Any sufferers? I always get depressed in winter, if I could go to sleep tonight and wake up in March I totally would. What do you do to alleviate your symptoms? What do you feel is the point in anything really? Why bother? Aren't we all just going to die and turn to wormfood anyway? Do you think depression is the self-indulgent of a decadent first-world society? Do people in Africa get depressed? What if God was one of us?
I'm going through a horrible episode of depression. I'm malnourished and can easily sleep 11 hours. I'm so desperately hungry, yet all of my attempts to eat fail because of my lack of an appetite and fear that I'll vomit and remove whatever progress I've made if I push it too hard.
Fill your house with natural light bulbs and see if that helps I hope you are getting professional assistance. Sometimes short hospitalizations to get your body back in balance helps.
Sounds like you may be affected by Seasonal Adjustment Disorder... ... talk to your doctor or local mental health clinic... ... Seasonal affective disorder (SAD)... ... or Seasonal affective disorder - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia... ... or Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)-Topic Overview - WebMD
I was affected by SAD in my twenties though it has lessened as I get older. Talking to friends that have never been depressed just don't understand what depression is or what it is like. I found I could just wait it out.
I'm sorry to hear that man. I think you definitely should seek professional help immediately, that's obviously a psychological condition, you know that yourself from what you say, and the longer you leave it the worse it will get and the more damage it will cause your body. You really should see or speak to someone about that ASAP and not just once regularly. Keep us updated of your progress please and good luck. It probably is that but also I have a reasonable job in the summer but only in the summer, so it keeps me busy, fit, active and money in my pocket, but in the winter all that is gone, plus I've suffered with depression for a long time anyway. But SAD is also probably a factor. I totally agree, its infuriating to discuss with people who have never experienced it, they could never understand, so I just don't bother. Stick to people who have they can empathise and help much more. Post on here if you want.
I've since seen a therapist and gotten a tentative diagnosis of Generalized Anxiety Disorder and Depression, and the therapy helped enough that I've been eating, so I've got that going for me.
Well that's progress, it clearly is anxiety linked. I'm glad you did the right thing and are moving in the right direction.
Some studies have shown that certain types of light exposure on a daily basis helps S.A.D. Often the seasonal celebrations add to the depression when one's own expectations are not fully met. I had someone very close to me all but ruin every Christmas due to their depression every year. Luckily they finally got help.
Good for you for not only getting help but for recognizing the problem. Hope your progress keeps going! Good luck.
I'm glad to see that people still have compassion for strangers behind the veil of internet anonymity. - - - Updated - - - You're all good folks, truly.
Watched "Olive Kitteridge" last night. Excellent HBO miniseries about a depressed woman in a small coastal town in Maine.
Half a million people should be a pretty good sampling... Researchers Target 15 Genetic Regions Associated with Depression August 01, 2016 - In a major development toward the understanding of the biology of depression, researchers have identified 15 regions of the human genome associated with depressive illness.
all the fancy science won't say people are sad from having their jobs outsourced for the rich, politicians leaving veterans who need help from wars for the rich behind on waiting lists, alternative natural medicines like the cannabis plant being illegal to treat symptoms instead of dangerous medications that make others richer, etc...
Some of us are not mentally fit due to the admixture with Neanderthals who had at least 40% lower fitness than humans on average. Prevalence of major depressive disorder is significantly higher in Whites than in African Americans (Riolo et al. 2004). Most Europeans and Asians have between 1 to 4 percent Neanderthal DNA, while the ancestors of Africans had not interbred with Neanderthals, which made them mentally healthier. I think Russians can avoid winter depression by focusing on winter sports and I get excited in November, when the figure skating season begins. [video=youtube;ke0iusvydl8]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ke0iusvydl8[/video]
This may sound rather granola crunching new age blathering but, Meditation and deep thought subconscious relaxation allow the mind to "Reset" in a way that eliminates stressful BS thinking over time and can lead to a better understanding of "Life" and existence. I would recommend taking a trip to a Buddhist or other place of peaceful meditation practice to learn a few techniques. Often people of religious adherence end up where you have....YOU are totally capable of guiding your own life and mind to a better place.
In the 60's when I returned from Vietnam I became a mental basket case, the light at the end of the tunnel I figured was just another oncoming train. I hated myself and life in general. Had survivors guilt, and tons of anger. It took me ten years and two great therapist but today I'm happy and loving life and all it has to offer. So trust me, there is light at the end of the tunnel and it can be healing if you let it.
I bought a bright little sunshine-equivalent light a couple of winters ago and sit next to that for an hour or so a day in the winter. It really helps, especially if you can think of a hobby to use the bright light for so you remember to use it.
30 mg of Lexapro a day. I have struggled with alcoholism, depression, and anxiety for years. I've tried many drugs but Lexapro has worked best for me. I wanted to go to sleep and never wake up...after about two and a half weeks taking 30mg of Lexapro...One day I woke up and felt human again. I didn't feel like my anxiety was going to make me throw up. That day I could smile and laugh again. Lexapro has just recently been available in a cheaper, generic form... Before there were several times I couldn't afford to refill my Rx.... And I'd slip back into a dark place... Depression...dark, debilitating, dangerous depression is a very serious problem. My recommendation to anyone feeling hopeless, unmotivated, and sad is to go talk to a doctor ASAP. There is help
People get tired and discouraged. That feeling can weigh on you. Shifting to a different project, changing your schedule or trying different foods may help. In the end though, it's your choice whether you will let those feeling change what you need and want to do. If you could sleep till Mach, you would accomplish nothing between then and nowwhatever unfortunate circumstances are contributing to your depression would only get worse. Better to bite off a piece of that problem and try and solve it. Lists can help. You can take honest pride in having a plan, crossing items off as you accomplish them. And realize not everything will work. Sometimes you'll fail 9 out of 10 times. So get the nine over with. But if you don't give up, each failure bring will bring you that much closer to an eventual win.
Most Americans With Depression Not Being Treated Effectively... Most Americans With Depression Not Being Treated Appropriately August 31, 2016 - Depressed Americans are not getting as much medical help as they need, or an appropriate level of treatment, according to a new medical study.
I know many soldiers who beat depression through exercise. It releases the "feel good" chemicals in your brain and takes your focus off the blues.
Background Why schizophrenia has accompanied humans throughout our history despite its negative effect on fitness remains an evolutionary enigma. It is proposed that schizophrenia is a by-product of the complex evolution of the human brain and a compromise for humans’ language, creative thinking, and cognitive abilities. Methods We analyzed recent large genome-wide association studies of schizophrenia and a range of other human phenotypes (anthropometric measures, cardiovascular disease risk factors, immune-mediated diseases) using a statistical framework that draws on polygenic architecture and ancillary information on genetic variants. We used information from the evolutionary proxy measure called the Neanderthal selective sweep (NSS) score. Results Gene loci associated with schizophrenia are significantly (p = 7.30 × 10−9) more prevalent in genomic regions that are likely to have undergone recent positive selection in humans (i.e., with a low NSS score). Variants in brain-related genes with a low NSS score confer significantly higher susceptibility than variants in other brain-related genes. The enrichment is strongest for schizophrenia, but we cannot rule out enrichment for other phenotypes. The false discovery rate conditional on the evolutionary proxy points to 27 candidate schizophrenia susceptibility loci, 12 of which are associated with schizophrenia and other psychiatric disorders or linked to brain development. Conclusions Our results suggest that there is a polygenic overlap between schizophrenia and NSS score, a marker of human evolution, which is in line with the hypothesis that the persistence of schizophrenia is related to the evolutionary process of becoming human. Figure 3 Quantile-quantile and fold enrichment plots showing schizophrenia association enrichment of brain genes with negative Neanderthal selective sweep (NSS) score. (A) Quantile-quantile and (B) fold enrichment plots are shown for single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) annotated to generic genes (Any); SNPs annotated to genes associated with the brain, as established by a National Center for Biotechnology Information site search (Brain); SNPs annotated to genes associated with the brain, defined by Kang et al. (35) (Neuro); SNPs with negative NSS score and annotated to genes associated with the brain, as established by a National Center for Biotechnology Information site search (NSSBrain); SNPs with negative NSS score and annotated to genes defined by Kang et al. (35) (NSSNeuro); and all SNPs (All SNPs). The NSS Brain category is enriched (deflected left) compared with the other categories (i.e., presents a higher incidence of associations [lower p values] with schizophrenia). This is confirmed by the binomial proportion test comparing Brain and NSS Brain groups (p = 5.5 × 10−3). Applying a polygenic statistical approach, we leveraged recent large GWAS data and showed that schizophrenia associations have a higher propensity to be found in genomic regions that diverge from their Neanderthal counterparts (negative NSS score). Such polygenic overlap between schizophrenia and a marker of human evolution is in accordance with the hypothesis of Crow (19), suggesting that many schizophrenia susceptibility factors might have arisen as a “side effect” of human achievements such as language and creative thinking (17). The current findings support the view that this evolutionary process also made humans vulnerable to schizophrenia. http://www.biologicalpsychiatryjournal.com/article/S0006-3223(15)00855-0/fulltext This article (Srinivasan et al. 2016) basically argues that it's Neanderthal admixture that made us smarter with language and creative thinking but we also inherited schizophrenia and other psychiatric disorders from the Neanderthals as a side effect of the evolutionary process. It's freely accessible from the link.
