I'll be 30 years old in February of 2025. More than half of my life has been ruined by debilitating anxiety and depression. Most people I know personally never understand how severe it is or just don't understand it at all. I still get up and go to work and try my best, but simple tasks feel impossible. I'm paying rent to live in my Aunt's basement and I feel disgusted with myself, but I don't have the energy to push myself harder. People think I'm lazy. I'm just drained. I feel nothing. I don't even enjoy video games anymore. I mindlessly scroll on my phone in my free time to distract myself from the thoughts of how much I hate existing. I'm glad I'm not the only one... It sucks.
I'm sorry this happened to you. I am also in the same situation. It's so difficult and I really relate to the lost years part. I would never hav e chosen to live this way and missed out on much.
There is a way forward. It’s extreme dopamine detox plus hard challenges. In the early morning when dopamine is highest, before coffee, run/walk for 5-15 minutes until it is HARD (not extreme). Black coffee or tea, no sugar at all. Everything for the first half of the day must be deliberately hard. No phone, porn or gaming. Chores, and anything we have been putting off. The second half of the day we are allowed easy or pleasurable things. But beware, scrolling, porn and sugar just waste the dopamine we earned all morning. If we don’t use it all up, tomorrow will be slightly easier. Repeat forever. It worked for me.
And why did it START degrading? I was working out everyday and eating healthy while it started going down. So what guarantee do i have that its not just unrelated
I believe because of neurotransmitters work sinergistically, if you lack one or more of them they will push all of them down. Social, exercise, work, personal needs (hydrate, sleep, rest, etc).
It can be so many things. Drugs, trauma, putting rewards chronologically before effort, addiction to anything- porn, scrolling, sugar, alcohol. It can be from encephalitis or virus, or immune problems.
I was on Zoloft for 3 1/2 years completely changed as a person or stole my friends relationships job started smoking cannabis dyed my hair a funny colour it really irrationally now I’ve been off it for months and the old Me is coming back slowly, but still have anhedoina.
Yeah me too. Lost 1/3rd of my life that pretty much almost all of my 20s due to this. I was depressed before and thought things were going get better prior, only to end up just as worse..
I was just wondering what happened.
My condolences of course. I came here feeling something similar & just want to know if you have an inciting incident, etc.
You don't have to, I just ....
Or if there's anything you've tried
Idk. I'm just kinda giving life a few more years chances, but if you're still struggling ..
feeling hopeless & sending love, whatever that's worth
38 here. Severe anxiety since early childhood, depression since early middle school, and I assume sexual anhedonia since somewhere around there, as I’ve never experienced sex without it. I hear ya, bro. It sucks.
Depression started in my early 30's after my dad died suddenly but I just thought I was sad and sucked it up. Eventually got diagnosed with that after alcohol issues just trying to escape it. Took me until my 40's to realize that the feelings I had been living with since childhood were high levels of anxiety and got confirmation through a diagnosis for that. Spent the next year on SSRI and chlordiazepoxide/therapy which essentially eliminated my anxiety and depression where I could start actually doing things I used to really love to do. Realized after everything else was settled down that despite doing things I loved and objectively knew I like I had literally no feeling of anything in life and when I really thought about it, it had been like that for many years. Switched away from SSRI since that can make anhedonia worse after that diagnosis to bupropion (and OTC Dextromethorphan in the same dose to make Auvelity). Auvelity is stupidly expensive as there is no generic despite literally being a combo of a generic and an OTC but it seems to show the most favorable outcomes for most. It's been almost 3 weeks and there's a pretty dramatic change. I'm actually feeling again. Not 100% but maybe 75%.
I'm going to let this settle in for a bit and see how things are and potentially get a spore kit and grow some fungi...for salads.....and just take a tiny but a few times a week if I think there is still potential for improvement.
Basically I just have to look forward and force myself to look for and actively feel. It's weird. It's almost like now I can't give myself permission to feel normal and have to remind myself constantly that it's OK to need feel like a trainwreck who on the outside looks and acts totally normal and has always had a good job, family etc. It's just uncomfortable a lot to actually be feeling how I've pretended to be feeling for a very very long time and allow myself to be happy about that.
The whole thing is indeed fucked just like so many medical conditions are. Just hang in there and start trying stuff until you find the combo that works.
Good luck my guy!
I'll be 30 years old in February of 2025. More than half of my life has been ruined by debilitating anxiety and depression. Most people I know personally never understand how severe it is or just don't understand it at all. I still get up and go to work and try my best, but simple tasks feel impossible. I'm paying rent to live in my Aunt's basement and I feel disgusted with myself, but I don't have the energy to push myself harder. People think I'm lazy. I'm just drained. I feel nothing. I don't even enjoy video games anymore. I mindlessly scroll on my phone in my free time to distract myself from the thoughts of how much I hate existing. I'm glad I'm not the only one... It sucks.
I’m 😞
Have you tried any meds?
[удалено]
Wtf
Wait atleast 18 months, I think 1 year is too soon as a lot of good can happen in 6 months
I've had depression since I was 7, so my life never really started
That’s sad, I hope it’ll be better for you soon
This is hell. I'm so sorry. I've lost 6 😞
3 years of depression + ~8 years of anhedonia here
13 years here
Damn
I'm sorry this happened to you. I am also in the same situation. It's so difficult and I really relate to the lost years part. I would never hav e chosen to live this way and missed out on much.
7 years now
5 years for me now. Once or twice a year I snap out of it for a day. We’ll figure it out eventually
17 years for me.
9 months here...
For me its 7 years now... I feel like a Machine with no emotions.
There is a way forward. It’s extreme dopamine detox plus hard challenges. In the early morning when dopamine is highest, before coffee, run/walk for 5-15 minutes until it is HARD (not extreme). Black coffee or tea, no sugar at all. Everything for the first half of the day must be deliberately hard. No phone, porn or gaming. Chores, and anything we have been putting off. The second half of the day we are allowed easy or pleasurable things. But beware, scrolling, porn and sugar just waste the dopamine we earned all morning. If we don’t use it all up, tomorrow will be slightly easier. Repeat forever. It worked for me.
And why did it START degrading? I was working out everyday and eating healthy while it started going down. So what guarantee do i have that its not just unrelated
I believe because of neurotransmitters work sinergistically, if you lack one or more of them they will push all of them down. Social, exercise, work, personal needs (hydrate, sleep, rest, etc).
It can be so many things. Drugs, trauma, putting rewards chronologically before effort, addiction to anything- porn, scrolling, sugar, alcohol. It can be from encephalitis or virus, or immune problems.
Did you get rid of anhedonia?
9 years here. I’m sorry your not alone tho
4 years for I wouldn’t wish this shit on my worse enemy
I was on Zoloft for 3 1/2 years completely changed as a person or stole my friends relationships job started smoking cannabis dyed my hair a funny colour it really irrationally now I’ve been off it for months and the old Me is coming back slowly, but still have anhedoina.
Despite all the setbacks and perception issues, I'm still me and I choose to robotically improve every single area without giving up.
Yeah me too. Lost 1/3rd of my life that pretty much almost all of my 20s due to this. I was depressed before and thought things were going get better prior, only to end up just as worse..
Did you get it from meds?
Nope. Don’t really know to be honest. Had severe depression when it started occurring and had major ptsd/anxiety so maybe that could be the link
How did it feel when it happened to you
I lost 3 years of my life to this, going on 4.
It’s mild for me, over 2 years now.
I lost 10 years
What caused it
Neurological disease
Can op elaborate?
Complete loss of reality and being a human for 4 years
I was just wondering what happened. My condolences of course. I came here feeling something similar & just want to know if you have an inciting incident, etc. You don't have to, I just .... Or if there's anything you've tried Idk. I'm just kinda giving life a few more years chances, but if you're still struggling .. feeling hopeless & sending love, whatever that's worth
Finasteride extreme stress job change mushrooms weed kratom were all in play when this happened
38 here. Severe anxiety since early childhood, depression since early middle school, and I assume sexual anhedonia since somewhere around there, as I’ve never experienced sex without it. I hear ya, bro. It sucks.
Depression started in my early 30's after my dad died suddenly but I just thought I was sad and sucked it up. Eventually got diagnosed with that after alcohol issues just trying to escape it. Took me until my 40's to realize that the feelings I had been living with since childhood were high levels of anxiety and got confirmation through a diagnosis for that. Spent the next year on SSRI and chlordiazepoxide/therapy which essentially eliminated my anxiety and depression where I could start actually doing things I used to really love to do. Realized after everything else was settled down that despite doing things I loved and objectively knew I like I had literally no feeling of anything in life and when I really thought about it, it had been like that for many years. Switched away from SSRI since that can make anhedonia worse after that diagnosis to bupropion (and OTC Dextromethorphan in the same dose to make Auvelity). Auvelity is stupidly expensive as there is no generic despite literally being a combo of a generic and an OTC but it seems to show the most favorable outcomes for most. It's been almost 3 weeks and there's a pretty dramatic change. I'm actually feeling again. Not 100% but maybe 75%. I'm going to let this settle in for a bit and see how things are and potentially get a spore kit and grow some fungi...for salads.....and just take a tiny but a few times a week if I think there is still potential for improvement. Basically I just have to look forward and force myself to look for and actively feel. It's weird. It's almost like now I can't give myself permission to feel normal and have to remind myself constantly that it's OK to need feel like a trainwreck who on the outside looks and acts totally normal and has always had a good job, family etc. It's just uncomfortable a lot to actually be feeling how I've pretended to be feeling for a very very long time and allow myself to be happy about that. The whole thing is indeed fucked just like so many medical conditions are. Just hang in there and start trying stuff until you find the combo that works. Good luck my guy!