[swfter2456]

(12-06-2015 10:55 PM)RioNomad Wrote:  

I should have read your original post closer.

I have also had some pretty bad depression the past year or so. Something I never experienced before on this level. I have very low energy these days, but it's getting better. For a while I was sleeping until 2-4PM and had no energy to wake up. Showering, cutting my hair, etc. were all exhausting. It would take me 2-3 hours to shit, shower and shave. I was fucking miserable, and I didn't even hardly realize it. I'd never had depression like that before. Now several months later I can tell looking back that mentally I was pretty fucked up for months on end. Maybe even a year. It takes a while to snap out of it, but I'm doing much better now.

My non-doctor opinion is that diet, exercise, sunlight, and lifestyle can fix a lot. I am extremely wary of any medications for depression. I'm uneducated in this, but most depressed people I know are on meds, and they are still fucked in the head. None of them exercise or change their lifestyle, and it doesn't seem like their doctors push them to. They just give them pills with side effects and then give them more pills to combat those side effects. Fucking madness.

A few things that have helped me.

1. Go to bed and wake up at a set time. This is still a struggle for me, but I find going to bed earlier and waking up earlier has helped me a lot. It takes time though. The more depressed I was the harder it was to do, but eventually I was able to start doing it.

2. Stop drinking. I have cut way back on my drinking and I think it helps. When I drink I get hungover, lay around all day, eat like shit, and it throws off my sleep and everything for several days.

3. Eat healthier. My diet always has a huge effect on my mental state. Start eating at more regular times. When I was really depressed I wouldn't eat for hours and hours and I'd get sleepy and low energy and headaches and it was fucking me up. Eat 3 square meals per day.

4. Morning cardio. I've only been doing this for a few days, but it's definitely making me feel good. Force yourself to go to the gym and do even just 20 minutes on an exercise bike. Throw in your headphones and listen to some music that pumps you up, or some audiobooks that are motivational for you.

Get some help man. Find a forum that specializes in this stuff. Preferably not a forum filled with people eating pills like they are candy.

My diet has gone to shit last few months. Let me rephrase that, I've had periods where I've eaten healthy, then there are periods where I've eaten like Im sick, eg either nothing or everything. I don't drink, I sleep too much, and I've forced myself to run lately but honestly have just felt like shit during and after.

(12-06-2015 11:46 PM)Phoenix Wrote:  

What is the source of your depression?

Please be brutally honest with yourself and with us. What is it that deep down inside you want but don't have, and don't believe you can have? What is the specifuc thing or things you are missing? Don't shut out any of the answers you suspect.

Then post it here.

I'm isolated as fuck, I have no one in my life. I've done all these things and been told I have an awesome life yet am still miserable.

(12-07-2015 01:18 AM)Phoenix Wrote:  

^ I agree with OP that that is shithouse advice. Damn, if I believed that life was about suffering I'd probably consider offing myself too.

Depression is a signal that you're doing something wrong in your life, or failing to do something fundamental. Thus its boldily purpose is to compel you to rectify that.

Note the very action of the OP - depressed people often go online and ask these questions to help discover the path out of their depression, and they often post background information to help others with their suggestions. Frankly, saying "just accept that life is suffering" is absolutely disgusting.

Exiting depression is not a medical issue, as OP has become aware. Doctors like to treat it as such because of their pervasive moral failings.

Exiting depression is a case of either discovering the root cause of the depression (through introspection and asking others etc) and then fixing, attaining or dismantling that; or it is a case of just making massive life changes in attempt to re-land in a better place.

Isolated as hell. I'm going online and getting cliche advice, I went to get professional help and I don't think it was helpful at all, has just made me worse.

(12-07-2015 01:24 AM)iknowexactly Wrote:  

Are you drinking alcohol? for some people,even moderate amounts of alcohol even one or two a day can really depress mood.

Also get full workups from medical, certain types of illnesses, thyroid problems can cause depression. There are more extensive tests for thyroid than the usual, like five variables rather than two, I forget.

I don't drink. I had thryoid tests like over a year ago and everything fine.

(12-07-2015 02:52 AM)Cr33pin Wrote:  

(12-06-2015 10:51 PM)swfter2456 Wrote:  

The gym stuff has never worked for me in regards to making friends. I've gotten to the point where I've gotten friendly with people and nothing has ever come out of it.

Na bruh..... the gym is not for making friends, the gym is for making gainz.

Gainz make everything better. Get enough gainz and you dont need no fucking friends.. you just kick it with your biceps.

Yeah, it's been one of my goals when I settle down for a few months. I've had some hip issues that have prevented me in the past, but it's hard as hell when you're traveling.

(12-07-2015 05:28 AM)Sweet Pea Wrote:  

In which country are you located right now?

US

(12-07-2015 05:51 AM)Anabasis to Desta Wrote:  

(12-06-2015 06:15 PM)swfter2456 Wrote:  

I dropped my psychiatrist and meds, as a result my psychologist dropped me. Currently not seeing anyone and don't even know how to get better. I've accomplished a lot in life, lost weight, traveled the world, put money in the bank, but never really was happy. I've been a nomad for four years and the more I traveled the more isolated I felt. After a while focusing on interactions that would only result in a short term friendships didn't feel worth the effort. I did daygame for a while but was never really successful, also don't think a bunch of quick hook ups will solve anything.

What else can I do at this point?

I totally understand being tired of putting in the effort into short term friendships and hookups.

OP a lot of times we tend to glorify & romanticize travelling to exotic spots, sex with beautiful women and the whole international jet-setter lifestyle. I've personally found it very enjoyable in small doses.

But you can't put a price on having some good friends you've known for years showing up at your door unannounced with a 12 pack & a bottle of Glenlivet on a Wednesday. Or the warm embrace of a girl who truly loves you. Or just the simplicity of it all.

Partying and banging my way through Europe was supposed to fun. But strangely, i felt lonely & profoundly depressed while all alone in a hotel room near downtown Bratislava after 4 months of travelling alone and no social contact besides other travelers and drunk people at clubs. In contrast, the happiest & most content I've been in my life was right after college when i had an okay paying job, my best friends and whole social circle from college (& some from HS) and a girl i loved. Being loved and having people around that care about you does wonders for your mental health.

How about downsizing?

Like replacing random hookups for a steady girlfriend. Getting a solid group of friends or re-kindling some old friendships. Reach out to some old friends you might have lost contact with.

That's what I'm trying to do right now. I'm looking for a place for 3-4 months. Unfortunately no furnished rentals here and signing a lease then furnishing is proving to be really complicated for me because it's something i've never done add on to the fact I can't accomplish anything every day.

I've been doing this non stop for several years, I really don't know anything else. Right now i've been going form sublet to sublet just laying in bed all day.

Also, I have no idea how to get a GF or a steady group of friends. It's part of the reason I kept traveling. When you meet other travelers they are open to being friendly, when you meet locals I find they are more closed off.

(12-07-2015 11:11 AM)birthday cat Wrote:  

One problem with asking for depression advice on a Internet forum is that there will be many recommendations. Clinically depressed people typically have very low energy and motivation as the OP has described. The depressed person barely has enough energy to make a few small changes in their life so the large quantity of recommendations can be overwhelming and make things worse rather than making things better.

So my advice to the OP is pick something to work on but don't pick everything. Focus on taking action but don't overwhelm yourself by trying to take action on too many things at once.

(12-07-2015 01:18 AM)Phoenix Wrote:  

Depression is a signal that you're doing something wrong in your life, or failing to do something fundamental. Thus its boldily purpose is to compel you to rectify that.

Yup, no idea what to do

(12-06-2015 10:55 PM)RioNomad Wrote:  

My non-doctor opinion is that diet, exercise, sunlight, and lifestyle can fix a lot.

I strongly agree with these statements. In my opinion, the biggest problem with viewing depression as a symptom of poor health and lifestyle habits which can be cured through health and lifestyle improvements is that this methodology doesn't work well with the recurring revenue business models of the psychiatry, psychology, and pharmaceutical industries. Some of the people in those industries might have good intentions but you don't have to be a rocket scientist to see that those industries are much more focused on recurring revenue than on the welfare of their customers.

I'm sure that some people's depression has roots in psychological traumas that will require more than health and lifestyle improvements to treat. However, it seems logical that these problems will be easier to treat in a person whose brain is functioning optimally due to proper sleep, nutrition, exercise, social engagement, exposure to sunlight and fresh air, etc.

Check out the book "The Depression Cure: The 6-Step Program to Beat Depression without Drugs" by Stephen Ilardi who is a psychology PhD and researcher. He also has some short videos on youtube which summarize his approach to using drugs as somewhat of a last resort for depression treatment.

I've tried that and didnt' work. Had like months in one city where I was working out, getting out, and I was still depressed.

(12-07-2015 01:02 PM)birthday cat Wrote:  

(12-07-2015 05:49 AM)Days of Broken Arrows Wrote:  

That depends on the type of depression. If you're going through a rough patch in life then, sure, exiting depression might be a matter of changing some things.

But some depression is, in fact, a medical issue.

The reason we know this is that the brains of people with chronic depression appear different when looked at on an fMRI. Specifically, the prefrontal cortex responds differently (more info here).

The brain is an organ, after all. The type of depression that alters its response means the brain has ceased to function correctly -- like the stomach that can really no longer break down food correctly. That means some people can't shake it off without some type of medical attention, just like they can't shake it off an ulcer.

Since we perceive the world with our brains, our perception of the world gets re-jigged when it's not working right. So it needs to be taken seriously and treated medically.

I agree with a lot of this but I’m not sure what you mean by “treated medically”. I think prescription drugs should be a very last resort. Perhaps 1% or less of people on those drugs should actually be on those drugs in my opinion.

You are correct that the brain is an organ. The brain's health responds to various factors such as sleep, nutrition, and exercise just like other organs. If you have good health habits then it is unlikely you will get that ulcer...or have mental health problems.

“The brains of people with chronic depression appear different when looked at on an fMRI” AND the brains of people with excellent health habits appear different when looked at on an fMRI. The brain’s physical structure can be altered by better sleep, nutrition, exercise, etc. It doesn't require a magic pill to alter the image of the brain in that fMRI. A good night's sleep, some green vegetables, exercise, or meditation will do more to alter the brain's physical structure in a positive way with fewer negative side effects than the magic pill.

For example, research has shown that short periods of regular meditation change the physical structure of the brain - less gray matter in the amygdala (lizard brain) and more gray matter in the pre-frontal cortex – see this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8rRzTtP7Tc starting at 3:30

Another issue relates to simple human psychology. People are comfort seeking and short-term thinking. People rationalize all the time. It is very common for people to rationalize that something isn’t their fault or isn’t within their control (depression or obesity being the result of genetics) rather than admitting to themselves that they are doing something wrong (poor health habits). So when you allow people to believe their problems could be due to genetics and fixed via magic pills then a huge percentage of these people will rationalize that pills are the answer when better health habits are really the answer.

The rationalization hamster is a bigger beast than most people realize. The mechanism that convinces western women that their bad behavior is never their fault is the same mechanism that convinces millions of people that their problems can be fixed by pills rather than better health habits.

Prescription drugs do not solve mental health problems. They only suppress symptoms. Better sleep solves problems. Better nutrition solves problems. Exercise solves problems. Meditation solves problems. I just don't understand the logic behind using prescription drugs before improving health habits when (1) prescription drugs have negative side effects but health habits don't and (2) prescription drugs only suppress symptoms but health habits can solve the problem.

I've gone through the meds to the point where my doctor said you tried everything and was recommending ECT (fuck no) Psychiatrists suck, they understate the effects of the pills you're taking and basically turn you into a guinea pig. Experimenting what works and what doesnt. I've gone to three and I feel they didn't even view me as a person but as a science experiment.