Recovery stories to give others hope ;)

Hello. I have been having anxiety for about two weeks. My daughter started kindergarten last Monday and I am having a very hard time dealing with it. I started with anxiety and depression after I had my daughter and I am on meds for it and normally do ok with them. I have had episodes but I always get out of them. This one just feels so different. My father is also diagnosed with cancer and I'm not sure how to feel about it. He was an alcoholic when i was growing up and wasn't the best childhood ever. I just don't wanna be like this the whole time she is going to school and each grade having a breakdown. I just wanna be me that is all. Ugh any advice or anyone ever felt like this. I feel embarrassed and crazy when this is a natural part of life

During my schooling, I was down with a breakup issue when I had my class exams.I wasn't able t perform well.When the results were out, I failed in Mathematics and this was such a bad feeling for both me and my parents. My parents didn't talk to me for 3 days.And I was really upset .

On feeling avoided by everyone ( even my best friends at school), I took a very foolish decision to end up my life by making a jump from the top of my home. But nothing happened except the pain on my legs :D My parents rushed me to a clinic and from there I was referred to AESM,Toronto from where I was told to attend some physiotherapy sessions. After that incident, I apologized to my parents and I realised that a failure in an exam is not an end.

I started to concentrate on my studies after that! Even now, I laugh like an idiot when I remember about the foolish decision I took to end up my life.

:D :D

This is a great idea!

So I'm 18 years old and from the age of 14-15 I started to lose a lot of confidence during school, I always put up a front and messed about in school because it got me a lot of attention and made me "popular" I guess. But towards the end when I started calming down I got a lot of bad attention and I guess you could call it bullying, it was typical "lads banter" but it used to affect my confidence a lot, it got to a point though where I couldn't even get on a bus or go into a shop to buy things. Obviously this added a lot of pressure by the time I got to about 17 and started craving independence. Applying for jobs and social interactions drove me crazy because just the thought of it would lead me into an anxiety attack, and then we had a fire in our house that was due to an electrical problem, I nearly lost my family and I felt absolutely helpless, this just drove me deeper into the ground and into my shell! I got to a point where I lost my girlfriend of two years because of the way I was treating her. I'd gotten to a point where I felt trapped and the only way out was to end my life, a lot of the time I struggled to get out of bed because I couldn't see a reason and I ended up spending 3 weeks in bed occasionally getting out to eat etc. It was when I was finishing my first year in college studying engineering, and I'd decided I wanted to do something different. Which is when I started turning things around and my attitude towards life, I chose to study electrical installation so I could help people out by making sure their houses are safe and they never have to go through what I went through. I started studying a lot more myself and putting a lot of effort into the course and started seeing really positive results! I ended up getting student of the year for my course, I've made some amazing friends who have helped push me out into social interactions and I now have an attitude that I'm really strong! I'm now studying for my last year of electrical install, I'm back with my girlfriend after 8 months being apart and I now go out regurlarly and have been through the process of work experience and applying for apprenticeships!

I guess the moral of this story is a hell of a lot of us feel like we're trapped and worthless and we have nothing or nowhere to go, and you put yourself down when occasions arise that you turn down because of that exact reason! But always remember there's others who go through what you are going through and have come out the other end of the tunnel! If an opportunity arises then get straight onto it! It could be the difference between feeling down and the best thing in your life. There'll always be people trying to bring you down and make you feel sh*t but always remember, 9/10 they're just jealous! Keep your chin up and stay strong and you'll get through it!

This is a great idea - to share receovery stories.

I have been in depression and anxiety for the past 2.5 years.  The initial days were bad... and for the past 1.5 months, I am begininng to feel that my depressive mood has been lifted.

I have been going online in search of stories of those receoverying from depression but can't seem to find many.  Most stories that I come across talks about their depression and are more depressive to me than encouarging.  SO I am glad to stumble upon your post and I hope to read more recovery stories from people.

I'd like to share a success story about my brother. From the time he was in his early-40s through his mid-50s, my very smart, funny and talented brother would suffer serious, debilitating breakdowns...usually every 2-3 years or so. We live 3,000 miles apart and whenever he was in the midst of a crisis, he would phone me daily and just sob hysterically for a good 90 minutes. His thought patterns made no sense. He couldn't leave the house. He had to stop working. There was nothing I could do other than be a supportive ear. One time, when he was suffering, he flew out to see me. He barely survived the flight, he was such a wreck. His whole body was shaking nearly non-stop, his face was red, he often made no sense when he talked or repeated the same despairing ideas over and over. Looking at him and hearing him speak, I remember thinking that there was no way he could ever return to "normal." I recall thinking that he would likely need to move back in with our aging parents (which he would have hated!) because I couldn't imagine him ever being well enough again to care for himself.

Fast-forward a few months...he did get better. Slowly. Medication helped. Therapy helped. The passage of time helped. Today, he has never been better. He's still as funny as ever, productive, social, genuinely at peace with himself. His last episode was over 5 years ago.

Unfortunately, my teenaged daughter suffered a similar breakdown this summer. She seems to be on the road to recovery and I'm trying to be patient, knowing that recovery is a slow, and not always linear, process. But I think about my brother's success story and know that recovery is not only possible...it happens all the time. I have learned not to expect a light switch to turn on and everything to become great all at once. But I make sure to look out for and relish the moments that suggest that we're inching toward a better place.

Wishing everyone on here strength and hope! 

Hi All.

Its good to know that I'm not the only one going through all this. Theses stories are very inspiring and motivating. Firstly let me just take this moment to thank congratulate and thanks everyone who's every suffered from this awful illness and never gave up on life. Kudos to all the unsung heroes.

That been said. Let me tell you about my ongoing struggle with severe anxiety and depression. I was always a introverted, emotional, shy but very expressive kinda guy. I always able to communicate with others if something is bothering me. Around 2013 my mother passed away. Since then I've lost my mojo. First I was not sure what it was,  I thought I was just sad but then this led to alcohol & cigarette dependency. I was under lott of stress and pain. Due to that I developed stuttering ( I use to stutter as a minor but it was gone when I turned 14) And this time It was really very bad. I sometime struggle to find motivation to even speak. I avoid people in order to not get embarrassed. I'm not 26 Years old. Due to this depression and stuttering I'm struggling with my jobs,finances & relationship. I fell in love with a girl last year and it drastically changed my mood. I was happy and full of life. I couldn't commit to her because of my stuttering. I felt more depressed and sorry for my self.

I'm seeing a therapist for some time  now and been on anti-depressants since then. Since I am from India its still a taboo to be diagnosed with depression and anxiety. Doctors , relatives , friends don't see this as a problem. They think its all in my head and it will go away if I keep my focus on my job.

I can't put my mind to rest. I'm always sad, afraid and anxious. And its getting worse day by day. Due to all this I'm no good at my job. I force my self to work as my family is suffering from financial crisis .

I really hope this all ends well for me. I want to be a responsible son to my father and move on in life and start a family of my own.

Thanks for time guys.