Do i have depression

[jayjaysleepyhead]

I believe i could have and possibly have had depression for a long time its getting worse and is hard to explain to a point where i get paranoid and think anyone ive tried ti tell or have told anyway my symptons are lack of interest in things that used to be important to me like exercise work food people to name a few all i do is sleep watch tv i hate daytime i avoid people i go out only when its an appointment involving my health i even missed the dentist which i never did its so difficult to explain im like a loner dont call family or friends i have to admit though ive lost a lot of family and good friends are hard to come by when im using i find my addiction has now taken me to this level of feeling so down al stop now thanks

 

[Ignio]

When you are using drugs it is hard to tell whether you are depressed due to a side effect of the drugs or if you actually have a depression.

Some of the things you describe there are symptoms of depression; Lack of interest in things that one usually find joy in. Isolating oneself from friends and family. Sleeping a lot. Not taking properly care of health and hygiene.

Get an appointment with a psychologist or psychiatrist so you can start treatment early on. Starting early is beneficiary as it might be easier to come back to a normal mood. The longer you have been depressed. the more severe the depression becomes, and the harder it becomes to treat. So do yourself a favour and get an appointment.

By the way: See the forum 'The Dark Side' on this board, you might be able to find some help there and someone to talk to as well.

 

[jayjaysleepyhead]

Thank you i also feel like im being a pain on this site as ive posted so many questions for a new guy

 

[Eveleivibe]

Awh no you're not a pain at all we love to try n help if we can. As Ignio says it's hard to tell if you're using drugs as well as some can leas to depression as a side affect. We can advise n offer support but it's always best to see your doctor. Please don't ever think you're being a pain because you are not being

Welcome to BL / EADD

Evey

 

[Sprout]

I believe i could have and possibly have had depression for a long time its getting worse and is hard to explain to a point where i get paranoid and think anyone ive tried ti tell or have told anyway my symptons are lack of interest in things that used to be important to me like exercise work food people to name a few all i do is sleep watch tv i hate daytime i avoid people i go out only when its an appointment involving my health i even missed the dentist which i never did its so difficult to explain im like a loner dont call family or friends i have to admit though ive lost a lot of family and good friends are hard to come by when im using i find my addiction has now taken me to this level of feeling so down al stop now thanks

The lack of interest in once pleasurable activities is termed "anhedonia" (obviously the antithesis of hedonism....) and is symptomatic of countless different things with a high likelihood of occurrence in clinical depression. Just as likely as simply lacking novel stimulus for your cortices to gorge on - a vicious cycle is that of the brain filtering out information and input that is unchanging, just imagine being fully aware of everything your eyes can discern, your body hair brushes across, every last note of the daily cacophony - without providing new experiences, sensations and interpretations of sensory signalling, the blood flow to the relevant anatomical area is reduced as metabolic rate slows and impairs the regeneration and interconnectivity of neurons. Stare at the same wall for 19 hours a day and eventually your squishy matter will invent its own novel stimulus.

I know the nature of the MH beast rather well on a personal level - Schizoaffectivity has a lovely soup dish combining innate distrust, persecutory paranoia, hallucinations, impairment of verbal communication ("word salad" is fucking horrible and not half as fun as it reads...), social anxiety and isolation, depressive episodes which then spawn true Mania just to alienate society even further. Seriously, just fucking do something. Anything. Anything at all that is remotely different from routine, even better; do something new in a setting you are less accustomed to. I know how easy it is to rubbish the idea and be terrified at the thought of even going for a 15 minute walk but it genuinely fucking works. You will feel refreshed and positive due to the Dopamine and Endomorphine release from the physical activity and the activation of neural networks that otherwise have been left to atrophy.

What's your dependent poison?

 

[jayjaysleepyhead]

Diazepam,methadone,heroin i take 3 days out of 14 pay days i call them so its more so 45 of the meth every day and ive been dettoxing off diazepam for 7 months now started on 20 mg now on 4 mg due to my horrible doctor

 

[Sprout]

May I ask how long the Diazepam was at 20mg/day before your taper?
7 months for 16mg Diaz is quite a conservative schedule, to say the least, and the PAWS will certainly enhance any MH issues, especially anhedonic depression and general anxiety - to echo myself, go outside and do something. Exercise releases endomorphine which will eliminate the opioid side of things along with taking your mind out of its own feedback loop.

 

[jayjaysleepyhead]

No sorry it was like 1 month of 20 1 of 18 1of 16 so on and on and to answer your question im going out tomorrow 100% i have to pick up some meds so will also go library as want to check out some NA venues

 

[mydrugbuddy]

I totally agree with Sprout that it would help greatly if you broke with routine, and got out of your accommodation and did something different or new. Ideally try and find someone you have things in common with and arrange to meet them at a gig or cinema or something. Just doing something outside of your normal comfort zone or routine can help massively.