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im experiencing depression and anxiety while my partner is in hospital for mental health

im experiencing depression and anxiety while my partner is in hospital for mental health

My partner admitted herself to hospital with my support as we understood she was not doing very well mentally. She was very sick, experiencing delusions that fixated on me and the relationship. She had been misdiagnosed with bipolar and her medication was not working. She is now being treated for OCD and is on new medication. She has been in hospital for just under one week and is staying for another week as an inpatient.

Over the last month before hospital, she became very emotionally turbulent and her behaviours were volatile. We live together in a share house, so I didn't have any space to escape to my own. Due to my partner's delusions and paranoia (which I now understand was the obsessive compulsions), she emotionally abused me.

I am struggling to accept this idea and I feel guilty for labelling myself as a victim of emotional abuse, and her an abuser as I know she was not herself during those times.

My Partner acknowledges the behaviour as emotional abuse and is working very hard on herself and is learning new tools to cope with emotion management etc.

I think now that everything has started to settle, she is in hospital and we are having some healthy space apart, my body is able to begin processing.

I have been feeling waves of depression and anxiety within the same afternoon, and I feel anxiously attached to my partner who I don't feel I can lean on at the moment as she has her own mental health to focus on. I feel guilt, worry, stress that I might have a form of ptsd from what happened. Is it possible that for my body to regulate I am experiencing a multitude of emotions? My brain feels very foggy and I can't think about what thoughts are provoking these feelings, although writing this post has very much helped.

14 replies

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In response to: im experiencing depression and anxiety while my partner is in hospital for mental health

Re: im experiencing depression and anxiety while my partner is in hospital for mental health

Hey @deepfried99 ,

Are you able to speak to her treating team before hand so that you have a plan of attack?

Also, does she have any other supports besides you who she can reach out to?

In response to: Re: im experiencing depression and anxiety while my partner is in hospital for mental health

Re: im experiencing depression and anxiety while my partner is in hospital for mental health

Well I asked if i could speak to her psychiatrist and and i was asking about her medication because i know there’s another dose increase to be coming in the next week and i have general concerns like ‘what if you’re feeling anxious and or depressed and this lasts over 12 hours or what if you get stuck in a delusion - do we go back to the hospital? who do we call? do we make an appointment?” “is there follow up to see how you’re tracking and to see positive outcome?” and she said if i have a specific question about the medication then she can answer me if she feels comfortable to, but anything behaviour based feels targeted at her and she said it’s hurtful.

She does have a lot of friends who are very supportive.

In response to: im experiencing depression and anxiety while my partner is in hospital for mental health

Re: im experiencing depression and anxiety while my partner is in hospital for mental health

Hi @deepfried99 I would encourage you to get emotional support through therapy, support groups or help lines. We deal with trauma better when we have the space and skills to process it. I know logically you know the abuse was due to your partners mental health but your body may not know this - have you considered living seperately? If you can recognise you are anxiously attached, what can you do to deal with that?

In response to: Re: im experiencing depression and anxiety while my partner is in hospital for mental health

Re: im experiencing depression and anxiety while my partner is in hospital for mental health

Hey @deepfried99 ,

I know you care about her a lot. Yet I can see the stress this is on you. I'm thinking whether some of the support can be from her friends or other supports so that you have your boundaries to protect yourself?

That is, allow her family or friends so share the load?

Hope I'm making sense. I know what I want to say, but it may be coming out wrong.

11 - 14 of 14