Excercise is free and is supposed to help with depression and self image. Even if its just taking a waslk every day. You also might look into support groups in your comunity. I live in a really small town and there seams to be a support group for everything. If it gets too bad you may want to look into getting insurance. Maybe you qualify for state assisted help.

Hi travelgirl,

the answer for me was cognitive behavioral therapy (cbt). I was on meds for many years before I found cbt and it cured me and got me off meds in a remarkably short period of time. Best of all once you learn the tools in cbt you have them forever so you are able to give yourself relief almost instantly whenever you are feeling stressed, anxious or down. It's all about using the tools to learn to think more clearly and accurately about things and once you do your anxiety, panic and depression will miraculously begin to lift before your eyes. My favorite starter book on cbt is "been there, done that? Do this! By sam obitz like anything in life the more you put in the more you get out of cbt. Many universities offer cbt programs and or support groups for little or no cost. You may want to call stanford university to see if they have any going right now as they have a very good school for cbt. Hope this is helpful.


Q

Travelgirl,
you are really suffering needlessly, and I do think that medication will help you immensly. Make an appointment with your mental health facility in your area. They go by a sliding scale, and you pay what you can afford, and if you can't afford anything, the cost is zero. Also, ask your Dr. About getting on a free medications program. This is for people who have no insurance and do not qualify for any state aid. Check into this and see, anyway, it can't hurt to ask. My parents were paying hundreds of dollars for insurance each month, and their prescriptions ran well over $2,000. But they could no longer afford the insurance once they reitired, so they were very happy to find that they qualified for the free medicines programs. Let us know how things go for you, you've really been thru some very stressful times. Believe me, I know how the not having a job can bring on depression. I was there three years ago, and ended up in the hospital. Now, as of the first of january, I will qualify for medicare for my health expenses. Too bad they don't cover prescriptions, sure hope they get that pretty soon, there are so many that can use the help. (i am poor enough, I qualify for state medicaid too, thankfully, as my meds are around $1,000 a month).