jamesdean

[jamesdean]

hello every 1 im really not sure how well ive done? I think im signed up cause i got this far. However the edit looked 2 completcated. I hope this gets 2 the local birmingham group. Ive recently got a laptop of mine having had 2 put up with my other half shouting abuse because he was more advanced with his computer n i just wanted 2 learn. I stumbled on this site n im hoping ive done a good thing by joining, what i was looking 4 was a user voice in central birmingham n c a lot of posting from nick. I c somewhere about meetings @ bvsc. Does any1 know if these r happening still n whens the next 1. Hows this 4 a start oh yeah i live with depression n have done 4 about 40 years

 

[jamesdean]

:Hello guys i just posted a thread but it looks like its on "introduce yourself." (got that bit wrohg) I was trying 2 introduce myself 2 the local forum. Im not 100% sure how i got this far but here i am. Why i joined was 2 find out if there is a user voice group 4 central birmingham n where does it operate from generally has nuch info as possiable please about the group. Im 46 years old n i have lived with depession 4 most of that time actually since i was 8 i think i 1st realised it n ive just started on anti depressants about 8 years ago n though i fought them since my breakdown in 1990 i wouldnt b without them now n yet i was kinda bullyed in2 ising them @ 1st. Oh yeah i found a freephone number in searching is this still in operation. Im on the psmp @ the moment which is great n i believe that "new beginnings is being discussed with user groups by the pct.

 

[nickh]

Welcome to the Birmingham Forum jamesdean .

To try and answer some questions (although I hope you can find a lot of information in various threads here too). First User Voice - yes there is a User Voice group for central Birmingham (they call it Heart of Birmingham or HUB). But you can go to any User Voice meeting - North, East, South, HUB no matter which part of the city you are from. The only thing is that the meetings are fairly infrequent. But I always try to post about them here when I know about them so watch out.

The meetings at the BVSC are those of the Positive Mental Health Group (PMHG) which meets on the last Thursday of every month at 2.30. So the next meeting will be this Thursday the 29th May. If you would like to go and feel it would be helpful to meet me first just outside BVSC that would be fine - just let me know (and anyone else who feels the same too). The PMHG does have a freephone number but I am not sure if this is the one you mean? Let me know the number you have and I will tell you.

I'm afraid I don't know what the psmp is, nor anything about ''new beginnings'' - but that's not surprising ; there is an enormous amount of stuff going on and I am quite new to it all. So I'd be delighted if you told us.

Finally can I recommend the Depression Support Group. This meets on different Wednesdays of the month in town, Erdington and Stirchley. The town meetings are on Floor 5 (Room 5b) of the Central Library on the first Wednesday of every month at 11.00, so the next would be on 4th June. I don't go to these but I do try and get to the Erdington ones. They are a wonderful and supportive group.

Hope all this helps and answers some queries, but please let me know if you need more info and let us know about the groups you are involved with.

Once again a warm welcome to the Birmingham Forum.

Nick.

Nick.

 

[jamesdean]

hi nick i dont know what im doing i kinda keep finding stuff n ive just found this message from u n found reply so here goes. I cannot make positive mental health group this time round. The phone number i found is 0800 694 0212 is this 4 the central voice thats the 1 i need 2 find out more about. The psmp is patient self management programme i seem 2 of stumbled on that but its great. Its a 6 week course 4 people with long term health conditions n the people ive meet r really nice, this lead me on 2 find out that there is a course called "new beginigs" 4 mental health sorry i should of said its run by the south birmingham pct n my tutor had a meeting with the mental health guys(not sure who) but they were gonna ask the user groups what they thought about such a course. Which is what then prompted me 2 find out about a user voice central ive known that there was 1 in the south birmingham but never heard of anything central. I live in the city centre n having not quite been in the world 4 a fewyears i did now think its time 2 c whats happening in the world of mental health. n this is how far ive got since saturday. It kinda seems that u r very much involved in keeping up the info on stuff. I would like 2 find out more about the user group (central) n perhaps go n c about the support group 4 [email protected] the library. So if u could let me know more please thanks

 

[nickh]

You are doing great jd - your reply has appeared just as it should . And now I will try and answer.

Phone numbers: 0800 694 0212 is the central number for User Voice. I am sure if you ring them up they would let you know when any meetings are coming up. Because I am on various mailings lists I get notification and try to post them here anyway.
0800 694 0202 is the central number for the Positive Mental Health Group. It would be well worth your (and anyones!) while to phone them and ask to be put on the mailing list - you will then get a copy of the Opportunities Bulleting which contains masses of events/meetings etc..

Thank you very much for explaining what PSMP is. I will add that to the abbreviations thread. Please let us know of anything like this and the 'new beginnings' course.

Like you I have been a depressive for a long time and it was only last year that I first managed to get to a real life meeting (the Erdington Depression Support Group). I have just gone on from there . So I am still very much finding my way. You have made much quicker progress since Saturday! One of my hopes for this Forum is that it will make it much easier for people to find out what is going in and get involved.

As I say the Depression Support Group is excellent. It is a very friendly and supportive group made up entirely of people with depression who meet to chat and try to offer each other support. The next meeting of the central Group is on Wednesday 4th June at 11.00 in room 5b on Floor 5 of the Central Library. I don't go to this myself but I am sure you would be very welcome.

I hope that I have answered your questions (I've tried ) but as I say I am no expert. Please keep in touch and let us know about anything you find out about and how you are getting on.

Nick.

 

[jamesdean]

good afternoon nick

Hi nick thanks 4 the messages what i think im getting confused about is when i click on new posts is that 4 the main forum only if that is so is there not any 1 on the local forum i c i have had viewings 2 my thread r those from the main forum user's i dont want 2 keep apearing thick but can i put a new thread on the main forum (not that i want @ this stage ). Is it just u n i on the local forum @ the moment? Not that i mind

 

[nickh]

Hi nick thanks 4 the messages what i think im getting confused about is when i click on new posts is that 4 the main forum only if that is so is there not any 1 on the local forum i c i have had viewings 2 my thread r those from the main forum user's i dont want 2 keep apearing thick but can i put a new thread on the main forum (not that i want @ this stage ). Is it just u n i on the local forum @ the moment? Not that i mind

NP jd. Right - first I wouldn't use the new posts bit at this stage. Click on forum and get the main page up. Then choose whichever sub-forum you want to go to (eg: Local Forums or Mental Health Issues and Experiences) keep on selecting till you get to the particular forum you want (eg: Birmingham or Depression). Once you are there you will see, both at the top and bottom, on the left-hand side a selection for New Thread. If you click this you will then be able to start a new thread.

As to viewing anyone who comes on can view any part of the Forum but obviously the local Forums get much less traffic (viewing) than the general ones as they are only of specific interest. At the moment not many people come here (Birmingham Forum) regularly but you should know that we have only been going a couple of months jd. Indeed the whole Forum is only about 6 months old! . So we are still small - but growing fast.

I hope this helps. Try it out .

If you have any more problems come straight back - that's one of the things I am here for .

Nick.

 

[jamesdean]

we can chat

Hi we can chat i guess.The reason i cannot make the positive mental health group( i need 2 learn the abreviations)meeting on this thurs, its the last week of my 6 weeks psmp. I will give the central user voice a call n i will try 2 make it 2 the group @ the library on 4th june, that sounds nice, do u know how many people go, do i just turn up? Which groups do u get involved with, Did u set up the local forum? It seems like i ask questions all the time. Like ive said i live with depresion im not sure what else i can tell u. I know that i never whollo in self pitty or feel sorry 4 myself but i do find it hard 2 cope whilst on the surface u wouldnt think i had health conditions physical or mental because ive really learnt 2 hide stuff n b involved with the "normal world" certainly as much as possiable u know laugh when others laugh n stuff. I did have a drink problem 4 many years n often fell off bar stools, i even had 2 leave my home town because it did get 2 the stage of being called "mad" in the street. I moved 2 birmingham in 92 n have 2 say the mental health service has been very good. Idid smoke canabis 4 10 years from 94 which i did enjoy n i think it helped me loads 2 . I gave up smoking cigarettes in 2006 n that is the best thing ive ever done i needed fags 2 hide behind but that whole hazy world is not @ all missed n i'm not a non smoker campaigner @ all but i know the benefits finnacially n health( it kinda is difficult 2 cope with the amount of "how well u look" comments i get now) but the person who matters the most !my gp knows the truth, i have got a great gp. The consultant @ city hospital did upset me though in january when he had the cheek 2 look over his glasses n say "u look well" when i was in fact in so much pain Sorry i go off the trail or should i say tale! Oh yeah it was my gp u got me 2 quit smoking i had wanted 2 from age 40 but he gave me last push n in the end i wasnt that hard i found it difficult @ the 5th month cause i'd only ever got that far but after that its been plane sailing n i'm in my 3rd year & i really loved smoking i'd never not enjoyed u know like some people say " a bad fag" i loved them all but now i think my nerves r actually better than they were cause they r a stimulante but i could never c it in fact the more up tight the more i would in hale. i never thought with poor mental health i could of ever given up. i dont know if u smoke but i know how much i loved a fag when i had a drink. I dont agree with the smoking ban in the pub though, i think the pubs have lost their atmosphere . I guess ive kinda made that a topic! I do still like a drink not every nite like i used 2 n if i do have a drink i like 2 be drunk but i dont do no drugs. Im sure they r nice but i cannot afford them i have had some speed in the past n i couldnt sit down 4 days n couldnt stop talking. Ive only ever tried a little bit of cocaine but i can understand people loving it because i did feel really great everthing was lovely n u didnt even have 2 think about it.
Im not in2 religon i think i lived a very spiritual life 4 many years but im kinda not even in2 that anymore i do have a budha now n think its a very relaxed way of life though im not practising im not at all in2 psychics. years i belived there was some sort of super natural but dont now. i dont mind if others r in2 this but i dont believe now, i did visit the gypsy in the bullring in 94 n somehow @ the start of this year believe id come out of 2x7 years spell of bad luck like as if some 1 had put those spells on me i even think i knew who it was. Gosh thats deep which isnt how i live my life now, i love the little things or should i say cheap things like the "value range in tescos" thats where i spend most of my days checking out the bargains, its quite an art finding food bargains though theres been loads of good offers on ice lollies, n ilove the salt n vinegar crisps 6 bags 4 34p.
Well its been a very wet n windy bank holiday but getting this laptops been a god send ive loved writing emails 2 my family n a few friends these last few weeks but i feel like ive made a new friend now thanks nick

 

[nickh]

Hi jd.

First off the Depression Support Group - yes just turn up. At the Erdington Group there are usually around 7 or 8 people so it is not overwhelming and people are very friendly.

Yup I started the Birmingham Forum. As to groups I am involved with - well that's quite a list now - you will see most of them by looking at the various threads in this Forum. But the main ones are the Positive Mental Health Group and the LINks Transition Network. But I also go to User Voice meetings and Suresearch. Every group is very different really and has different people and a different function - it depends what interests you, what you feel comfortable with and so on. There are lots more groups which I don't go to as well - especially lots of arts ones as I am not a creative person myself. Some of the groups are more formal than others. If you let me know the kind of thing which interests you I can probably try and say which would be most suitable or interesting. It is an amazingly big world as I have discovered!

Like you I live with depression and have also had my self-medicating (drink and drugs) years - from about 98 to 05 ; but with the help of my psycho-therapist I have kicked them - not because I disapprove but because they were disastrously bad for me. So I haven't had any drugs and only very small amounts of drink in the last couple of years. They were a great short-term solution but the come-downs were always absolutely awful and made me much worse in the longer-run. But I haven't given up cigs - congratulations to you on that; I don't think it is likely that I ever will.

It sounds to me as though you have worked out your own coping strategies which is excellent and I am glad to hear that you feel that you have had good support from the mental health services.

Thanks for sharing your story - it is very good to have someone else posting here .

Nick.

 

[jamesdean]

Good afternoon nick

Hi im getting brave ive just posted on journals. How r u 2 day? Ive been on here since about lunch time i'm really enjoying myself its fun. I told my mum last night that i'm making friends. I hadnt realised i'd got replies so ive tried 2 say thanks 2 those people.
1 step @ a time i will go along 2 the depression support group n im looking 4ward 2 that. There r about 6/7 people @ the psmp with 2 tutors. I might b going up 4 a tutors role with training though it scares me 2 death i think it would b the right thing 2 @ least try.
Ive had my usual trip 2 tecos 2 day but didnt get much ive been munching on custard creams so i really must have a sandwich now. I dont know where the time goes take care james

 

[nickh]

Hi jd - congratulations on using the journals section - that's a very good place for talking about how you are feeling day to day.

Its great that you are going to go to the Depression Support Group - say hi to Jo who runs the group (and should be there) for me. As I say I haven't been to the city one, but I think a few people from the Erdington one go to both.

And it is also great about the tutoring role - that would be a really good thing to try.

Take Care,

Nick.