UnderOverThrough
New Here
Hey, everyone! I'm new to the group, hence this introductory post. 
I'm a 47 year-old male from Arizona and I've suffered from mental illness most of my life. It kind of all came to a head (this time 'round) early last year (my depression and anxiety got out of control), so I made the decision to use my FMLA benefit at work and take a step back from virtually everything for a bit to focus on myself. I started seeing a psychiatrist who was licensed to administer ketamine therapy, but that unfortunately never came to fruition due to insurance red tape.
I had tried therapy in the past and had taken pretty much every anti-depressant known to man to no avail, which is why I decided to try the ketamine therapy. After that went sideways, I pretty much just conceded that I was plagued with treatment-resistant depression/anxiety and nothing was going to help me.
However, around December of last year, someone was talking to me about cPTSD and their own journey with working through that. It started to make sense to me and since I didn't feel like I had a lot of viable options available to me, I sought out a local therapist who had experience with cPTSD and trauma work ("parts" therapy).
Needless to say, I've learned quite a lot since then, both from my therapy sessions and the mounting list of books I've read, but I'm still struggling. I still get very overwhelmed with triggers and the feelings of dysregulation that comes along with that on a regular basis. I'm taking it one situation at a time, of course, and using the skills I've learned to break the patterns, but sometimes the dysregulation is so strong that I can't even press the pause button to try and collect myself.
Sadly, I really don't have a support system. I'm embarrassed to admit how many years it's been (hint: it's been decades) since I've had a friend, and it just gets more and more difficult with each passing year. It's not easy making friends when you're a 47 year-old male who also suffers from depression/anxiety/trauma.
Anyhow, I'm hoping I can find some kind of support system here. I could really use some friends. Anyhow, that's my abbreviated story. I guess I'll see you around the board.

I'm a 47 year-old male from Arizona and I've suffered from mental illness most of my life. It kind of all came to a head (this time 'round) early last year (my depression and anxiety got out of control), so I made the decision to use my FMLA benefit at work and take a step back from virtually everything for a bit to focus on myself. I started seeing a psychiatrist who was licensed to administer ketamine therapy, but that unfortunately never came to fruition due to insurance red tape.
I had tried therapy in the past and had taken pretty much every anti-depressant known to man to no avail, which is why I decided to try the ketamine therapy. After that went sideways, I pretty much just conceded that I was plagued with treatment-resistant depression/anxiety and nothing was going to help me.
However, around December of last year, someone was talking to me about cPTSD and their own journey with working through that. It started to make sense to me and since I didn't feel like I had a lot of viable options available to me, I sought out a local therapist who had experience with cPTSD and trauma work ("parts" therapy).
Needless to say, I've learned quite a lot since then, both from my therapy sessions and the mounting list of books I've read, but I'm still struggling. I still get very overwhelmed with triggers and the feelings of dysregulation that comes along with that on a regular basis. I'm taking it one situation at a time, of course, and using the skills I've learned to break the patterns, but sometimes the dysregulation is so strong that I can't even press the pause button to try and collect myself.
Sadly, I really don't have a support system. I'm embarrassed to admit how many years it's been (hint: it's been decades) since I've had a friend, and it just gets more and more difficult with each passing year. It's not easy making friends when you're a 47 year-old male who also suffers from depression/anxiety/trauma.
Anyhow, I'm hoping I can find some kind of support system here. I could really use some friends. Anyhow, that's my abbreviated story. I guess I'll see you around the board.