Is this depression?

[NoNamesLeft86]

I feel constantly overwhelmed.
I feel like every day is such a struggle.
Feels like simple little things are just a mamouth task for me. But then not doing them makes it worse.
I used to love spending time with my children. Love reading them stories, playing games, finding out about their time when they were at school/nursery etc. Lately I just want as much child free time as possible. Finding ways not to have them for a few hours. When they are here im not paying them much attention. They tell me about their day but im not really listening. I hate that I'm not being a great parent. (They are fed/washed/school, safe etc)
I feel constantly snowed under. I dont work but barely seem to stop. I would love to work. But barely find time to get all the jobs done as it is.

Im a single parent.
4 children, 3 with SEN.
Plus various pets which i now feel overwhelmed with but the kids would be devastated if they didn't stay.

Im drowning in housework constantly. Christmas is just seeming like another huge list of stuff to do/clutter to keep on top of.

Is this depression? Or just that I've got too much on? What do I do about it?! Feeling so down and lost.

I feel like you it just all seems to much sometimes...I cope by just tackling one thing at a time until it's done. I used to be great at multi tasking but can't concentrate on lots of things to do. So washing on Monday, Housework on Tuesday, Bathroom clean Wednesday, Kitchen clean Thursday, everything else on Friday....then I just give my self a pat on the back when I get through each day and done what I set out to do.

Thanks for the reply. I just dont think it wil ever all be done as there is just too much

Sounds very much how I felt when I was diagnosed. I think you need a trip to your doctors as it's also exhausting feeling this way too.

The best thing I ever did was to go onto sertraline, it gave me the level headness to be able to cope with everything, without feeling like I had one arm behind my back.

Yes, tablets aren't for everyone but as I had a chemical imbalance, I was fighting a losing battle.

Thinking of you, cos it sucks

Thank you. I have a doctors appointment tomorrow which i originally booked for something different but think I might use it to discuss this instead as i currently am starting to feel like I dont want to carry on. Ive just got to get the courage together to actually speak about it to the doctor.

Doing nothing isn't an option though, you are slowly sinking. Deep breath tomorrow and tell them how you feel.
Keep posting here, I found it comforting to know I wasn't on my own.

Am pleased you started this thread

Right ive been to the GP and been put on 50mg of sertraline and been put on the waiting list for talking therapies.

It actually feels like a weight off my mind knowing somethings happening. Just got to make sure i remember to take it daily and go back to GP before they run out.

When i first started taking sertraline, I had slight nausea for about a week and an ever so slight feeling of flatness. Hopefully the doctor told you that the tablets can take a good couple of weeks to kick in, so bear with them.
I take mine at night, with some other tablets I'm on.

Word of warning though, don't ever take the tablets dry as they can severely burn your throat! Made that mistake once - note the once.

Good for you for speaking up to your gp, things will get better

Is this depression? Or just that I've got too much on?

It's both. One often leads to the other. You're doing the right thing to get medical help and the sertraline should get you back to normal - just don't be discouraged if it doesn't work quickly. It can take weeks. In the meantime, be kind to yourself. Reduce your commitments and workload to the bare minimum. Take short-cuts and let your standards slip a little bit. Ready-meals in front of the TV may not be ideal long-term but if they make life a little bit more bearable right now, there's no harm. Most importantly, don't beat yourself up for not coping. Nobody can cope when their brain chemistry has gone wonky so forgive yourself, look after yourself and get better. And if you're interested in knowing how this happened to you, Dr C Cantopher's "Depressive Illness: The Curse Of The Strong" explains it all beautifully.

Thank you everybody. I do feel pleased I've taken a step in the right direction. I burst into tears talking to the GP. But think I felt better for it.

Does anybody know if i have to take them at the same time every day?

Not sure if it's a hard and fast rule, but I do.

There is a thread sertraline buddies thread on here which might help but I th8nk taking them at the same time is important.

I visited my Gp at the end of November, I was dreading and looking forward to the appointment, I asked the receptionist to watch my so while I was in there as I didn't want him seeing me upset, as soon as I sat down I broke down! I'm not sure my meds are working but I feel better after having spoken to someone.