hello

[better-days]

umm...hi?

I'm Sarah, from the UK, and i'm nineteen years old. I have depression and issues with OCD, paranoia and anxiety. I was disagnosed with depression six or seven years ago after becoming suicidal as a result of bullying. I took myself out of that environment, but things didn't get better. I have been in counselling on/off since my intial diagnosis. Currently not in any treatment. I have been on medication, and the one i found most effective i had to be taken off of as i was unfortunate enough to get one the of the rare one-in-one-hundred side effects that had started to damage my eyesight. Not on any meds at the moment, either.

I'm living with my parents and a carer for my disabled mother, and i'm trying to get into volunteering and paid employment, but a recession is not the best time to look for work, unfortunately.
I was on another mental health site, but that has been closed for maintenance. it's been shut about two or three months now, which is a shame as i found it incredibly helpful. hence why i'm here.
oh, and the reason i sound vague-ish and boring and devoid of a personality is i'm really nervous as i don't know anyone here, i found this site after a search on the usual places...so, yeah.
and sometimes i feel like a fraud because when i tell people my age and the fact i've got depression, most of them just say it's the run of the mill teenage angst, which then sets me off on a downer (that's how i sometimes refer to a bad episode or bout)
Funnily enough, I'm doing okay-ish right now, just antsy with this being my first post and everything. and now i don't know what to put and i've got a horrible case of pins and needles, so i shall leave it here i suppose.

[BluePeople]

Hi Sarah, welcome to BluePeople

I can relate to you saying you feel like a fraud when you tell people you have depression and your age. I have had depression pretty much my entire life. I clearly remember being depressed from about age 5. So I know young people can be legitimately depressed. In fact for me it was much worse when I was younger. I'm older now and my depression is not nearly as bad as it was when I was a teenager. Hang in there, it can get better.