I am depressed page

[jammies]

There is no way around it. I had a horrible bout of anxiety a couple weeks ago. The anxiety was followed by pretty bad depression. I have started to see a therapist and went to a physician today and she is testing a few labs. Both think it was precipitated by a bad reaction to some supplements I was trying.

But I am miserable. I am cycling between anxiety, depression, and some periods of feeling normal. I have never felt this way in my entire life. Not even when I went through some rough things - like the loss of my mother or diagnosis with arthritis.

I have been primal for 2 years and have been doing great on it. This has hit my like a ton of bricks and feels very biochemical/physical. I was completely fine one day and plunged off a cliff the next.

Can anyone out there offer suggestions? I am so miserable.

[JamesS]

Anxiety is most often triggered by a lactate build up. Although it can also be triggered by excess epinephrine if there is a lack of acetylcholine to balance it out.

Depression can occur for a number of reasons. Low serotonin, low dopamine, low norepinephrine, low adrenal or thyroid function, low prostaglandin levels, high progesterone or prolactin levels, hypomethylation, etc. In short the information provided is way too limited to even start making recommendations.

[Diana Renata]

I'm sort of going through a bout of depression. Mine is clearly situational. It was really bad the other day. Today is better but I still have some really dark moments off and on. It sort of nags. I hate it. Sometimes I sleep a lot, sometimes not at all. Sometimes I have no appetite, other times I would stuff myself with junk if it were in the house.

Keeping up on my vitamins helps. I don't know what specifically does it. I take a multi, magnesium, fish oil, and D. Probably the D. It hasn't gotten rid of it completely, but it helps some.

Wish I could be of more help.

[jammies]

Anxiety is most often triggered by a lactate build up. Although it can also be triggered by excess epinephrine if there is a lack of acetylcholine to balance it out.

Depression can occur for a number of reasons. Low serotonin, low dopamine, low norepinephrine, low adrenal or thyroid function, low prostaglandin levels, high progesterone or prolactin levels, hypomethylation, etc. In short the information provided is way too limited to even start making recommendations.

I can try to provide additional info:

My symptoms include diarrhea (that was actually the first symptom), feeling very cold, my period was quite late, dry mouth, weakness, insomnia, horrible hopeless feeling, anxiety.

I take magnesium and vitamin D3 regularly. I occasionally take zinc, methylated folate, methylB12, DHA/EPA. I used to take potassium regularly, but stopped it recently. But I don't think potassium and depression are related.

ETA - I have also had a dramatic loss of appetite and have lost about 6 lbs in the last two weeks.

[Owly]

No magic solutions, but a lot of empathy. I know what it's like to be in that place.

For me, sunlight and exercise make a big difference. Going for a walk in the sun, especially with my dog, can really help. I also try to be gentle with myself and remember that depression is an illness, and that it's okay to rest when you're not feeling good and do the things you need to feel better.

[jammies]

I'm sort of going through a bout of depression. Mine is clearly situational. It was really bad the other day. Today is better but I still have some really dark moments off and on. It sort of nags. I hate it. Sometimes I sleep a lot, sometimes not at all. Sometimes I have no appetite, other times I would stuff myself with junk if it were in the house.

Keeping up on my vitamins helps. I don't know what specifically does it. I take a multi, magnesium, fish oil, and D. Probably the D. It hasn't gotten rid of it completely, but it helps some.

Wish I could be of more help.

Thanks Diana. I had been a bit sloppy with my D3 prior to this, but have been good about it again. I wish I had asked my doctor to check it today, but I forgot.

I'm sorry to hear you've been depressed. Is the situation over and you are just recovering or is it ongoing?

I can't think of anything specific in my life that would have triggered this, although now that I feel this way my whole life seems pretty crappy - but I think that is the depression talking.

[RitaRose]

Fixing it really depends on the cause. If you can hang in there until the test results come back, you might have more of a clear path to follow to getting better.

I had pretty serious depression after the 2nd concussion. Just very irritable and annoyed at everyone, alternating with feeling like there was no point to doing anything but watching TV. Why bother?

I did see a neurologist, but it took 3 months to get an appointment. In the mean time, I ended up using 5HTP for a little while. It worked in my case, which doesn't mean it will work for you, but it's worth some investigation. I would suggest not taking it before bedtime though. It's supposed to make you sleep well, but it can also cause vivid dreams - vivid enough to actually wake you up, and that's not cool. Doesn't seem to happen if you only take it during the day.

The other thing that really seems to help with brain health is coconut oil. I know, it sounds lame, but it honestly does a ton of good. I take a spoonful every morning (assuming I remember), and I've noticed improvement.

ETA: I'm not taking the 5-HTP now, mostly because the depression isn't an issue anymore, but I would again if I felt the same way.

[jammies]

No magic solutions, but a lot of empathy. I know what it's like to be in that place.

For me, sunlight and exercise make a big difference. Going for a walk in the sun, especially with my dog, can really help. I also try to be gentle with myself and remember that depression is an illness, and that it's okay to rest when you're not feeling good and do the things you need to feel better.

Thank you I am very good about exercise - I walk the dog at least one hour a day. Since this started I joined a beginner Jazz class as well in the hopes that more exercise could help. So far, it isn't really helping.

I wish I felt like resting. Sleep has always been my major coping mechanism. I am unable to sleep and relax with whatever this devil is - that's part of why it is really throwing me for a loop.

Do you get depression frequently? Does it just come and go?

[jammies]

Fixing it really depends on the cause. If you can hang in there until the test results come back, you might have more of a clear path to follow to getting better.

I had pretty serious depression after the 2nd concussion. Just very irritable and annoyed at everyone, alternating with feeling like there was no point to doing anything but watching TV. Why bother?

I did see a neurologist, but it took 3 months to get an appointment. In the mean time, I ended up using 5HTP for a little while. It worked in my case, which doesn't mean it will work for you, but it's worth some investigation. I would suggest not taking it before bedtime though. It's supposed to make you sleep well, but it can also cause vivid dreams - vivid enough to actually wake you up, and that's not cool. Doesn't seem to happen if you only take it during the day.

The other thing that really seems to help with brain health is coconut oil. I know, it sounds lame, but it honestly does a ton of good. I take a spoonful every morning (assuming I remember), and I've noticed improvement.

ETA: I'm not taking the 5-HTP now, mostly because the depression isn't an issue anymore, but I would again if I felt the same way.

Thanks for the suggestion. I have looked in to 5-htp, SAM-E, and St. John's Wort. I am so tempted to try them, but I read occasionally that they cause anxiety and I am terrified of the anxiety coming back. Did you get anxiety with any of them?

How long did you take the 5-htp before you felt a difference?

[Owly]

I have a depressive disorder, so it's always lurking at the corners of my life. I've learned to live with it and find ways to pull myself out of the hole. One of the things I've learned is that depression lies to us and tells us we should be able to just deal with things and that we're not worthy of help. I'm glad you're reaching out and looking for some answers.