Poll: How many people on here suffer from mental health issues?

[CrystalViolet]

It seems like a lot of people admit to having mental health issues on this forum. It might just be that those who suffer are most vocal online because they can't really air their feelings in person.

By "mental health issues" I mean anything like depression (even mild), social anxiety, schizophrenia, OCD, or anything whether it be minor or severe.

I'm lucky in that I have a healthy mental and emotional state most of the time and have never really suffered from anything serious but I have a lot of friends who have.

 

[tippy2k2]

To the best of my knowledge, my brain has a clean bill of health.

Physically I'm a freaking wreak but I do not have any type of mental issues.

 

[Aetera]

I have severe type II bipolar disorder and dysthymia. I'm really serious about my recovery, though. I take my meds, go to therapy, and spend a lot of my free time at a wellness and recovery center for mental illnesses and addiction that just this year I got on the board of directors of. Vice president, even!

So yeah. Mentally ill, here. Physically, too, at the moment. Damn this cold.

 

[BathorysGraveland2]

I do. I have a severe case of social anxiety that has more or less kept me cooped up in my house for the past 5 or so years, and made it extremely difficult to solialise. After seeing some psychologists, and with a bit of motivation (admittedly, in the form of alcohol) I am steadily improving. At least I can get out the house now without feeling like a nervous wreck. I've even been going out to social events once in a while with my friend.

I feel lucky that my issues are at least fixable through time and effort. I give my condolences to those who are stuck with it for their whole lives. I can only imagine how terrible that would be.

 

[Sleepy Sol]

Nope. At least, not that I know of. If there is anything it's not severe enough to negatively affect me in my daily life.

In that respect, at least, I consider myself rather lucky.

 

[Guffe]

Not that I know of.
I am healthy in every way possible. Well my back's a bit stiff, most likely slept in some odd position, but that'll most likely go away during the day.
It might sound a bit cliché, but I am very happy about being healthy, I wish no health trouble to anyone, and for anyone reading this I am hoping for recovery for you.

 

[franticfarken]

I've never had any mental health issues (although I am still a young age of 19). However i'm in a weird selection where I haven't felt anxiety, depression or disappointment in not meeting others expectations. From 5-8 I got constant, well technically it would be classified as parental abuse (even though I still love her) from my mother. Constantly stating how I was awful at so and so activity, or unintelligent etc. It really sounds worse than what it is, but that experience has desensitized basically all mental thoughts of negativity. In that sense, you could consider it a mental issue.

My condolences to those with mental issues, i'll never truly know how you feel.
But I hope its a livable condition.

 

[lacktheknack]

Tourette's Syndrome over here. It mostly manifests as weird neck tossing at the moment, though. Most people don't guess that I have it.

 

[Kae]

I have an irrational fear of psychiatrists, psychologists, therapists and mental institutions so as a result I am forever doomed to not know, I think I'm healthy though, probably, I mean everyone tells me that I probably have "something" but I think they just say that because I'm very quiet.

 

[maxben]

I have issues with anxiety, but I don't know how clinical it is because I am severely mistrustful of doctors of any kind (and I promise that it's for a legit reason and not just paranoia!). One time in university I stopped leaving my apartment and didn't talk to people for a while, which led to depression (the two are co-morbid after all), and I went to see a psychologist-psychiatrist (he was trained as both) just long enough to get some pills and then stopped while going in for refills every once in a while. Eventually I weaned off those. So, again, I assume there is something there but hell if I open up or listen to those frauds.

 

[Silence]

You should add the option: Has had some issues in the past. Or something like that.

I think I am susceptible to Burnout.

 

[Dirkie]

Not too much trouble if you disregard anything like autism and atychiphobia (fear of failure).
Somehow I manage to get trough the day and have a job, but that's because nobody ever told me I couldn't.
Sometimes things are a bit difficult when it comes to social interaction, but over the years people seem to recognise the problems and they tend to deal with it just as much as I do. In the end it seems to work out fine.

 

[Simskiller]

Define "suffer" because uh, I have ADHD (which technically falls under "mental illness") and it's caused me problems in the past (school/learning new things and sticking with them). But right now (and for the past few years), even though I still have it and notice it at times (whoops 5 hours have gone by and all I've done is browse imgur instead of doing something productive like I should have/planned to), it hasn't really caused me any problems.

I've come to embrace it at times, and it's kind of a mixed good/bad thing that it's the kind where if something grabs my attention from something else I really focus on that thing intently for a long time, that is until something else grabs my eye and I focus on that (though never/rarely ever going back to a previous thing of interest).

It also makes conversations really interesting because I drive the topics all over the place and talk about a lot of neat things and keep it interesting. (though I do have to make notes to go back to a previous topic sometimes if I still want to say/ask something about it.)

So, I would say I have a mental disability but I wouldn't say I'm disabled/suffering from it.

 

[TakerFoxx]

Well, I've got Asperger's Syndrome (professionally diagnosed) and OCD, which makes me something of an odd duck at times socially. But beyond that, it's pretty high functioning, so it doesn't give me too much trouble.

 

[Happiness Assassin]

Bipolar II and excoriation disorder. I thought I was pretty good and under control, but I just started hyperventilating a few hours ago, so... yeah. The excoriation disorder is, well... not fun. Then again, when is essentially being addicted to skin-picking ever a good thing?

 

[Creator002]

I've struggled with anxiety recently and am on medication and see a psychologist. Must admit I'm doing a lot better now, but I have a massive lack of motivation to do much and am indifferent to living or dying, but I'm not depressed. I think I just need to find something to do. A job is number 1 on that list.

 

[PatrickXD]

I was recently diagnosed with a mild form of SAD. I had thought I was depressed for a few years, but it always seemed to go away just as it was getting too much, generally throughout the Winter. I get mild depression symptoms from June through August, then I'm fine until December through to February. When I was asked to define the periods in which I was most depressed/anxious, it became pretty obvious that SAD was the problem. My GP said I should start excercising, and get out in the sunlight as often as possible. That pretty much does all I need to feel 'normal'.

 

[Colour Scientist]

Nope, clean bill of mental health, I'm extremely lucky.

I had a brief bout of anxiety and intense panic attacks but that was following a bereavement a few years ago. It was awful, it was so debilitating, there were times where I couldn't leave the house. I just thought it was an overreaction to the death and that it would blow over but my closest friend bullied me into going to see someone. After an extremely short period of counselling and mild anti-depressants to calm my anxiety I was back to being my usual self.

Moral of the story, seek help if you experience something like that, even if you think it might be silly.

 

[CrystalViolet]

Wow, 2/3 of respondents claim to currently suffer with mental health issues. I wonder is it just that this forum attracts people with these issues or is it that a lot of gamers have issues.

 

[Sigmund Av Volsung]

I thought I did, but I don't!

I still might, but I've learned not to care, as I used to get too fixated on my own, self-imposed faults!

One way or the other, if I am happy and enthusiastic, does it matter?