anybody living with a family member whom is clinically depressed?

[calicokat]

You are right to be concerned

I'm the clinically depressed person in our house (at least the one that been diagnosed, LOL) and I can relate to a lot of what you are saying. It's not going to get better without help. And I find myself wondering about an ER visit, or some type of emergency comittment so that he can get a good evaluation and maybe changes to his meds under medical supervision. We depressed folks aren't always good at articulating what we are going through, but you seem to be very tuned in and able to really peg him -- that is going to be most helpful to the Dr.s. I guess what scares me, is I can see this continuing, or even worsening and if he is despondant and overwhelmed then suicide begins to creep into the picture. I'm not saying this to scare you, but to reinforce that you are right to be concerned and to get some help.

more

cause you deserve them for being a loving spouse which we depressed folks sure don't make easy some days!

ps. sounds like the sleep meds may need changed too, the sleepwalking with no recollection is a big side-effect of them. And sleeplessness is a symptom of depression, so better to deal with the depression than treat/bandaid the symptoms, IMHO.

 

[Gen9]

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[kareninthesun]

Did some detective work: the pain meds he can take up to 3 xs daily (strong) count doesn't add up in the max for leftovers, same with the sleeping pills.in asking open ended questions, he says he only remembers taking some if he's in pain or can't sleep. He doesnt look at the clock. I've taken his meds and keep a record book out now. He will keep track of it himself and I've separated the daily max doses out so he can get a visual of tracking/metering. Since this is a very powerful drug, he needs to have the dr aware of what's going on now.

 

[sumi]

You say he's been acting like this for awhile. Can you remember if he changed prescriptions/got a new prescription at the time?
Your description of his behavior sounds a LOT like my mom and MIL's behavior. Not remembering things (both), distracted driving (mom), sleeping all day (mom), 16 different prescriptions, including heart meds (MIL), etc. They both started this behaviour, similar to your DH's, when they started taking a lot of different meds together. MIL takes anti-depressants, central nervous system depressants, heart meds, ulcer meds and others (and she drinks), my mom takes strong pain meds, which knocks her out completely, sleeping pills, anti-depressants etc. They both have "on" and "off" periods. Sometimes they are perfectly normal, other times they are either sleepy or not quite there or obviously depressed.
Talk to his doctor and tell him what you've observed and ask him about this. The problem may be his meds.

 

[dewey]

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So glad you discovered this...you did exactly the right thing.

 

[I have WHAT in my yard?]

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THIS!!!! I am glad you found out about the probable over dosing. That would be a hge piece of it, but it is time for another sit down w his docs. He is in relapse and needs to be put back on full treatment.

 

[punk-a-doodle]

So glad you found out about the meds! I would still suggest making sure depression is the only mental illness going on, unless you are sure that his symptoms (before the overuse of meds) matched purely to clinical depression. PTSD, other anxiety disorders, ADHD, borderline, and other personality disorders are some possibilities that tend to have comorbidity with depression (and the stomach ulcer, especially if it was a peptic ulcer, would make me consider some kind of anxiety disorder. I'm not sure what kind of heart issues are going on, but both chronic anxiety and ulcers can cause heart issues over time). It never helps to get a second opinion, or try a different route as Gen9 said.