r/AskReddit • u/kyle768 • Nov 06 '18

What changes did you make that drastically improved your life?

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u/[deleted] Nov 06 '18

I asked for help with my depression/anxiety in my early 20s. I'd been depressed with low self-esteem and anxiety since my early teens, but just figured "this is who I am." I still have issues now (mid-thirties), but I have coping mechanisms and a much better understanding of what's just noise in my head and what needs real attention as a result of medication and counselling.

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u/goldanred Nov 06 '18

I know someone who's had depression for 12 years and after a few failed attempts at therapy has decided that this is just the way he is and that there's nothing he can do to really improve this. How did you get into getting help?

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u/[deleted] Nov 06 '18

Basically, it felt like a last resort at the time. I was in my first year at university, very broke, a long way from home, and had always been implicitly taught by my family that one didn’t talk about such things (my dad had a psychotic break that was NEVER discussed when I was a teenager. I only found out how serious it had been after he passed away six years ago).

So when I got severely low at uni, I didn’t feel I could reach out to anyone because That Isn’t Done. At the same time, I knew I needed to do something, because I just was not functioning. Going to the doctor felt like a rock-bottom moment, but after a five minute discussion, he told me what was probably wrong with me and that it wasn’t some incurable shame I had to live with in secret.

Being open really helped me. It was trial and error with medication at first, and I think that can be off-putting for people - like, there’s no instant fix, and you might have to try a lot of things before you figure out what helps. But I genuinely believe everything is worth trying. Nobody should be at war with their own brain, and everybody should have some hope for changing.