Nervous breakdown..

that is true kali talking therapy is the best treatment and the feeling that you are not alone others empathise
soop gilly kali the survivors.

NellieSmol I doubt that we shall ever meet. However, thanks to Gransnet, we genuinely care for each other. When I was in a very lonely place [not so long ago] you helped to lift my spirits. The same is true of others. Bags sent me a hug-a-day. I value people like you.

Yes you are right Kali it is comforting when someone at leasts understands where you are coming from.

By blaming myself soop I mean to say that I know I am my own worst enemy. I find it impossible very difficult to say no,even when I have rehearsed it in my head a million times.

Deep sigh and broad x

soop that is such a lovely statement,minds do get hurt as do bodiesxxxxxx

soop, smol, gilly sharing is the biggest help

There is no "blame", gillybob. The mind is a fragile place. Sometimes it gets hurt...as do bodies...when that happens, sharing the pain can assist the healing process.

How right you are soop there are times when I find it extremely difficult to cope. It is very hard when you try to be everything for everyone and have no time at all to "be" yourself.

Sometimes it just seems that nothing I do is ever enough and I have come very close to being burnt out.

I don't blame anyone but myself for the way I am.

Should be a little thing...

I have had Two of the spells which jeni has mentioned of reactive depression and like soop was literally floored and difficult to return from,I am a strong person and the one who deals with all crisis and calls for support,sometimes a little think is the final straw,my last episode 8 years ago has left me quite fragile mentally and it dosent take a lot now to have me heading back that way.
I must say that you lot have been really supportive and helpful when I am having a wobblexxxxx

Having found myself sinking to the kitchen floor and totally unable to continue with the simple task of cleaning a cupboard...I still remember what it was I said: I can't do this anymore! Thanks to my family and a first class GP, I recovered. Mental illness can be a killer if there is next to no support.

Kali you are welcome. I would like to add to what you have said that it seems to me it is the strongest rather than the weaker ones who suffer from depression. They keep going much longer than the weaker ones and think they can cope when others would have given in. I have mentioned it before but will do so again for anyone who needs to understand what they are suffering. A wonderful small book by Dr Tim Cantopher 'Depression, the Curse of the Strong'. It helps you to understand how you got in that situation and shows you it is not your fault.

The issues of stress, depression, post-traumatic stress, etc are so complicated and differ depending on the personality of the individual, the support system they have, the level of stress, coping skills, etc. But one thing I'm sure of, is that even the strongest of us can cave in if the pressures are great enough. I'm not saying that I was at that stage, but I've had a hell of a lot of practice in recent years of trying to cope with severe trauma.
And that was before I joined GN!!!

To change the subject. Just had a phone call from the office of the CEO at Saga. They acknowledge the awful service and have offered compensation which I am not too proud to accept. It's not what I was after, the apology would have sufficed. Thanks moved for the contact which enabled me to get a resolution.

Yes that sounds more like it jeni the term Nervous Breakdown conjures up a picture of a frail person shaking like a leaf in a corner.

How right you are Movedalot There is only so much anyone can cope with and we all have our parameters set differently.

Just about been there, as will some others, gillybob.

It's usually what is called acute reactive depression

Marelli I think you are right about the medical profession but am sure that is not the case with the non medics. Things like 'pull yourself together' and 'get over it' are quite common from those who haven't any experience of this illness. I have heard some very cruel comments about people as if they were in some way being self indulgent. Clinical depression is very different from just feeling down for a little while.

That is what I was attempting to get across with my post, definitely not critical of the medical profession on this.

Yes Gilly it is the very strong who keep going and look after everyone else whe eventually succumb to serious depression.

I am not sure whether there is a clinical diagnosis of Nervous Breakdown and even if there was I am not sure whether it would be right.

But I do think there is a time when those of us who are finding it extremely difficult to cope "really can't cope any more"

I had a mini - something - about a year ago. DH had some health problems, and I wanted him to have some valium to help him through it. Well, we both wanted this. I was in the Doctor's surgery with him. Whether I was right or wrong is irrelevant, because the Doc said no. I had been going through hell with DH, (nothing violent) and this refusal was the very last straw. I burst into tears right there in the surgery, and the GP seemed to assume I was being abused. Later my husband ranted at me for my 'weakness and stupidity' all the way home in the car, for making it look like I was being abused. As if it had been intentional.

I went into the bedroom and curled up on the bed and considered suicide for a while. Then I realised after an hour or two that there was no help and no sympathy around, because asking for help would just open up a can of worms and cause more bother, so I knew I'd better get back to normal, or at least put on an act.

The whole thing eventually faded, DH sorted himself out, and I got back to coping.

But for a while back there I completely and utterly failed to cope.

Perhaps it was a mini nervous breakdown.

In 'those days' that's how it might have been, Movedalot. Hopefully now, correct diagnosis, treatment (and understanding) is available for those people who experience this.

It is an old term for a very serious illness which people who have no empathy or understanding are inclined to be dismissive about. It is just as serious and unavoidable for those affected as a broken leg, TB, arthritis etc.

So glad to hear you finally got it Kali

I agree, Butty. I couldn't think of a way to describe it. It would very likely entail a stay in hospital.

These days ' a nervous breakdown' is more likely to be called a major depressive episode.
Prolonged stress, anxiety, and frequent panic attacks are often experienced preceding this illness.

It's an old-fashioned term I used it in a moment of extreme stress. I think 'Grace* hit the nail on the head with her 'frustration' overload.
My package just arrived "Royal Mail, special delivery, guaranteed by 1pm next day" says the silver sticker, quote. And a giant GD stamped on the front

Was it not more of an old-fashioned description of that, absent? I do remember it being used way back, though not so much now.