For those of you who don't suffer... (depressed, quit, addicted)

[veuvegirl]

I just cannot snap out of this depression. I am on meds, seeing doctors and exercising. I can't handle it anymore. This isn't normal.

I look at people around me, happy, smiling, don't let the little things get to them. I just keep spiraling downwards more and more. I see my future in my mom and I don't want to be that person.

I guess I just am so envious of people who are just happy. It has never been an option for me.

[Charles]

Originally Posted by veuvegirl

I just cannot snap out of this depression. I am on meds, seeing doctors and exercising. I can't handle it anymore. This isn't normal.

I look at people around me, happy, smiling, don't let the little things get to them. I just keep spiraling downwards more and more. I see my future in my mom and I don't want to be that person.

I guess I just am so envious of people who are just happy. It has never been an option for me.

You're doing everything that we would recommend you do and it isn't working. Exercise, doctors, medication. Not working.

What other things can you change about your life?
Is there something that you can get away from?


Sometimes you just need to do "something" to snap out of it - that is, if it is possible to "snap" out of it.

If you do nothing, then things probably won't change. So, you probably have to do something - something that makes sense.

[reebo]

I would suggest that your meds aren't working. Share this with your doctor. There are tons of choices out there. Good luck.

[veuvegirl]

Yea, I have tried several meds, nothing works. I don't know what in my life to change to snap out of it. I changed jobs to something better, but sadly it didn't work.

I know there are ups and downs, and right know I am in a HUGE down. I am just curious how people can just 'be' happy.

[Charles]

Originally Posted by veuvegirl

Yea, I have tried several meds, nothing works. I don't know what in my life to change to snap out of it. I changed jobs to something better, but sadly it didn't work.

I know there are ups and downs, and right know I am in a HUGE down. I am just curious how people can just 'be' happy.

Sometimes there are problems that have no solutions.

Why are some people happy? Circumstances, brain chemistry, environment, genetics, history are several reasons.
Why are some people alcoholics?
Why are some people fat even if they eat and exercise as someone else?

[jaijai]

Originally Posted by veuvegirl

Yea, I have tried several meds, nothing works. I don't know what in my life to change to snap out of it. I changed jobs to something better, but sadly it didn't work.

I know there are ups and downs, and right know I am in a HUGE down. I am just curious how people can just 'be' happy.

Do you consider yourself a spiritual person?
A sensitive person?

[Dogmama50]

Don't let those happy people fool you, many of them just fake it in public. I hope you find something to help you feel better. Maybe volunteering somewhere and helping others would help you too in the long run.

[Niftybergin]

Originally Posted by veuvegirl

I am just curious how people can just 'be' happy.

I would describe myself as "happy," but I first had to slog through 25+ years of suicidal depression to get here. It was a bunch of things that got me here:

1) I believed that everything that happened to me happened for a reason. This made it easier for me to accept some of the crappy stuff and find some value in it. No matter how dire the depression was at times, I never quite gave up hope that things would get better.
2) I ended some relationships -- and sharply curtailed others -- that I felt were bringing me down or keeping me down.
3) I finally landed on the right cocktail of drugs for me (Celexa and Concerta), and took these in conjunction with some great therapy work. (Then once I no longer needed the drugs, I quit them.)
4) I developed techniques to distract my brain from dwelling on negative thoughts. (Including... At a pivotal time in my life, I traded an office job with a decent salary for a retail job with a lower salary. The reason I did this is because the retail job kept me on my feet, kept my brain occupied, kept me immersed in social interactions, and fed a need for a creative outlet.)
5) I quit blaming others for anything that was "wrong" in my life.
6) I embraced the Serenity Prayer (even though I didn't have issues with substance abuse)
7) I quit comparing myself with others and quit envying what others have.
8) I stayed away from "drama" and people who were obsessed with drama.
9) I developed a relationship with God. Not a religious relationship -- I don't subscribe to any dogma. I just talked to him. I didn't ask for anything, but I took a few minutes every night to say thank you for something. Sometimes they were big things, but usually they were little things. But I still said thank you. (We are generally grateful for positive things, so being able to think of something to be grateful for put me in a positive mindset and opened my eyes to the goodness around me.)

To some large extent, recovering from depression -- and learning to be happy -- was all about reprogramming my brain...changing my perspectives, my thinking.

A year or so ago I read this article: Tom Ferry: The 4 Addictions That Destroy Your Dreams (They're Not What You Think) I was far enough along in my recovery that the article really resonated with me. The guy says that there are 4 addictions that are destroying people's dreams:
1) Addiction to the opinions of others
2) Addiction to drama
3) Addiction to the past
4) Addiction to worry

So I guess that's why I say that my recovery was about reprogramming my brain and changing my thinking. When I was depressed, I was addicted to those four things above. And addiction to those things leaves no room for happiness.

[jaijai]

that's a very good post Niftybergin!

[SusqueHappy]

Originally Posted by jaijai

Do you consider yourself a spiritual person?
A sensitive person?

Very important question - I'd look at this beyond answering *yes* or *no*