ro 4..I've been through this maybe 3 times in my life. They call it in French " un mal d'amour ". it's heartbreak in English, I think. It will pass, a way or another. I remember I went to church, or find new relations etc.. I'm now almost 65 and I feel somewhat happy. I wish I were 42 with a heartbreak, just the same I endeavored. We always need some patience, courage and self persuasion. Good luck coin- friend and cheers forever..
@ro1974 I wish you well! Exercise, spending time with friends, meditation and helping others are great methods for overcoming heartache, grief and depression (we've all been there).
Try a prescription for nortriptyline. Before Prozac, the top selling antidepressant was Pamelor; nortriptyline is the generic version of that. It has relatively few side effects and targets both serotonin and norepinephrine. Give it a try. I tried various things when I had clinical depression for a little over a year. Nine days after I started taking this antidepressant, I realized that I felt normal for the first time in many months. Gone were the ruminations and hypochondria, my appetite returned, and I didn't have any trouble sleeping. One other good thing about nortriptyline, it's dirt cheap. And if you wonder about my credentials, I have a Ph.D. in psychology and co-wrote a textbook in biological psychology.
Ro, You've taken a big step in sharing how you feel. Depression, whether it is situational or organic, sucks. It's hard to recognize it in ourselves. I know from first-hand experience; I used to counsel others who were depressed but didn't recognize it in myself. I just thought life was hopeless and I was a bad person, bad father, bad husband. We're in good company: Abe Lincoln and Winston Churchill were fellow sufferers. Check out William Styron's book "Darkness Visible." As others have said, exercise, hang with friends, seek professional help if things don't change. All of it saved my life. Feel free to PM me at any time. Steve
This is one of the worst ways to cope with depression. You could hurt yourself or others around you, and it will negatively affect your life in other ways. As others have repeated to you, you need to seek out a therapist or other professional before it gets worse.
I hope all you are drinking is a gallon of sweet tea, or some guava juice or lemonade. Stay away from alcohol, man. I've seen too many lives go wasted due to alcohol, including an ex-girlfriend's grandmother whom was an alcoholic. She died in my arms before rescue could come take her to the hospital after drinking herself into a coma. From that day forwards, alcohol literally makes me sick. I force myself on rare occasions when I'm in a social setting to have a beer with friends. But if I have more than that I get nausea. Once you've seen someone die from alcohol poisoning, you just can't enjoy the stuff the same way ever again.
To drink alcohol (a depressant) while feeling depressed is a coping behavior that can have profoundly dangerous consequences. Please try to avoid it, Ro. You say you want to avoid medications; well, alcohol IS a medication. Steve
Alcohol and sad music (country is good for this)...hillbilly depression therapy! Be careful not to get too much though.
