Social anxiety and depression.

jollyjoe321

It's about learning to love yourself for what you are. For some people losing weight helps. For others, building muscle, seeing friends is the perfect "pick-me-up." It may be something as simple as the social events you actually attend are simply not your cup of tea and you aren't at your best. Either way, best of luck with your journey, keep your head up, and see you at the top

KatrinaGrey

As someone with bipolar, anxiety, and depression, I know how tough it is. I focus on one day at a time and how good I feel after eating well and exercising, not on the weight loss. I do take medication because I have tried alternative methods many times, and fought against taking meds, but without medication, none of them work as well for me. However, eating healthy and working out keeps my dosage low so I'm not on as high a dosage as some people are. Medication, inc conjunction with other things, has stabilized my mood and allowed me to push past some of my insecurities.

Getting to the gym or running outside can be a challenge, (as I worry, what will someone think?? what if I look stupid? why am I doing this, im no athlete etc) but as I get older, the more likely I am to say *kitten* it and anyone who has a problem with me. Finding confidence and an FU attitude for any haters has been a blessing. I even wore running shorts to the park the other day when it was super hot and I didnt care what anyone thought.

I don't believe in a one size fits all to any problem, but trying new things and keeping yourself open to options will help.

sfcrocker

About 25years ago I was in a fire and suffered second degree burns (no scars luckily). The room I was in had a gas leak and exploded. I thought I was going to die but the things I'd always been told--your life will flash will before your eyes, you'll suddenly believe in god again, etc.--didn't happen. Instead I just thought "this sucks". I went through about a month of recovery but after that went into a deep deep depression as well as severe anxiety and a fear to even go into buildings.

Luckily, I had a good psychiatrist who used both medication *AND* talk therapy with a psychologist to get me through it. The whole process took about two years. I point this out because there's not going to be a magic cure for your anxiety and/or depression but IT CAN BE MANAGED. You look young so even though two years may seem like a huge amount of time (it might take more for you, it might take less) it really isn't in the big scheme of things.

A couple of times in my life the anxiety has come back and when it does I attend an anxiety group or go see the psychiatrist.

The key is to GET STARTED. You sound like you've already acknowledged the issue so now it's time to take steps, even baby steps, toward healing. As much as we like to think we're powerful and independent, I'd still recommend you get help from another person or group of people.

Also, I'd recommend exercise, especially swimming which seems to melt anxiety away from every muscle in the body. If not swimming, do something outdoors in nature so that you get exercise and the spiritual beauty of being outside. I like to hike in Mendocino, CA surrounded by redwoods. It's very tranquil and hours will pass with me just thinking about things and I come back refreshed and relaxed.

Finally, a personal trick I use is that when I'm anxious, upset or angry about something, I ask myself: am I still going to be anxious upset or angry about this in an hour? day? month? If the answer is an hour or a day I let it go. I actually picture what I'm anxious about mentally drifting away from me. If the answer is a month or more, then I come up with an action plan to deal with it.

Good luck and please keep us posted with how things go for you!