u/itsnikki39

I’ve been on 100mg Sertraline for two months now. I can say that I started feeling much better at week 5. I knew the medication was working because of how quiet my mind had become. I started to have hope in life again and that I could finally be able to function again. However, I’m being hit with something really hard in life right now and I haven’t been able to focus at my job. I’ve never been on any LOA at work before besides a few call-ins and taking PTO. Because I’ve been crying silently and secretly at my job and find myself making little mistakes. I started considering taking some time off work but I’m afraid to talk it over with my provider. I fear that the doctor might not believe me, think that I am being lazy, and someone to take advantage of the system. I imagine the office visit to be like some sort of interrogation session. Has anyone ever taken off work because of depression and was the process complicating? TIA for any insight.

An MRI recently revealed a mass near my dog’s heart that could potentially be cancerous. She was also diagnosed with IVDD and has been struggling to walk.
She is so much more than a pet to me. She is my companion, my family, and truly an angel sent from heaven. She has brought so much love, happiness, comfort, and joy into my life over the years. Seeing her seriously ill has been heartbreaking, and I’ve found myself distraught and crying every day. Still, I am doing everything I can to care for her and keep her comfortable.

I strongly believe that when we choose to bring a dog into our lives, we make a commitment to love and care for them through every stage of their life, including the difficult ones. I intend to be there for her and give her all the love and care that she has given me.

Her medical care has also resulted in a very large veterinary bill that will be difficult for me to pay back, but right now, I’m simply grateful that I was able to get her the care she needed.

I humbly ask any kind souls who come across this post to please keep my sweet girl in your prayers. Please pray that her lab results come back negative for cancer, that her body heals and she regains her strength and ability to walk, and that I find a way to manage the financial burden of her veterinary care.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart to anyone who takes a moment to say a prayer for her. It means more to me than I can express. Her initials are PH.

I am almost to week 4 of using 50 mg. I was prescribed for depression and GAD. I have been seeing several improvements such as mental noise has decreased, some days I felt calm and at peace, some worrying but it doesn't consume me the way they did before. However, at the same time, I am still having days with significant sadness, anxieties, low energy, and loneliness.

My doctor has me on 50 mg for 4 weeks and then 100 mg afterwards. I don't really want to take a higher dose if I don't need to. It sounds like some people stay on 50 mg and feel better at later weeks like week 8. I was wondering if anyone else have gone through this prescribing schedule. And are the uneven improvements that I am experiencing mean that the 50mg is only helping me partially? Should I jump to 100 mg after week 4?

The reason I finally stepped into my doctor’s office to ask for an antidepressant was because I felt like I had suffered silently with depression for far too long. I couldn’t handle the constant negative self-talk anymore—the memories and repetitive thought cycles that would tear me apart. The dreadful mornings, the sluggish days, the feeling of carrying a weight that never seemed to lift. I realized I couldn’t do it by myself anymore.

The thought of seeing a therapist sends my anxiety through the roof. I don’t think that’s something I’m ready for yet. I’ve never really been someone who takes medication, and I don’t take any other medications regularly, which is part of why I was so hesitant. But eventually, I reached a point where I looked at my doctor and essentially said, “Please give me something that might help.”

I took my first dose last night. After weighing a lot of factors, my PCP started me on 50 mg for depression. About six hours after taking it, the side effects hit. I had stomach pain, diarrhea, a pounding headache, nausea, and vomiting. The experience felt very similar to a bad hangover after a night of drinking. I barely slept because I was up dealing with the symptoms all night.
At one point, I remember thinking, “This is really intense. I don’t think I can handle another night of this.” I even found myself questioning whether I was truly depressed enough to put myself through something like this.

But then I spent time reading through this subreddit and saw so many success stories from people who pushed through the difficult beginning and eventually found relief. I know it’s only been one dose, but I really hope it works for me too.

The truth is, asking for help was one of the hardest parts. I spent a long time convincing myself that I should be able to handle it on my own, that I just needed to be stronger or push through it. But depression doesn’t always work that way. Sometimes strength looks like admitting that you’re struggling and being willing to try something new, even when it’s scary.

Right now, I’m nervous about taking my next dose because of how intense the side effects were. But I’m also trying to remind myself why I started in the first place. I was tired of merely surviving each day. I want to feel better. I want to enjoy my life instead of constantly fighting my own mind. So for now, I’m going to take it one day at a time and hope that, like so many others here, the difficult beginning eventually leads to something better. Thanks for reading.

What did you get, what does it mean to you? What's the story behind them?

Hi, looking for recommendations for affordable dental care for a small breed dog around Rochester, MN.

I know healing and grieving takes time, especially after emotionally painful breakups. Everyone moves at a different pace, but I’d like to hear different experiences and perspectives on how long it took before you felt ready to love again.

I just want to share my struggles and hoping someone can shed some light or give me helpful advice. Might be a long post and please be kind.

I first had seborrheic dermatitis/psoriasis behind the folds of my ears as early as elementary school. The rash and flakiness came and go and I never really understood what it was and why it kept happening. I’m not even sure why I never told my parents and never went to the doctor to examine it. I was just a kid and silently struggled with it.

When I got to my 20s I started itchiness and flakes spread to the inside of my ears. Now I had it around the folds of ears to the insides of my ear canal. I went to the doctor and they assumed it was just ear wax buildup and flushed my ears with a wash kit. The doctor brushed it off and sent me home afterwards. I continued living my life struggling with this skin condition not knowing what it was and why it would sometimes clear out only to return again. I went on with my life again.

In my late 20s the back of my scalp started developing itchy and flaky rashes! I tried googling up what it could be but nothing really matched what I have. By this time I went to see a dermatologist. I thought to myself this skin condition just gets worse and worse as I age! The specialist examined my scalp and ears and said she could tell it’s psoriasis but could not diagnose it as that because it was “too early in its stage” and classified it under “seborrheic dermatitis”. I finally heard the term psoriasis for the first time in my life. I even felt very validated to have a name to my skin condition.

The doctor had me rotating ketoconazole shampoo, Head and Shoulders, and T/Sal. I went into the doctor office 2-3 times a week to do a UVB Phototherapy Combs treatment. My copay was $25 for a 10 min session. The comb treatment started getting expensive because it adds up going 2-3 times a week! I eventually stopped going because I didn’t see any improvement.

I was also prescribed the Betamethasone steroid ointment which is hard to get into my hair/scalp and in/around my ears. I know it’s really bad to use it and I really do try not to use it if I don’t have to but this steroid ointment has been the only thing that has given me a lot of temporary relief. I still struggle living everyday with my condition. The shampoos don’t really cut it. Nothing has truly worked.

I’m posting in this group wondering if anyone has any solutions since I’m not technically diagnosed with Psoriasis. It’s so crazy that I can say I’ve been struggling with it for more than 20 years of my life. I just don’t know what to do and I really wish someone out there can help give me any tips. Or what I can do to advocate for myself for better/stronger medication if I go see a specialist again. Anything will help. TIA

Hi everyone, I wanted to share a small but really emotional NSV from this weekend.

I went through my entire closet and cleared out all the clothes that no longer fit me, along with pieces I had been holding onto for years. Some were clothes I kept hoping I’d get skinny and fit into one day. Others were things I couldn’t believe I used to wear at my heaviest.

Every single piece carried a memory of who I used to be.

Letting them go was harder than I expected. It brought back years of feeling stuck in a body I didn’t understand, struggling with my eating habits, my health, and my confidence. It reminded me how long I lived feeling out of control.

But at the same time, getting rid of them felt freeing.

Like I was finally closing a chapter.

As I cleared the space, I kept thinking: I’m not going back. I’ve come too far to look back now. This is me making room (physically and mentally) for a new version of myself.

It’s a little scary, but also really exciting.

Thanks for letting me share 🤍