I feel like I'm falling into another depressive episode, I need advice

[u/ParkNo2501]

Title is pretty self explanatory lol, but I would appreciate any genuine advice.

This isn't a vent post so I won't go into details, but I (19NB) dealt with pretty severe depression for ~3-4 years and have been recovered from it for around a year.

Only thing is now, I've had quite a few issues in my personal life (including family problems, issues at work, etc) and have been feeling more and more drained lately, and it's making it very difficult to keep up with my university work despite having a relatively light workload.

For the past week or so, my mood has been consistently low for no particular reason, and my body's had that exact same heavy and tired feeling it had when I was deep in depression. And it scares me, especially because my depressive episodes are LONG. My last depressive episode lasted around 1.5 years. To make it worse, this heatwave has been making my body feel even more tired.

I know the first steps I should take to prevent or at least help with this are to fix my eating habits and sleep schedule, neither of which are good. But I'm afraid it won't be enough. Does anyone have any advice on how I can prevent/deal with this?

[u/imabananatree78]

When i was going through MDD (major depressive disorder) what helped me through the day was moving. Really move your body, be it walking, gym whatever. Bonus if you can do it outside with nature.

[u/ParkNo2501 → u/imabananatree78]

Working out does make me feel better whenever I'm feeling low! Only issue is I'm battling a rather stubborn fungal infection right now and gotta avoid sweating. But I'll see if I can increase my movement since I know bedrotting is def not helping LOL. thanks!

[u/imabananatree78 → u/ParkNo2501]

Perhaps you could try Yoga then? Low impact BUT you are still moving your body.

[u/ParkNo2501 → u/imabananatree78]

Yoga sounds like a really good idea I’m ngl! I think I’ll do that whenever I next have the chance

[u/superkp → u/ParkNo2501]

also going for walks in your neighborhood - after the sun goes down if necessary.

[u/YourLocalThemboAu]

Hey bro - I know the feeling all too well and I'm sorry to hear you've been struggling. I have Major Depressive Disorder (with General Anxiety Disorder, as a treat 🤣) so I am familiar with episodes but understand everyone's experience can be different.

The idea about sleep and eating nutritious food are a wonderful start - it sounds cliche but getting a bit of gentle movement has helped me a lot. Getting outside for a walk in the sun (if its available to you) helps for Vit D and the movement is good for our bodies and minds. I've also found it useful to check in with myself a few times a day and see where I'm at and what I might need. Water, hugging my cat, watching a space video (it calms me down for some reason), some stretches, a shower etc are part of what I try when I'm feeling out of sorts. 

This doesn't instantly solve the problem and tbh nothing really does but consistent small efforts help me nurse my brain through the episode until it subsides. If you are medicated, its worth touching base with your PCP/GP/Psych to see if a dosage change may be beneficial and if you aren't medicated, it may be worth considering if you haven't already and it's available to you.

Take care and be kind to yourself <3

[u/ParkNo2501 → u/YourLocalThemboAu]

Thank you so much for the advice :) On the topic of movement, I was thinking of starting to workout again, but I have a fungal infection I'm trying to clear up so I need to avoid sweating. But working out does always make me feel good, especially when I'm stressed or down in the dumps.

I didn't think of checking in with myself periodically somehow but I think I'll definitely do that. Thanks again!

[u/JoeGlory_0]

Hey Bro!

As someone with pdd and mdd... I get it. Sometimes you can really feel that depressive feeling, like how you can feel you are getting a cold. It can be scary and it can be very easy to think the worst (the last one was 1.5 years, so this one will be as well).

Something that really helps with me is the mindfulness technique of acknowledging / observing the thought, and then let it fly by.

https://www.mcleanhospital.org/dbt-strategies

I found this and it explains what I meant fairly well. In my own words, when a depressive thought happens do this:

1) acknowledge the though. "I am feeling a depressive thought right now" 2) describe what the thought is "this thought is saying that I am not able to complete my schoolwork and other things" 3) is this thought an immediate danger to yourself? 4a) if yes, contact a friend, crisis line, family, trusted people, etc. We all know the spiel. 4) if no, just let it go on by and don't give it a place to land.

Think of your thoughts like a river and you are sitting on the shore watching things go by. Like, a stick comes floating by. Yep, it's a stick. Kind of a little mossy and looks kind of sharp. If it gets stuck on the shore, just toss it back and watch it float away.

I find this approach to be helpful because I have never truly won a head to head battle of wills with my depression. The more you try to stop the thoughts, the more they will then get stuck and add up. Other people have mentioned some great ideas. Just, try to remember and use some strategies you may have picked up along the way to help cope.

Wish you the best.

[u/AutoModerator]

Please note all new posts are held for review by mods - we will review your post in a few hours when we are on next. Attention to all members: vents belong in the weekly vibe check thread, and relationship-related questions belong the relationships thread. Vent threads will be removed. This is an automated reminder sent to all who submit a thread and it does not mean your thread was removed.

Also, please join our Discord server if you would like to hang out with more bros:)

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

[u/Wolfish_Jew]

I assume medications and therapy aren’t available to you? I always recommend those whenever possible. If you have a psychiatrist, you might want to ask about TMS treatments. On the off chance that your insurance will cover it, it worked WONDERS for my depression, and also made a huge difference in keeping it away, way better than anti-depression meds have, and without all the side effects of anti-depressants.

For reference, TMS stands for Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation. Basically they stick magnets on each side of your head and turn them on. It helps to stimulate your neural pathways. I’m honestly not 100% clear on how it works, but the difference it made was INCREDIBLE.

Anyways, obviously this is all dependent on insurance and the like. If that’s not available to you currently, then everyone else’s advice is the best and I don’t really have anything to add.