Mental Health in Caithness

[exiledtoedinburgh]

Where do you go in Caithness to seek any sort of help or counselling for mental health issues?

Having been depressed for the greater part of my time at school, it wasn't until I moved to Edinburgh 3 years ago that things really came to breaking point. I returned home that summer and having been prescribed anti-depressants by my doctor (who I do have a great deal of respect for regardless) was told I'd be better off waiting until I returned to Edinburgh to find out about private counselling and help on the NHS as all he could offer me was an appointment with the psychiatric nurse.

I know for a fact I'm not the only person who has felt desperately alone in Caithness, in a place where everyone knows each other's business and there is such stgma attached to admitting there is a problem.

I raise this issue because if somebody responds with information, it might help to relieve people from some of the horrendous pain that illnesses like depression bring.

[Northern-Monkey]

Theres a number of support groups in the area however which one you would feel comfortable dealing with would be up to you I guess.

I'm not sure if posting links is ok here so I'll just say that, if you search for 'mental health caithness' you should get a number of contacts to help you through your troubled times.

[DM]

I've found that any support for mental health is quite lacking in caithness, after 7 years of suffering different levels of depression I tried to seek help but had to wait 6 MONTHS before I could even see a psychiatric nurse, which when it came around was totally pointless because in my desparation I sought a private counsellor and by the time the appointment for NHS "help" came round I felt good, even though it was probably just the anti-depressants in high dosage!!!! That's not really the point though, when you're depressed you don't try to seek help, infact you try your hardest to think that it's all going to be fine until one day it feels like.......well you know if you've been there!

It's hard to live alone in a town you've loved all your life............ignorance is NOT bliss!!!!

Anyway the majority of people in Caithness will not talk about it!

[JAWS]

DM, it's a subject that is avoided almost everywhere, not just Caithness. Unfortunately it's "one of Those Subjects", not to be mentioned in polite company!

Most people shy away from it because they do not understand it and therefore do not know how to deal with people with that particular illness.

As you say, if you've been there you do understand. Unfortunately, if you've not been there it's very difficult to understand.
To most people being depressed is a temporary state usually brought on by a particular set of circumstances and passes off in a fairly short period of time.
Clinical depression is a completely different beast. It is a medical condition just like a broken leg is and needs medical attention.

Because it is not very visible and there is no 'quick fix' it tends to be pushed way down the list of priorities.

Just remember DM you are no alone with the condition there are more sufferers than you think and there are people who do understand, in some cases only too well.

[Anonymous]

I know only too well what its like to suffer from depression. Ive been on anti-dpressants for a long time now and a bit like DM I was referred to a CPN. I waited and waited and waited. Almost a year went by and nothing happened. In that waiting time I decided to help myself. I started doing things that made me feel better.......like going for walks away from people and places, to a forest, a beach anywhere where Mother Nature abounds. Listening to music I liked, gardening, decorating,reading, writing........ writing I find very theraputic, getting it all out on paper helps. Joining discussions on the Internet {can have its drawbacks}. I started to feel better doing these things for myself, and when the time came when I got an appointment to see the CPN I didnt need it. Ive continued to do all of these things and have continued to get better. Theres nothing worse than being surrounded by people and feeling very alone, and yet out walking that lonliness isnt there. You are not alone in the way you feel........and yes there is a Stigma with regards to depression. My own personal feelings on that is .......We are all individuals, all with different gifts and talents........our Uniqueness for want of a better word. But when that Uniqueness is being oppressed in us we become depressed. From a very early age we are conditioned to conform and to behave in a certain manner which is Alien to our being, to fit into that box, and that box doesnt fit us. I struggle to get out of that box and sometimes succeed, its usually short lived though. Invariably youll come up against someone who appears to have the ability/power to put you right back in there because they dont see things the way you do. My struggle to get out of that box and to be heard will continue regardless of what others think of me. In the meantime I would say one thing to you......Do not let anyone put you down or get you down, were all important and unique and all have a niche in this world. Sadly to say there are those who just fail to see this and would like us all to be the same. And yes depression is a very painful condition, You are not alone.

[Tristan]

You can pop into the Mental Health centre at Caithness General Hospital and speak to the staff there. The staff are really nice and friendly, if overworked, and should be able to point you in the right direction. The office is in the back of the hospital, in the old Medical Centre.

Best of luck with your problems

[JAWS]

And if anybody tries telling any of you to "Pull Yourself Together" or "Snap out of it" or "Don't be Silly, Everybody gets Depressed Sometimes!" you can inform them from me that the food in Caithness General is very nice, even when it is taken through a straw.

If those are the only things they have to say to you then one day I really do hope they learn first hand what you are going through!
And yes, I really am evil enough to wish it on them.

[dpw39]

Sorry for not picking this thread up before, but due to stress, mood swings, medication, anxiety, obbsessive mood swings and severe weight loss, as well as the day to day running of a disorganised life, due to the changes in society and the world as a whole, as well as sever I.T. problems.

Mental Health here in Caithness, like most rural areas, have to fight for funding. One in four will experience some form of Depression (official figures). Rural communities, can be close-knit, but can have a disadvantage to mental awareness.

We stigmatise ourselves initially, due to isolation, fear and self-blame;
Friends and family, due to their misunderstanding or fear of the unknown;
Some professional staff, due to their insensitivity; Bureaucratic Stigmatisation;
Other sufferers of mental illness;
The general public, due to lack of knowledge and what they read in the press;
Media & Press organisations due to their standards of reporting of Mental Illness etc.

Mental Ill Health information, can be sought on this website (Caithness.org) under community index. Copies of the Caithness Community Directory (CAB offices, council service points, libraries and tourist boards etc) Courtesy of the Caithness Voluntary Group in Wick - 01955 603453). Contact to support services can be gained by contacting the Community Mental Health Team Bankhead road in Wick or via there satelite office at the A & E at Dunbar Hospital), or you can view the following website that has been set-up by a sufferer; http://uk.msnusers.com/CaithnessDepression

More and more people are seeking out the quieter areas to get away from city life and the crime value/drug culture/violence... Some of us at that moment in time of severe depressive states, run as far away as possible from the problem/heart-ache etc.

It was a "toss-up" between Canada and Scotland, Scotland won, and my home is Thurso.

Take care, be safe, and be lucky in life.

Ciao,
Dave the Rave

[gooner]

It can be hard even getting the doctors to take you seriously, five years + i have thought i was losing my mind, thankfully i am getting somewhere with it now. There's a lot of it about, thanks for the link - other support groups I have tried have had god involved, which is not what i want