Motivation when you have depression.
SamMorBelsmom
Posts: 164 Member
Do to a recent find in my depression history, I am hoping to shake it in the next couple of weeks but my motivation for working out and eating healthy is zilch to none. All I want to do is eat junk and sit on my *kitten*. I dread my work outs and then the only reason I am doing them is because I know I get to eat more. Its unhealthy, this circle of self destruction and I was hoping for some success stories that involve depression and over coming it. I am so tired of being the chubby one...
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Replies
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I came here praying that someone had replied with something helpful already.
I wish I knew words to encourage and help, but I feel like I'm lost on the same island as you.
Depression and anxiety have taken over the last two months of my life and it has reflected with my stagnant weight.0 -
http://theoatmeal.com/comics/running
not a depression success story, but it's funny, it's truth, and maybe it'll make you smile a bit.0 -
I have found that eating poorly and not exercising make my depression much worse. I've shifted my focus not to be to workout to lose weight, but to eat as cleanly as I can (not diet, not feel deprived). When you eat to feel good and exercise to feel good, rather than get thin, it becomes more doable, and you start to feel better. It becomes a cycle of feeling great, and eating better and working out more often to keep feeling great. There are ups and downs, but I think it gets better over time, if you just keep trying.0
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I don't really exercise, but I find that being depressed reduces my appetite anyway. Getting to 1,200 is a lot of effort, so usually I'll try to make it all healthy calories. So I'll have two slices of wholemeal/seeded toast with mushroom pate and a glass of orange juice, and that gets me up to 500ish calories. Then other small meals (even toast again if I'm completely not in the mood to eat) throughout the day.
Walking is a good exercise if you can't be bothered with anything else.0 -
Love you all so much! I struggle with major depression and after many years of using food to get me through the next hour because living was just too painful, I've come to realize this:
When you're depressed, minutes feel like hours, and they hurt. Bad.
You're bored and don't care enough about anything to fix it.
You're drowning in guilt for not doing enough, not caring enough, etc etc.
I had this epiphany that I felt less depressed/guilty when I was being productive while lying around trying to make it through the next hour -- ie, if the dishwasher or washing machine was running.
Then I realized if I stuck to my calorie intake, I WOULD be productive while lying around -- always. The weight would creep off slowly. That gave me a little glimmer of hope.
Realize that you don't have to push yourself and go crazy with exercising right away. If all you can do is make it through the day, just make it through the day while sticking to your calorie goal. It's one small responsibility you can handle. Even if it takes you months to feel like you can get out of bed and go for a walk, you're at least losing pounds that will make it easier when you do. And you'll find that you might feel like moving more often after awhile..
I hope this helps.. it's the only way I get by! Add me if you need support!0 -
Meditation
seriously sleep 8 hours - make it a priority
It may sound silly, but I think vitamin D has helped my depression
Do an inventory of all the awesome things you've accomplished in the last year, and every time that little voice in your head tells you what a loser you are, whip out the list and beat that voice back into submission0 -
I suffer from depression. I've had it on and off since I was a teen. Sometimes its so bad, all I can do is lie in bed and stare at the tv. Going to work is the only thing I can manage. Even then, my work suffers, my home suffers, I suffer.
It becomes a cycle, you aren't happy, so you eat, so you gain weight, so then you really aren't happy. You have to break the cycle.
The only thing I've found that helps is exercise. I throw all of the pain, sorrow, mind numbing grief, sadness, unhappiness and loneliness into exercise. I still hate life, I still don't want to get out of bed, but I know that the exercise helps. It may take a little time but it helps.
I walk, a lot. Walking becomes a sort of therapy. Walking and breathing, it becomes meditative. My brain clears, my thoughts clear and, eventually, it depression clears. It doesn't happen overnight, but it does happen.
Sorry that I don't have an answer, just a knowledge of what you are going through. Good luck to you!!0 -
I wish I had some words to help you.. unfortunately I know too many people who suffer bouts of depression and would love any advice given on how to help at those times as well...0
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I have found that eating poorly and not exercising make my depression much worse.
Agree 100% with the above. When I don't exercise for more than a week I get incredibly depressed. I went through a 2-year bout of depression and the only thing that pulled me out was forcing myself to work out on a regular basis. I still experience it from time to time, but it's MUCH more manageable when exercising daily.0 -
I experienced depression once, it was very strange. I felt so vulnerable, like I would not be able to handle normal daily stresses.
My overall advice based on my own experience, is to gently steer yourself away from bad habits/patterns.
I overcame depression with natural means, check out St. John's Wort (an herb), as a medically recognized means of support for healing from depression.
Other supplements I took were recommended along with that herb, Omega's and vitamin D3. It takes 6 weeks to level out of depression.
Also, regular exercise.
Steer yourself back to regular sleep times, if that has been affected. The herb helps with that as well.
Give yourself not weeks, but months, to heal. It took me a solid 3 months to heal, and not feel like I was sliding down into depression again. I did feel "better" in 4 weeks. After 3 months, I slowly backed off the St. John's wort. Keep a bottle of the herb around for a period of time afterwards, just in case you need the support.
I am completely healed now, I don't ever take the herb. Although I have kept a bottle on hand in the wintertime for the past few years, as that historically was my most vulnerable time due to lack of sunshine and stress combined.0 -
I also struggle with bouts of depression and eat unhealthy to give me that tiniest boost to get me through the day and its only really recently I've been finding ways to overcome it.
1) I've stocked up on 'healthier' treats such as under 100 calories snacks which are really sweet and give an endorphin boost
2) made myself a motivational notepad. In it is my goals, quotes, things people have said and pictures I've cut out of magazines of clothes and things I want when I've lost weight. I find the actual putting together of this book can also sway my mind from depressive thoughts.
3) realised that going over is not the be all and end all. For example yesterday I went out for lunch with an old friend which tipped me over my limit. Sometimes this would get me down but then I realised if I go for 3 extra 30 minute walks this week I'll have burnt it off and that is perfectly manageable.
I hope you are feeling more like yourself soon and good luck with the weight loss0 -
I have dealt with major depressive order (recurrent) a few times in my life. Currently I'm still on antidepressants, and have been for the past, Oh, five years or so. Maybe closer to six. I had severe post partum depression after my last child was born. Have you and your doctor experimented with different meds? I was one one med that left me just feeling "not suicidal", which was really an improvement over the alternative, but I really missed being an upbeat happy person. We had to screw around with doseages and different meds for years, literally, but last year I got on one that controlled the depression and allowed me to feel a bigger range of happy than just flat and "not too sad". Bonus is that "Weight gain" is NOT listed as a side effect of this one.
Anyway, other than the med issue, which you have to address with your doctor, I'd suggest not relying too heavily on motivation. There are two definitions for "motivation" you know. One is "the reasons that prompt someone to make a change." You haven't lost that motivation. You still want to lose weight for health benefits, appearance, or whatever originally made you start this process. Those haven't changed and they won't. The other thing that people mean when they talk about "motivation" is an emotional state of excitement, high energy, and "looking forward" to doing something. That isn't sustainable. It's an emotional reaction. As you know, human beings are creatures of emotional change. We're MEANT to have a variety of emotional states that change in response to what's going on around us. In fact, a flat affect, or the inability to feel a variety of emotions is criteria for a diagnosis of mental illness. You can't maintain happy, or sad (unless you're depressed) indefinitely, so why would you be able to maintain "motivated"?
The thing is though, you don't have to be "motivated" to succeed. You really can do your workouts because they're good for you, or they allow you to eat more, or just because activity is the means by which the human machine is maintained. A daily walk is to the human body what an oil change every 3,000 miles is to your car. Sure you can blow it off because you're "too busy", or "it costs too much money", or you "don't have time", but you'll still destroy your engine.
At some point you have to move "taking care of my body appropriately", which includes a proper diet of nutritious food in the right amounts to repair your cells and fuel your activity, and appropriate amounts of that activity, into the same mental category that you have for all your other adult behaviors: going to work, paying your bills, obeying the law, caring for your children, etc. etc. etc. That is "Stuff I have to do whether I'm in the mood or not, or the consequences will be more unpleasant than I wish to bear."
Now the good thing is that it's not all drudgery forever. Motivation doesn't just go away and stay gone. Remember, it's an emotional state. That means it comes back too. Generally it comes back in response to improvements. If you lose weight, don't you feel a burst of inspiration to keep doing it? When your running time improves, you feel excited about it. What works for me is to track many, many things, not just my weight. I take measurements of my body, I use a heart rate monitor for my exercise. I track max heart rate, resting heart rate, time to recovery to baseline, distance I've walked, ran, biked, kayaked, amount of weights I can lift and reps I can do in strength training. With all that data, it's very seldom that I go even three days without seeing some improvement. Maybe the scale is stuck, but I'm losing inches. If I'm not losing inches, then I'm running faster. If I'm not running faster, then I can move up a weight category on my kettlebell exercises. That keeps my head in the emotional space of "I'm making progress. This is working." which is way more motivational than any photoshopped fitness quote on Pinterest, EVER.0 -
http://theoatmeal.com/comics/running
not a depression success story, but it's funny, it's truth, and maybe it'll make you smile a bit.
At your suggestion, I just read this. I read Oatmeal comics anyway, but this was brilliant.
It has made my day, my week and even my year. Love it!0 -
I can not cry and run at the same time !
I also try to listen rather then talk.
and prayer !0 -
For me, keeping to a schedule helps when my depression starts spiraling - meaning, a gym schedule, but also a healthy (and simple) meal plan. It's still not easy, but I know that not working out and eating unhealthy food makes my depression that much worse. Just do what little you can, even if it feels like you're going through the motions.0
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If you can, think of eating well and exercising as prescriptions for your depression. I have a long history of depression, and find that a good 30-60 minute session of aerobic exercise makes a huge difference in mood. And they don't call it a cycle of depression for nothing. You can feed the depression, or you can feed your body what it needs to get better--a healthier diet does support improved mental health.
And moving out of depression takes hard work. If you don't have a therapist to help you, find one. Your insurance may pay part of it and is likely to pay for psychiatric care (you'd need to see an MD to get medication--most people benefit more from a combination of drugs and talk therapy, but being the daughter of a drug addict, I was always afraid to go that route myself). Many therapists will work out a payment plan or set fees relative to your ability to pay. Many pastors and rabbis have so-called "Pastor's Purses" to use as discretionary funds for members and are happy to use them to help with mental health care. And local universities may offer low-cost care from grad students who are closely supervised by credentialed therapists.
Good luck.0 -
I'm a couple of weeks off meds because I don't really care and I don't feel so good. I am hoping that maybe changing my diet will save me $120 psychiatrist visit every three months and $30 a month in medication.
They say you lose weight on Wellbutrin but I didn't notice any change until I stopped then the scale went up. Way up.
Gained 9lbs in 2 weeks, erased my last mfp account, got a new account
So much junk food, zero motivation. I'm not working out. I might when it cools down but I'm not dealing with my kids separation anxiety if I drop them off in the gym daycare and like hell I'm going outdoors when it's 100F outside.
I have a goal now so I am trying to stay mindful of eating much much less and cutting the junk food completely. I ran out of money last pay period, and I think Jack in the Box and Taco Bell had a lot to do with that.
That Oatmeal comic made me feel very uncomfortable.0 -
I have clinical depression. Luckily, it responds to medication. I still have the usual ups and downs, but with medication, a great bike ride, a fun activity, a good book or even just a funny sitcom can raise my spirits.
A while back, my medication stopped working. Nothing in my life had gotten worse, but suddenly I found no joy in anything and felt hopeless all the time.None of those things above made me feel better. At the worst point, I didn't even want to sit on my rear and watch TV, I just laid in bed.
I upped the dose and felt better again. Which is to say, sometimes depression is just a stupid chemical imbalance in your brain easily treated with medication.0 -
I experienced depression once, it was very strange. I felt so vulnerable, like I would not be able to handle normal daily stresses.
My overall advice based on my own experience, is to gently steer yourself away from bad habits/patterns.
I overcame depression with natural means, check out St. John's Wort (an herb), as a medically recognized means of support for healing from depression.
Other supplements I took were recommended along with that herb, Omega's and vitamin D3. It takes 6 weeks to level out of depression.
Also, regular exercise.
Steer yourself back to regular sleep times, if that has been affected. The herb helps with that as well.
Give yourself not weeks, but months, to heal. It took me a solid 3 months to heal, and not feel like I was sliding down into depression again. I did feel "better" in 4 weeks. After 3 months, I slowly backed off the St. John's wort. Keep a bottle of the herb around for a period of time afterwards, just in case you need the support.
I am completely healed now, I don't ever take the herb. Although I have kept a bottle on hand in the wintertime for the past few years, as that historically was my most vulnerable time due to lack of sunshine and stress combined.
I am glad you are feeling better and it sounds like you experienced a placebo effect with the St. John's Wart. That pill is not recognized as an effective tool in treating depression. (although it has been marketed as such) Also, there is no time frame "to level out", as each individual will experience different symptoms and severity levels of depression. There must have been other changes associated with your decrease in symptoms and feeling better, but it was not the St. Johns Wart.
I am just throwing this out there for the OP for additional information. Again, I am glad that you are feeling better. :flowerforyou:0 -
I have found exercise to be the best treatment of my depression (persistent since childhood). The more / harder I work out, the better improved my mood is overall. I would never give it up. Even on days when my fatigue is really bad, if I just push myself to start a workout, I always feel better afterwards. Depression is really difficult to live with. I don't know if everyone overcomes it. I just try to manage it, and live the best quality of life I can. There are bad days, but there are really good days too.0
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I'm going to echo a lot of other people here and recommend walking. Especially when combined with sunshine, trees, water, etc. In Japan they have a word, shinrin-yoku "forest bathing", for taking a walk through the woods for mental health.0
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It's hard. For me, medication and therapy to treat the depression. And when the mood lifts the motivation comes back. It's not always so cut and dry however because so many meds for depression cause weight gain.
I have Bipolar disorder, so medication is a must. It took years but I'm finally on a weight neutral med.
I am on here right now looking for motivation. The more I read in these message boards, the better I feel.0 -
I'm struggling too. There is a lot going on in my life right now. It's hard. Sometimes I have to literally haul myself off my *kitten* and go to the garage where my makeshift gym is. I'm horribly impatient and this process...well, is a long process. The good thing is I never regret a workout, but I'd definitely regret missing one. The diet is much harder for me to reign in and I try to preplan as much as I can to avoid going over my limit. I have to keep telling myself that, even though I'm far from my goal, I'm SO much closer than I was six months ago. I'm stronger. My clothes fit differently. Others have noticed a subtle change. So I keep going.
I'm sorry that I don't have many (or any) words of wisdom, but just know that you aren't alone.0 -
I experienced depression once, it was very strange. I felt so vulnerable, like I would not be able to handle normal daily stresses.
My overall advice based on my own experience, is to gently steer yourself away from bad habits/patterns.
I overcame depression with natural means, check out St. John's Wort (an herb), as a medically recognized means of support for healing from depression.
Other supplements I took were recommended along with that herb, Omega's and vitamin D3. It takes 6 weeks to level out of depression.
Also, regular exercise.
Steer yourself back to regular sleep times, if that has been affected. The herb helps with that as well.
Give yourself not weeks, but months, to heal. It took me a solid 3 months to heal, and not feel like I was sliding down into depression again. I did feel "better" in 4 weeks. After 3 months, I slowly backed off the St. John's wort. Keep a bottle of the herb around for a period of time afterwards, just in case you need the support.
I am completely healed now, I don't ever take the herb. Although I have kept a bottle on hand in the wintertime for the past few years, as that historically was my most vulnerable time due to lack of sunshine and stress combined.
I am glad you are feeling better and it sounds like you experienced a placebo effect with the St. John's Wart. That pill is not recognized as an effective tool in treating depression. (although it has been marketed as such) Also, there is no time frame "to level out", as each individual will experience different symptoms and severity levels of depression. There must have been other changes associated with your decrease in symptoms and feeling better, but it was not the St. Johns Wart.
I am just throwing this out there for the OP for additional information. Again, I am glad that you are feeling better. :flowerforyou:
Actually, St. John's Wort has been shown, in clinical trials, to treat certain kinds of depression, namely, acute varieties ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_John's_wort#Medicinal_uses ). So, she didn't necessarily get a placebo effect (though neither is it guaranteed to work for the original poster, but we won't get into the efficacy of antidepressants in general here).0 -
I'm a couple of weeks off meds because I don't really care and I don't feel so good. I am hoping that maybe changing my diet will save me $120 psychiatrist visit every three months and $30 a month in medication.
They say you lose weight on Wellbutrin but I didn't notice any change until I stopped then the scale went up. Way up.
Gained 9lbs in 2 weeks, erased my last mfp account, got a new account
So much junk food, zero motivation. I'm not working out. I might when it cools down but I'm not dealing with my kids separation anxiety if I drop them off in the gym daycare and like hell I'm going outdoors when it's 100F outside.
I have a goal now so I am trying to stay mindful of eating much much less and cutting the junk food completely. I ran out of money last pay period, and I think Jack in the Box and Taco Bell had a lot to do with that.
That Oatmeal comic made me feel very uncomfortable.
I hope you discussed going off of meds with your doctor, and if not, I hope you make an appointment soon. A change in diet and exercise may be able to help some people and some symptoms, but other times medication is imperative to treatment.0 -
I'm going to echo a lot of other people here and recommend walking. Especially when combined with sunshine, trees, water, etc. In Japan they have a word, shinrin-yoku "forest bathing", for taking a walk through the woods for mental health.
Second this. Getting out in the sun prompts your body to create Vitamin D, which is known to help with depression. And being out in nature is just refreshing in general.0 -
First off, if you have a good relationship with your doctor, go there first. Medication can make a huge, huge difference. Also I've found that things like D3, magnesium, and iron all seem to help me with energy levels.
Second, for me, exercise is something that I do at certain times of day. I've worked to get into a a schedule, and since I'm a creature of habit I'm more uncomfortable with falling out of the schedule than giving in to the not wanting to go. Sometimes I look forward to it, sometimes it's a hellish chore, but I remind myself that I *have* to keep going. If not for me, than for my daughter.
Anyway, that's what works for me. Try things, see what works for you. In the end, please remember that you're not alone.
Depression lies.
*hugs*0 -
I have suffered for most of my life (off and on) from clinical depression and after the battle to come off meds last time refuse to go back on this time....it has been a battle for a few weeks now and the only thing that gets me through is knowing that the black clouds will again pass. Im sorry that this does not help or offer much in the way of immediate relief. But if anyone wants to add me (to know that there are others on this journey who suffer and to try and get through together) please feel free to do so.
There are no quick fixes but as I saw posted, eating poorly and not exercising do seem to make it worse (although thats all I crave, salt, sugar and sleep) I fight it with all I can.
Please try to stay strong........and if you need medical help to get through maybe its right for you?0 -
I'm a couple of weeks off meds because I don't really care and I don't feel so good. I am hoping that maybe changing my diet will save me $120 psychiatrist visit every three months and $30 a month in medication.
They say you lose weight on Wellbutrin but I didn't notice any change until I stopped then the scale went up. Way up.
Gained 9lbs in 2 weeks, erased my last mfp account, got a new account
So much junk food, zero motivation. I'm not working out. I might when it cools down but I'm not dealing with my kids separation anxiety if I drop them off in the gym daycare and like hell I'm going outdoors when it's 100F outside.
I have a goal now so I am trying to stay mindful of eating much much less and cutting the junk food completely. I ran out of money last pay period, and I think Jack in the Box and Taco Bell had a lot to do with that.
That Oatmeal comic made me feel very uncomfortable.
That doesn't sound like the effect of going off of your medication, other than that you've regressed. Please, go back to your doctor and go back on your medication. Spending a chunk of money every couple of months for something that was clearly helping you is a far cry better than going broke on junk food.0 -
I'm sorry. Being depressed completely bites.
I've been in and out of therapy and on Paxil for half my life (since I was 15). I have noticed a slight difference since I began to exercise and record what I eat, but it's certainly not the magic cure for me. I was talking about it with a friend yesterday and I compared exercise to a jump-start for your car. If the only problem is that the engine won't start, then jumper cables will fix it. But if it won't start, and the fuel line's broken, and there's no oil in the engine, and the timing belt is missing, and both rear tires are flat...well, you have to address those things before jumping the car will do any good.
Keeping up with exercise and a healthy diet requires a lot of slow, sustained effort. Depression sucks away all the energy you have and makes it so you're struggling just to stay upright. Do what you can to address the depression first. If some of that includes more exercise and other healthy activities, so much the better! But don't hesitate to go further afield if that's not fixing things for you. There are a lot of tools out there you can use.
Best of luck.0
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