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frothey

Posts: 3569

#43 27 Aug 2026 at 4.26pm

In reply to Post #29
(replying to 27, not 29!)

It's called "hyper focus". It's great for some things (son has diagnosed ADHD and is doing his doctorate as a research scientist, which it's a perfect fit for!) but it means I can obsess about things that don't really matter. Still fixating on things that happened 20 years ago for example! For anyone that has, thinks they have, or lives with people with ADHD/AUDHD/OCD the "I'm ADHD, No you're not" podcast by Paul Whitehouse and his partner, Dr Mine Conkbayir (it's the other way round really, she's the expert!) is really good to get different peoples take on it, especially as she's diagnosed, but against medicating. Love her or hate her, Katie Prices was a really good listen.

Re: depression - I tapered off Citalopram as i hated the way it made me feel. No highs, no lows - everything was grey. But I know the signs now and how to manage it. Most of the time....

One problem I have with fishing as a cure is I find it gives me too much time to think, which can then lead to brooding on stuff. Should find an easier syndicate! I also do long (50 mile+) bike rides which I find I don't think as much as I'm usually trying not to puke 😂

Fivenil

Posts: 2025

#42 27 Aug 2026 at 3.45pm

Been on Citalopram for a good few years now. I'd probably be 6 foot under by now if i hadnt of started taking it. Anxiety, stress, anger, OCD, depression, agrophobia to name but a few issues i had to deal with and also since covid, COPD. I still have the odd blip but far easier to deal with nowadays.

Friends often tell me i should do this and do that but they really have no idea what goes on in someones mind who is suffering from mental health issues. You might as well try and nail jelly to the ceiling than try to explain. I just tell them to let me deal with it in my way, which usually just involves a few days on the bank.

Retail therapy helps as well 😉

Canalcarper71

Posts: 1388

#41 20 Aug 2026 at 2.09pm

In reply to Post #40
The way you explain yours isn’t what she’s saying she uses it as an excuse or blames her mom(my partner’s) health issues for not going to work,yet when weekends comes or someone asks her to go out somewhere she jumps up and goes so yeah she’s just lazy she’s in a big rut,she sleeps till late then moans she’s tired and needs to sleep again and does nothing round the house,last week she finally went to work my missus works 2 jobs to keep her house and her daughter made a promise she’d be paying half when they moved but I’ve had to help my partner at times due to her being in and out of hospital.
She needed a massive kick up backside to go to work she didn’t even realise you need to pay for hot water unbelievably naive too much attention to her phone and other stuff she hasn’t got anxiety,depression or MH she’s just lazy.
Hopefully she now realises she needs to work to buy stuff and help her mom

Bristolsaint40

Posts: 243

#40 20 Aug 2026 at 10.45am

In reply to Post #39
Anxiety is an absolute beast of a mental issue, it can literally be crippling.

My symptoms have varied over the years but can be anything from profusely sweating, retching till it made me sick, constantly running nose. Most recent one is coughing.

Telling someone who is genuinely suffering from anxiety to step us is like telling someone with depression to snap out of it or cheer up.

Canalcarper71

Posts: 1388

#39 20 Aug 2026 at 10.16am

My partner’s youngest (22)been off work sick trying to say it’s anxiety and MH since December,we just think personally it’s just lazyiness in her,nothing wrong at all with her I think her dad who’s on pip had encouraged her to do it rather than reeling her to step up basically

Bristolsaint40

Posts: 243

#38 20 Aug 2026 at 8.47am

In reply to Post #36
I think once you actually understand what's happening and it's not anything you've actually done yourself it makes it a lot easier to speak about it.

Quite simply put, you're just wired a bit differently. I actually joke now about how much of a car crash my life is.

Walked up 3 flights of stairs to get my wallet, noticed the room needed tidying, spent 20 minutes tidying it. Left my wallet upstairs.

Mental health takes so many different forms, some people it may be triggered by something, some people it's a chemical imbalance.

What I would say is if someone wants to talk to you my best advice is just listen, don't try to make it better, don't try to compare as all they want to do at that point is decompress.

My inbox is always open

Canalcarper71

Posts: 1388

#37 19 Aug 2026 at 5.17pm

In reply to Post #35
Thanks mate
I went back to work too early but I’d rather be doing something than sitting at home dwelling on it I do have flash backs and what if’s I know I saved her for her to go in hospital but I think 5 minutes earlier and she’d have been in bed and it’s horrible to think she may have died in a horrible way unable to contact me,I have a lot of friends at work of various ages and my work place was amazing at the time and H/O sent me a letter of condolences which was a nice touch,my manager was only young and when I broke down he took me to one side and said whatever you want or need just ask

vossy1

Posts: 8987

MODERATOR

#36 19 Aug 2026 at 5.12pm

Hats off to you guys for being so open, people might be reading these posts and get the strength to help themselves.

Smithy

Posts: 2857

#35 19 Aug 2026 at 5.10pm

In reply to Post #34
Sorry for your loss mate I can only imagine how difficult it is to deal with

Canalcarper71

Posts: 1388

#34 19 Aug 2026 at 2.26pm

In reply to Post #31
I lost my mom almost 2 years ago(December 2024)and I struggled so much with her loss as I was with her when she had a stroke and again when in ambulance waiting for a cubicle,I was with her when she passed away too,I was in a bad way for months with grief etc,I broke down at work a few times when I eventually returned and was on verge of sucide twice trying to cope with my loss,I have flash backs of her that night she had a stroke and in hospital seeing her lying there after passing away.
I tried to speak to people through my work app but felt they weren’t listening to what I wanted to say and eventually I got into my doctors after trying a few times and being ignored a few times,and I broke down they diagnosed depression due to not properly grieving for her,I tried to speak to my brothers about our loss but they deal with it differently to me,I miss her every single day and she as amazing and always asked if I caught and how big and if I hadn’t she’d say “never mind son always next time,I had to show her by moving her hands apart how big they was as she was blind and deaf,anyway the doctors prescribed me setraline I was wary of it and looked at the symptoms and spoke to people who had taken it and decided no I’m not taking tablets.
I grieve better now at my own pace and on my own away from people and if I catch a fish when I’m out fishing I like to think she’s looking down at me and saying well done son.

CarpCodger71

Posts: 2755

#33 19 Aug 2026 at 2.25pm

In reply to Post #32
Matt have bought lots of you including the Harrisons

Spod

Posts: 13411

#32 18 Aug 2026 at 6.51pm

In reply to Post #31
Exactly the same!

Karlos called me a "trader" on here, (in jest) but I used to have compulsive purchases, (not so much now but it does still happen) then either send them back or if it was too late to do that, flog them on at a loss.

Smithy

Posts: 2857

#31 18 Aug 2026 at 5.04pm

In reply to Post #27
Very interesting like Spod I was just put on sertraline with little thought when going through a rough time, the ADHD does make sense as I am very impulsive which I’m told is a symptom amongst other things. (I buy and sell my gear all the time, it’s beyond a joke now - cost me thousands! I’ve swapped between hearns and 10fts 3 times in the last 12 months buying new each time)

I’m sticking to it this time though, for now 🤣

framey

Posts: 5304

#30 18 Aug 2026 at 3.18pm

There’s a program on tonight channel 4 called the great ADHD myth 8pm
Could be an interesting watch
Chris packham (insert spit) did one a year or so ago that was a good watch
Helped me learn my grandsons diagnoses. That was from a sufferers perspective.

LINKY POO™ https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m002c6bb

Bristolsaint40

Posts: 243

#29 18 Aug 2026 at 11.24am

In reply to Post #28
It's helped me understand why I'm like it, the way I can be sat watching a film and all I can hear is the kids on their mobile phones in the kitchen or someone eating a packet of crisps 😂😂😂

Interestingly my stepdaughter who was diagnosed 98 percentile yesterday with ADHD cannot sit still around the house, take her fishing and she can stare at a float and not move for hours, also because she hyper focuses, she is excelling at rugby, having only played for 2 years is now training and playing with Gloucester at county level

Spod

Posts: 13411

#28 18 Aug 2026 at 11.19am

In reply to Post #27
Interesting read mate.👍

I have been looking into ADHD recently and you are right, a lot gets put down to depression when the person isn't actually depressed, they have Anxiety and/or ADHD but the two often co-exist.

People generally associate ADHD with hyperactive kids but it has many different forms and although you may have had ADHD your entire life, (and never known about it) it can surface in a lot of adult behaviours such as overthinking, disasterising, compulsiveness, irritability, lack of focus, addictive behaviour, fatigue etc.

I saw a Psychotherapist earlier this year after my "scare" whilst on Sertraline and he pretty much confirmed the same for me, I wasn't depressed therefore should never have been prescribed anti-depressants. I am not on any drugs at all now, instead trying to lead a more "healthy" lifestyle, no caffeine, limited processed foods, exercise, yoga/relaxation, limited alcohol etc. He did say that if I needed medication in the future he would go down the route of mood stabilisers, although he said I fell well short of the Bipolar spectrum.

It is a fascinating subject but also bloody scary!

Bristolsaint40

Posts: 243

#27 18 Aug 2026 at 9.16am

In reply to Post #1
Just under 2 Xmas's ago my new wife told me I had to go the doctors or I wouldn't make it to my 50th.

Had a long chat with the doctor who asked me if I had to work as much as I did, I run my own business and decided to walk away from a very large but incredibly stressful contract. I came off all medication for depression which I'd been on for 10 years..

This is where it became interesting, I put myself on a CBT course, my step daughter was referred for ADHD.

I stepped back from work for a few months, I appreciate not many people can do that.

What I learnt on that CBT course is I've not been depressed for a long time, I suffer from anxiety, which is a completely different beast and explains exactly how you're feeling but anxiety and depression don't always come hand in hand so maybe worth speaking to your Dr.

I've also discovered on the on the ADHD spectrum recently, I go down rabbit holes, most recent example I took on Abarth over noise emissions on my new car and learnt all about power to mass ratios and noise emission tolerances under un guidelines with the phase 3 of noise emissions.

It's actually quite cool because I focus,I smash everything out by 2pm then I get a couple of hours quiet before the kids come home lol

Smithy

Posts: 2857

#26 18 Aug 2026 at 8.47am

In reply to Post #23
Cheers for that, will take a look later 👍

CarpCodger71

Posts: 2755

#25 18 Aug 2026 at 8.39am

In reply to Post #24
Cheers promise I’m going to learn 👍

vossy1

Posts: 8987

MODERATOR

#24 18 Aug 2026 at 8.33am

In reply to Post #23
LINKY POO™ https://www.eput.nhs.uk/news/icarps-fishing-therapy-for-ptsd-and-depression-nominated-for-national-mental-health-award/

👍

CarpCodger71

Posts: 2755

#23 18 Aug 2026 at 8.23am

In reply to Post #20
Nice one Matt
Please can someone create a link for this dinosaur.
https://www.eput.nhs.uk/news/icarps-fishing-therapy-for-ptsd-and-depression-nominated-for-national-mental-health-award/

Above is an amazing project that is part of the trust I work for.
Please have a read.

Smithy

Posts: 2857

#21 17 Aug 2026 at 4.30pm

In reply to Post #20
Cheers for the link mate will check it out, agree on the sertraline - wasn’t keen on it myself for different reasons, glad you are ok after having it 👍

Spod

Posts: 13411

#20 17 Aug 2026 at 2.27pm

Have a look at;

LINKY POO™ https://andysmanclub.co.uk/

There will hopefully be a group in your area. I used to go and found it helpful. 👍

As for Sertraline it is a horrible drug, I had a reaction to it after a few months which raised my seratonin to abnormal levels and ended up in A&E with suspected, (and sometimes fatal) Seratonin Syndrome. Not something I would recommend! Some GP's will prescribe anti-depressants like smarties so make sure you fully understand the side effects and ask that they give you a full MOT at the same time as other ailments can have an effect, especially if they are unknown.

55s

Posts: 698

#19 17 Aug 2026 at 1.47pm

In reply to Post #18
MOT

Smithy

Posts: 2857

#18 17 Aug 2026 at 12.38pm

In reply to Post #17
Good read that mate, glad that you found running helps - your ok on the football I’m a Leeds fan 😂

55s

Posts: 698

#17 17 Aug 2026 at 11.26am

Mental Health is such a tough one, especially for men - and I have lived over 36 years with the massive downs that it can bring. I had a shocking 6 months when 23 and lost my parents within 3 weeks - I could bore you with the details and often do with friends and random strangers, and almost feel that it was so shocking that it excuses my mental state - but in the last 10 years i have learnt and seen that you don’t need ‘scale’ for mental health, that my shocking events are no better or worse than the person that worries that the neighbour didn’t say good morning.

Depression is a hungry beast - it looks like everywhere for food and hen you start to go downhill it is fast and despite every best intention you keep digging. Mine will come again for sure - but each time I am better equipped than before. Talking definitely helps - but I would say that all of the good advice and chats I’ve had are from others who have their own problems - I have spoken to good mates who have no idea about 3am wide awake looking for things to get down about so whilst they sympathise you do need relatable reassurance sometimes.

My advice would be to try and understand the signs of going downhill, when you get hit by the first couple of rocks, it makes you more rational for the pebbles that will follow, write them down so that the 20 worries in your head suddenly become 3, the rest you have dreamt up or manipulated to feed the beast - suddenly you have the three biggies to concentrate on or rationalise.

Secondly - you won’t beat a hungry mind - so counting down the minutes from 3am to alarm clock is ridiculous- embrace this time, beat your wretched thoughts by reading, or doing something, until the beast gets bored and lets you rest.

For me (I can’t speak for others) there were some obvious reasons for the dips, a senior responsible job for me, it’s people piling on the pressure in exchange for more and more money. I was incredibly lucky in breaking that cycle and know that financially it is not an option, but looking back 8 years that was a life and death decision - I earn half my wage and love my job (most fays) if you can change your trigger this is obviously the single biggest thing to do - it can be as easy as accepting that ‘toxic’ friend can go f emself.

I’ve also found - if your down - don’t fish or do short days etc. I love the solitude of fishing so my mind would to do a number on me. For me fishing is like some drugs when you in a good mood it magnifies everything if you’re down that’s not where you want magnification.

Not an easy read but ‘the art of being disliked’ is an ok read and puts a lot into perspective (stay with it as the first half is monotonous priming) and also excercise I started running 5 years ago at 54 as I didn’t realise that playing football all my life wasn’t just fun but that 30 min runs really help my ongoing fight with the gremlins - I am nowhere near fit but the couch to 5k really helped and also I still to this day NEVER enjoy the run, but when it’s over that is such a high.

God that is long and boring, good luck all, happy to help anyone (except Brighton fans) in any way possible.

Smithy

Posts: 2857

#16 17 Aug 2026 at 8.56am

In reply to Post #13
Thanks for this mate, I’m deffo going to do this - will hopefully help the self doubt going forward.

It’s clear which the Spod tip is as it just rattles around on the normal rods - but my OCD brain won’t accept it - was still checking last night!!

Smithy

Posts: 2857

#15 17 Aug 2026 at 8.54am

In reply to Post #12
Spot on there mate, best of luck on your session! 👍

Smithy

Posts: 2857

#14 17 Aug 2026 at 8.53am

In reply to Post #11
Blimey mate, you’ve been through it! Your right it is good to talk, helps me no end 👍

vossy1

Posts: 8987

MODERATOR

#13 17 Aug 2026 at 6.15am

In reply to Post #7
In case of interest to the op. I asked for dots on my rods under the butt ring and 1st top section rings, ie, 1 dot 1 rod, 2 dots 2nd rod, but it got missed.

The rod builder to me to get one of those small pots of paint used for airfix kits and use a cocktail stick. Dip the stick ever so slightly in the paint then put the spike on the rod where you want the dot, it's quite easy to control the size of the dot you'd like 👍

nexus6

Posts: 161

#12 17 Aug 2026 at 5.25am

We all spend so much money on unimportant things. Here in the UK we grow up with this idea of 'health care is free via the NHS'. Obviously the NHS is far from free for most of us.

Like most things in life, the more £ you have the better the treatment - billionaires don't have the same healthcare in the UK as the rest of us!

But here in the UK there is this expectation of the best available health care at no added cost. Obviously this is an impossible myth. Don't get me wrong the NHS is a wonderful thing, but it can't and doesn't cover everything. Mental health care being one of the biggest gaps.

If you can afford it, some counselling sessions or sessions with a Psychiatrist can be money very well spent. Counselling sessions can start around £50 per hour, Psychiatrist around £120.

Find someone professional to talk to and make sure you connect/like them from the first session. If you don't find someone else. Some offer a first consultation free.

GPs all too often turn immediately to drugs and very often these are just a short term fix.

We are lucky to have fishing. Being out in the great outdoors is a wonderful fix. But sometimes we need a little bit more...........

PS
it's just gone 5am and I can't sleep - all excited as off fishing to a new venue this morning. Like a bloody kid at Christmas!!!!

AndyClark

Posts: 5796

#11 16 Aug 2026 at 8.26pm

pt 2 continuation of below massage ( keeps cutting it off)

18 months i think it was and I let my prescription run down and i tapered my tablets so I came off them gradually...am I fixed?? no and I dont think I ever will be, I will always have the "black dog" but now I understand more and better of what to do, I dont understand what causes it to come on, nor how to get rid, i just try and keep a good routine with sleep and work life balance...i do enjoy a beer but never been out of control and drink onnny days off but being a hgv driver not in the week...im back enjoying my fishing, i do still get lows, but i cope better than I ever have....

the letters were shredded and I got the help I needed in time, I cant say ill never get as bad as I did as life can be cruel at times, but with a good support network round me, being open with employers and choosing wisely who I open up to has helped massively.

The black dog I refer to is a video by the world health organisation and this explained so much to me, the penny dropped when I watched it and it was the first step to me helping myself and letting people in to help me too.

if youre still with me this far i thank you for taking the time to read my shortened version of a period in my life I very nearly didnt get through....and if anyone needs help, many people say it but drop me a message, if i can help I will, take the steps to go the Dr's,talk to people around you, I phoned the samaritans many times initially when in work....you're not alone, people want to help, people ,let them in , talk, share youre feelings, youre worthy of someone's time and theworld is a better place with you in it

AndyClark

Posts: 5796

#10 16 Aug 2026 at 7.57pm

About 9 or 10 years ago (longer than this looking back) i started to feel weird, I couldnt cope with the most trivial things going wrong,I had no coping mechanisms whatsoever....for example, i would drop the recycling on the way from the kitchen to the bin and lose my ****, kicking **** out the bins for no reason...unable to watch football without losing my ****

Fishing became unbearable, i couldn't cope setting up, something would go wrong and id spiral out of control until I got myself in that much of a mess id pack up and go home, id make an excuse to the wife that it was busy, spawning, bad weather wrong weather...whatever I could to avoid any awkward questions.

my time with the family I would really look forward to, and when it actually came round to spending time with them I lacked motivation,interest and failed to be enthusiastic about everything. things were getting bad, i was sleeping 18 hrs a day sone days, no energy no interests, just work to provide for the family and thats about it ..i didnt want to go fishing, didnt want to socialise, work, home, food ,bed....when in work i drove with music that loud to block out the noise in my head, full volume ...i couldn't cope, I was having suicidal thoughts, researching the best way to take my own life...i was going down a path id never been before, i didnt know what to do where to go,how to get out of it...i wrote letters to my wife and kids...it was a matter of when, not if......

im a member of a fishing group,mainly online,sharing info on club venues, id met a few of them on the bank and one of the guys arranges socials,, at the time i was quite a new member, building new friendships, some id never even met.....i put a post not to dissimilar to the one above, I dont know why I wrote it on the forum but I did...that decesion most definitely saved my life, the guys reached out in numbers...some via pm, most replied on the post, all encouraging me to go the doctors and get help and to speak to my wife.

on xmas.day of ll days I was awkward and annoying, I broke down, I cried, I needed all the noise in my head to stop, I needed peace..i showed my wife the post on the forum, I cried,she cried, she promised to get me help, she phoned the Dr's at the first opportunity and got me an appointment, she drove me there, offered to come in but said go and tell the doctor everything, which I did..in tears it all came out....i came out of there very much different to when I walked in...she didnt usually prescribe medication so willingly but said I was suffering from severe depression, possibly ptsd from my days in the army...(im not so sure,but ive since learned we all walk our own paths and deal with things in very different ways)

I reached out to some ex army mates, I talked, I took the medication but like previously mentioned it made things in the bedroom extremely prolonged and more often than ot never getting over the finish line, the medication (setraline) gave me no massive lows, but no massive highs either, I was just plodding along,existing,but not living...after 6 months "I "decided I was better and when my repeat prescription was due i cancelled it...slowly i started to get highs again, enjoyment of football again, fishing again with issues....but the "black dog" soon came back......i slumped down hill quite fast and before I knew it i was back at the doctors the wife had seen the signs and i was back on a different medication (citalopram) more geared up towards ptsd the dr said.

I chatted to mates,talked to colleagues about what I was going through, at no point did I take any time off work, maybe I should have but I liked being kept busy and providing for my family kept me going....i needed to differentiate between a **** day that everyone has and a **** day that would be the start of me spiraling down hill....the meds gave me the no feelings no major highs,no major lows but through talking and researching and going over my days in bosnia and previous life experiences I slowly came to terms with what has happened and what might happen in the future with my mental health

18 months i think it was and I let my prescription run down and i tapered my tablets so I came off them gradually...am I fixed?? no and I dont think I ever will be, I will always have the "black dog" but now I understand more and better of what to do, I dont understand what causes it to come on, nor how to get rid, i just try and keep a good routine with sleep and work life balance...i do enjoy a beer but never been out of control and drink onnny days off but being a hgv driver not in the week...im back enjoying my fishing, i do still get lows, but i cope better than I ever have....

the letters were shredded and I got the help I needed in time, I cant say ill never get as bad as I did as life can be cruel at times, but with a good support network round me, being open with employers and choosing wi

Smithy

Posts: 2857

#9 16 Aug 2026 at 7.26pm

In reply to Post #5
Cheers mate, sadly the sertraline had the opposite effect for me - left me looking like a fried up cocktail sausage 😂

Smithy

Posts: 2857

#8 16 Aug 2026 at 7.25pm

In reply to Post #7
Cheers for that mate, some good info there 👍

framey

Posts: 5304

#7 16 Aug 2026 at 7.13pm

In reply to Post #1
I mark mine
White paint pen
1 dot bottom section and top section
2 dots bottom and top section
3 dots bottom and top section

1 line bottom section and top section
2 lines etc etc
Will tick 1 of the list if that helps

DaveSG

Posts: 874

#6 16 Aug 2026 at 7.06pm

In reply to Post #1

Your'e not alone m8!

I'm unable to fish much now, so when you do go you want to put everything in your favour and do things right.

You can feel knackered before you've got there 😂

nexus6

Posts: 161

#5 16 Aug 2026 at 6.10pm

In reply to Post #1
I too have worked for a mental health trust and in my experience there is no such thing as ‘normal’.
I bet loads of chaps on this forum have lay awake at night before a fishing trip. If something is playing on your mind then you are much better off going to check it out and then go back to bed.
I do 2 nights a week pretty much year round and still get excited before every trip! Still I’ve only been carp fishing for 45 years, so I’ll probably grow out of it!!
As for Sertraline - good riddance, it’s a crappy drug. Although I did once meet a young man who liked ‘That’ side effect and so did his girlfriend - she said in front of him, “he can go all night!!!”

Bacardiblue

Posts: 1625

#4 16 Aug 2026 at 6.05pm

I suffer with ptsd and fishing is a great help for me.

Smithy

Posts: 2857

#3 16 Aug 2026 at 3.26pm

In reply to Post #2
Cheers mate, think your right 👍

CarpCodger71

Posts: 2755

#2 16 Aug 2026 at 3.24pm

In reply to Post #1
You not alone buddy I’m a Manager for an NHS mental health trust.
I’m not ashamed to share I have bipolar , Anxiety and depression all started in 2010 well that’s when I was diagnosed and medicated .

You’re excited about spending all that money and looking forward to Belgium.
Your OCD has possibly kicked in and you have become fixated .

I’m like that when checking I’ve locked the doors , up and down the stairs numerous times .
Stick the rods away , pop out for a walk and make the most of the sun .👍👍

Smithy

Posts: 2857

#1 16 Aug 2026 at 1.15pm

I thought fishing was meant to be a cure for mental health, not really sure why I’m typing this to be honest! 😂

Bit of a backstory...

About 10 years ago I was diagnosed with depression and anxiety and suffered pretty badly with OCD when my wife underwent surgery for a large brain tumour. I was put on a fairly heavy dose of Sertraline, which helped for a few years, but eventually I took myself off it because of a certain side effect which only a man will understand! 😂

Despite my wife’s tumour returning and us now waiting for radiotherapy, I’ve actually managed pretty well. Mainly through talking to her about what I’m feeling and what’s going on in my head. She genuinely would make a great therapist and I’m very lucky to have her.

I’ve been absolutely fine for the last few months — no issues whatsoever — until yesterday!

I decided to sell my Hearns and go back to 10ft rods. I just get on better with them and, with two trips to Belgium planned next year, I wanted to start getting all the gear I need sorted.
So I had a nice drive down to Tackle Tavern in Bicester. The lads there sorted me out with a good price for my Hearns and I bought some Quickdraws, which I’d had before and stupidly sold. Took the wife out for lunch on the way home as well, so it was actually a really nice, relaxing day.

Got home, unpacked the rods and reels and propped them up against the wall in the living room ready for spooling up today.

9pm last night, halfway through watching a film...

PANIC.

“Did I mix the spod tip up with the normal tips?!”

Tried to ignore it. Couldn’t.

Paused the film and started comparing the tip sizes.

“Yeah, they look fine. Panic over.”

10pm...

“Was I wrong?”

Checked again.

Nope. Still fine.

Midnight...

Same bloody thought.

Still fine.

Then, at about 1am while lying in bed, I had a brainwave:
“Why don’t I see if the normal tips actually fit onto the spod end section? Then I’ll know for sure.”

So downstairs I went and tried it.

The 3.5lb TC tips obviously don’t fit onto the spod end section....brilliant, mystery solved!

Went back to bed.

Then started wondering if I’d somehow got it wrong anyway, eventually fell asleep.

Woke up this morning and the first thing I thought about was the bloody rod tips. 😂

Came downstairs, checked them again.

Yep. Still absolutely fine.

So does anyone else struggle with stuff like this, or have I finally completely lost the plot? 😂

I genuinely find it amazing how your brain can take something so completely insignificant and turn it into a full-blown crisis.


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