Got Depression?

I have strong feelings about SSRI medication, and while I've heard a lot of wonderful stories from people who have benefited greatly from it, it still seems like a symptomatic treatment at best.

It won't fix the underlying issue - thought processes/internal dialogue - but that was something I could work on while taking medication. I'm not "recommending" that you should take medication - I'm not qualified and only know you from the forum: I'm just sharing my experience.
 


Do you get enough exposure to light? You can cause something similar to Seasonal Affective Disorder if you stay inside all the time and work in a dark room.

I second the Seasonal Affective Disorder. I get in that same rut every shitty winter here and it sucks, but now it's summer and being outside and getting vitamin D definitely helps.


But yeah that existentialist/nihilist shit does creep up on me a lot. I thought getting to the point where I am semi-ballin' in online monies would solve it, but I'm realizing that is not the case so I'm working on refocusing my priorities (like enjoying the freedom that it can create to do whatever I want, whenever I want).


Thinking about where I see myself in the future and setting goals always seems to help put me in a positive mindset. Even if they are arbitrary, it's still a good distraction.


And if it all doesn't mean anything, why not set out to be the greatest. And if you can't be the greatest, find a way to reframe the criteria to convince yourself you're the greatest.


Also, always have options. And always leave yourself an out...


Ehhh, that's all I got...
 
Ice can you remember a time when you were not experience the feeling of this Sisyphean ordeal? And the generalization that everything seems difficult to get excited about?

For example, when fighting in a war, some people might pull out a picture of a loved one to continue the fight. Try to do the same thing, find something that really motivates you to move forward, you said...

becomes very difficult to see a way out.

Try to see yourself, in a situation where your in the same motivated state as the warrior on the battle field fighting to return home to his family, you have to find what it is worth fighting for.
 
I'd also add, discussing it here with peers is fine but if I were you I'd speak to your doctor. Even if you have decided against medication.
 
I've never dealt with long bouts of depression, so I can't really speak to where you're coming from. But, I do go through times where I realize the meaninglessness to everything, and the fact that everything we know and love will be gone in a very short period of time. I'll have those great days in IM where I've hit my goal to make x amount of money and quickly realize that it means nothing and that everything is temporary (and money is probably the last thing you should be worried about losing).

I don't think it's unhealthy to get into that thought zone from time to time. In fact, I think it's perfectly natural. This idea that you should be walking around happy 24/7 seems like bullshit. Nonetheless, if you've been feeling down for a long time I recommend changing up your routine and doing new things. Pick up a new hobby, try to learn a new language - anything that focuses your mind on something else. Also, I find meditating 30 minutes every day keeps me grounded - but everyone is different.

I also recommend reading through some of Sri Nisargadatta's book titled I Am That. You can do a quick google search and find the free pdf. Maybe it'll help you, maybe it won't. Either way, good luck, and remember that everyone is just as clueless about the 'meaning' of life.
 
I'm not "recommending" that you should take medication.

I'd also add, discussing it here with peers is fine but if I were you I'd speak to your doctor. Even if you have decided against medication.

All a Dr. is going to do, aside from trying to sell drugs to Ice, is share their own experience, such as the people in this thread.
 
Ice can you remember a time when you were not experience the feeling of this Sisyphean ordeal?

I suppose I can, I think I was 7 or 8 years old the first time I remember feeling this way.

I didn't start this thread to complain about my situation, I was thinking that whatever came out of it might be helpful to anyone else who is dealing with similar feelings.

I've been dealing with this for a very long time, and I can say with absolute certainty that I'll be fine. This will pass, and I'll get back to feeling ok, eventually.

In the meantime, it's kind of like a game I used to play when I stayed home sick from school as a kid.

I used to try and remember what it felt like not to be sick, and I was convinced that if I could only remember what that felt like, that I could trick myself into feeling better for the day.

I don't think it ever worked, but it gave me something to do when I ran out of books to read.
 
All a Dr. is going to do, aside from trying to sell drugs to Ice, is share their own experience, such as the people in this thread.

True, it's not like they might be better educated on the condition or anything.
 
I've been dealing with this for a very long time, and I can say with absolute certainty that I'll be fine. This will pass, and I'll get back to feeling ok, eventually.

I'm fighting the same fight bro, you and I both, except it came later on for me. Trust me when I say I believe you will 100% win this war on your own.
 
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True, it's not like they might be better educated on the condition or anything.

Fair enough, they will be educated on what drug works for what condition, but they won't really truly understand Ice's experience to fully know what is the best solution, unless they are a good Doctor. Sometimes it could be as simple moving a fucking chair or desk around, and people snap the fuck out of whatever negative trance state they may be in. Who the fuck needs drugs anyways?. Only going to fuck you up more. It's also fair to say I'm just generalizing here because I fucking hate most Doctors, never seemed to have a good one I really cared about.
 
I know some people would find the idea of being depressed funny, myself included.

Now I'm not typically a softy, but I guess it just doesn't hit home until one of your good friends almost kills themselves. Which happened to me. If it wasn't for him going broke, moving back in with his parents, and his mother being a nurse, he'd be dead. 100% guaranteed. He told me some really fucked up shit, stuff he was thinking before they got him on happy meds. He was living in another world.

We all thought something was wrong, but didn't do anything about it. It wasn't the first time we had seen it, we just thought it was a phase and it'd blow over, he was going through a really shitty time in his life. Just saying, some people have some really serious issues, and if you notice such signs in a person get them help any way you can.
 
Depression comes from a cocktail of self-pity and avoidance of reality.

Been there.

You've got to want to not be depressed before anything positive can happen. If you're not serious about beating it, you won't.

  • Break habits.
  • Forgive yourself.
  • Accept what you cannot change, and change what you can.

Although I think there is minor, life depression (which people just need to suck up and move on.) However some people really do have chemical imbalances in their brains that make them depressed for no apparent reason.
 
I'm not talking about "the blues" or "feeling sad", I'm talking about full-on existential crises that result in a complete and total lack of emotion.

Wondering if WF has any experience with this, and what if anything has helped to alleviate it.

I know some of you fat bastards are clinically depressed, so speak the fuck up.

Yes, I experienced this shit before. I tracked it down to my diet. I fixed everything I eat now. I don't eat gluten food. Just eat clean (steak + eggs + fruits + veg). Exercise HIIT in the gym. Oh and eat fish oil (it contains omega 3 that fight depression).

edit: stop watching porn, stop jerking off, and have bareback sex with real woman you really like.
 
Yes, I experienced this shit before. I tracked it down to my diet. I fixed everything I eat now. I don't eat gluten food. Just eat clean (steak + eggs + fruits + veg). Exercise. Oh and eat fish oil (it contains omega 3 that fight depression).

Interesting. I've been wondering a lot about my diet lately, and I've made a few adjustments that seem to be making things a little better. No gluten at all seems like the way to go from what I read.
 
In my opinion, my own clinical depression which I've struggled with since childhood was caused by too much introspection and the internalisation of extraneous problems, and then constantly dwelling on them. 'Extraneous' in both meanings of the word - irrelevant problems that had no direct major impact on my life, and external problems that I couldn't do anything about. Also, lack of sleep, although voluntary, probably didn't help.

I haven't felt depressed for a couple of years now. I used St John's Wort tablets for a while (they are very mild, but made me feel a little 'lighter', which helped motivation in the beginning) and really tried to change the way I thought about the world and my relationship to it. I now try to get 6-8 hours sleep. I also tried to take charge of my own destiny/situation, one aspect of which is how I ended up on Wickedfire. Whilst you're depressed, some behaviours might have become obsessive and destructive, like drinking or gaming too much. Gotta give those up until you're feeling better.

That doesn't mean to say clinical depression doesn't have a physical/chemical element to it. But I think the psychological and physical are probably intertwined - if you can change your psychology, then the chemicals may follow suit, and vice versa. The side effects of strong anti-depressives are horrendous, so that would have been a last resort in my case.

There are some depression workbooks torrented which try to assist you to change your thinking and perspective about the world. I didn't need one, but if you're stuck with where/how to start, downloading some and choosing one that you like the look of might help (I suspect there's some god-awful ones available amongst the better ones).
 
I've never had it but I've heard lots of good thing about the Human Givens approach. Check this book out: How to Lift Depression. It's available in Kindle, too.

[ame=http://www.amazon.com/How-Lift-Depression-fast-Approach/dp/1899398414]Amazon.com: How to Lift Depression.: ..fast (Human Givens Approach) (9781899398416): Joe Griffin, Ivan Tyrrell: Books[/ame]

Their theory is that depression is caused by excessive rumination. This disrupts your REM cycle and makes you tired. From what I recall, the process feeds on itself. They tell you how to nip the excessive rumination in the bud.

This book (Human Givens) outlines their overall approach:

[ame=http://www.amazon.com/Human-Givens-Joe-Griffin/dp/1899398317]Amazon.com: Human Givens (9781899398317): Joe Griffin: Books[/ame]

They also have good stuff on alleviating pain.
 
Although I think there is minor, life depression (which people just need to suck up and move on.) However some people really do have chemical imbalances in their brains that make them depressed for no apparent reason.
I'm not a biochemist. I think that stuff about chemical imbalances sells a lot more prescription drugs than addressing psychological distress.

People who kill themselves hate living more than they hate the idea of dying. Dying is actually a better deal to them than living. That is how fucking miserable they are.

Our perception of reality is our own psychological experience. For sure, people can have messed up brains, but every case of depression I have seen or experienced had to do with unresolved issues, which leads to lower self-esteem, which leads to withdrawal socially, which leads to all sorts of other lifestyle collapses which increasingly isolate people, and reinforce the depression.

I get the nihilism shit. I really do. Try being an anarchist, understanding the farce that is most people's political and social beliefs. Try understanding what a joke religion is. Try talking to most "normal people" and realizing you might as well be speaking to a tree or a rock, with the depth of understanding their even capable of, let alone interested in.

But at the end of the day, we're here, and this is how reality is.

The only thing left for us is to deal with it or change it.

If things are revoltingly the same, accept that or change it.

But enough moping. Seriously. This forum is filled with brilliant people who are capable of changing the world in all sorts of ways I can't even imagine.

Life isn't meaningless, it's our fucking canvas.

Make art. Be art.
 
It's pretty human to be depressed from time to time when we go through rough patches or even go for too long without fresh air/sun. I get depressed on long days when I'm in a dark room staring at a computer screen for 12+ hours. Then when I go outside in the sun for a long walk with my dog, I almost instantly feel better.

But, if you are feeling it constantly and it won't go away... don't ignore it.

Please, don't ignore it.

Meds like Xanax can help BIGTIME. You need to go see a doctor and explain what you're going through. Even if you don't want to take meds, they can help point you in the right direction for alternative therapy or lifestyle changes which will help you.

But, you need to take the first step and get the help. You can't just sit around and hope it will get better. It won't. It's not a cold or flu. It's not going away on it's own.

I have lost family and friends to suicide. Please don't ignore how you feel.