Managing Lifelong Mental Health as a Senior

Posted by georgette12 @georgette12, Jan 13, 2017

I have just started using this site so this is my first message.

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Mental Health Support Group.

@janharris0306

First time for me too. I am looking into Anxiety and Corticobasal Syndrome. I have both.

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Hi Jan,
You can find several people talking about anxiety here in the Mental Health group. You may wish to join these discussions:
- dealing with anxiety http://mayocl.in/2prfYIO
- Need help! Depression and anxiety http://mayocl.in/2kCbo8q

And you may wish to connect with TonyC, who also has Corticobasal Syndrome, in this discussion:
- Corticobasal syndrome http://mayocl.in/2p7AuuX
- Cerebellum Brain Atrophy http://mayocl.in/2pVdBhf

We look forward to getting to know you, Jan.

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@jimhd

I'm glad you're @contentandwell , Jk.

The doctor threads leads up to the area that isn't firing right, and zaps it so it no longer functions - or malfunctions. I have SVT (supra ventricular tachycardia), which means somewhere in there will cause the heart to speed up suddenly, usually not lasting very long, at least for me. It's a very unpleasant feeling. I took Ativan one time, and BP went up to 180bpm.

I googled it to see what it was, after the cardiologist told me he needed to do one. I think it's pretty straightforward, and will cure the problem, plus, I get to drop one med.

Jim

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After I last wrote, on Friday morning I woke up in terrible abdominal pain. I've had a small intestine resection, 45" quit working; a mega toxic colon, 80% of my large colon removed; peptic ulcers removed and scar tissue resulted. I had surgery for the adhesions from the scars once, and had at least 2 bowel obstructions. So, when my stomach hurts that bad, I head to the ER. I was in the hospital for 2 days, with an NG tube, which I've endured a number of times, but by Friday evening, I couldn't breathe, had chest pain and tightness, and thought death was imminent. Pretty soon, I had a swarm of people working on me. When they pulled the NG tube, and I could focus on breathing and relaxing, I wondered if I was having a panic attack because of the tube. It's hard to explain how it felt when my service dog came on Saturday, and flew up onto my bed next to me. We were so glad to see each other.

Thankfully, the obstruction cleared up enough so I didn't have to have another surgery. I was afraid it was going to mess with the schedule for cataract surgery, MS assessment tests, and especially the spinal cord stimulator implant, not to mention my therapy session and a doctor appointment and a cardiac ablation. There's just too much going on right now.

I'm glad to be back home.

Jim

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@jimhd

I'm glad you're @contentandwell , Jk.

The doctor threads leads up to the area that isn't firing right, and zaps it so it no longer functions - or malfunctions. I have SVT (supra ventricular tachycardia), which means somewhere in there will cause the heart to speed up suddenly, usually not lasting very long, at least for me. It's a very unpleasant feeling. I took Ativan one time, and BP went up to 180bpm.

I googled it to see what it was, after the cardiologist told me he needed to do one. I think it's pretty straightforward, and will cure the problem, plus, I get to drop one med.

Jim

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@jimhd, were glad to have you back home Jim. I dont remember if you and i have talked before but it sure sounds like you have a lot on your plate right now. I hope everything goes smoothly here on out. Love back at ya, Judy

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@jimhd

I'm glad you're @contentandwell , Jk.

The doctor threads leads up to the area that isn't firing right, and zaps it so it no longer functions - or malfunctions. I have SVT (supra ventricular tachycardia), which means somewhere in there will cause the heart to speed up suddenly, usually not lasting very long, at least for me. It's a very unpleasant feeling. I took Ativan one time, and BP went up to 180bpm.

I googled it to see what it was, after the cardiologist told me he needed to do one. I think it's pretty straightforward, and will cure the problem, plus, I get to drop one med.

Jim

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@jimhd Jim: I am so happy to hear that you are back home and that you did not require surgery. I've had 2 surgeries of the upper digestive tract and I know how difficult it is to have an NG tube! It sounds like you came through it all quite well. Take it easy and rest well for the remaining tests and procedures, I'll be praying for you, my friend. Teresa

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Hello jimhd....haven't kept up too well so i am just now seeing what you have been going through. My gosh...you are an amazing inspiration to me...and i would think for all of us. Dealing with a chronic mental issue along with chronic and incapacitating physical pain is beyond comprehension for most people, i think. That is exactly why Mayo connect posts are so important to me. In the world i live in....i feel totally isolated. I can identify with some of my fellow posters here who are finding themselves "stuck" for maybe financial or personal reasons in towns that offer no resources....or churches...or groups of likeminded individuals.....it makes any kind of physical or mental recovery hard.

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Oh....while i have the time....update....today will be my third visit to the grief counselor since being a voluntary inpatient at a psychiatric crisis unit in colorado.
Since i have been back i have been taking depakote, 1000 mg. In the a.m. since that prevented sleep...even by taking in a.m. i have had to take melatonin at night. 5 mg. I am not always able to sleep though. If exhausted...then i can.

Mentally, i just constantly feel like crying all the time. Last time i saw the counselor we ended up going back in time to when my youngest son's father killed himself.

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@georgette12

Oh....while i have the time....update....today will be my third visit to the grief counselor since being a voluntary inpatient at a psychiatric crisis unit in colorado.
Since i have been back i have been taking depakote, 1000 mg. In the a.m. since that prevented sleep...even by taking in a.m. i have had to take melatonin at night. 5 mg. I am not always able to sleep though. If exhausted...then i can.

Mentally, i just constantly feel like crying all the time. Last time i saw the counselor we ended up going back in time to when my youngest son's father killed himself.

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@georgette12

I don't know if I can claim to be an inspiration. I've had a lot of missteps along the way, and have survived by the grace of God and the help of counselors and friends, not to mention my faithful service dogs. It's going to be a challenge to make it through the next few months.

Though I'm not aware of any suicides in my family, having attempted suicide myself several times has made me increasingly aware of the negative impact it has, especially on family members.

The strange and irrational problem is that when I'm in suicide mode, reason is very clouded, and rational thought flies out the window. I made a woman mad when, after she had literally gotten into a woman's face and said, "suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem", I looked at the speaker and told her that saying things like that are a waste of breath. The suicidal person knows that and has almost certainly heard it numerous times, and it's not only ineffective, it can be counter-effective. The suicidal person is not thinking with her rational mind, so it does no good to try to reason with her.

Having the pain from a bowel obstruction added to existing physical and emotional pain was really hard to take. For one thing, I was given dilautid for pain, which does a great job, but I learned that while it gives great pain relief, it causes headache. And, being on that meant stopping the 2 meds for neuropathy - Duloxetine and Morphine sulfate contin - and the pain in my feet got steadily worse, up to 9. I was so glad to get home and have my regular meds. My feet are down to 3-6again.

I live much closer to medical care than I did 10 years ago, where it was a 2.5 hour drive each way to doctors (and groceries, Walmart, drug stores, Costco, a hospital, and McDonalds). Now it's only either 30 minutes or an hour drive, though the small local hospital, my pcp and therapist are only 20 minutes from home. So, yes, living in a rural community has its benefits, but there are surely disadvantages.

My stomach pain is down to 2, which is certainly better than 9, but with my history, it's still a cause for concern. I'm trying to take it slow on the food, but my wife made a delicious Alfredo lasagna today. Probably richer than I should have eaten.

Tomorrow, I'm seeing my pcp and therapist. Wednesday to the ophthalmologist to prep for the next cataract surgery next Tuesday. Thursday, this week, is the cardio ablation, which takes 3+hours, with 6-8 hours recovery and a possible night in the hospital. Next Monday is speech therapy as part of trying what to do about my dysphagia. Tuesday, cataract, as I said, and Thursday, 2 brain MRIs and one spinal MRI as part of MS assessment. ASAP after that will be the neurostimulator implant. And I hope that will be the last of my medical procedures for a while, except for assessing for MS and looking for cause of dysphagia and esophageal dysmotility.

I compare my list of ailments to those that others are suffering from, and I feel like a complainer who has it pretty good. I pray that each of us in the group will continue to find answers and make discernable progress.

Jim

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@georgette12

Oh....while i have the time....update....today will be my third visit to the grief counselor since being a voluntary inpatient at a psychiatric crisis unit in colorado.
Since i have been back i have been taking depakote, 1000 mg. In the a.m. since that prevented sleep...even by taking in a.m. i have had to take melatonin at night. 5 mg. I am not always able to sleep though. If exhausted...then i can.

Mentally, i just constantly feel like crying all the time. Last time i saw the counselor we ended up going back in time to when my youngest son's father killed himself.

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@jimhd Hi Jim: Thanks for reminding us of what life can bring and the ways in which we can cope. You are a great teacher by reminding people of what to say (or not to say) to depressed people, you are so right! You have been an inspiration to many of us and I appreciate your participation in our Mayo community! Best wishes during the coming weeks as you have these medical procedures. Teresa

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@janharris0306

First time for me too. I am looking into Anxiety and Corticobasal Syndrome. I have both.

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I don't know how the site works. Please advise me?

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Jim...once again we find ourselves so angry at what people say re suicide....being a permanent solution to a temporary problem. Ignorance is their bliss, i guess. Sad and dangerousnfor those of us dealing with ideations or surviving a loss.

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