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**Neli** · December 4, 2016, 09:25 AM

Hi Teri, Welcome to the forum. I just recently joined myself. I have bipolar disorder and anxiety and am currently on LTD. I too have four dogs (two golden doodles a Morkie and a yorkie bichon cross). The reason I have four dogs is part of my illness I think. There are certain times when the only thing I can think of to feel better is to get a new puppy. I spend hours looking at them online, try to talk myself out of it, and eventually give in. Now I have four and legally I'm only supposed to have a maximum of three where I live. So I live in fear that someone will "tell on me"

Anyway, as with you, they bring me a lot of comfort as well as entertainment. They're very expensive though because they all need regular grooming. Lucky you that you can do your own grooming. (I've tried and made a mess of them.) As far as guidance and support... this may seem obvious but have you talked to your doctor about a referral to a psychiatrist who can properly diagnose you? A combination of medication and therapy is what helps me. I don't know what I'd do if I was dealing with my condition all on my own. It great that you reached out, Teri. I'm sure you will get some support as well as suggestions here. Take care. Be gentle with yourself.

Neli

AJ · December 4, 2016, 10:30 AM

Hi Teri. Welcome to the forum. Thank you for sharing a little of yourself with us. You'll find us to be a friendly supportive bunch. I look forward to hearing more from you.

You are a busy lady!

As Neli asked, perhaps a proper diagnosis is in order. It would be helpful in determining the best course of treatment or combination of.

If you haven't recently, a full workup by your family doctor to rule out other causes would be a good idea. Things like low iron or low thyroid can contribute greatly to depression.

Do you have a support system? Friends or family?

**teri** · December 4, 2016, 12:45 PM

Thanks guys just hearing from you guys makes me feel a bit better. I was in a car accident about 2 years ago that almost took my life. I have not been the same since. I was on a few drugs to help with depression and did go see a therapist but found nothing worked. I just started taking iron supplements because i have been so tiered lately. Its strange i feel embarrassed to talk to my husband about how i feel I have tried in the past and he really doesn't understand . I also feel embarrassed to talk to my doctor about it too i don't know why i just do.I also have meniere's disease. Meniere's disease is a disorder of the inner ear that causes episodes in which you feel as if you're spinning (vertigo), and you have fluctuating hearing loss with a progressive, ultimately permanent loss of hearing, ringing in the ear (tinnitus), and sometimes a feeling of fullness or pressure in your ear. My ears are blocked like I'm in a air plane all the time.I try to stay positive but it gets tough sometimes. I get so stuck on stupid little things maybe comment someone said to me or if i make a mistake at work and have such a hard time letting things go.
Thanks again for the posts they mean a lot t me have a good day

AJ · December 4, 2016, 07:12 PM

Hi Teri. I would get some blood work done. It is easy to determine if you're low in iron. You can take too much iron. Your doc can also test other things as well and eliminate them as contributing factors in your fatigue.

**paul m** · December 4, 2016, 07:33 PM

Hello Teri and welcome. I'm no doctor or medical person so anything I say may not be in agreement with proper medical authorities. It's been my experience that anxiety and depression can drive one another. That is, anxiety can make your depression worse and/or depression can make your anxiety worse. Sometimes getting one under control gets the other one under control.

Also your doctor should run a very complete physical on you, Many docs don't routinely run tests for low b12 levels for example. A low b-12 level can cause tiredness and/or depression. Also sometimes several thyroid tests are necessary to get a proper thyroid level and thyroid problems can lead to anxiety/depression problems and the list goes on.

I don't know much about meniere's disease, except that it can be as you said, a nasty illness. I know that some people can be treated for it as many professional athletes have had meniere's and it's a real career ender for them if they can't get better, but some have had successful treatment(I don't know why some and why not all). I did read on the Mayo Clinic website that a reduction of stress can help with the disease. Of course having any major disease tends to increase our stress. That site also talks about a Meniett device that A) is exceedingly expensive B) has rec'd only mixed reviews for success . You may know all of this but I have provided a link to their website just in case. http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-c...n/con-20028251

You mention that you had tried a few anti-depressants, unfortunately it's been my experience that docs do not suggest trying a range of anti depressants(A/D's) as for many people even trying 5-6 don't work. (some work better on seretonin problems, others dopamine etc etc) Also if the depression is caused by stress and/or anxiety a person may be better off taking anti anxiety meds and/or using anti anxiety methods like cognitive behavioural therapy.

Once again this is not intended to medical advice or criticism of your doctor or anyone else. Just some things that I have picked up along the way and as we are all different they may or may not help. Please feel free to ask questions, answer other people's question's and/or use the forum to vent out some of the life's frustrations that are caused by having an illness. Take Care. paul m

P.S. I have fairly severe tinnitus and some hearing loss caused by a lack of hearing protection as a youth. I have found the tinnitus to be much worse when I'm under stress. It's always there, but when I'm stressed it definitely gets worse.

**teri** · December 5, 2016, 05:49 PM

thanks so much Paul i will use the forum for sure. The pressure in my ears do get worse when im stressed too thanks for the support

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