Depression, Anxiety, or other Mental Health Conditions

jawafour wrote:

Corazon de Leon wrote:Ah, apologies if that was a sore point. Perhaps it's worth pushing yourself even to apply for a job every week... What is your industry, if you don't mind me asking?

No worries, Cora - I need to give myself a boot up the backside and start applying for stuff. I used to work in the banking industry - project and support work rather than branch banking - but I definitely do not want to return to that. Literally no idea what, though.

Green Gecko wrote:I've been trying really hard to get up at 7am and eat breakfast, managed to for 5 days straight... For anyone that does work at home because of issues or circumstances or whatever I do recommend working somewhere public at least 1 day a week...

Top stuff for getting into that regular routine, Gecko! I am cautious about working from home - it suits some people but, for me, I prefer to keep my home a separate place from work - even though the travel can sometimes be a pain. Different strokes for different folks, though.

Surely you need to get into something with a creative side??

Been having a pretty crap week myself just trapped inside my own head. I know I have good spells and bad spells though so I'll wait it out. A good work friend cracked this joke that honestly is pretty true "you know how some people are glass half full/glass half empty. Mate your glass has been nicked, it's gone."

I am going to make an effort to stop being so dead pan because I think it is being mistaken for being mean.

.

jawafour wrote:

still wrote:Surely you need to get into something with a creative side??

Yeah, I’d really like to do something that has at least a degree of a creative bent, still.

Johnny Ryall wrote:Been having a pretty crap week myself just trapped inside my own head. I know I have good spells and bad spells though so I'll wait it out...

It’s a strange feeling isn’t it, Johnny? You kinda know yourself that a darker period has arrived but it often feels like you can’t dig yourself out if it. Maybe you could do a couple of things that take your mind of it for a while? It sounds silly but, for me, I can play PES during those times because I have to totally concentrate and I can forget about other crappy stuff for a while. Hope you find something that does it for you, dude.

I went a run and didn't stop until my Fitbit said 10K which is a PB now! Alas when you're sat in an office at 1pm saying to yourself "oh strawberry float me 4 more hours of this" you can't take off and run but I feel good now.

.

.

Nicked from the Guardian games page:-

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/ ... s-calm-app

One of the clearest explanations of the benefits of mindfulness meditation under the paragraph 'the benefits of....) Don't get me wrong, meditation is something I should do not what I do. I have tried on and off in the past but I have the attention span of a gnat - the very thing mindfulness can help with!! I think what I need is a group to sit with on a weekly basis rather than just trying on my lonesome...

You can practice mindfulness for just 2 or 3 minutes per day and still have mental health benefits though as it starts to change the brain and patterns of thought, without deliberately trying to control thoughts (which is what most people get wrong about meditation). I definitely think it has helped. And it has even helped me overcome body aches and strains on occasion. Pretty cool feeling when your body is just letting go for a few minutes.

I also went to chiropractor recently due to neck problems. First time I got an adjustment to my lower back. It was bizarre the degree of relief, it actually made me laugh out loud like a nutcase and I got dizzy (may have been left over tranquilliser). But for the next few days I felt like I could spin my legs on the joints like some crazy dance man.

I've been resting a LOT. I think sometimes you need to turn attention to physical wellbeing if you spend so much time caught up in thoughts, as they are linked, and we really shouldn't consider the two separate.

Not sure if this is at all related to the fact I've started taking anti depressants but I've woken up this morning with the idea for a story that I feel desperate to attempt writing it as a book. Like so desperate I'd ring in sick to work so I could shut myself in a room with my computer, if I hadn't already used loads of sick this month. Since waking up I've made so many notes about the plot and I can't switch my mind off to think of anything else.

I just hope that this feverish inspiration stays with me long enough that I actually go through with it and make a start. I used to love painting and drawing years ago but my creative juices all but dried up. I'm sure if I actually managed to write a book it would probably be a bit gooseberry fool but I feel like I have to do it regardless. I just hope I still feel like this tonight so I can plan a structure or even just write some of the sections I've already conceived so I feel like I have something tangible that I can slot in if I start making real progress.

Sorry for rambling, my mind's just racing and I thought maybe someone could relate to this feeling.

Tragic Magic wrote:Not sure if this is at all related to the fact I've started taking anti depressants but I've woken up this morning with the idea for a story that I feel desperate to attempt writing it as a book. Like so desperate I'd ring in sick to work so I could shut myself in a room with my computer, if I hadn't already used loads of sick this month. Since waking up I've made so many notes about the plot and I can't switch my mind off to think of anything else.

I just hope that this feverish inspiration stays with me long enough that I actually go through with it and make a start. I used to love painting and drawing years ago but my creative juices all but dried up. I'm sure if I actually managed to write a book it would probably be a bit gooseberry fool but I feel like I have to do it regardless. I just hope I still feel like this tonight so I can plan a structure or even just write some of the sections I've already conceived so I feel like I have something tangible that I can slot in if I start making real progress.

Sorry for rambling, my mind's just racing and I thought maybe someone could relate to this feeling.

My mind tends to race a lot. That's why I really should take meditation up again! When I was a child I loved creative writing - the thoughts would come so quickly I couldn't write them down fast enough - (literally...) I remember my 'O' level English being like this - I was frantic. As a result my 'hand writing' was truly terrible! I still have a problem with my mind being all over the place..

I think you might be having an early side effect of your new meds - they do take a while to settle down. Still, write down your ideas and why not try and write that book - if only as an exercise to prove you can. Hopefully once the meds settle in your mind will settle too.

Tragic Magic wrote:...I've woken up this morning with the idea for a story that I feel desperate to attempt writing it as a book.

...I just hope that this feverish inspiration stays with me long enough that I actually go through with it and make a start. I used to love painting and drawing years ago but my creative juices all but dried up....

Do it, Tragic! Strike whilst the inspiration and belief are there! I don’t know about you, but I find that if you leave it a while then thoughts often turn to “why it wouldn’t work” and / or “it won’t be good enough”. Don’t let your ideas be extinguished in this way. I suspect you’ll feel good just making a start on it.

I think when you are treating depression you will have fleeting moments of wellness and excitement and I think it's important to make the best of those times. Just be careful to drink plenty of water, don't stay up late, and remember to take care of yourself so you don't put yourself into a slump by not attending to your needs.

I mean, I was so trying to get something done the other day I almost pissed myself You may find it difficult at first but easier in the long run to manage the depressive swings and do what you enjoy or need to get done when you are feeling better. I like to think this is when your mind and body are able to work together to get stuff done rather than fighting against aches or low mood or both, and yes there have been many occasions where I have sprung into a hive of activity and then a week later I wonder what happened to that feeling. It's usually when I "forget" or put off to eat or sleep in the same way I do when I'm feeling awful. It's a mixed blessing, so just try to stay aware of your feelings while not getting whisked away from them.

In similar situations I've written songs and produced music, it's a certain energy that isn't particularly practical for doing boring, mindless things. I also sometimes do woodwork or more recently machining as that's part of my business. Actually it was probably in a similar moment that I dropped a load of money on equipment and started the whole thing and, so far, have not put myself in a worse position by doing so but set up the means for a practical way of life.

.

It's pretty much 100% why I have a 15 day lead time honestly. I might do a job on day 1, day 5, day 14, it doesn't matter. It gives me the flexibility to work when I am able to best, rather than taking a 2 week holiday every 6 months from total burnout, like I have in the past.

GR can be an amazing place sometimes. A fellow GRcadian reached out to me about one or two things*... just off the cuff and going out of his way to offer a bit of help. Although all of us get het up in threads every now and again, it's wonderful to know that there are genuinely decent folk here.

* No, it wasn't for sexy times .

Yeah you guys are pretty amazing, it's true. As expected my excitement from this morning has passed now and I feel "normal" again. I couldn't take my mind off my story idea all day though and I barely got any work done. I've got gooseberry fool loads of notes and plot details and plans jotted on my phone though which I've been making throughout the day so hopefully I get another creative boost at a time I can start putting pen to paper. It's something I do really want to do but I feel like I need to make a start when a creative blast hits me.

Edit - Yeah, my mood's definitely dropped again. My wife is going to work now so I'm just going to go to bed as I haven't got the drive to do anything.

jawafour wrote:* No, it wasn't for sexy times .

Please Jawa, just acknowledge my advances.

.

Tragic Magic wrote:Yeah you guys are pretty amazing, it's true. As expected my excitement from this morning has passed now and I feel "normal" again. I couldn't take my mind off my story idea all day though and I barely got any work done. I've got gooseberry fool loads of notes and plot details and plans jotted on my phone though which I've been making throughout the day so hopefully I get another creative boost at a time I can start putting pen to paper. It's something I do really want to do but I feel like I need to make a start when a creative blast hits me.

Edit - Yeah, my mood's definitely dropped again. My wife is going to work now so I'm just going to go to bed as I haven't got the drive to do anything.

It may be something completely different but I'd add a little bit of caution in that I seem to get prolonged periods of the feelings you're describing. I've always had an addictive personality but my mental health issues started 4 years ago following a particularly horrible breakup and the end of a fling soon after and I threw myself into work, taking on every bit of overtime and booking nights in hotels so that I could do longer hours, nip into Tesco to buy a new shirt and some food then sleep. Not long afterwards I had what my first panic attack while driving and things haven't been right since.

I'm in one of the worst periods since then and again it comes after a house move and passing a very difficult engineering authorisation at work, both very positive things but I was utterly absorbed by them for 6-8 months.

I hope this doesn't come across as negative but just a warning that sometimes these highs can bring crushing lows.

I’ve come off citalopram largely because i’ve put pn so much weight over the past year - anyone else had this side effect with anti depressants or seratonin enhancers?

It also made my head fuzzy, like I didn’t care about anything or anyone and just couldn’t focus on my work or anything!