Depression

You can't tell. I didn't even know till my doctor suggested it when I went in for a checkup for irregular heart beats. I got the tests done for my heart, and they all came back negative. I got some trial anti-depressants and I haven't even had one heart scare. It's funny, but they say that depression can cause heart irregularities. It can control a lot of your functioning and you don't even know it.

Now I'm just trying to get an appointment to see an actual counselor so I can get a real synopsis from a professional and to talk about some of the things that possibly made me depressed.

I'm firmly in between those lines; I drink. Cheers!

...You, of course, may not prefer this path. Talk to your general physician; he or she will be able to guide you in the proper direction, be it some advice to take some personal time and relax, or a suggestion of some medication, or a referral to a therapist if needed.

Excuse me; I need a refill.

Most of my behaviour and feelings that could be called depression are either hormonal (effects me way more than it used to) or happen at times of extreme stress. Other than I always consider it being 'just a bit down' - I watch a weepy movie or read Anna Karenina, cry my fucking eyes out and feel much better for it. The other thing I do is get out in the sunshine (if there is any) and take the dog for a long walk. It's so beautiful around here, even in the rain actually, that I can't help but count my blessings when I do that. The very fact that I can 'cure' the blues in those ways suggests to me that I get 'a bit down' rather than get 'depressed'.

I've never felt the need to seek help, although that doesn't mean I've never needed it. I think if it went on for any length of time I'd start considering talking to my GP - he's a very practical and easy going doctor, I have confidence in him. I wouldn't trust any mental health issues I thought I might have to a stranger. I do recall a time in my early 20s when I was shifting between euphoria and misery a lot - thinking back I should have got help then rather than struggling through it alone.

It's not based on a couple days.

When you're talking about the feelings of hopelessness, helplessness, extreme loss/increase in appetite, changes in sleep patterns, feelings of suicide, that goes on for a month or 2, or 6 that some chemical intervention/therapy helps.

See, I felt all of that except the suicide. I was having a hell of a time with my sleep patterns, it just about made me want to cry. I was staying awake till almost 8 in the morning, and then sleeping till the afternoon. It was such a vicious cycle.

A lot of people I have known who have sleep issues have found the following interesting.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ukne...ight-owls.html

'After Hours' Gene Stretches Body Clock To 27-hour-day

Not saying this is definitely the case for you but it can be easier to cope with a sleep problem when you can think of it as physiological rather than as a psychological disorder. Changing how you exercise and your sunlight intake can have a marked effect on the physiological. It might help.

Lack of sleep can start causing huge downward spirals. Oh life is good but life starts to get busy so you go from 8hrs of sleep a night to 4hrs for a while. You'll be exhausted and show signs of depression.

I've heard about the sunlight intake being a vital part. I do need to get some more.

It really started for me one day when I had this freakish allergic-type reaction, just out of the blue. It had me out of comission for the whole day, and after that, I was fucked on my sleep for a little over two weeks straight. The Dr. did blood tests and EKG tests on my heart, and he thought it was depression instead. And after answering some of his questions, I began to see that he was right. Ever since I've been on this trial medication, I've been sleeping great (except for the past few night. I've always been a night owl anyways), I've been very upbeat, and even able to be calm and cool in public. The only drawback was they were zapping the life out of my libido and making it almost impossible to ejaculate and orgasm for the first week or so. Now if that doesn't make you depressed, I don't know what will.

I've got another follow up appointment tomorrow to talk about how the pills have been working out.

I've never been an 8hrs a night kind of guy, always more like 5. It's the way I've always been. But when I can't fall asleep till dawn then waste my whole day in bed, that's when I started to get really bummed.

Well - I'm gald you are getting somewhere with it - but don't forget to mention the libido issue tomorrow. I don't know if that type of stuff is likely to embarass you, but, if it does, do try to get past that and mention it anyway. That kind of feedback is important to the doctors and you don't want to be left on medication that saps your libido because everything else was fine and you never mentioned it.

I think I've gotten past that actually, I've been jerking off every night and been able to cum just fine. And I am still getting horny as hell. A friend of mine was amazed that I was still as horny as I am while on anti-depressants. It was the two hours of masturbations with a dismal orgasm that was pissing me off when I first when on the stuff. I'm actually on my second medication because the first one was causing those problems, along with some others. They made me yawn uncontrollably. The worst this new stuff did was dialate my pupils for a while once they took effect, but that has passed I believe.

One minute I would be fine, the next it was like I had tunnel vision. I go to look in the mirror and it looks like I'm stoned.

"You can't tell. I didn't even know till my doctor suggested it when I went in for a checkup for irregular heart beats. I got the tests done for my heart, and they all came back negative. I got some trial anti-depressants and I haven't even had one heart scare. It's funny, but they say that depression can cause heart irregularities. It can control a lot of your functioning and you don't even know it. - Mr Hardcock"

I had a similar reaction last year when my cat died - have never felt grief that ever before in 62 years. I could not go out for some time as I just spontaneously burst into tears. The night he died, my heart kept stopping and then restarting - not just missing a beat - I just did not care (did not tell my wife or it would have been a hospital trip)!! It took eight months to get back to normal, though I found exercise was very beneficial when it started playing up, as this knocked it back into rhythm. All not helped by being a diabetic. I did not bother with treatment as all that was on offer were beta-blockers and these would have fouled up the diabetic treatment.

I knew I was upset, but there is a big difference between clinical depression and just being very p*ssed off. The other thing to bear in mind, as Mr Hardcock found, is that the treatment can be worst than the symptoms.

Best cure - get out and enjoy some fresh air - easy for me as I live in a beautiful part of the UK, and a walk on the cliffs or beach is great.

Most of my recent frustration/depression has been on a par of work. Typically 'cause my transfer is somehow bein' put on the back burner with me noticing and quite possibly being underminded by the current GSM.

No chemical intervention has necessary,at least anymore than my usual meds, unless you count my sedatives just in case of one panic attack, which has almost happened.

Tho, with this kind of depression, I'm seriously considering going to my doc & asking his opinion about soome kind of anti depression med.

As you can see, it is best to be diagnosed professionally. Sometimes you are just reacting to the normal highs and lows of what life has thrown your way. What I have experienced have been: Sleep disturbance, weight gain, brain synapses,apathy, irritability, withdrawal from activities, FATIGUE! It affects each person differently in terms of the particular cocktail of symptoms but at least some of them have to exist for a particular period of time in a degree of severity for a diagnosis to be made.