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Looking after ourselves

Littletink_
Senior Contributor

Feeling depressed and depleted

Does anyone ever think about leaving their relationship (when they are the Carer) and feel guilty? Is this normal? I feel like I'm always in two minds about it and I end up feeling depressed. There are times where I never think about leaving but then there are others where I'm just feeling really depressed and it's all I think about. Then I get confused because I don't know what I want. Help 😞

21 REPLIES 21

Re: Feeling depressed and depleted

@Littletink_  Hi Littletink 🙂  do you get enough time out as a carer? it is very important that you have time to yourself. To spoil yourself. You need time to be amongst other people .... friends etc. You must look after yourself as a carer. I think what you are saying is very normal. We are all only human after all. Take care. Love peaxxx

Re: Feeling depressed and depleted

Hi @greenpea 

Thank you for your reply. No I don't. We have been in each other's pockets ever since we got together. I am currently unwell at the moment myself, dealing with an undiagnosed illness, it has made me very depressed on top of already feeling depressed and I have been unable to go out and do much because of it 😞 My partner has Autism and MI along with a lot of past trauma. Most of the time I am thinking and making the decisions for two people and sometimes I just get very tired. Sometimes I just don't want to be 'in charge' of everything in our life. I do mostly everything and it gets hard carrying the load by yourself. She needs a lot of prompting and has trouble with decision making. Does anyone else care for someone with Autism on here? Any tips or advice would be greatly appreciated. @Former-Member

 @Shaz51 

 not sure if you remember me, hello 🙂

Re: Feeling depressed and depleted

Hi @Littletink_ 

Yes I do remember you 😀.

 

When we are unwell things seem to be so much more of a burden and I find too that I have to ask Mr Darcy to do things that I would automatically do for him when he is unwell.   @Sophie1 has recently been in this situation where she has had her own health issues as well as caring for her partner Ms S. 

 

As @greenpea says, getting out and doing our own thing (or doing things together that are the things you enjoy vs doing things that your partner enjoys) that takes us out of the caring role and into the things that are done in as part of a relationship is often helpful.  I also find the reverse applies, getting Mr D out the house to do things that he enjoys either with or without me (at times preferably the latter). 

 

I did find at times (but not so much of late) that I needed to remind Mr D that as his beloved I expect to be treated in a way that is fitting of that and that there are things that differentiate an intimate relationship from a friendship. He is big on routine which includes doing some of the small things that are appreciated such as getting up before me, getting brekky ready including making the coffee, and I ensure he knows I appreciate it. He does not have an autism diagnosis but I did question it at one stage as some of his family members do. 

 

Sadly a lot of MI is based around trauma, we had been married for over 30 years when I found out about the awful things that happened in his family when Mr Darcy was young.

 

In answer to your original question, I have not considered leaving Mr Darcy although at one stage when he was likely psychotic I did wonder if his illness would allow him to maintain our relationship.  At times I have felt worn out and when he was in crisis and suicidal it was a very difficult period. I learned a great deal towards the end of this time, including the need for proper self care and how to respond to his condition, including accepting help when needed (and sometimes even when not needed).  

 

 

 

Re: Feeling depressed and depleted

@Littletink_   Hi Littletink.. my son has autism and my daughter has aspergers. It is very tough going I know first hand.  I cant imagine being married or in a relationship with someone on the spectrum although I have always thought my ex could has a touch of autism here and there :). 

Re: Feeling depressed and depleted

ohhhh Yes I do remember you my @Littletink_ Smiley Very HappyHeart

sending you lots of hugs xoxo

Re: Feeling depressed and depleted

Hi @Littletink_ 

 

my partner of 20yrs ish  (MsS) has Bipolar II, medication resistant depression and anxiety and complex trauma history ... she is on many meds, has constant medical complaints mostly migraines/headaches/neck aches and struggles to get out of bed most days ... altho she has a psychiatrist and now attends a day program for acceptance commitment therapy ... like you I am more or less the one in charge, working so we can survive and pay for medication and medical bills, making big decisions and also daily motivation for most everything most days ...!! ...!

 

so I totally get the 'over it' and 'burden' feelings you spoke about in your posts .. esp as I'm on constant pain myself at the moment post hip surgery and life isn't a breeze for me either ... happy to keep bouncing ideas and thoughts with you about this and other common stuff we may find in our experiences (such as living with someone who has had trauma in their past)

 

the overwhelmed feelings come in waves for me - self care is paramount - today I forced myself to go to the pool after work for a 20min swim - I felt much calmer and in control- I think swimming forces me to shut down from my devices, other people, listening (as I wear earplugs) and looking/reading ... a bit of sensory deprivation and endorphins combined seems to do wonders for me - I've only just noticed how powerful a swim can be to change my mood for the better ,.. is there something you do that you notice makes you feel better afterwards mood wise ? 

Re: Feeling depressed and depleted

Hi everyone, thank you so much for the replies. It is nice to talk to people again. I will get around to my replies but just wanted to ask @greenpea  while I think of it may I ask the ages of your children? My partner is 23 and I do really tend to struggle with having to do everything for her and for us eg housework, paying bills, organising mostly everything in our life. It has been hard and I still sometimes struggle with the fact that I have to give her simple instructions on how to do things even basic things like cleaning a shower. I know that must sound terrible but I don't know how to help her to become more independent & to have a bit more initiative without actually giving instructions on how to do so. I must sound awfully selfish but sometimes I get tired and my fuse shortens a little. I often forget that I am communicating with someone who communicates entirely different to me and things get all muddled up. Do you have any experience or thoughts on these kinds of things?

Re: Feeling depressed and depleted

Hi @Sophie1 


Goodness, our partners sound rather similar. My partner has BP2 as well.

Yes, I am in charge too but have days where I just don't want to be in charge anymore I get so frustrated and tired. But I'm starting to learn that I can't force her to make positive changes for herself she has to want to make them. My self care is pretty non existent at the moment. I haven't been able to do a lot because I've been having trouble with my mobility but they don't know what is wrong yet. So it's been stressful to say the least. It has made my depression worse and caring for my partner much more difficult. I'm sorry to hear about your hip, I hope that it won't be too long of a recovery process for you. That would be super hard too! I have been thinking about starting swimming or some gentle yoga it's just a matter of pushing myself to go. My loss of mobility, pain and weakness has made me really depressed and want to do nothing at all 😞 I'm only 28 and I don't know what's happening to my body it's been scary 

Re: Feeling depressed and depleted

Hi @Littletink_  son2 is 26 and daughter is 24 and yes I ahve to do many things for both of them. For example daughter hates using the phone so I make all her calls for her and take all her calls. It is a little thing but I have schizoaffective disorder and get very stressed talking on the phone too . These little things accumulate throughout the day so I take lots of cat naps to de-stress.

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