alien
Member's posted somewhat
Posts: 76
|
Post by alien on Dec 9, 2016 19:53:38 GMT
Hi everyone.
I know that many people on here will have experienced a life packed with anxiety, and often experienced depression too.
I was interested in anyone who experiences neither, or only circumstantial or social anxiety, rather than it being more generalised. Just interested in picking out the common ADHD threads from those other often co-occurring experiences. (I'm fortunate to have not suffered from depression, and although the past few years have increased my anxiety levels, don't consider it a character trait.)
|
|
|
Post by easilydistracted on Dec 9, 2016 21:42:09 GMT
Hi alienI too have been lucky enough not to have endured general anxiety or prolongued depression. If anything I've floated by this far oblivious to life. That said... I am very uncomfortable around people in anything remotely unstructured, anything more than a 1-1 will generally have me moving towards the wall followed by as quick an exit as I can. I don't know where social anxiety and quite selfconscious/lack of social confidence start and stop so, cannot answer that one really. On the depression front, apart from the end of a relationship knocking me sideways in a way I never thought possible and for the best part of a year too which could suggest possibly Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria? I've escaped that as well. That I don't mix well, see (1), and have consequently withdrawn from society in many ways has spared me getting sucked into many of the things, see (2) that could have pulled me down. That withdrawal isn't entirely painfree, sometimes it hurts a lot and (1) means that I don't have a clue how to change that. So most of the time it's just me and my little bubble, drifting through life
|
|
|
Post by marionk on Dec 11, 2016 10:26:46 GMT
While I was being treated for depression, I thought a lot about what was normal reaction and what is 'clinical' depression, and I realised that I almost certainly wasn't clinically depressed, because there was/is always a cause.
I also wonder, (might go down a google worm hole on this some time soon) if there's a link between low dopamine depression being caused by 'events', and low serotonin depression 'simply' being caused by low serotonin, i.e. no psychological involvement.
These days, there is so much stress in my life, even without DWP messing me about, that I have many of the symptoms of depression, (tiredness, lack of energy) even when my mood is fine. And by fine I mean it can be fantastic and I still get tired a lot and at silly times. In order to function decently, I need zero stress, much more than I need to be happy.
|
|
alien
Member's posted somewhat
Posts: 76
|
Post by alien on Dec 14, 2016 21:14:21 GMT
Thanks for all the responses. Interesting.
|
|
|
Post by blaze on Dec 30, 2016 17:49:43 GMT
I had depressive episodes as part of ptsd, now resolved, and if I'm over tired I naturally get v low, but I don't have depression as an illness.
Same with anxiety really. I can get v nervous in situations where I have to anticipate things- exams, social things,formal meetings etc but I don't have the ongoing or emotional part of anxiety. [b Oh and add pmdd to that- not actually diagnosed but i find i must stay on the conteaceptive yazmin that was desugned for pmdd to stay sane. Hormones have a huge effect on my adhd as well as mood. r]
|
|
alien
Member's posted somewhat
Posts: 76
|
Post by alien on Jan 8, 2017 15:20:20 GMT
Thanks for your response blaze. Sounds like your hefty dose of self awareness is a proper boon.
|
|
kilgoretrout
Member's not posted much yet
What did I come here for?
Posts: 11
|
Post by kilgoretrout on Jan 17, 2017 9:40:29 GMT
I suffer depressive episodes that are often profound, last for months, and are borderline debilitating, but these are almost always down to a combination of two things - boredom (i.e. lack of stimulation) and stress. I actually think that being bored (usually meaning I'm doing a job that doesn't interest me) actually increases by vulnerability to stress related symptoms. Either way, this would suggest a general lack of dopamine in my system since, it seems, that becoming interested in what I'm doing (I have to be learning all the time) alleviates the symptoms immediately. When I'm on a down swing I always become really hard on myself and assume everyone thinks I'm a useless, brainless dick. I also find it hard to get interested in anything at all. This exacerbates the poor mood and I'm assuming, after a period, brings on actual depression. There's certainly a pattern. During these down periods, the ADHD frenetic behaviour doesn't stop, i seem to just turn it inwards, against myself almost. It all adds up to a big old spiral. Getting out of it is really hard and takes months.
It's also worth noting that I have regular 'up' periods that see my hyper-focused for weeks or months on end. My psychiatrist suggested that I may have cyclothymia co-morbid with ADHD and offered anti-psychotics (!), but I'm not so sure that the cyclical activity isn't just another symptom of the ADHD. Since i've not started down the path of any treatment for ADHD I'm opting to hold off and see how treatment for that effects the cyclical mood swings before trying to treat those in exclusion.
Another thing is that my GP prescribed me SSRIs during a down period as a knee jerk to the depressive symptoms. I found these didn't help any of the ADHD-typical symptoms, but did somewhat reduce my overall anxiety levels, which has been helpful in managing the overall symptoms, since that's one less thing to manage.
I've had more luck control depression-like symptoms by stimulating my GABA levels (zinc, magnesium, B6 and stuff like Valerian and chamomile). This frequently reduces stress and lifts downs. I'm not clear on whether it's really stimulating GABA levels or whether the same concoctions also work on my dopamine levels.
It's never simple is it?
|
|