| My Mom Should Know About My Depression | Feelings | My Mom Should Know About My Depression | <div class="ExternalClassCA8A38BEC50940BF8C750EA9BE9AA1B6"><p><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3">I'm afraid to ask my
mom if I can go to a professional doctor to get tested for mental health
issues. I have taken several online tests and I know that I shouldn't just go
off of those, but they all say I have severe depression which honestly I think
I do, but I'm just so scared to ask her. I'm not really the type of person to
open up and ask for help that often, usually I just keep to myself, but I think
she should know. She knows that I used to cut, but I don't know if she had
gotten anything else out of that conversation. I would just really like some
advice about how I should tell her, because I'm just really scared. </span><br></p></div> | <div class="ExternalClass01059CCDB6A54ECB9B92701C8E38FCBC"><p>
<span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3">Thank you for reaching out for help when you are battling so many strong feelings in your life. Reaching out when you are feeling the way that you are can be a very scary thing to do for a lot of people, but you have shown just how strong and determined you are to feel better by reaching out to us tonight. </span> </p><p>
<span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3">Depression can be a very overwhelming emotion to the point that sometimes we feel we can't make it through. Based on what you have shared so far, it sounds like you have been in that place already when you felt as though you needed to harm yourself to get through. You are incredibly smart for recognizing that you needed to reach out for help when you are feeling the way you are today in order to get help before things get worse or you start feeling the need to self-harm again.</span> </p><p>
<span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3">Despite that amazing amount of strength you have already shown, it seems that your depression is still causing you some problems. Sometimes when we feel depressed there is something that happened to bring us down. When that happens, we can usually easily identify what went wrong, what needs to change, and how we can decrease the intensity of our feelings. Other times, there isn't an exact reason why we are feeling depressed; sometimes that is almost harder because we don't know what to change in order to feel better.</span> </p><p>
<span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3">Consider writing your mom a letter. Letters are great for you as the writer because you are able to think through and edit what you want to say before you actually "say it" (e.g., give it to the other person); the letter is great for the reader (mom) as well because they can reread the letter as many times as necessary to process the information before responding to you. For some help in writing that letter, please follow this link: </span>
<a href="/Pages/tip-letter-to-your-parents.aspx">
<span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3">http://www.yourlifeyourvoice.org/v2/Pages/tip-letter-to-your-parents.aspx</span></a> </p><p>
<span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3">In the meantime while you are trying to talk to mom about your depression, we want to give you some information on depression that might be helpful:</span></p><ul><li>
<strong class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3">Depression:</strong><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3"> </span>
<a href="/Pages/tip-depression.aspx">
<span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3">http://www.yourlifeyourvoice.org/v2/Pages/tip-depression.aspx</span></a></li><li>
<strong class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3">12 Steps for Overcoming Depression</strong><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3">: </span>
<a href="/Pages/tip-12-steps-to-overcome-depression.aspx">
<span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3">http://www.yourlifeyourvoice.org/v2/Pages/tip-12-steps-to-overcome-depression.aspx</span></a></li><li>
<strong class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3">Don't Give Up:</strong><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3"> </span>
<a href="/Pages/tip-don%27t-give-up.aspx">
<span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3">http://www.yourlifeyourvoice.org/Pages/tip-don't-give-up.aspx</span></a></li><li>
<strong class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3">Happiness Happens:</strong><span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3"> </span>
<a href="/Pages/tip-happiness.aspx">
<span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3">http://www.yourlifeyourvoice.org/v2/Pages/tip-happiness.aspx</span></a></li></ul><p>
<span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3">Of course, these are only a few of the resources we have available on our website that might be helpful to you. Please check out the full list here: </span>
<a href="/Pages/Tips.aspx">
<span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3">http://www.yourlifeyourvoice.org/v2/Pages/Tips.aspx</span></a></p><p>
<span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3">While you are on this journey to feeling better and getting help for your depression, know that you are never alone; you can always reach out to us for support and help whenever you need it! </span> </p><p>
<span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3">Keep up the great work that you are doing and let us know if there is anything else that we can do to help you.</span> </p><p>
<span class="ms-rteFontFace-1 ms-rteFontSize-3">PC – Counselor</span><br></p></div> | 13 | | |
