depression isn't real...

salubriousliving

hope i got your attention, but not your anger!

i'm finding it very hard to stick with healthy eating an exercising because of my depression. i lack all sorts of motivation and almost always feel as if i don't deserve it and that i'll never be happy anyway.

my point is, i would LOVE to have motivation from those who have suffered/suffer through depression so that we can pull each other out that big hole.

ashesfromfire

Hello there - though technically I'm considered mentally healthy NOW, I would love to be friends and offer encouragement. I've been there, got threw it, you can too.

brevislux

Just for general knowledge, have you seen a doctor about that?

raven0314

hope i got your attention, but not your anger!

i'm finding it very hard to stick with healthy eating an exercising because of my depression. i lack all sorts of motivation and almost always feel as if i don't deserve it and that i'll never be happy anyway.

my point is, i would LOVE to have motivation from those who have suffered/suffer through depression so that we can pull each other out that big hole.

I'm sorry that you are going through depression. Things that can help are counseling and or therapy. You may have to search a little bit to find a someone who you are compatible with, but its worth it. There isn't anything wrong with seeking help, the mind is a powerful thing. Also don't be hard on yourself if you slack off from time to time. It happens to all of us. Keep moving at whatever pace you can. You'll get strong as time moves one. The key is to keep moving and get help.

God bless you. Remember, this is temporary. You'll be okay and your not alone. Lots of people experience depression for various and valid reasons.

FeebRyan

Hiya!

I am an 'ex depressive' I was diagnosed with bi-polar disorder (long cycling) when i was younger. I did not take drugs and worked on getting my brain to accept life on a different scale. So i stopped myself getting really happy, so i wouldnt drop to really sad

anyway.

Have you thought that something you are eating might be contributing to your depression? I stopped eating gluten a couple of months ago and the biggest sign of positivity for me, was that the aching feel of anxiety in the middle of my chest had gone. I can breath in and out now without it being there taunting me.

I actually ate a bit of gluten this week and i crashed yesterday, felt terrible about myself etc.

I would recommend you think about removing a few foods from your diet (in turn, not all at once) to see if you are a bit intolerant to anything that might be causing your depression. I know i was x

frogz21

I suffer from depression and I don't take medication for it, so I have to find ways to cope and that is...exercising! I think being physically active is important and I have noticed when I keep at it everyday that I feel more energized and less depressed. I don't feel sluggish or lazy. I will admit though that some days nothing helps my depression, but I try to get through it so that I can be happy.

Starla_

going through a huge bit of no motivation at the moment myself so I have set myself a challenge of finding something good everyday which will hopefully help motivate me and get me out of my funk.

Force yourself to exercise, even if its just a walk... you'll feel better for it.

DankiStar

I was at the point where getting out of bed was a struggle, when I did make it to work I usually had to leave by about lunch time, just couldn't hack it. I laid in bed and watched tv. That was it.

First I looked at the issues that were affecting me. My job was a big one and so was living 2,500km from my family and friends. Once I pinpointed this issue, I fixed it (ie quit my job and moved 200km away from home - much better!) but it still didn't motivate me.

I didn't realise the weight creeping on and when I did, I realised I had a choice. I could be unhappy and unhealthy, or I could be unhappy (and continue working on the unhappiness) and healthy. I didn't want my whole life to be a failure. So I started off slowly, found some classes I liked and some fun recipes I liked. I swapped my eating habits and slowly pulled myself out of the rut. Now I absolutely LOVE my new lifestyle, I only have a "black hole" day maybe once every few months, instead of 3 weeks out of four.

So my tip, start slow, find exercise you love, know what treats work for you (strawberries for me!)

Good luck! xx

taekwonkenpo

Identify your stressors that are likely causing you to feel deepresed. Then fix them.

In many cases the changes neccesary are big changes. Not always but in many cases. Whatever the case, make the changes.


I am not deppresed. (except about recent political results) I am 100% happy with my life and my amazing family. I have a good job and an OK support system. I have friends and i make enough money to get by. This is me. If you can not say some of these things for whatever reason then try to take whatever steps you have to so that you can say whatever possitive things about your life that you want to say.

Baby steps

Zomoniac

I'm currently going through a bout of depression myself. It's horrible. I'm sick of not sleeping, of pretending everything's just fine and wearing a fake smile all the time. That said, whilst I'm generally feeling very lethargic about most things, my diet and training is the one thing I'm managing to stick to. Having the structure of Insanity with every day having a pre-set workout and knowing I'll be well off track if I miss a day, and having MFP give me a big red number if I go over is managing to keep me going. If I wasn't tracking and wasn't following a structured exercise regime I suspect I'd be struggling.

JesterMFP

I'm sorry you're struggling with this. Are you getting any professional help for the diagnoses you mention on your profile? Finding the right medication can be extremely helpful for some people, and finding the right kind of therapy can be extremely helpful for others. (If you're lucky, and both work for you, then bingo! ) Serious clinical depression and PTSD are not the kind of things you can just will yourself out of, so don't feel bad about getting all the help you need. You're still very young; I seriously wish I was able to get proper help for my problems when I was your age, as it would have saved me from many difficult years in my 20s.

It is possible to get healthy and lose weight when you're depressed, but it makes things a lot harder. For me, it wasn't until I got a good handle on my mental state that I was able to find the determination and dedication needed to lose weight. When every day is a huge struggle, sometimes life becomes just about survival. There are lots of things that can help depression just a little bit though, and three of those are regular exercise, good nutrition and achieving small goals. How bad things are for you at the moment will determine the kind of goals you could set, but for example, try to incorporate some form of exercise every day. It's not going to magically make everything better, but do it regularly enough and it should help a little bit.

If you're not already getting some kind of counselling or therapy, I'd definitely look into that. PTSD is not something that just goes away on its own, and therapy can be really helpful. You absolutely deserve to be happy, and it's definitely possible. I know it's probably hard to believe that now, but honestly, that's the depression talking.

I am not deppresed. (except about recent political results) I am 100% happy with my life and my amazing family. I have a good job and an OK support system. I have friends and i make enough money to get by. This is me. If you can not say some of these things for whatever reason then try to take whatever steps you have to so that you can say whatever possitive things about your life that you want to say.

With all due respect, a person can have all those things and still be diagnosed with clinical depression.

LadyVeng3ance

I have never been in a depression per say, I have however been very anxious, and I feel as though those two are kinda the same. How they are both in our heads... I was sitting down one night at home, suffering from anxiety when I thought to myself "This anxiety is within me, this is not a cancer I need a doctor to remove, it is not HIV in which I require medicine it is not a "touchable" disease, which means a doctor cant cure it. Only I can. Sure a doctor of some sort could probably help, but in the end, the doctor would only bring a little push, and I would be the one to set myself free from the anxiety"

I was sitting there having these thoughts when I realized that I needed to think happy thoughts, I couldnt let this drag in my stomach, and these negative thoughts keep spiraling in my head.. So I put on some very calming music, enya, secret garden, hans zimmer or something of the kind, and I just started thinking happy thoughts. Where I wanted to travel, what I wanted to achieve in life, I thought I can do anything I want and I will not let my own mind fool me into thinking I cannot.. Since that night, I have not had anxiety..

My mom was very scared for me, she always wanted me to go see a doctor, maybe get some pills. I think she feared it would all end up very very bad.. It didn't, and it wasnt thanks to no doctor, it was all me.. Me and my willpower!

Good luck my friend, just remember, the power to change lies within you. No matter how useless you think you are, change the pattern of your thoughts and direct them to something more positive.. Just imagine if you can make yourself feel this bad, this useless then just think about how good you can make yourself feel when you direct your thoughts somewhere more positive

crystalbluewolf13

I've had depression since i was 12 years old and its never really got better or worse, and now i also have borderline personality disorder so i know how low you can get. Especially with motivation which i struggle a lot with. I'd recommend getting some help, it doesn't work for everyone but talking to someone can be helpful (i'm one of the unlucky ones who can't take anti-depressants or do talking therapy though as they just don't work). Hope you start feeling better soon hun

JesterMFP

I've had depression since i was 12 years old and its never really got better or worse, and now i also have borderline personality disorder so i know how low you can get. Especially with motivation which i struggle a lot with. I'd recommend getting some help, it doesn't work for everyone but talking to someone can be helpful (i'm one of the unlucky ones who can't take anti-depressants or do talking therapy though as they just don't work). Hope you start feeling better soon hun

Don't give up on the talking therapy. There are so many different kinds of therapists out there (and lots of bad ones, especially on the NHS), sometimes it's just about finding the right one for you. :flowerforyou:

piratesaregrand

I struggle with depression, and I have found eating better and getting off my *kitten* has really helped.

I have two rules eat the best I can, and go to the gym Monday to Friday.

I must go to the gym, get changed and stay for 10 minutes, after that I can leave. In the 8 months I've been going I think I've left after about 20 minutes twice. Every other day I've stayed 45minutes plus.

Plus I treat myself, just little things like getting a lush bath bomb after a hard work out.

Some days I fail with the eating, but I look back at what I used to do, eat a 4000 calorie packet of biscuits without batting an eyelid, and I feel proud that even though I've had a crappy eating day at least it's registering.

bufger

I eventually discovered that I had to stop looking for excuses for myself not to do things and just do them, thats how i personally broke the cycle.

The issue is with depression its hard to listen to that from somebody else. I never used to listen to people that'd say 'snap out of it' but in the end thats exactly what I had to do. You just have to discover it on your own and in your own time.

Best of luck to you. A healthy body can help gain a healthy mind so the worst thing you could do right now is quit.

taekwonkenpo

I am not deppresed. (except about recent political results) I am 100% happy with my life and my amazing family. I have a good job and an OK support system. I have friends and i make enough money to get by. This is me. If you can not say some of these things for whatever reason then try to take whatever steps you have to so that you can say whatever possitive things about your life that you want to say.

With all due respect, a person can have all those things and still be diagnosed with clinical depression.
[/quote]


There have been so many study's done about the unrealistic diagnosis of mental or phycological disorders. In fact one of the very first was three mental health experts purposly getting themselves admitted into pyceactric (sorry i have no idea how to spell that) hospitals just to prove how often many disorders, including depression, are misdiagnosed. My point.............just because a person is diagnosed with depression does not actually mean that they have it, nor vice versa. My point to the maker of this thread was only to try and resolve whatever issues are causing the onset of your depression so you can overcome it and move forword. All to often people don't deal with the underlying cause of thier issue and just stay in thier unhealthy cycle. Clinical depresion can be beat, often times it takes medication to get started. However all to often individuals become dependent on the medication becuse they use it as there excuse to not actually find solutions to the real reasoning for thier disorder. (however there are legitamite cases where medication is life long)

piratesaregrand

I am not deppresed. (except about recent political results) I am 100% happy with my life and my amazing family. I have a good job and an OK support system. I have friends and i make enough money to get by. This is me. If you can not say some of these things for whatever reason then try to take whatever steps you have to so that you can say whatever possitive things about your life that you want to say.

Baby steps

I too have all of those things, and in my case from the outside people will never understand why I wake up some mornings and want to kill myself.

kelly_e_montana

Many people have depression totally unrelated to stressors. It's an illness, one that I have struggled with off and on for most of my life. I have a great life and have the whole time, and nothing stresses me out for the most part EXCEPT depression and eating disorders.

AntWrig

hope i got your attention, but not your anger!

i'm finding it very hard to stick with healthy eating an exercising because of my depression. i lack all sorts of motivation and almost always feel as if i don't deserve it and that i'll never be happy anyway.

my point is, i would LOVE to have motivation from those who have suffered/suffer through depression so that we can pull each other out that big hole.

I was diagnosed as being depressed. I start working out and stopped taking my meds. As with anything else, you have to take things day-by-day.

1TenaciousGirl

Depression and anxiety is very real and something that I am coping with daily. There are days when the goal is get up and get dressed and make the kids lunch. I find I have to make little daily goals and work hard to achieve them. I take prozac for my depression and anxiety. It helps but doesn't cure it. Working out is also a key to helping me feel less depressed and anxious. I am happy to offer support.

Someone posted earlier about not needing a doctor to prescribe something. If you have a true chemical imbalance in your brain you need a doctor. Just as a diabetic has a chemical imbalance that doesn't let them use insulin or produce it correctly needs to replace that chemical so does someone with depression and anxiety need the chemical to be replaced in their brain. There are ways to make it on your own, there are natural solutions like essential oils and exercise, and there are pharmaceuticals that can replace it. You have to find the combination that works for you.

Usually talking with a therapist and journaling is essential to recovery. You can download a journal app or buy ya a notebook to write it. I use an app on my phone. It has a password to protect it. I can email entries to myself or whomever I choose. I can store photos in it and even categorize my entries. Another thing is start a blog. You can keep it private or share it with the world. The important thing is to write and to write when you are mired in the depression and when you have an up day. One thing my doctor asked me to do was just jot down one thing that I felt that day...this usually turns into a million things but I am a writer. And she also said to pick one thing that was helpful be it the sun was shining, I really did get dressed that day, my workout was good...whatever, but find one thing positive about the day. Somedays that is hard...but doing it has helped me reflect on the day and see where small things went right.

kelly_e_montana

Good points. Exercise is very therapeutic for depression. I've also had good luck with self-pampering like you mention and spending time outdoors in the warmer months and/or going somewhere warmer for a vacation (or even getting some UV therapy) in the colder months.

I have been on anti-depressants off and on, and I don't like them. They're not for me, and the side effects are as bad as the depression. I think FOR ME, they work if I am in crisis mode, short-term to get me stabilized, and that's it. But, I haven't taken an any oral prescription medication other than an anti-depressant in over ten years though (especially not antibiotics), so I feel more comfortable with natural healing approaches to most things.

BeautyFromPain

Hey,

I have depression, anxiety, and PTSD.
Anyone and everyone feel free to add me (:

Zomoniac

I am not deppresed. (except about recent political results) I am 100% happy with my life and my amazing family. I have a good job and an OK support system. I have friends and i make enough money to get by. This is me. If you can not say some of these things for whatever reason then try to take whatever steps you have to so that you can say whatever possitive things about your life that you want to say.

With all due respect, a person can have all those things and still be diagnosed with clinical depression.

This. Sometimes there's a rational explanation for depression, sometimes there isn't. In many ways it's better when there is, at least you've got something to blame (though then there's the problem you also have something to think about, whatever is causing it, and several months later it still occupies every thought you have and eats away at you endlessly). I find if there's no obvious problem then it can actually then make you feel guilty about the fact that you're feeling depressed when you don't appear to have anything to be depressed about, because most people would love to have the life you have, but you still can't shake that feeling and spend your days chasing your tail trying to find what's missing.

BeautyFromPain

I'm sorry you're struggling with this. Are you getting any professional help for the diagnoses you mention on your profile? Finding the right medication can be extremely helpful for some people, and finding the right kind of therapy can be extremely helpful for others. (If you're lucky, and both work for you, then bingo! ) Serious clinical depression and PTSD are not the kind of things you can just will yourself out of, so don't feel bad about getting all the help you need. You're still very young; I seriously wish I was able to get proper help for my problems when I was your age, as it would have saved me from many difficult years in my 20s.

It is possible to get healthy and lose weight when you're depressed, but it makes things a lot harder. For me, it wasn't until I got a good handle on my mental state that I was able to find the determination and dedication needed to lose weight. When every day is a huge struggle, sometimes life becomes just about survival. There are lots of things that can help depression just a little bit though, and three of those are regular exercise, good nutrition and achieving small goals. How bad things are for you at the moment will determine the kind of goals you could set, but for example, try to incorporate some form of exercise every day. It's not going to magically make everything better, but do it regularly enough and it should help a little bit.

If you're not already getting some kind of counselling or therapy, I'd definitely look into that. PTSD is not something that just goes away on its own, and therapy can be really helpful. You absolutely deserve to be happy, and it's definitely possible. I know it's probably hard to believe that now, but honestly, that's the depression talking.

I am not deppresed. (except about recent political results) I am 100% happy with my life and my amazing family. I have a good job and an OK support system. I have friends and i make enough money to get by. This is me. If you can not say some of these things for whatever reason then try to take whatever steps you have to so that you can say whatever possitive things about your life that you want to say.

Clinical depression has to do with serotonin levels in the brain, not life experiences...

taekwonkenpo

I am not deppresed. (except about recent political results) I am 100% happy with my life and my amazing family. I have a good job and an OK support system. I have friends and i make enough money to get by. This is me. If you can not say some of these things for whatever reason then try to take whatever steps you have to so that you can say whatever possitive things about your life that you want to say.

With all due respect, a person can have all those things and still be diagnosed with clinical depression.

This. Sometimes there's a rational explanation for depression, sometimes there isn't. In many ways it's better when there is, at least you've got something to blame (though then there's the problem you also have something to think about, whatever is causing it, and several months later it still occupies every thought you have and eats away at you endlessly). I find if there's no obvious problem then it can actually then make you feel guilty about the fact that you're feeling depressed when you don't appear to have anything to be depressed about, because most people would love to have the life you have, but you still can't shake that feeling and spend your days chasing your tail trying to find what's missing.

Those are likely the cases i reffered to that would require medication. Typicilly if there is no stressor then there is, as mentioned above, a chemical imbalence. However i am only trying to point out the cases in which many people will not aknoweledge the stressors within thier cycle and then use medication as an excuse to avoid dealing with the root cause. Depression would, in of it self, make dealing with the root cause of depression difficult but that does not change the facts. If an individual can fix there concerns then that should be there priority. One day at a time and using any all available resources.

taekwonkenpo

I'm sorry you're struggling with this. Are you getting any professional help for the diagnoses you mention on your profile? Finding the right medication can be extremely helpful for some people, and finding the right kind of therapy can be extremely helpful for others. (If you're lucky, and both work for you, then bingo! ) Serious clinical depression and PTSD are not the kind of things you can just will yourself out of, so don't feel bad about getting all the help you need. You're still very young; I seriously wish I was able to get proper help for my problems when I was your age, as it would have saved me from many difficult years in my 20s.

It is possible to get healthy and lose weight when you're depressed, but it makes things a lot harder. For me, it wasn't until I got a good handle on my mental state that I was able to find the determination and dedication needed to lose weight. When every day is a huge struggle, sometimes life becomes just about survival. There are lots of things that can help depression just a little bit though, and three of those are regular exercise, good nutrition and achieving small goals. How bad things are for you at the moment will determine the kind of goals you could set, but for example, try to incorporate some form of exercise every day. It's not going to magically make everything better, but do it regularly enough and it should help a little bit.

If you're not already getting some kind of counselling or therapy, I'd definitely look into that. PTSD is not something that just goes away on its own, and therapy can be really helpful. You absolutely deserve to be happy, and it's definitely possible. I know it's probably hard to believe that now, but honestly, that's the depression talking.

I am not deppresed. (except about recent political results) I am 100% happy with my life and my amazing family. I have a good job and an OK support system. I have friends and i make enough money to get by. This is me. If you can not say some of these things for whatever reason then try to take whatever steps you have to so that you can say whatever possitive things about your life that you want to say.

Clinical depression has to do with serotonin levels in the brain, not life experiences...

If diagnosed correctly. Which all to often clinical depression is not.

I worked a mental health unit at my place of employment. As such i recieved a lot of hours of training in mental health and many types of disorders. I am not an expert, but i can tell you that every mental health proffesional that did our training classes told us that there first priority when speaking to any individual that has any type of disorder is to assure there diagnosis is accurete.

Think of it this way.............the first thing your mental health proffesional, or counselor will do when meeting you is decide if they feel your diagnosis is accurete. Even clinical deppresion. (P.S. when i said "you" i was speaking generally, not to any particuler person)

kimmianne89

Hello, I suffer with depression and social phobia. I don't take medication as for some reason I believe I can ease it with being healthy and active.. but I definitely know how you are feeling! Feel free to add me if you like x

ladytinkerbell99

hope i got your attention, but not your anger!

i'm finding it very hard to stick with healthy eating an exercising because of my depression. i lack all sorts of motivation and almost always feel as if i don't deserve it and that i'll never be happy anyway.

my point is, i would LOVE to have motivation from those who have suffered/suffer through depression so that we can pull each other out that big hole.

I'm sorry that you are going through depression. Things that can help are counseling and or therapy. You may have to search a little bit to find a someone who you are compatible with, but its worth it. There isn't anything wrong with seeking help, the mind is a powerful thing. Also don't be hard on yourself if you slack off from time to time. It happens to all of us. Keep moving at whatever pace you can. You'll get strong as time moves one. The key is to keep moving and get help.

God bless you. Remember, this is temporary. You'll be okay and your not alone. Lots of people experience depression for various and valid reasons.

^ This is excellent advice. Just to add, I wish you well. If you need more friends, you can add me. :flowerforyou:

tubbyelmo

I have suffered with bouts of depression on and off for many years. I'm not on medication at the moment, though only a few months ago I thought I was starting to need tablets again. Thankfully I found this website, and started to exercise again, eat more healthily and drink plenty water. I still feel anxious at times but on the most part I feel so much better about myself. It will be a while before I reach my goal but I know I am working towards it, I have something to focus on, and I'm actually enjoying getting up out of bed to exercise. Add me as a friend and we can support and encourage each other towards our goals. Take care, this too will pass, we can get through together.

sann4137

I'm new here, but I'm 19 and am currently here to try to help with depression, social anxiety and bulimia. Add me with a message if you want support - I don't offer requests in case I trigger people x