Exhausted and scared

[hmitchellrose]

I am very scared by how tired I am recently. I have depression and generalized anxiety disorder and my psychiatrist put me on 20mg Prozac two weeks ago. I think that my anxiety is making my muscles tense all the time, and maybe this is why I’m so tired? I take the Prozac first thing in the morning because I know that it can cause sleep disturbance. I feel like no matter how much sleep I get I am exhausted all the time. Sometimes I fall asleep watching TV, and wake up feeling disoriented and anxious. I am very scared about what this persistent exhausting might mean, even though I went to my primary care doctor last week and all of the tests came back normal. Will I ever feel energized and normal again? Has anyone else experienced this? Please tell me I’m not alone.

[Rpan]

You certainly are not alone. It takes some getting used to, these new symptoms you are experiencing. We all go through some growing pains when medications are started. Focus on your breathing and allow yourself to be calm, the best that you can. In through the nose, out through the mouth. Try to stay in the moments. Don’t worry about yesterday and tomorrow is not here. It will get better. Try to find something that shifts the focus, cross word puzzle,art work, meditation, mindfulness,exercise,cook a healthy meal,pray,walk the mall...shift the focus

[gerg]

You are not alone. I have similar issues and I suffer similar disorders. I find that I deal with the issues in two different ways. I think I have a motivation problem more than an exhaustion problem. If I know this I can address the issue. I have to catch myself saying “I’m so tired” when I have no reason to be tired. If I tell myself that I am tired or exhausted I will be. If I can get going I find that I feel a lot better as I do things. The other thing I do is that I allow myself some downtime. I do this without guilt and terms. If I put pressure on myself then the downtime is wasted, because I feel more exhausted and I have less done than before. This is all a huge transition for me, I spent most of my life having to go, go, go...

[Hidden in reply to gerg]

This spoke directly to me. I find myself in the same boat. I am never so exhausted that I fall asleep at random times but I often feel like I am so exhausted that I could. I’m thinking that it is a motivation problem on my part as well. Thanks for sharing.

[fauxartist]

yes...for me it's just simply the aging process..not just the physical aging of the body, but of what time and surviving life's experiences has done...all take their toll. I wake up tired, and can't wait to go back to bed some days. I used to get up and go all day long...I worked really hard all my life....when I hit menopause...my life changed in more ways than one. I woke up one day and was completely decimated at how tired I was...it progressively got worse. I did hard physical work, so it wasn't a matter of getting enough exorcise, it's just life. So now I plod along at my own pace, I miss all that sprite energy, but consign myself to the fact that this is my life now...and I just have to figure out how to deal with it. What other choice do I have. Some days it's depression, some days I don't feel well physically, and some days I get up and do more than others. It's all okay...I have earned a brake...my partner is 9 years younger and grew up on the farm land we live on...so thankfully...they still have a lot of energy...I do a lot of the care with the kids during the week, and they are more outdoors which is what they prefer to do anyways. Works out great.

[Speechpat]

Thanks for your post. I am struggling with similar issues. No energy. Anxiety especially in the early morning. Depression. It’s been awful lately. I don’t tolerate antidepressants but do take Xanax which helps but makes me tired. How do we get back to a normal life? I feel like a prisoner in my own body.