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Something’s not right

I've struggled my whole life

I've struggled my whole life

My whole life I have felt like an alien, I can't interact with people easily but am often forced to through work and just life in general. It feels like everybody has an instruction manual for life and I have to guess at what the correct action or choice is and often get it wrong. I am in my 30's and have struggled with depression and anxiety as long as I can remember and only feel myself when I self-isolate. I struggle holding jobs as I get completed burnt out after a few months and it always culminates in physical health problems due to stress. I think of suicide as a casual solution to any problem I face and have lost the desire to do things that I usually enjoy. I look for jobs because that is what is expected of an adult, but often self-sabotage myself by not responding to job interview invites as the anxiety of burning out again becomes overwhelming. My friends (online) have suggested that I look into a possible Autism/ADHD diagnosis but I first want to find a good psychologist/psychiatrist as one I had in the past was not helpful and seemingly only wanted to get as much money out of me as possible. I live in Melbourne *removed by moderator* and am looking for recommendations of a good mental health professional either around that area or on telehealth. I have never made a forum post about my mental health struggles before and am sorry this post is so long, but I feel lost and would really appreciate some advice. Thank you.

2 replies

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In response to: I've struggled my whole life

Re: I've struggled my whole life

Hey @GreenTeaMonkey welcome to the forums. Thanks for sharing some of your story with us, sounds like you've been struggling for a long time and I'm glad that you're reaching out for some connection and support :)

To be real with you, your story certainly resonates with themes common to people living with ADHD/Autism. Thought you might want to check out a couple of our threads on the topic -

Wait what did I come into this thread for again? Oh yeah, ADHD!

Autism, ADHD, AuDHD

In terms of your hunt for therapeutic support, you could take a gander at our RecoveryClub - Welcome to SANE’s Recovery Club

It's free to register, with both 1:1 support and groups available as well as a bunch of tools and resources to help support you in your recovery journey.

You can also look into Mindspot - https://www.mindspot.org.au/

Or for more options to search, you can use Ask Izzy - https://askizzy.org.au/

I hope you find what you're looking for here. It's a great community ;)

In response to: I've struggled my whole life

Re: I've struggled my whole life

@GreenTeaMonkey this seems like classic autism stuff, before you mentioned it. I wouldn't know how to navigate getting diagnosed though, just keep pushing til you find useful help, it may be easier to find someone who specialises in it these days.

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