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Re: How Do You Cope With No Energy?

Posted by Anna Laura on June 29, 2001, at 12:27:10

In reply to How Do You Cope With No Energy?, posted by AKC on June 29, 2001, at 8:38:00

> For two days I have wanted to post this, but I can't figure out which board. I have no energy 95% of the time. I am on a lot of meds, and I know that when I am not in a depression, the lack of energy is likely, well not likely, is a side effect of the meds. So this may ought to be on Psycho Babble. But I am not looking to change my meds or the dosage or wondering which med it is, so I also think it doesn't belong there.
>
> Instead what I am looking for is the encouragement, the wisdom on how you keep going in the face of the fatigue, the lack of energy. Hence, my decision to post here. I have just recently come out of another bad depression so I am not struggling with that ever present question of why even bother. Instead it is more the how. How in the face of this illness I have to fight daily do I keep ahead? I'm in a high stress job - one that I have somewhat formally asked for a "reasonable accomodation" (I hate those words, but that is for another post on another day!). Its the getting up, getting to work, staying focused, walking my dogs, cleaning my house - the daily living - all of it, when I have no energy. My question to all of you is how do you do it in the face of no energy?
>
> Thanks.


First of all,

I try not to blame myself for that (having no energy).I say that because blaming yourself it's very very stressful so that you end up having even less energy at your disposal.
I used to tell myself that i was lazy, that i could do more only if i wanted to: I thought that i could control that lack of energy, and blamed myself and felt like s*** if i didn't manage do it.
I still blame myself sometimes: i have no energy in this period (may be because of the hot weather)
and i notice that i'm doing that again :("i'm so lazy!I don't want to work, i don't want to cook...etc.) all this c*** it's nonsense and useless at the same time. Sometimes it might even make depression worse.It lower your self-esteem for sure, and you don't need that.
I think you got to forgive yourself, which is different from being self-indulgent. I know, it's a pretty tricky question, because sometimes seems to be a very fine line between being self-indulgent and forgiving yourself for things. But it's not so. Forgiving yourself is about self-esteem, loving yourself more and makes you feel better: it's definitely not about having a tiny little parent inside your head scolding you because you're "lazy". It's about feeling sorry for yourself.
Right now i feel a little guilty myself because i went to sleep this afternoon instead of doing what i was supposed to do (home job). Right now i just woke up : went to sleep at three pm and now it's 6.30 pm (posting from overseas, different time).
I could barely keep my eyes opened, i swallowed dozens of coffee cups, couldn't fight it back, so what was i supposed to do?
I used to feel to blame watching people working : right now i tell myself: " you're sick, you're taking meds : without meds you couldn't even live" (i was starving myself to death couldn't eat, couldn't move). "You had psychotic depression: these people didn't".
"It's a miracle you're alive"....and so on.
The second thing i do it's not pushing myself too hard to do things; if i really have no energy whatsoever i go to sleep, watch a movie on tv or i read a book ("it's like having a flu sort of" - i keep repeating myself). I do not blame myself : i pamper myself instead.
If i have energy levels high enough to accomplish something i write down a little schedule/agenda of the day: i plan to accomplish only a few things and praise myself for the effort.
You know what? I've been depressed for ten years so far and only recently i found out that i'm not "lazy". How did i manage to do that? I had a second bout of depression last fall, took meds and improved. I started doing home work, cooking, working like never before: so i found out i was sick!

Hope i answered some of your questions....


Anna Laura



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poster:Anna Laura thread:6906
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20010628/msgs/6917.html