[tom20001]

great post indeed

fair play samson and pure great honesty . Im sure many of us could relate to you both especially when work is slack and from my own experience you start to feel down about things

depression is a disgraceful stigma and honest open posts and conversations like this are the best way to deal with that

fair play lads

[Mike #1]

Its not easy mate but you are obviously doing well enough to run a business , Been through some difficult times myself and i have mate who went through a rough marriage break up

And it has taken him 3  years of ups and downs for him to get back to normal , But he got  professional help and has had good support which has helped him through .

Best thing is is to seek help and try to be  as honest and open as possible then you  may not feel as burdened at times. Mike 

[James Bulton]

I get depression from diabetes it not always easy as things creep up on one. Before you know it you are down and I find folk not always understanding. They only understand when you hit them in the face with a wet fish. Empathy is not forth coming until you expose yourself. Why does one need to expose your illness before you get understanding. It says something about our society today
              Its more inline to jump on one we perceive as weak in to days world.

[alfie11]

Thankyou to you all so much for contributing to this thread...
I suffer from Bipolar and have previously sold a van and round due to not being able to cope with the depression. 
What a mistake that was, sitting in an office afterwards regretting it over and over.
Currently in "Manic" state plotting to take over the window cleaning world, mind whizzing with plans over and over doing the same calculations working out how much ill be earning all with a big grin on my face thinking how cunning I am.

I just hope that I dont crash any time soon and that when I do crash its not as bad as it has been before.  i think it would destroy me.  months of hard work undone by a few weeks of downers 

Does anybody else with Bipolar find that when in manic mode your business is at its most productive?

+ 1

[Nathanael Jones]

I'll be honest & say I've never suffered from a day of depression in my life - I've been extremely lucky,.. but all of my wifes family suffer from it very badly, especially this time of year (Today is the 4th anniversary of my mother in law passing).

Most of them fight against it - they have bad days, sometimes bad months, but they always work hard to get themselves back on their feet in time. I have great respect for these people who continue to fight.

My sister in law is different, she welcomes depression, wallows in it, embraces it and looks for more. She neglects her two young children badly - very badly,.. if it wasn't for her hubbys efforts to be a better dad than 99% of the guys I know, she would have been reported to child services by her own sister today. This is a kind of depression i don't understand - the selfishness, the constant self pity, constant trips to the GP (at least 3 times a week), constant attempts to get more/stronger meds, the many and varied side effects and illnesses caused by the meds - - is it very wrong and un-pc to not have any sympathy for her anymore? She's been this way for over 20 years, and is only getting worse. No one can get through to her,... because she simply doesn't want to get better. How can you deal with that?!

[dazmond]

best wishes mate.

ive also suffered from depression in the past.drug addiction and alcoholism.so i understand how awful it can be.

i still get mildly depressed from time to time but nothing like it used to be.years of taking ecstasy and cocaine and copious amounts of alcohol in my youth havent helped.

i find good food,exercise,NO alcohol or drugs at all keeps me pretty well mentally plus not isolating myself from friends and family although i still do from time to time.

we are all a few days behind due to the bad weather.dont worry about it.sitting in dwelling on it magnifies ALL your fears!

as long as your paying your bills be kind to yourself mate.talking to someone also helps but i know how hard it is to pick up the phone when your feeling low.its almost impossible!


very best wishes my friend


dazmond

[Archer]

Know exactly where you are coming from without going in to to much detail.

Anyone who doesn't understand depression, anxiety etc, there is a VERY fine line and if you reach that point it is the worst feeling imaginable.

I always say the only thing i ever want is piece of mind, never mind sh--fulls of money

[Devonbubbles]

well i think you sound pretty amazing and have probably put things into perspective for a lot of us.  keep it up

[Clever Forum Name]

Its amazing that Bi-Polar has come up.

I have all the symptoms but the quacks refuse to deal with the issue. I think i suffer from it.

But as they were not interested i decided to fix it myself.

Caffeine, fast food and beer make mine worse!

[colin bird]

Well done mate and good luck to you,my wife suffers with depression, so I know where your coming from.
One day my wife is so hyper and busy she does my head in,the following day,is so different,she has no confidence,and everything is a problem,some days she won't even answer the phone,or even answer the door,so if your still working fair play to you,you should be proud of yourself
Winston Churchill was a depressive,he used to call it living with black dog,there is also a book called living with the black dog
I wish you well

[wpclean]

Even with Bi-polar there is so many different types, I have  had some terrific highs buying equipment, businesses, and then walking away when the low kicked in ( plenty of other stuff I darn't mention )      Lost a lot money over the years, but I have my dear wife,who knows how to curb my enthusiasm.
Like I said before the good thing about this business is the flexibility, and if you can ride out the lows, and keep going life is bearable.

It is encouraging seeing others on here who suffer, but carry on, think is good to share experiences as this can be a great motivator for others 

[Frankybadboy]

know how you fill mate,has I my self suffer with depression and have really bad episode


you learn to cope with it and you know that the good will come after the bad days


keep working on it and keep talking to people who will listen to you.


try different things ie diet exercise etc ,healthy life style can help
 

[Marc Stock]

Keep going mate. I have been on citrolipram for two years due to depression. It all started back in 2008 when my ex had an affair after 8 years of marrige, then just as she left mr taxman says to me i owe him an extra 15 grand that i didnt account for and i need to pay it in 30 days, i then broke my arm and out of desperation sold the business, and lived off the money from the business and the house. When my arm got better i went on a self destructive bender, of parties, drugs and alcohol and hit rock bottom when my money ran out.

Then i started up the business again, found another girl got married, had two kids and have been dragging my life back together for the last 4 years. Still got debts to pay off, but im using that as a driving tool to push my business further than ever before.

Im happy now got two great kids and a good woman. Just 5 more years and ill be able to walk into a porshe delership and buy a new 911 turbo when i have atraned my goals of paying every penny back and taking the business to a level i always wanted to in the first place.

By the way i still have depression

[windowswashed]

Depression is a terrible hidden illness that people don't know how to help someone with to begin with. A lot of people shy away from those suffering it. The best thing is to get them in a routine, talk with them frequently and let them know you care. Keep them occupied and get them out socialising with other people.
My girlfriend suffers from it after losing her eldest son, husband and father all within three years. I keep a smile on her face most of the time, keep talking with her and keep her occupied and socialising. She has bad times and good times and just accept her for the way she is. I keep throwing up little surprises for her and give her things to look forward to so it keeps her spirits up.

[Jim Waugh(Albright & Shiny)]

Been a repeat sufferer over the years, Find myself in the company of black dog for no good reason. I have had it at times when all was otherwise well with the world. The only constant is that prior to an episode I have been digging out blind at either a relationship or a job or just going flat out at something for a long time.  I have yet to see any warning signs, just wake up one morning an realise whast going on.. Then its a long haul back to feeling stable / normal.

There is a statistic somewhere that something like 95% of people will suffer from it to varying degrees during a lifetime..

Those who suffer think they are the only ones who have it , the response to this thread clearly demonstrates that this is not the case...

[Tom White]

Top post, Sampson; and all the others who've contributed.

[Johnny B]

This is one of, if not the most, uplifting thread I have read on all my time on this forum. Well done to all of you guys who suffer from this terrible illness who have contributed so positively.

John

[Steve Barnett (Carpet Care Plus)]

Very interesting reading - thanks for sharing, brave posts

[poleman]

samson, sadly there is still stigma out there regarding metal health issues however even something like this post can change minds, I lost someone close to me and was diagnosis with cancer and then depression about 6 years ago so have some idea of what its like

I have promised I will keep in touch and ask a friend or loved one how they are

http://www.time-to-change.org.uk/pledgewall#90952

[Shane O Neill]

Good on you Samson !
Takes a lot of courage to speak about this....do you tell your customers the honest reason  I think you should ! Maybe just a little few words are needed after some delay in schedule & I bet they will respect you for it....hope things keep on the up for u & any others on here who suffer this pain in silence.
window cleaning trade can be a real get out from the pressures of working in a company but then come the challenges of working on your or pushing ourselves to achieve a better business !