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BelieverInChrist
Guest
Thank you all for sharing and giving some interesting advice to think about, pray upon and look into. God bless you all.
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I found out I'm dealing with depression and generalized anxiety as well. I knew anxiety ran in my family but never thought it was this bad. I can't work because of it. I always feel lethargic and tired and can't get out of bed. I'm hesitant of taking any medication simply because I've been on different medications for the past 4 to 6 years. I don't know how to overcome this, as I have student loan payments beginning in three months. Any suggestions how I can fight this?
EDIT: This reply was directed at jsr1221. I thought he was the OP cause his was the only post I saw when I clicked on the thread.
I've had and struggled with both (more so just depression these days but not like it was)... the medication never helped so I stopped using them.
I really don't have a good answer aside from don't give up. I got so fed up with how my life was, I started taking big risks outside my comfort zone. I figured it was either make changes or go hang yourself and hanging myself was not really an option. I would pretend that I had lived my whole life and was 65 years old looking back on my wasted life... all bitter and full of regret... and if that was the man I was destined to be, I'd rather be dead. I looked at all the things I had done or wish I had done differently in the past and figured there would be way more when I was 60... so I took my life now as it was as a second chance to redo and make changes so I wouldn't end up that depressed, wasted, 65 year old who regretted his whole life, all his best days behind him and nothing to look forward to but the sweet release of death.
So I did things that were terribly uncomfortable because I knew, in 10 years, I probably won't even remember the moment. Sure the anxiety was through the roof but in 10 years, it wouldn't matter either way and taking the chance meant a stab at bettering my life for the better. I remember back when I was 21 or 22, I wrote letters to Jesus in a notebook. They were like my prayers written out on paper. It was just honest frustrations and pleas. I don't remember all I put but I remember I put, I wanted to beable to go church (had so much anxiety going anywhere alone with lots of people so no I couldn't even go to church), I wanted to drive a car (I got so anxious with the driving tests I failed it 4 times... finally got my license at 25), I wanted to get a job (turning in applications was hell) and most of all, I wanted a good friend who didn't judge and just listened and just was there (never had one). Took years but every one of those prayers have been answered. The hardest was the friend. I got my job at 23, a car and my license at 25, started going to church at 28, and found the best friend I've ever had last year.
I just never gave up and pushed myself to do uncomfortable things... basically with a do or die outlook... If I can't get over this, I might as well be dead. And don't think I didn't want to give up a few times. Even almost killed myself, felt so bad. Biggest break through and hardest thing I've ever done was opening up to co worker at work... he was always positive, playful, confident, and just talked to me like a best friend or a little brother. Seemed like a guy that if he was you're friend, he'd help ya out as best he could with whatever you were going through. I had been working there 7 years by this point so I knew him as well as anyone else there but one day we were talking and I just asked if he could help me out and a told little of what I was struggling with and that I wanted to change. Scariest thing I ever did but he was totally cool, about it and we started going out to lunch and stuff and that ended up turning into a really cool friendship that's still growing. Done a lot together and got some trips planned in the future.
I still have a hard time with anxiety and depression but not like it used to be. More so depression nowadays but it's not even close to being what it was. Having a friend I could really trust and open up to about it and stuff really helped. Just don't give up and when it feels like you've fallen so deep, ya can't fall any deeper, use that anger and frustration to get out and do what you need to do to change. No matter how uncomfortable. Talk to someone if you can. Also keep your eyes on the light house. Sometimes God seems so far away, it's all in vein but keep on trucking. And when the storm does pass, don't forget about the light house. Even though it seems like you don't need him anymore cause you're doing fine now, never forget the pit he pulled ya from. And he will pull ya out too... You can't just sit there on your bum and expect anything. But if you take risks and reach out, he'll be there to grab ya and carry you through... So do it no matter how scary it may feel. If you fail, you're no worse off than you were before... and if you succeed, you could change the rest of your life for the better.
Sorry I ended up writing a bit but anyway...
I've had and struggled with both (more so just depression these days but not like it was)... the medication never helped so I stopped using them.
I really don't have a good answer aside from don't give up. I got so fed up with how my life was, I started taking big risks outside my comfort zone. I figured it was either make changes or go hang yourself and hanging myself was not really an option. I would pretend that I had lived my whole life and was 65 years old looking back on my wasted life... all bitter and full of regret... and if that was the man I was destined to be, I'd rather be dead. I looked at all the things I had done or wish I had done differently in the past and figured there would be way more when I was 60... so I took my life now as it was as a second chance to redo and make changes so I wouldn't end up that depressed, wasted, 65 year old who regretted his whole life, all his best days behind him and nothing to look forward to but the sweet release of death.
So I did things that were terribly uncomfortable because I knew, in 10 years, I probably won't even remember the moment. Sure the anxiety was through the roof but in 10 years, it wouldn't matter either way and taking the chance meant a stab at bettering my life for the better. I remember back when I was 21 or 22, I wrote letters to Jesus in a notebook. They were like my prayers written out on paper. It was just honest frustrations and pleas. I don't remember all I put but I remember I put, I wanted to beable to go church (had so much anxiety going anywhere alone with lots of people so no I couldn't even go to church), I wanted to drive a car (I got so anxious with the driving tests I failed it 4 times... finally got my license at 25), I wanted to get a job (turning in applications was hell) and most of all, I wanted a good friend who didn't judge and just listened and just was there (never had one). Took years but every one of those prayers have been answered. The hardest was the friend. I got my job at 23, a car and my license at 25, started going to church at 28, and found the best friend I've ever had last year.
I just never gave up and pushed myself to do uncomfortable things... basically with a do or die outlook... If I can't get over this, I might as well be dead. And don't think I didn't want to give up a few times. Even almost killed myself, felt so bad. Biggest break through and hardest thing I've ever done was opening up to co worker at work... he was always positive, playful, confident, and just talked to me like a best friend or a little brother. Seemed like a guy that if he was you're friend, he'd help ya out as best he could with whatever you were going through. I had been working there 7 years by this point so I knew him as well as anyone else there but one day we were talking and I just asked if he could help me out and a told little of what I was struggling with and that I wanted to change. Scariest thing I ever did but he was totally cool, about it and we started going out to lunch and stuff and that ended up turning into a really cool friendship that's still growing. Done a lot together and got some trips planned in the future.
I still have a hard time with anxiety and depression but not like it used to be. More so depression nowadays but it's not even close to being what it was. Having a friend I could really trust and open up to about it and stuff really helped. Just don't give up and when it feels like you've fallen so deep, ya can't fall any deeper, use that anger and frustration to get out and do what you need to do to change. No matter how uncomfortable. Talk to someone if you can. Also keep your eyes on the light house. Sometimes God seems so far away, it's all in vein but keep on trucking. And when the storm does pass, don't forget about the light house. Even though it seems like you don't need him anymore cause you're doing fine now, never forget the pit he pulled ya from. And he will pull ya out too... You can't just sit there on your bum and expect anything. But if you take risks and reach out, he'll be there to grab ya and carry you through... So do it no matter how scary it may feel. If you fail, you're no worse off than you were before... and if you succeed, you could change the rest of your life for the better.
Sorry I ended up writing a bit but anyway...
I have taken in a woman suffering so badly from this she was on the streets, and she has become bipolar. Bipolar means that her body reacts to stress so physically that it becomes impossible to manage with thoughts, she must have medication. She lived with my daughter almost a year, and now with me for months. She has become a different person.
Her change has been through what she thinks. Both I and my daughter give her ideas more in line with how God has created us and our world. As she uses these thoughts to live by more and more, her depression lifts and she can be a useful human being. Before, she wasn't really useful to herself or others.
jsr, click the link to my depression thread here in my signature. It is my personal story of my life-long battle with depression, and I give some good suggestions as to what others can do to lift themselves up out of that pit of darkness. May my story bless and encourage you.
Feel free to pm me anytime.
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BelieverInChrist
Guest
It is a struggle, every single day. As one said, never give up. And as I mentioned even, I refuse medication too, I am just not into that, I would rather deal with the depression and anxiety compared to the things most meds well cause worse than or added to what I already deal with.
I have noticed when I focus more on God and my devotionals, I do feel different for a while. But then when I have to go to work and deal with certain people or have to go out around people to go to the store or whatever, it comes back and hits me hard. I am sorry, but I am just not a people person, I have no problem being around people online, but I just hate dealing with people outside my home. I just want to stay in where I am happiest.
Right now when I am feeling depressed or anxiety hits, I try hard to mentally go to a happy place. It doesn't always work, but I try it and I continue praying to God to remove this from me. I feel some times that He doesn't because this is kind of my "thorn in the flesh" sort of speak.
Wish I had something better to share. Someone once mentioned to me about putting on Christian music and sing along, which is great if you are home, but doesn't do much good when you are out and about or at work...and having to be doing either of those is what triggers the depression and anxiety.
Praying for you brother.
I think you are making a HUGE mistake by not taking meds. My husband did this for many years, and he got worse and worse. He felt like taking ADs would make him weak. Instead, the opposite happened, and he went to Major Depression, and has to take two meds the rest of his life.
RedTent also said this, and I want to repeat it! Depression is an illness of the brain, and if you catch it in the first year, it will only take a year to recover. Two years can take up to five, and 5-10 years and you will need to take medications the rest of your life.
I believe the OP said the depression was small and manageable in the beginning, and now it is getting worse. That should be a sign to see you doctor and get treatment. You have a lack of neurotransmitters in you brain and you need an external source. Why are you suffering needlessly?
I work with with the mentally ill, I have a ministry to them, and the biggest issue is people going off their meds and falling down the rabbit hole.
I do believe Jesus can help and heal some people. I went through a deep depression for a few years after I was diagnosed with crippling Rheumatoid Arthritis. God led me on a healing journey. But I did take meds through that period, and they were part of God's purpose and plan.
Praying you will stop resisting help from the doctors and that this depression and anxiety will life.
RedTent also said this, and I want to repeat it! Depression is an illness of the brain, and if you catch it in the first year, it will only take a year to recover. Two years can take up to five, and 5-10 years and you will need to take medications the rest of your life.
I believe the OP said the depression was small and manageable in the beginning, and now it is getting worse. That should be a sign to see you doctor and get treatment. You have a lack of neurotransmitters in you brain and you need an external source. Why are you suffering needlessly?
I work with with the mentally ill, I have a ministry to them, and the biggest issue is people going off their meds and falling down the rabbit hole.
I do believe Jesus can help and heal some people. I went through a deep depression for a few years after I was diagnosed with crippling Rheumatoid Arthritis. God led me on a healing journey. But I did take meds through that period, and they were part of God's purpose and plan.
Praying you will stop resisting help from the doctors and that this depression and anxiety will life.
P
pastac
Guest
from experience depression is real and has many triggers managing it can be difficult as the moods vary day to day but it is manageable. Pray for me and I'll do likewise. That is as personal as I'll get.
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Ho11y
Guest
It's really easy to feel like you're alone when you struggle with something like this. While i have never had any issues with depression, i've suffered from anxiety since i was a child.
Like you said, it's a struggle every single day. I'm exhausted, and i know you are too. It takes almost all of my energy just to fight my anxiety/panic attacks, so by the end of the day i have nothing left.
That's why i love this place. It's a great distraction from all of that. I can come here and talk to people and it just makes life a little easier to deal with.
BelieveinChrist i know you said you refuse medication. I did for awhile too, but after 16 or 17 years i couldn't do it anymore. I started taking medicine for some relief and while i got a very minimal amount it did nothing to really help my anxiety or panic attacks subside. So i started doing something called Biofeedback. I don't know if you've heard of it. It helps you deal with anxiety/depression/PTSD/chronic pain without the use of medication. I was really skeptical at first, but at that point and still at this point i will do near anything to make this stop.
During biofeedback they attach electrodes to your forehead and neck, then put a band around your finger to measure your skin temperature. The electrodes on your forehead and neck are to measure your muscle tension. If you tense any muscle in your body it will be picked up. All of the readings (muscle tension/skin temperature) will be displayed on a computer in front of you. Then a doctor leads you through different ways to relax yourself. And how to control your muscle tension and skin temperature. I know it may sound weird, but there's nothing strange or new age about it. It's just showing you how to relax and focus enough to be able to relax.
It was super hard at first, because anyone with anxiety knows that focusing and relaxation are almost near impossible when you're anxious.
Anyway, that's just an option since i know you said you won't take medication. And just know you're obviously not in this alone. It's always encouraging to know other people are in this too.
Like you said, it's a struggle every single day. I'm exhausted, and i know you are too. It takes almost all of my energy just to fight my anxiety/panic attacks, so by the end of the day i have nothing left.
That's why i love this place. It's a great distraction from all of that. I can come here and talk to people and it just makes life a little easier to deal with.
BelieveinChrist i know you said you refuse medication. I did for awhile too, but after 16 or 17 years i couldn't do it anymore. I started taking medicine for some relief and while i got a very minimal amount it did nothing to really help my anxiety or panic attacks subside. So i started doing something called Biofeedback. I don't know if you've heard of it. It helps you deal with anxiety/depression/PTSD/chronic pain without the use of medication. I was really skeptical at first, but at that point and still at this point i will do near anything to make this stop.
During biofeedback they attach electrodes to your forehead and neck, then put a band around your finger to measure your skin temperature. The electrodes on your forehead and neck are to measure your muscle tension. If you tense any muscle in your body it will be picked up. All of the readings (muscle tension/skin temperature) will be displayed on a computer in front of you. Then a doctor leads you through different ways to relax yourself. And how to control your muscle tension and skin temperature. I know it may sound weird, but there's nothing strange or new age about it. It's just showing you how to relax and focus enough to be able to relax.
It was super hard at first, because anyone with anxiety knows that focusing and relaxation are almost near impossible when you're anxious.
Anyway, that's just an option since i know you said you won't take medication. And just know you're obviously not in this alone. It's always encouraging to know other people are in this too.
I think biofeedback is a miracle that is so often overlooked in medicine. I haven't been able to afford a machine or the $50 an hour a practitioner charges, but I have learned to use some of the ideas on my own. One time I used a machine to get a spastic muscle in my back calmed down and it only took 15 minutes to do.BelieveinChrist i know you said you refuse medication. I did for awhile too, but after 16 or 17 years i couldn't do it anymore. I started taking medicine for some relief and while i got a very minimal amount it did nothing to really help my anxiety or panic attacks subside. So i started doing something called Biofeedback. I don't know if you've heard of it. It helps you deal with anxiety/depression/PTSD/chronic pain without the use of medication. I was really skeptical at first, but at that point and still at this point i will do near anything to make this stop.
During biofeedback they attach electrodes to your forehead and neck, then put a band around your finger to measure your skin temperature. The electrodes on your forehead and neck are to measure your muscle tension. If you tense any muscle in your body it will be picked up. All of the readings (muscle tension/skin temperature) will be displayed on a computer in front of you. Then a doctor leads you through different ways to relax yourself. And how to control your muscle tension and skin temperature. I know it may sound weird, but there's nothing strange or new age about it. It's just showing you how to relax and focus enough to be able to relax.
It was super hard at first, because anyone with anxiety knows that focusing and relaxation are almost near impossible when you're anxious. .
I searched on Amazon for the textbook used by people training to become a biofeedback technician. That helped. Someone borrowed it and didn't give it back, I lost it now. Ripoff Artists and mind control people are using it, that even makes medical people careful of it, so you have to plow through some of the information and sift it, with scripture and your Lord guiding.
What is so amazing is to learn that when the Lord tells us what to let our mind dwell on, it works in our life when we listen. Our mind really does have great control, and we have great control of our mind. When we give it to the Lord only to use, miracles happen.
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BelieverInChrist
Guest
B
BelieverInChrist
Guest
It's really easy to feel like you're alone when you struggle with something like this. While i have never had any issues with depression, i've suffered from anxiety since i was a child.
Like you said, it's a struggle every single day. I'm exhausted, and i know you are too. It takes almost all of my energy just to fight my anxiety/panic attacks, so by the end of the day i have nothing left.
That's why i love this place. It's a great distraction from all of that. I can come here and talk to people and it just makes life a little easier to deal with.
BelieveinChrist i know you said you refuse medication. I did for awhile too, but after 16 or 17 years i couldn't do it anymore. I started taking medicine for some relief and while i got a very minimal amount it did nothing to really help my anxiety or panic attacks subside. So i started doing something called Biofeedback. I don't know if you've heard of it. It helps you deal with anxiety/depression/PTSD/chronic pain without the use of medication. I was really skeptical at first, but at that point and still at this point i will do near anything to make this stop.
During biofeedback they attach electrodes to your forehead and neck, then put a band around your finger to measure your skin temperature. The electrodes on your forehead and neck are to measure your muscle tension. If you tense any muscle in your body it will be picked up. All of the readings (muscle tension/skin temperature) will be displayed on a computer in front of you. Then a doctor leads you through different ways to relax yourself. And how to control your muscle tension and skin temperature. I know it may sound weird, but there's nothing strange or new age about it. It's just showing you how to relax and focus enough to be able to relax.
It was super hard at first, because anyone with anxiety knows that focusing and relaxation are almost near impossible when you're anxious.
Anyway, that's just an option since i know you said you won't take medication. And just know you're obviously not in this alone. It's always encouraging to know other people are in this too.
Thank you for sharing, I never heard of this. Interesting
Keeping you in prayer sis
L
Laura1084
Guest
BelieverInChrist:
I've been a Christian for over 13 years and have been dealing with anxiety for about 8 years. I was in a terrible cycle trying to deal with anxiety, worry, panic and fear within the church-- a church that wasn't equipped to deal with these things. They just prayed for me, laid hands on me… I would use Scripture like a mantra… I begged God to "set me free" and always felt He let me down. All of this leads to a DEAD END! Trust me. I've now been given amazing tools to deal with anxiety by someone who's come from being strapped down in a mental hospital and given about 10 shock treatments. She's a Christian woman and has the most amazing testimony of how she's overcome anxiety, panic and depression. I signed up for her course at Calvary Chapel in Ft. Lauderdale, FL; it was called "Unmasking Anxiety" and her name is Honor Weber. It was an 8-week course and changed my life! She's unfortunately just relocated BUT you can contact the church bookstore to purchase the course. I do NOT work for them and am only writing this to help others get help like I did-- because material like this is VERY hard to find! I went YEARS thinking God failed me, reciting Biblical verses, fasting, praying, feeling "crazy" and losing my mind… felt that no one understood me. Everyone told me to "trust God" or told me to see a Psychiatrist. I even saw a "Christian Psychiatrist" who only suggested I sit in a chair and stare at some lights moving side to side. This made me feel even more hopeless and didn't make sense to me and I never did it. Honor primarily teaches how our mental health is a direct result of the thoughts we have trained our brains to think. She goes in depth about how the brain works… about how thoughts scientifically enter into our brains and pass from one neuron to another and how they then excrete chemicals and adrenaline which then produces our anxious feelings and panic attacks. She shares Biblical verses about God's design for our minds and thought life. She makes it very clear how we "train our brains" to thinking anxiously, depressed, etc and how it forms "patterns" which need to be interrupted and broken. Anxiety is NOT a mental illness, it's not a sickness… it's a disorder that we ourselves CAUSE. Our brains have something like "muscle memory" and are trained to react to those "trigger" situations the same way each time. She teaches how to slow our minds down, to breathe correctly in order to calm all nerves and panic attacks, how to excrete chemicals like serotonin and dopamine, which are neurotransmitters that are responsible for our moods. When I heard these things, it made PERFECT sense to me! We are responsible for our thought patterns and she helps you identify them. What's easier is that she's a very Type-A person with a hilarious personality. She makes you actually laugh at yourself.. PLEASE trust me and buy her course! I took her course but then purchased the MP3 CD and uploaded it all to my iPhone so I can listen anywhere at any time. God bless.
I've been a Christian for over 13 years and have been dealing with anxiety for about 8 years. I was in a terrible cycle trying to deal with anxiety, worry, panic and fear within the church-- a church that wasn't equipped to deal with these things. They just prayed for me, laid hands on me… I would use Scripture like a mantra… I begged God to "set me free" and always felt He let me down. All of this leads to a DEAD END! Trust me. I've now been given amazing tools to deal with anxiety by someone who's come from being strapped down in a mental hospital and given about 10 shock treatments. She's a Christian woman and has the most amazing testimony of how she's overcome anxiety, panic and depression. I signed up for her course at Calvary Chapel in Ft. Lauderdale, FL; it was called "Unmasking Anxiety" and her name is Honor Weber. It was an 8-week course and changed my life! She's unfortunately just relocated BUT you can contact the church bookstore to purchase the course. I do NOT work for them and am only writing this to help others get help like I did-- because material like this is VERY hard to find! I went YEARS thinking God failed me, reciting Biblical verses, fasting, praying, feeling "crazy" and losing my mind… felt that no one understood me. Everyone told me to "trust God" or told me to see a Psychiatrist. I even saw a "Christian Psychiatrist" who only suggested I sit in a chair and stare at some lights moving side to side. This made me feel even more hopeless and didn't make sense to me and I never did it. Honor primarily teaches how our mental health is a direct result of the thoughts we have trained our brains to think. She goes in depth about how the brain works… about how thoughts scientifically enter into our brains and pass from one neuron to another and how they then excrete chemicals and adrenaline which then produces our anxious feelings and panic attacks. She shares Biblical verses about God's design for our minds and thought life. She makes it very clear how we "train our brains" to thinking anxiously, depressed, etc and how it forms "patterns" which need to be interrupted and broken. Anxiety is NOT a mental illness, it's not a sickness… it's a disorder that we ourselves CAUSE. Our brains have something like "muscle memory" and are trained to react to those "trigger" situations the same way each time. She teaches how to slow our minds down, to breathe correctly in order to calm all nerves and panic attacks, how to excrete chemicals like serotonin and dopamine, which are neurotransmitters that are responsible for our moods. When I heard these things, it made PERFECT sense to me! We are responsible for our thought patterns and she helps you identify them. What's easier is that she's a very Type-A person with a hilarious personality. She makes you actually laugh at yourself.. PLEASE trust me and buy her course! I took her course but then purchased the MP3 CD and uploaded it all to my iPhone so I can listen anywhere at any time. God bless.
L
Laura1084
Guest
Here's some more resources that would help readers with anxiety and trouble getting some sleep:
Bach rescue Remedy: Relief from feelings of stress
Bach rescue Sleep: Relief from sleeplessness
These are natural and can be taken with some water.
Bach rescue Remedy: Relief from feelings of stress
Bach rescue Sleep: Relief from sleeplessness
These are natural and can be taken with some water.
