General Discussion

@Grr
No problem, keep your chin up ;)

@Grr seventeen, currently. I don't think a therapist would be wise now as I live in an area where babysitting is basically my only option (only do it twice a week at most :c) so I don't have enough income for at least a scheduled therapy, I wouldn't want to go once. I'd think a diagnosis if there is one would take more than a session to work with.

Yeah, I'd find an actual diagnosis relieving as well in it's own way, then I can actually search up what can help me and understand how to help myself.
At the same time, I'd feel a bit bad, just because I don't want my friends to know (that's guilt), and if they do know I wouldn't want them to treat me differently.

I feel ya, I dropped out of school because of my anxiety problems. I know it seems silly but I don't want to go further into detail about it. I'd love to go to therapy but my mom won't take me :-(.

I'm glad you're getting help though, I know it seems difficult now but things will get better soon.

I've dealt with some stuff. I have been using therapy for quite a while. all I know is that positive thinking and some therapy are the most helpful things that I have done so far.

stay positive no matter how bad it is. kind of like a hurricane, they are fierce but most people come through just fine.

I suffer from chronic psychotic depression, GAD, PTSD, and various other garbage (like anorexia, though I am not sure if that even counts.) I always kind of feel like a dweeb listing my ailments out like that, though I know it's not anything to be ashamed of really. Mental illness has been apart of me for so long - literally more than half my life - that I often wonder if I am a Real Person or just a walking manifestation of disease. Who would I be if these illnesses hadn't shaped me? Who would I be without these parasites? Who knows.

I can't really focus my thoughts here 8| Though within the last two years I've made considerable progress in recovery, even being able to move out on my own, I'm still really struggling, especially over the past month or so. My thoughts are very unhealthy. I've been dissociating a lot. There are entire days where I kind of just float through the world, unable to concentrate on anything, unable to feel the ground beneath my feet. I have my own dark, but comforting reality I drift into when this happens.

I don't really fit in well with reality. I haven't for a long time.

Like others, I needed to drop out of high school due to my illness, and it's *******up my entire life. I would give anything to go back to high school and do it properly. Sometimes I feel like I'm stuck there, and I'm never going to progress from that state.

I don't know what I'm talking about now ??? Oh my gosh

I wish you the best of luck in therapy. My therapist is an amazing woman and I would probably be dead without her. She has helped me immensely. It can take a lot of trial and error to find someone who jives with you, though, but once you do, it's amazing.

Also, don't trust psychiatrists because they are all ********. Tell them what you need to and nothing more. Use them as a means to an end (medication) if you need to. Just don't see them as a friend.

Also, view recovery as an ongoing thing. Don't set your goal as 'recovered.' These illnesses are often chronic and there is a chance they will never go away completely, but you can sit on those turds and make them see that you control the ship and they're simply unwelcome passengers. Show them who is boss.

@grr

I actually just got back from my therapist.

I've found that the best thing to do is figure out what you really want to do, and then do it.

I dropped out of college and it took me a long while to get over that. But I discovered that college just didnt make any difference in my life, and that a degree meant nothing. You can always find new friends and activities to do that you like and that you can tolerate.

My original plan in life was to go to college to learn biotechnology.. and then I'd make a lot of money and could afford to make artwork on my spare time, and I wouldnt have to do commissions.

I basically just jumped to making artwork on my spare time, then just selling things on ebay because I enjoyed it. and voila! I'm self employed and make artwork that I sell in a gallery!

I mostly cope by avoiding things that cause me strife and avoiding people who cause me strife. I dont got time for that. Other peoples' problems are their problems, not mine, and I do what I want when I want to do it.

so just to reiterate...

1) college is a waste of time and money and it's incredibly stress inducing and has no purpose most of the time.

2) friends are expendable, so are people in general.

3) thinking positively does nothing, solving problems and removing stressors works better.

4) Absolutely remove anyone who causes you any strife in your life, and learn to not trust your emotions.

5)emotions are temporary and have no logic to them, dont trust them.

@tunamaru
If I hadn't had a support system, I would have dropped out of college my freshman year from my OCD/anxiety, so it's not silly at all.

@Lamia
Anorexia most certainly counts. It's in the DSM, after all. Psychotic depression or anorexia alone would be a lot to deal with, so I feel for you.
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I have OCD, situational panic attacks (I do not have panic disorder), and Asperger's. One of my main special interests is neuropsychiatric disorders, particularly bipolar mania. I first got interested in neuropsych disorders when I was first diagnosed with "anxiety" in high school and wanted to learn more. I (correctly) self-diagnosed myself with OCD, and I was stunned to learn that OCD was what I had suffered with since early, early childhood. I'm a pure obsessional, which is a subtype that isn't talked about a lot, so I never suspected OCD.

I consider myself very lucky, because I was able to finish my bachelor's degree and currently have a job. OCD has held me back a lot in life, so I can't even imagine having an even more severe mental illness like psychosis. I am very lucky that I got prescribed Anafranil after years of trying various meds. It's a godsend, particularly for my panic attacks. I used to get panic attacks 2-3+ times a day. I rarely get them now.

Probably the way my neuropsych disorders hold me back the most in life is that I can't drive. It's actually a combo of both my OCD and Asperger's. But I have a disability, and that's what public transportation is for.

@Hypercoaster
It actually makes me feel better to hear you say that. Several people have told me that I was overracting and that anxiety alone isn't a good enough to drop out, but I guess they just don't really understand. Its always nice to know I'm not alone.

@tunamaru
Yes, people don't understand if they've never experienced mental illness firsthand. It can be very crippling, and the bad thing is that you LOOK "normal." So, others don't sense how much pain you may be going through. When my OCD was at its worst (ages 11-12), it was a living nightmare. I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy. Like I said, I can't even imagine how scary psychosis would be. My OCD gives me bizarre thoughts without hallucinations/delusions, and trust me- that is scary enough! But it's a scary thing in general when you can't control your mind.