The Darkness of Depression and Anxiety
by Ronda Payne
If the thought of hurting yourself or someone else seems comforting or logical, please talk to a mental health professional immediately.
I personally have suffered through major anxiety and depression and know that the pain and darkness of these conditions are real. Through trial and error and a lot of hard work, I have found my light, brighter than before, and this first, in a series of articles is designed to help you regain your light too.
Many times we hear people say that they are feeling drained, stressed out and unhappy; but why do we feel this way so often? Family obligations, health issues, work demands, financial pressures, even positive events like promotions or graduations – there are so many potential sources of stress it’s no wonder we sometimes feel overwhelmed and can’t put things into perspective. When we are feeling emotionally taxed, some of us will additionally take a relatively benign event and perceive it as being ‘another tragedy’ in the insurmountable pile of issues. When stress becomes too great, or it leads to unhealthy thinking patterns, clinical anxiety and depression can result.
Don’t blame yourself for feeling this way, but do take responsibility for changing your situation. Let’s begin by identifying if you have depression and / or anxiety. Though the two conditions often go hand-in-hand, they manifest themselves differently and the symptoms, which often overlap, are diverse.
Common symptoms of Depression:
- Loss of interest in normally pleasurable activities
- Tiredness, lack of energy and change in sleeping habits (desire to sleep late, inability to sleep through the night, etc.)
- Change in sex drive
- Loneliness when not warranted
- Feelings of guilt or worthlessness
- Inability to concentrate or make decisions
- Feelings of hopelessness or helplessness
- Change in eating habits or weight
- Recurring severe sadness
- Thoughts of death or suicide.
Common symptoms of Anxiety:
- Feelings of helplessness
- Panic or nervousness
- A sense of doom
- Irrational or obsessive thoughts and fears
- Continual worry
- Blame of yourself or others
- Dizziness
- Stomach or digestion issues
- Shakiness
- Fatigue
- Unexplained sensations of hot and cold
- Tense muscles
- Heart palpitations
- Constricted throat.
Because I experienced many of these symptoms, among others, I knew I needed to change my life. If you’re ready to make a change, begin with three things that will help: accept your feelings, talk to someone and know that you have options.
When you are in the depths of anxiety or depression, it is all-consuming. It is the most horrible sensation I personally have ever experienced. Regardless, it is time to stop running from or denying your feelings and accept them. I have been there and know how hard this can be, yet it is part of how I found my way out. It’s not about liking the condition – it’s only about accepting it. You can do this simply by saying to yourself “I accept, that right now, I’m feeling anxiety / depression”. This is challenging, so praise yourself for every success, no matter how small.
You likely feel uncomfortable telling even your closest friends and family members what you are experiencing. When I was with others, I spent my time hiding what I felt and desperately trying to mask my symptoms. Perhaps it is because the symptoms can be so intense and scary that we fear being labeled ‘crazy’. Despite this normal resistance, discuss your condition with someone you trust and are comfortable confiding in. Perhaps you prefer sharing with someone outside your personal circle. Check the Internet or local directories for professionals and groups that specialize in anxiety and depression and choose what is right for you. By talking to others, you will gain the strength to start taking control.
You have many options that can help. Go to your doctor or health practitioner for their input. Many people are able to recover through the use of exercise, diet and nutrition, natural health products, medication, acupuncture, hormonal rebalancing, meditation, regular therapy and other tools. If one option doesn’t work, remind yourself that there are others available and there are professionals who can assist you. It took me many months to find the right mix, so don’t be discouraged if the first thing you try isn’t effective.
One of the worst parts of anxiety and depression is that your thinking is coloured, so that you feel trapped, helpless and hopeless, as though there is no light at the end of the tunnel. Knowing you have choices creates a sense of optimism and gives you the confidence you need to make changes.
You are strong. With patience and work, you will find your way back into the li
solid post , really good perspective on the subject and very well written, this certainly has put a spin on my day, many thanks from the USA and observe up the good work
Interesting information on anxiety, my wife is having panic attacks so help is needed and we are getting a bit desperate. Good to see some info here, thanks.
I am working too much and need to change something to relax but I feel very pressured.
My teenage son is getting stressed out and I my looking for some help so happy to bump into your site.
I am happy there is more information about anxiety now as I have has it for a while.
Interesting site and good information.
Losing my job has wrecked my confidence and I need some help to relax and stop feeling anxious. Thanks for the site and the information as it is helpful to see what I could do. I will return soon. Keep up the good work.
thankyou
Great
I am happy there is more information about anxiety now as I have has it for a while.
Interesting site and good information.
Interesting site and good information.
I am happy there is more information about anxiety now as I have has it for a while.
Your bookmarking strategy is working as I Found you through Stumbleupon.
Nice website. Great read.-Check out my Farmville Guide if you get a moment – http://bit.ly/bqUYf4
I’ve really enjoyed reading your articles. You obviously know what you are talking about! Your site is so easy to navigate too, I’ve bookmarked it in my favourites
http://anxiousanxietychat.blogspot.com/
Hey I like your site !
Hi. I just want to say that it was a nice reading. I hope you come out with more interesting posts, because I bookmarked your website. All the best.
Hi. I just want to say that it was a nice reading. I hope you come out with more interesting posts, because I bookmarked your website. All the best.
I think your opinions are quite interesting, I enjoy reading what you write. Hope to hear more from you. Subscribed.
Nice to visit your site….
(…) Heya, just wanted to show a little link love; Thanks! (…)…
Thanks for the great insight. I was curious about this particular niche. Great article.
Hi. I genuinely liked reading through your article!. High standard material. I might advise you to come up with articles a bit more frequently. By doing this, having such a worthy blog I think you could rank better in the search engines
. I also subscribed to your RSS feed. Carry on the great job!
I love it!
Hi. I genuinely liked reading your writing!. Good quality material. I would have to advise you to do posts much more regularly. This way, with such type of a useful blog I think that you will rank better in the search engines
. I also subscribed to your Rss. Carry on this great job!
Hi, there. I would suggest you continue writing more posts, this would make your blog even more interesting, plus I guess you will get more visitors.
Your WordPress blog keeps getting better and better!
I’ve been following your posts for a while now and I have to say that your older articles don’t offer as much insight as the newer ones. You have a lot more ideas and originality now, your writing is constantly improving.
By the way, if you’re looking into placing some ads on your blog – you should really do it. Don’t go for all that 3rd party bs – Use a nice WordPress monetization tool coded by a buddy of mine which by far the best, it’s a must have plugin for any serious blogger.
The BEST ad manager for WordPress. You can find it at Thaidy.com/BestWordPressPlugin and give it a free test-run (To make it easier for you, I linked my name to the site). Oh, and there is a nice discount coupon in the sidebar of the mainpage today.
Keep up the good work mate!
Hi. I just want to say that it was a nice reading. I hope you come out with more interesting posts, because I bookmarked your website. All the best.
I think your opinions are quite interesting, I enjoy reading what you write. Hope to hear more from you. Subscribed.
Valuable info. Even I accidentally found your site, I bookmarked it.
It’s not common these days to find this type of information. I’m glad I stumbled upon your website. Keep up the good work!
I think your opinions are quite interesting, I enjoy reading what you write. Hope to hear more from you. Subscribed.
Great comment, love the design of the site too.
I just have to say, I enjoy reading your article. Maybe you could let me know how I can bookmark it ? Also just thought I would tell you I found your website through Bing.
Great blog you have. Thanks for keeping us up to date.
Hey thanks for updating your site, finally I can post a comment! I always read your stuff and just wanted to let you know that it’s awesome.
Finally, a good site that isn’t in my face trying to constantly sell me something. Thanks, please keep up the good work.
I’m kinda interested in the subject too, so I hope you come out with more of the same stuff.
While this subject can be very touchy for most people, my opinion is that there has to be a middle or common ground that we all can find. I do appreciate that youve added relevant and intelligent commentary here though. Thank you!
Exceptional write-up. I agree with your viewpoint on this. Cheers all over again for the superior content material, additional webmasters should comply with the way you do points!?!
I think your opinions are quite interesting, I enjoy reading what you write. Hope to hear more from you. Subscribed.
What an great blog site, appreciation for publishing this articles.
Wonderful Goods on in this article, really proud of you and all kinds of things that you do!
I found your blog on google and read a few of your other posts. I just added you to my Google News Reader. Keep up the good work Look forward to reading more from you in the future.
I’m kinda interested in the subject too, so I hope you come out with more of the same stuff.
I think your opinions are quite interesting, I enjoy reading what you write. Hope to hear more from you. Subscribed.
I enjoy this website for a few hours how can I to subscribe
Valuable info. Even I accidentally found your site, I bookmarked it.
Thank you and thanks for posting such an interesting page! Definitely a post writer is certainly knows what he is doing but also very astute too. There usually isnt a group of bloggers who can come up with My bestie Serene told me to this blog a number of weeks ago but now is the first time I’m visting. Many things, it’s getting bookmarked! Woots!
This post is interesting.