"Is it normal to have constant thoughts of suicide?" ep.109

Ask Kati Anything, your mental health podcast - Episode 109 Your Questions: Is it normal to have constant thoughts of suicide? Whenever anything goes mildly wrong, or even when nothing is wrong but I feel overwhelmed, self-harm and suicide are always where my mind goes to, even though I've never attempted it. How can I cope with this? Also, does it indicate that... Can you talk a little bit about the effect of depression on the ability to concentrate? How does the lack of concentration in depression feel, and is it different from the lack of concentration in (for example) ADHD? (COMMENT: As a follow up question, could you talk about mental fog and how it might be... Do you have any input on dealing with a single parent that has depression as a teenager that still lives at home? I feel like no one talks about this and it is really hard to live day by day because I am just worried all of the time, not about their physical safety but just the thought of them never being happy again... How can I finally defeat depression once and for all? I´ve been struggling with depression for almost as long as I can remember. I´ve had my lowest lows and I can say I'm lucky enough right now not to be completely surrounded by that dark fog that feels like it's taking every part of myself... I know suicidal thoughts and depression are different, and that you can have depression without suicidal thoughts, but is it possible to have suicidal thoughts but not depression? I have almost constant thoughts of suicide, and am very anxious but I don’t think I’m depressed and I don’t understand... Could you talk about chronic depression and SI? I have struggled with depression and suicidal thoughts for as long as I can remember and even when things are a little better, those thoughts are still there. Will they ever go away or is this something I just have to learn to manage? I have been in therapy... How do you validate yourself when you have high functioning depression? Being able to do things makes me feel as though I'm crazy, I feel bad internally but externally I am still able to do things and do them well even. I'm in counseling and I find it difficult to portray my depressive symptoms... I am glad to see you are trying new things for the podcast. This time seems like it would work better for me. I know you strongly discourage it but is it possible to work through mild suicidal thoughts on your own? If you do not feel comfortable telling anyone or your therapist about it? I went to a mental health training and we learned what to do if someone is suicidal. We ask 3 questions. 1. Do you have a specific way of doing it? 2. Do you have a specific date? 3. Do you have the means prepared to do it? This hit me hard because I can answer yes to... ------ Kati's Books Traumatized https://geni.us/Bfak0j Are u ok? http://bit.ly/2s0mULy Online Therapy While I do not currently offer online therapy, my sponsor Betterhelp will connect you with a licensed, online counselor. VISIT https://betterhelp.com/kati Patreon https://www.patreon.com/katimorton Amazon Suggestions https://www.amazon.com/shop/katimorton Business Contact Linnea Toney linnea@underscoretalent.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices