I was good for a few months now its going rocky again!

[Chris2000]

So frustrated things seemed to be getting much better after the first few months on effexor which were hard then for a few months i felt almost normal. Unfortunately i started feeling low again tearful and flat so the doc upped my dose about a month ago and its done nothing. Im really gutted my relationship is back on the up because i was feeling better and i was doing well at work, now from knowhere its creeping back in. I havent lost my love for things and i still exercise lots so why do i feel so low?

[rambler]

What dose of Efexor are you on?

[joannap]

hi - meds help to give you a boost but you also need to be very honest with yourself and search for/address the reasons why you started to feel flat in the beginning - when i get patches of depression - i totally give into it - i don;t mean i don;t carry on my life but i do not fight it - i feel low and cry when i want to and it gradually lifts x

[JT69]

Hi Chris,

I think that when you suffer with the illness we do (and thats what it is an illness) we are bound to have "blips" when things feel tough again and the old anxiety rears its head and the depression kicks in!! Yes a part of me thinks why do we feel like this but I truely believe it is down to the chemicals in our brain that causes it and not always "reasons". I for one can be absolutely fine and then for "no reason" I end up anxious or depressed.

The meds sometimes take longer than a month to feel the benefit so dont give up...just do as I do and take your foot off the pedal a bit until it passes cos it always does...it did before so why shouldn't it again???

I hope you pick up soon.

Take care.
JO.xx

[joannap]

it does appear like that - yes - i agree but i personally feel it is due to a build up of stress/negative thinking that we do not always consciously recognise. i have suffered years of anxiety/depression and only recently have realised i have low self esteem/am a people pleaser at the expense of my own happiness and was so shocked when i took note of my negative thinking/how i talk to myself on a daily basis that i thought - god - no wonder i feel down and anxious!

yes - i feel some depressions are more down to a chemical imbalance but anxiety is a completely normal reaction of the nervous system that for some gets out of control and so could not be described as an illness although it feels like it! diabetes is a true illness that cannot be regulated by changing thought patterns etc but anxiety/depression can and so i always think that there is a risk of avoiding responsibility to help ourselves get better by putting it down to a chemical imbalance and expecting meds to do the work for us. x

[joannap]

it may be that you need to try a different med but some meds do not work for depresson that is a natural reaction to bereavement/stress etc - in that case we need to be kind to ourselves and accept how we feel as getting upset about it etc only piles on more stress! Know and trust that it will gradually pass - you are like a car battery that is flat and the more you worry/thrash yourself - you will stay flat so ride it out and let yourself recharge x

[Chris2000]

Thanks I appreciate all replies. I agree I do constantly have negative conversations going through my mind I guess its hard to switch them off. The meds have helped to a degree with intrusive scary thoughts but not greatly improving my mood. I do excercise a lot maybe too much infact sometimes I could burst into tears after a workout! The big annoyance for me is I,ll have a good day with no problems then out of knowhere am hit with sadness and anxiety and it literally comes from knowhere!

[joannap]

that;s a great start having good days! i think you are perhaps thinking you are worse than you are? i think i do this and start to see everything in terms of anxiety/depression. i try to accept my negative conversations and on stronger days thought swop negatives for positives. i wonder why you feel the need to exercise so hard - perhaps you are quite hard on yourself and push yourself too much and are literally tiring yourself out? if you exercise very hard then your body/emotions will feel low - you need days off inbetween to recover lol! x

[JT69]

Hi Chris,

I can totally relate to the tears after the excercise....when I first became ill this time and had to take time off work I used to make myself do an hour on my treadmill every day...I knew the exercise was good with depression/anxiety as my GP told me so and I used to feel total crap inside but still managed the treadmill...I would be marching away bawling my eyes out at times....just the emotions coming out etc...I think.

Hope you feel better soon.

Jo.xx