I have suffered from depression for a long time which I have learnt to live with and it is part of my life now and forever and I have accepted this. However, I have now been diagnosed with chronic anxiety as well as chronic depression. I have received CBT a couple of times which have been unsuccessful. I have also been informed that I am untreatable!! I have PTSD symptons but because I have not actually "witnessed" a distressing event I do not have PTSD! As you can imagine, I am devastated by this. I am at my wits end as to who to ask for help from as I just do not know who can help me. I have explored every option (NHS, CBT and Combat Stress) and am at a loss at where to go for help. Does anyone have any advice to who may be able to "help" me? Please?

You need to go back to your GP and get referred into your local mental health trust. Whilst CBT might not be right for you, once you've had a course of that they should explore some other options if it hasn't helped. If your GP isn't being very helpful it might not be a bad idea to move to one who has more of an interest in mental health. There are lots and lots of people who suffer from severe depression and anxiety, so you are not alone. Whilst you're right that you will probably have to accept that you will always live with it to some extent, you really shouldn't give up, but should push for more treatment and support via the NHS. You certainly shouldn't be untreatable.

Agree with bol above! Get back to see a GP asap.

Best wishes – hope your situation improves soon.

Yup – good advice from Bol.

there are many sorts of talking therapies and no one fits all. CBT needs more than " a couple of times" as do any of the talking therapies.

Medication can help as well.

Ask for an appointment with the community psychiatric nurse? They are a source of advice and can act as a gateway to treatment.

Good luck

I have received CBT a couple of times which have been unsuccessful.

CBT only works if you want it to work, and if you have only had two sessions, I would think that that is not enough to sufficiently help you. Treatment can take a long time, and requires you to make the effort to embrace its methods. Clearly this isn't for everyone! As above, if you really feel you have explored this option as far as you can go then your GP should help you find other options… All the best! (from fellow depression sufferer)

Muddypuddle – Kit is right – any talking based solution is going to take a lot of sessions and also going to take you really wanting the therapist to help. This means you need to find one that you feel comfortable with and be mentally prepared for it to take a long time – But you already know that you have had depression for a long time, and expect to have to live with it, so why not commit to the long road to recovery?

I have had several (very) close contacts with severe depression. One went through therapy for 18 mths (twice a week to start). It took the best part of 12 mths before they actually got round to the real source of the problem – because it was buried under so many other seemingly important issues and it took that long to work through the other issues before she let her conscious thought open up to the source of her anxiety.

There isn't a quick fix. Don't look for one. When do you want to be happy? How long are you prepared to work at it to find the solution? Yes see your GP – lots of great advice above – and good luck! (I find getting on the bike helps!!!)

after reading it, it appears to me that you've got RLAS, or Random Letters of the Alphabet Syndrome.

I have been off work ever since and am now on benefits. 15 months later, I'm skint and soooo much happier. 🙂

that's a quote from you…..

i think i've got anxiety problems as i suffer from insomnia when i've not got any weed to smoke (like right now). my problems lie in me thinking too much about what i'm doing with my life (not a lot at present).

not a lot i can add other than chin up and good luck (not that you'll need it)….

yup 2 sessions is nowt. IIRC even 12 is a "short" course.

Everything everyone has said above has been quite true. I would beg you, though, to be a bit 'pushy' with the NHS and not to let anyone fob you off as 'untreatable'. I used to work in a mental hospital, and was deeply impressed by the genuine care I witnessed around me. There, every individual was seen as 'treatable' – if only by helping the person live with his or her symptoms. Everyone deserves this type of care.

sorry for the hijack
i think i've got anxiety problems as i suffer from insomnia when i've not got any weed to smoke (like right now)

I know someone that recently kicked it after 15 years…many failed attepts previously. Now feels awake, doesn't panic when they only have a few J's left, free from the slavery and isn't experiencing the void they expected. It did take a traumatic experience though, one which after it happened he felt he needed to be straight to cope.

Just to echo what House said – I had a traumatic experience a few years ago that left me in tatters. I eventually found a counsellor to help deal with that experience, but it turns out that it was just the tip of a very big iceberg and over 2 years we've now unlocked a load of other issues that I'd been subconsciously burying for years (decades). When I started out I was looking for the miracle cure but the reality is that it's a long, hard road with lots of ups and downs.

Also, don't necessarily wait on the NHS as their provision for this sort of thing is pitifully small – I was told it would be a 6 month wait before I could see someone. There are plenty of private options (but choose carefully and remember the long term nature so it can be expensive) or charity supported centres where you pay what you can afford.

Bypass your GP completely.With the best will in the world they are not mental health professionals. Go straight to the community mental health team. My Gp told me that my bipolar disorder with a co-dependant diagnosis of Disassociative identity disorder(which shows symptoms very similiar to those of ptsd) was untreatable and that I would never be able to work again.

I now run my own business (and admittedly have to work in a pattern that suits me to preventing me getting unmanageably ill on a regular basis, only two stays in psychiatric wards for me in the last twelve months, a record so far hurrah!!!) all with the support of the mental health team. GP was pretty much useless bless him.

Best of luck with it, and please feel free to contact me off forum if you need to chat with somebody who has been through the system, over and over again.:)

YGM reference Lightning Process.

first thing i would say to you (if you've not already done this) is second opinion. I've suffered from depression for 5+ years and have been diagnosed by 3 different "proffesionals" who have all given different diagnoses (severe anxiety, OCD, deep lack of self confidence) and not one of them ever mentioned depression although they were happy to throw drugs at me.

Secondly, it won't feel like it at the moment and being told you have something with a name makes you feel a hundred times worse, but it will get better – it's a cliche, but it really does. It only occured to me the other night that i haven't had a panic attack in 3 years, that kind of stuff creeps up on you

Also thisplace is great, a lot of the time there's arguments/name calling/hair pulling/air of self importance, but when it comes to stuff like this these guys are in a league of their own and a lot of that is down to personal experience.

oh, and lung fulls of fresh air does wonders 😀

Having signed the OS Act I find talking very difficult. This is a huge barrier for me which I do not know how to overcome

Official Secrets? Contact the people responsible for security where you experienced the things you wish to discuss. Say you want to write an account of the experiences which are causing your health problems so you can discuss them with a health professional and you need their assistance on what you can say. The problem is then theirs and you don't have to worry about what you can and can't say.

Having signed the OS Act I find talking very difficult. This is a huge barrier for me which I do not know how to overcome

i think just here on this forum is the ideal place to talk. i mean, you're incognito and i'm bored as ****….

Other talking therapies – there are many Neuro linguistic programming is similar to CBT IIRC. These types of therapies teach you to alter the pattern of your thoughts.

There is "person centred counselling" which is a way of getting you to explore why you behave and react as you do. This is my favoured type. This is just two of the types – there are many more such as Freudian psychoanalysis

This is why I suggested getting in contact with your CPN ( community psychiatric nurse) as they will be able to advise you on what is available and what might help you.

CBT – give up when you've done it for a year.

Talking from experience health professionals don't always get it right and can mis-diagnose so its always good to get a 2nd or even 3rd opinion. About 10-12 years ago I was having problems with my family and it was effecting my mental health and had a bit of a breakdown, so I was referred by my GP to see a psychiatrist who diagnosed me with having ADD WTF and put me on Ritalin (YIPPEE free speed)it did not have any effect nor did the anti-depressants he also prescribed. Anyhow after a number of sessions with a psychiatric nurse she suggested I seek a second opinion and made an appointment with another shrink, turns out after asking loads of questions he suggested I was suffering from stress and anxiety and recommended cognitive therapy, he also pointed out the previous shrink had been on a ADD course in USA so that had influenced his diagnosis and was off work with stress, some irony there.

Once you have been told something is wrong with you that effects your whole wellbeing and can contribute to a decline in your state of mind and general health, so its good that you are seeking further advice and solutions to your issues. I was eventually put on Citalopram that made a huge difference to my mood and wellbeing, I was also offered beta blockers for anxiety that I declined, as I was doing well anyway.

Hope this helps & good luck!

As TJ says, NLP may help, obviously I am not qualified to say it will be the magic bullet but, it is positive and entertaining(I thought so) to read. A easy book to read and digest – I would recommend 'NLP the new art and science of getting what you want' by Harry Alder ISBN 0-7499-1489-0 available at Waterstones and other bookshops.

Muddypuddle,good luck to you for overcoming the depression (and to anyone who suffers with the illness).i've suffered with it for around 10 years.will need to see doc again as i haven't been getting any help for for past year (do not want medication).have done art therapy (around 2 years) and cbt (around 5-6 sessions).i definitely need some form of help,as i have been getting worse (i.e no motivation).getting a new bike though has made me want to start to get my life back again (the depression isn't going to win any more 😡 good luck. 🙂

As you can imagine, I am devastated by this. I am at my wits end as to who to ask for help from as I just do not know who can help me

then

I am very happy with my life. Work is not an option for me and I enjoy having the freedom to ride the bike and go swimming.

Eh?

Johnners – do you not get good/bad days/weeks? I do (though I don't suffer from depression) I guess the OP does too, especially after receiving the news that they are "untreatable".

http://www.netdoctor/depression used to be fairly good. Might be worth a look. Hope things get better for you.

http://www.netdoctor.org/depression (or something like that) used to be fairly good. Might be worth a look. Hope things get better for you.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Person-centered_therapy

I have done some basic training in this. It relies heavily on the relationship between the counsellor and counselled. Its not a prescriptive therapy – you will not be told what to do or how to deal with situations – its a way of assisting you to explore why you act and feel as you do.

As I said – there are many forms of talking therapies and its crucial not only do you find the right therapy but therapist.

The official secrets act means diddly squat when you are ill and it comes to talking to your MHT, if you are that worried about it get a form and get them to sign up to it or just rely on the fact that you have a mental illness if your secrets are divulged by the MHT.
I take it that you have no other contacts/friends that have sufficient level National Security clearance that you can talk through your issues with?

learning that you are untreatable has had a devastating effect on me.

I would like to point out that this is only the diagnosis of one person. It sounds like you don't believe it to be true, which has to be positive. Seek out a second and third opinion and keep chipping away.

Personally speaking, I have never sought medical treatment for depression, preferring to hide myself away when it kicked in. I realise how monumentally stupid this was, so I admire your attitude in trying to resolve the problem.

All I can offer is that the more exercise I do, the better I feel. I'm finding that this really needs to be daily. I bought a turbo for the days I didn't want to leave the house, but now I'm not having those days at all. I also took control of some things that were not right in my life and acted on them. I hope that these things might work for you too.

On your secrests stuff – remeber your medical professionals are duty bound to keep things confidential. This is to a vey high standard.

Are you and ex serviceman? If so Erskine Hospitals might be another place to go.

http://www.samyeling.org/

muddypuddle – do you remember the Mendips last summer?

Poddypics:

I'm planning another one this summer, in case you wanted something to look forward to. BTW you killed our raddist trails – your riding was totally sick dude.