Post Punk Kitchen Forum

I have it. so bad. every year i forget how horrible it feels, and then it starts up with the same pattern: i get horrible horrible nightmares that wakes me up crying. i can't sleep without waking up every few hours for a few nights. and then it hits me in all it's horrifying glory; the depression. can't get out of bed. don't want to do anything. can't gather myself to do homework and don't really care. food seems repulsive and i have to force myself to eat (not such a good thing with me being ex ED).

the past few days have been spent in bed watching movies. i've watched 7 movies in two days. now i have a horrible migraine because i've just been laying in bed. yesterday i forced myself out to meet a friend, and at no point did i feel anything but this heavy depression filling me up with.. nothingness. and sadness.
i just don't want to see anyone, don't want to do anything, and this morning i woke up and tears started falling down my cheeks because i just feel so depressed.

i am not prone to depression other than from september - march. but during the winter, i feel miserable. i had quite a good experience with light therapy last year, so i am currently sitting in front of my light therapy lamp. but i have also decided that unless i feel a lot better in 2-3 weeks, i will talk to my psychiatrist about anti depressants.

have any of you guys had any luck with treating SAD with anti depressants? i feel like it is not the worst idea in the world - this is something completely chemical with me, my life is pretty awesome currently, and i haven't had a single depressive day in the past 6 months. i don't even feel like my life is bad, i just don't want to do anything ever again because of this feeling. and i KNOW it's a matter of brain chemicals and it's killing me.

who's with me? who has advice they want to share? i've been looking at extra vitamin D and tryptophan supplements, and i am seriously considering a tanning booth just to feel some sunlike rays on my skin. i am basically willing to do whatever it takes to make this easier to live with.

help?

My ex, whom I lived with for two years, suffered from SAD. From what I remember of his experiences, light boxes aren't that useful. He ended up going through cognitive behavioural therapy, which I think helped to some extent.

St John's wort is a herbal tea/supplement which has been clinically proven to be beneficial to those with SAD and I think I recall my ex taking it. It might be worth a try?

Vitamin D and a lightbox get me through, but mine hasn't been as bad as all that.

Anecdotal, but I take a vitamin D supplement and it helps. I don't have SAD nearly to your extent, but I do tend to be more depressed in the winter months and the D helped regulate it a bit.

No advice, but I really hope you feel better soon, sweetheart. <3

Sorry to hear you're going through that, smoothie. I'm depressed year round and the only thing that works for me is anti-depressants. It might be a good thing to bring up with your doctor. I have heard good things about Vitamin D and light boxes for SAD treatment.

A psychiatrist at the hospital I work for in PDX who told me he had a college who was doing research on SAD and has had some surprisingly good results with 300 McG (Micrograms, Not Milligrams) of Melatonin taken around 4 pm each day. I will be trying this starting soon! You can get this on Amazon and it's really cheap. Good luck...I always forget how bad it is and then (for me) comes January and I'm a sobbing mess.

You can all come to my house for the winter.

Yeah I was gonna say, my dad just leaves Ohio and stays half the winter in South Carolina and Florida.

I don't get it anywhere near as badly as you, but I also find that saunas, well actually for me steam rooms help a lot. It's just something about feeling warmth on my skin.

I'm thinking I might try a tanning booth at some point this winter to combat this. It seemed to work nicely for my friend. I will probably wear a low sunscreen though maybe... or at least to put on that suntan lotion stuff they have anyhow. I definitely don't want to look like I've been tanning.

Yeah I've a friend who has done that too and it really did perk her up in the winter!

Its probably some amount of "sun" with vitamin d and also something about doing something for yourself that gives you a boost!

Last time I used that tanning lotion I got a rash :(

Smoothie-babe, please give us an update on how you're doing. <3

thank you all for your advise! i've been doing A LOT better, after i had that really bad first week, which basically consisted of me sleeping and feeling crappy. but after i started being religious about my using my SAD lamp in the morning, it feels like the heavy depression load is finally mostly gone.

i still need a lot of sleep (i am tired most of the day and seem to need about 10 hours every night), and am having a hard time focusing, but i don't feel like i need anti-depressants anymore. i am going to try eating well, going on walks and maybe do some exercises and keep a pretty strict sleep schedule in order to avoid getting hit by the depression again.

and i just bought some 5-HTP supplements because after reading about it online it seems like it could be pretty good in keeping my seretonin levels up (and if it doesn't, there doesn't seem to be any side effects to taking it).

how are you all doing?

I've known I have SAD for years (I only realised when we had a really beautiful bright sunny early spring and my friends were taken aback at how happy and positive I was).

I'm on 30mg Mirtazapine, which is an SSRI but does seem to be prescribed for SAD quite a lot. I have full-spectrum bulbs where I do my makeup in the morning because that's where I am the longest, and I'm going to buy myself a little lamp for my desk too.

I take VitD because a lot of my family are low in it and I get arthritis-like symptoms in my hands if I don't, but it does also seem to take the edge off the SAD too. I try and get regular fresh air (sun doesn't happen much in Lancashire). I do also talk to the people I'm working/studying with, as I need people to intervene if I start to spiral. My first reaction is to cut off contact and let everything slide, so I really need my colleagues to be prepared to let me know that I'm doing it.

Don't take the 5-htp if you are still taking anti-depressants though! Its too much. Figured that out when I was on Strattera and took some.

But yay Feeling somewhat better!

Just wanted to add a comment in case you decide to try St John's Wort. It can interact with all sorts of other medicines, so if you are taking anything else, check with your doctor!

I was told in high school by a friend I had SAD and have never confronted it, except when I kinda did in freshman and sophomore years because it was becoming a greater interference. I have no advice to offer, though, but I do send you good vibes and support for combatting it.

(BUMP)

For those of you who use light therapy - what type of lamp do you have and what do you like/not like about it? After years of SAD I'm just going to jump in and get a lamp. (And some vitamin D!)

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_ ... Caps%2C382

i have the Philips Energylight which i really like, but my friend has the Philips GoLite Blu which is really awesome because you can bring it with you and use it at work, school etc.. it's small enough that you can carry it around with you! so i am sort of lusting after one of those..

I was looking at the GoLite Blu. I think I will get that one because I am away from home 2 days a week for school, so portability would be handy.

Holy shiitake the past 10 days have been so bad. So bad. I had done a reasonable job of keeping the gloom away until then and BAM! Solstice cannot come and go fast enough.

Aelle, I got it too... Hamburg is just not good for SAD. It's 3pm and it's almost dark again!!! Glühwein on the Weihnachtsmarkt might help..

Only 3 days until solstice!!!

yay! Finally....