Christmas is a good time for a lot of people but also a doubly hard time for some, stay strong peeps.
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Checking in. If anyone is struggling Iām happy to chat.
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The last three years of being alone I kind of got used to it and was prepared, never had so many offers this year for a catch up etc, really felt like a charity case. Settled for a good friend and went to her Dadās for Christmas day.
Was the cheapest Christmas ever, never expected never bought, and had a very good day!
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Another suicide at the AFP.
Look out for each other.
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Not good news, which state? You take care too.
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Thanks mate. Melbourne fella who i served with overseas. He was our psychologist.
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Awful to hear. It shows how convincing those dark thoughts can be even if you might know all the potential theory and interventions to help. Stay safe.
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Seeking some advice: I have 2 boys, 9 and 5, and as all parents/carers experience, there is a want to provide support and shelter from the crap that exists in our world.
My eldest is a fairly sensitive lad who we can see has the potential to feel the effects of any bullying/stress of growing up/pressures of the world.
I am thinking of studying some form of child/adolescent mental health course to improve my ability to help my boys and hopefully identify any issues early on.
Does anyone have any suggestions of what might be best to study or any other advice?
Please and thank you
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Iām always petrified of that happening which has its own irony.
Mrsolds works a bit in that field so I get a few pointers now and then. The hardest one for me is distinguishing normal little peopleās fears and worries with something a bit deeper.
My kids have seen a bit of stuff I suppose. Iām not a perfect parent, but Iām not a perfect partner, employee, driver, Morris dancer etc. early on i felt I had to show I was in control, strong etc so they felt secure, but at the same time also show itās ok to cry or feel sad mad etc.
tis a learning curve.
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Youāre a good bloke.
Read a book by a fella called Steve Biddof when I was bringing up my lads, only complaint was he could have released it a few years earlier.
Appropriately titled āRaising Boysā
It doesnāt get closer to the mark than that Iād suggest. Very good book, might be worth picking it up Mex.
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Hey mate I work in the field and you are in luck. There has never been a better time to study mental health online provided you have the Internet. One particular website I recommend to parents is:
https://raisingchildren.net.au
It covers tips and videos for parents with children of all ages including videos modelling how to approach different situations, referrals and references. Great place to start.
I commonly use the futurelearn website to upskill online. It wonāt give you a certificate or anything fancy but they provide a platform from universites (international and local) to provide short courses for free. A quick look and I found the following:
Local universities ranging from swinburne and monash offer courses or even individual subjects online (could be costly though).
Otherwise never be afraid to attend mens/fathers groups to hear what other parents are experiencing (often the same thing) or seek out a paychologist specialising in children and adolescents themselves to discuss your worries! You could start with https://mensline.org.au to ask for advice or visit your GP for recommendations.
Plenty of help out there and this is a great first step!
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Anyone have any experience with SSRIās? Was put on a prescription of Lexapro for mainly anxiety and mild depression last Friday and ever since taking them iām incredibly tired all the time, been hard to drag myself to the gym and I feel generally a bit out of it. Just wondering if these side-effects are permanent or if anyone has any sort of similar experiences?
Had a friend on that exact med, and they said it worked for them, and that was clear to see.
As I u/stand it these SSRIās take a few weeks to kick in and get used to, and there are of course possible side effects with any of them, and the tiredness thing in that initial period is a common one as far as I am (limitedly) aware, ā¦ but whats striking to me is I would have thought your Doctor took you through them all and what to be worried about?
Those side effects were typical of my experience. I think it took me about a month for the side effects to settle.
Good luck.
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Thank-you!
they pretty much all kick the ā ā ā ā out of you for 1-3 weeks.
Very rough and very disconcerting.
It should start improving pretty soon.
They actually make many people more depressed in the short term.
GPs and psychs can be pretty terrible at explaining this.
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Different for everyone mate.
Just have to tough it out.
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