Struggle

[vwatson]

Hello,

I had posted my introduction about a week ago and wanted to continue to immerse myself in this community.

I have generalized anxiety disorder and major depressive disorder and have been suffering from it for about 11 years now.

I struggle with interpersonal relationships and have found that I am continuing to struggle to let others in or developing a romantic/ bonded relationship with another person.

I have extreme anxiety when others enter my personal space and have been working on letting people near me. It is frustrating because I feel I am so far behind everyone else in regards to romantic relationships and will miss the boat in finding someone to share my life with.

[blackcat64013]

Hi,

Thanks for sharing your story.

There is definitely one boat you should be in. The lifeboat is called psychotherapy.

If you have been suffering with your generalized anxiety and major depressive disorders for a long time, it might be time to enter a talking therapy with a specific goal of addressing interpersonal relationships. Having a goal in therapy is about working to problem solve rather than just chatting about what is happening in your world.

Have you had a medication review with your doctor within the last 3-6 months? Have you thought that your medication might not be working as well as it should or has stopped working?

The medical term used to describe the decreased effectiveness of a medication over time is either tolerance or tachyphylaxis. It's important to note that the layman's term "poop out" means that a medication was helping at one time and your symptoms represent a relapse, rather than a lack of response to treatment. There are quite a few references on the website to look at.

I hope this helps.

[vwatson in reply to blackcat64013]

Thank you so much! I will have to look into this more.

I've been on the same medication for almost five years now, so perhaps it's time to review it again

[BonnieSue]

I'm so sorry to hear your frustration about closeness and romantic relationships. I have GAD, too, and also atypical depression which is a strong depression. That's the best way I know to describe it. Maybe I should say MDD but also atypical. M atypical DD. I can see how you would be frustrated if you can't have a good romantic relationship. I'm not in one now, but I've just ended one that lasted 43 years. I'm not in a hurry to start another one. Could it be that you just don't have experience? Or am I just being unrealistic?

Do you want to talk about this or would you rather not? You can always pm me if you'd ever like to talk privately. I do understand if you would not like to talk at all. It's ok. I'm just offering to be open to you for whatever you desire and need. I won't be offended either way. I'm fine just the way I am now. I'm trying to be thoughtful of your needs.

You seem to be saying that you struggle with friends of all kinds. Is that true? Could we be friends here online? I'd be glad to be your friend here if you desire!! What are some of your favorite things? Places, animals, things to do? Colors, crafts, hobbies, anything? Here are some of mine: I like to garden, read mysteries, read about gardening and flowers and gardening how-to. The heat here gets to me and I have a landscaper do a lot of maintenance for me and I do the things he doesn't but still the heat frustrates me and limits me more than I like. I love to see botannical Gardens and butterfly gardens. I'm trying to convert more of my yard to butterfly and bird friendly plantings so I can see these creatures around more. I love when I see bunnies eating in my yard, too! Those are very magical moments for me. I always feel God's presence at those moments and thank him and whisper sweet nothings back and forth with him. I know those bunnies are living under the shed and I like that knowledge too. I like to do creative things like painting and not just art paintings but painting things in the house and projects around the house and so forth. Creative projects that enhance the house's looks and add to the creative looks of the environment here. Inside and outside. I pay more attention to the outside than most homeowners.

Well, this is long enough. I stop here and hope to hear from you! Take care of you.

[vwatson in reply to BonnieSue]

Thank you for taking the time to reply. I appreciate the time it took you to respond. I'm always glad to have more friends/people to interact with.

As for therapy I have been working through my anxiety for a long time and found that talk therapy helps a lot, I'm just very busy most of the time.

I rather love gardening myself and being outside. I hike a great deal

[BonnieSue in reply to vwatson]

I wish I had more opportunities to hike. And better weather that allowed me to hike, too!! I'd do more of it if I did.