2017 18:22

I have a new boss now reporting to my old boss. New boss is a friend/colleague. It's all awkward.

I think she would be okay. Quite a large team and I would hate the labelling.

I feel it's been building a while. Work has been awful for a while but it's not quite as bad just now but it's like my ability to cope has gone. Work used to be a bit of a break but I dread it now.

I feel I want to run away.

I sound terribly negative. I know there must be a way forward

OP posts:
PickingOakum · 27/08/2017 18:33

This sounds like burnout to me. You've too many spinning plates in the air.

Don't ignore it. I ended up with cyclical problems where I pretty much collapsed every three months and couldn't even get out of bed.

There are a number of ways to handle it. First up, cut down on caffeine and alcohol if you can and watch your sugar intake. Take a regular multivitamin as well. This will calm the physical symptoms a little bit.

Then make a list of all the areas of your life: work, organising, childcare etc. You are going to need to delegate a lot of the current tasks that fall into these areas or just drop them all together. This delegation is non-negiotiable.

Get rid of as many jobs as you can. Change the ways your household works so that you can reduce your everyday stress levels. Sometimes, little steps can be remarkable in terms of impact.

I can't really suggest much more without knowing the specifics of your situation though.

Formalyknownas99 · 27/08/2017 18:35

Wormysquirmy does your employer have an employee assistance programme? If they do you can refer yourself and access some counselling (it is confidential and your employer will not be told). There is no cost for the first 4-6 sessions.

I don't know if the I.A.P.T service is national or just London/Essex but you can refer yourself to access CBT/counselling. www.england.nhs.uk/mental-health/adults/iapt/

I have accessed counselling via both and am currently receiving counselling.

Hope this helps Flowers

PinkGlitter17 · 27/08/2017 18:39

Aw honey, sorry you're feeling this way.
A week ago, I finally went to my GP as had been feeling the spiralling breakneck-speed thing you mentioned. I've started taking Citalopram, a 20mg dose daily, and it's working beautifully for me. I'm not hurtling along any more.

Hope you feel better soon.

Wormysquirmy · 27/08/2017 18:43

Caffeine - I have upped my intake and I think it's not helping. I will quit that straight away. Good idea. I don't drink much.

Burn out? That's exactly what it feels like. I feel like all my reserves have just gone. My battery is flat?

My work is about to hugely ramp up and the thought gives me dread.

I so have access to counselling through work. I wonder if I could somehow do it by phone. Could it actually help? I'm in Scotland.

DH is currently undergoing tests for cancer which is hugely adding to my load but at least knowing one way or the other will help.

I haven't take a sick day in years but am contemplating a few days off even if I tell my employer I have flu.

picking I'm sorry to hear that. Cyclical? I felt I nearly hit burnout after Xmas after a difficult few months but picked it up again. I'm wondering if it's all coming out now.

It's the constant getting to work and drop off and pick ups in different locations that I feel is tipping me over the edge. I feel if I could even work from home a half day a week it might help. Maybe I need to talk to my employer. If DH is seriously ill then I will become the main breadwinner so maybe I need to hold it together

But as you say, maybe I have no choice. Goddam it - I feel such a weakling

OP posts:
Wormysquirmy · 27/08/2017 18:45

pink really? It sounds like a miracle remedy that I would be glad of. I'm a bit worried that it will push me to physical burn out if maybe my mental symptoms are just me doing too much? Does that sound silly? Have you had any side effects?

OP posts:
Timmytoo · 27/08/2017 19:41

I had a major work related breakdown. It was huge! I lost my whole life in a week. I got chronic fatigue syndrome afterwards. Vitamin B calm and L-Theanine has been my savior. I didn't get on with propanalol due to weight gain, but these helped me so much that now I've completely recovered and turned my life around.

PinkGlitter17 · 27/08/2017 20:02

wormy, yeah, to me it feels a bit miraculous. Of course it might not suit you, I can only speak fur myself.

Side-effects have been alright. I've had some jaw-tightness, night waking (once a night, presumably at the time it kicks in, as I take it before bed); huge sleepiness/lethargy on day 2. It's now day 5 and I feel much better.

PinkGlitter17 · 27/08/2017 20:03

No, you don't sound silly. It has slowed down my manic activity and racing thoughts.

Wormysquirmy · 27/08/2017 20:04

Thanks timmy will check out l-threanine. Any other life changing tips?

pink that sounds ideal although I guess as you say I don't know how I would be. I'm scared of drugs

OP posts:
PickingOakum · 27/08/2017 20:25

It's the constant getting to work and drop off and pick ups in different locations that I feel is tipping me over the edge.

I would suggest it is that and then more again.

You work part-time. In many respects, I think part-time work in a skilled field can be more stressful than a full time job because there is no working week "rhythm" and you cannot establish systems for dealing with day-to-day household and childcare concerns (the "business" case for paid-for household help is lessened because you work part-time etc). A typical week can be "bitty" and always rather "half and half". This, in itself, can be very stressful as you may have a different routine for each day of the week, which means you can;t "automate" your life.

You have to be reasonable and quite cut-throat about what is actually manageable. When I was sinking (badly), I started to ask other working women of my age how they did it. It was surprising what people admitted to on the side. Almost everyone I asked had a cleaner, sent out their ironing, and paid someone to tidy their garden every month. One woman paid her retired mother to cook her family meals twice a week.

It made me realise I was just trying to do too much, and it was killing me. I was so worn down, I even contracted pneumonia, for cyring out loud. I used to wake up on saturday mornings with a "to-do" list downloading in my head, and just feeling near to tears.

The situation got so bad that DH and I ended up at counselling and, in one session, I just exploded Sad. We got very close to splitting up: not because I didn't love him, but because I just couldn't cope with the circumstances of my everyday life and I didn't know how to make anything change at the time.

I'm afraid my situation did not properly resolve until a set of rather horrific personal circumstances meant that I voluntarily left my job with a substantial payout (it wasn't an antagonistic resignation, and was fully supported by my very understanding employers).

I mention this because what was truly extraordinary was that over the following three months after leaving my job, I physically felt years of stress and strain "drain" out of my body (it was the oddest feeling, as though my finger tips were dripping out toxins). I had no idea, until that point, just how stressed I was on a permanent basis.

Now I see things with clearer eyes. If you look at modern life through an evolutionary lens, all those moments of stress in a day are similar to your distant ancestor being confronted by a lion.

That stress when you are stuck in traffic and have to pick up your child from school at a certain time? That's a lion. Walking into your house at the end of the day, knowing a meal needs making, bags need sorting, washing needs to go on? That's a lion. An emotionally fraught conversation with a sibling about something bad happening in her life? That's a lion. A shitty email from a client about some work you did, coinciding with worries about keeping your job? That's a really big lion with nasty teeth. Anything that provokes a stress response, those spidery feelings in your gut, or even just a feeling that is not joy, happiness or contentment is a version of that lion.

So when you count them all up, how many lions do you confront a day? Because your distant ancestor probably came across a lion a week at the very most. Yet modern life means we experience maybe ten or more "lions" a day.

Our bodies and minds are just not designed to cope with this level of continual stress. Yet hardly anyone talks about this angle. I had three bouts of therapy when I was bad, and it did help to talk, but the problem was always about the lions and it wasn't until I got rid of those lions that I actually got better.

IAmBreakmasterCylinder · 27/08/2017 20:33

Just wanted to say that this happened to me last year OP. My DCs were 17 and 11 so not so much to do for them as with little ones.

One day I came back to work from a meeting and there was a message on my desk to call a particularly difficult client and I just lost it.

Luckily one of my very understanding bosses ordered me to go home, I went to the Dr and he signed me off. I had 3 weeks off and have felt a hundred times better since.

It's not the sort of thing you should struggle on with. Hope you feel better soon Flowers

Puppymouse · 27/08/2017 20:40

Christ it gave me chills reading your post OP. I could have written it word for word earlier this year. It got so bad at work that I was told to take some time off and sort myself out. I went to the docs at my manager's request and generally felt like I was losing the plot. Started on Sertraline and felt like a zombie. Family weren't great and told me it was my own fault and I'd be black marked at work...

I took a month off in total and went back just after the manager I was working for left. I spent lots of time sleeping, having time doing my hobby just me while DD at nursery. It was just what I needed. When I went back to work things were very different and I realised I wasn't going mad but the way I'd been expected to work wasn't sustainable. Lots of discussions since and my performance is back up to above expected.

My advice would be:

  • look at what you find hardest and what you can stop doing temporarily or permanently to take some pressure off
  • talk to people - GP/DH/manager etc to get support and advice.
  • take a few days if you can, just to yourself to completely rest and think through tactics and what you need.
  • take medication if GP thinks it will help, nothing more important than your wellbeing and mental health

Flowers for you - you can do this x

Timmytoo · 27/08/2017 20:49

My huge one life changing tip that helps me through everything is repeating "This to shall pass". Positivity is key, remove all negative words from your vocabulary so they don't enter your head. Stop aiming for perfection and step back and literally go back to basics with everything. What really helped me as well, was reminding myself that my thoughts aren't reality, they're just thoughts.

LEMtheoriginal · 27/08/2017 20:58

Lots of great advice here. You sound a lot like me. I suffer from anxiety and it's hell. Constantly demanding too much from myself and failing. I could go on.

The NHS has helped me in terms of talking therapy and medication. I have stopped taking meds as after many years I needed to not be medicated. I'm not going to lie - I'm struggling.

I just wanted to flag something up 're the St.Johns wort. Personally I'm sceptical and think you're better off with chocolate as I think the serotonin in SJW is broken down before it reaches the brain. However some people report that they find it helps. It is really important that you don't take Sjw within two weeks of certain antidepressants so if you go to your gp just let them know you have been taking it.

What works for me is exercise and healthy eating. However when I'm really low I do struggle to get off my arse. I also find Bach's rescue remedy of use. It's one of those things that at our lowest ebb we tend to neglect ourselves and it becomes a vicious circle.

I hope you feel better soon

Backingvocals · 27/08/2017 21:26

It's the constant getting to work and drop off and pick ups in different locations that I feel is tipping me over the edge

I feel like this too. I wonder if the summer holidays are particularly bad for you. Don't know if you said the age of your DCs but the holidays are awful for me. I am a single parent to two (10 and 8) and I work FT in a demanding job. Then every six weeks I have to construct an entirely new routine around childcare with kids in clubs that require travel to get to, start at the wrong time, finish too early and just generally add another burden to my life.

Like you I'm finding things increasingly hard. I'm on a constant treadmill of tasks to do, things I need to initiate (organise getting DC2 to a dr regarding some recent medical things, sort out all the applications for DC1s secondary school, shout at the garage about why my car still hasn't been fixed). Nothing I can delegate to eg a cleaner. I wake up at 5am heart racing most mornings. I could cry when I think of all the things I need to do between now and Christmas and then f* Angry Shock - Christmas itself. That makes me want to cry too.

I need to fix this but I'm not sure how. And I'm not sure why my reality - that has been my reality for ten years - is suddenly unbearable. Age? Burnout? We had a very stressful time at work about a year ago and I almost feel like the burden of that caused a brain injury. I feel damaged, my stamina eroded.

The one thing you need to do is ditch the idea that this is nothing and that you shouldn't be self-indulgent. It isn't and you're not. You are probably not number 1 in anyone's priority list including your own and that needs to change. I'm speaking to myself here too. I know I need to take action. Maybe we should share ideas on here?

Ps I've also wondered if I'm having what Marion Keyes calls a nervy breaker. I'm not sure what they look like or what actually happens unless it means you just get tireder and tireder and snappier and snappier until one day you start crying and can't stop. That could be me Sad

Wormysquirmy · 27/08/2017 21:42

God, you lot have made me cry. In a good way as when I cry I feel better. But I'm sorry this is so common.

The lions...the lions... this resonates. My job is just lions. I get up at 0630 and don't really stop until 2230. I have a cleaner every fortnight and DH gets his Ironed. The mother load falls on me though. I don't need to list it as you all get it.

I would love to give up work. But I have three kids and a mortgage and am utterly trapped.

A nervy breaker? Maybe that is exactly it. When you can't take anymore and just crumple in a heap of not giving a shit!

backing is it maybe just that we have lived so long on reserves that eventually they run out? How often have you been told you are so strong/fitting it all in? At what cost?

OP posts:
Apricotjamsndwich · 28/08/2017 07:50

I second citalopram. I know the idea is scary but for me too the effect on anxiety was miraculous and so fast I thought it must be a placebo effect. I did find some research that comfirms that for anxiety it can work really fast. It just seems to put a barrier up in my brain between having a load of stressful events and unproductive anxiety. I'd give it a try.

Hongkong5 · 28/08/2017 08:44

I also went on citalopram last year for anxiety when I felt that all the negative thoughts were spiralling out of control. I actually moved onto sertraline and have just started back on it again as my anxiety has peaked again particularly in relation to work. For me I think it does give me some space in my head and not be drowned by the anxious thoughts and feelings.

Wormysquirmy · 28/08/2017 10:28

Thanks HongKong and Apricot. Have you had side effects or weight gain?

I worry for me it would be a sticking plaster until I fell apart physically.

I felt I made some progress this morning. I was meant to be dropping off this morning at two locations and DH was being a dick and told the older pair to take the dog out (at the same time I was trying to leave and get a train and drop the little one off).

I ended up putting my foot down and just leaving him to drop the others off - I said I could no longer scream along the motorway late because of others choosing to do stupid things at leaving time. I felt better for it - like I had taken some control. DH had a real go at me but I just shrugged.

I want to stop feeling hopefully and out of control and sad. I no longer laugh. I just want to enjoy my children.

OP posts: