Gained weight, anti depressants

linlinjay

I gained like 15 pounds since i graduated high school in june and part of it is because i stopped taking my antidepressants and i got back on my antidepressants, how do i motivate myself to go back in track? I also moved so it adds to the stress

dkabambe

From experience I know it can be very difficult in that situation, but the very fact you've written this post shows you're already doing well on that journey. For me the thing that helps is not denying yourself things you want, (use the internal language of "I don't want ..." rather than "I can't have ..."), but trying to be sensible about them so when I really want some chocolate I will have a small piece and really enjoy it.

Start doing some exercise if you don't already - the endorphin rush compliments the effect of the anti-depressants, and it's a great sense of achievement.

Maybe try setting yourself small tasks - maybe write a weekly plan with one small achievable thing on it each day and tick them off as you do them. If weight loss is your goal, could be as simple as "eat salad" or "go for 15min walk" for example. As long as each is something which gets you moving in the right direction - what your tasks are will depend on where you are in your journey. Don't beat yourself up if you don't achieve something on a particular day - if you can try to think of something else you did that day that helped then make a point of writing that down and ticking it off. If not, find a mantra that works for you to remind you tomorrow is a new day and you'll be back on track then.

My key to appreciating achievements is to see them as steps on a journey, and not compare them to what I might be able to do when I'm fully OK. In that light it helps me see how far I've come since my darkest days and gives me continual hope that I can keep going. Even on my bad days it's comforting to know that they are less frequent and generally not as bad as they have been in the past (unfortunately I don't always see that at the time!).

Those are some of the things that have helped me, but obviously you need to find what works for you, x