I want you to know that I’ve been there — and I’m still there most days. I know what it’s like to want to escape the pain just to experience a single moment of relief. On the really difficult days, I look at others who don’t experience mental or chronic illness and become angry. Why can’t I be like them?
Maybe you’re in that place right now.
Maybe you’ve been there before. If you know what it’s like to experience deep mental or physical pain, please share your story and how you manage. Because reading that others have lived through what we’re going through can be the hope and encouragement we need in those difficult moments.
Please be gentle with yourself today. I know it’s often easier said than done, but sometimes just deciding to show up to life is the biggest accomplishment of all.
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MariaLove123
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Lovely post, my friend. But I'm way tired of dealing with this....Way tired....I miss my former home, my beloved dog, feeling halway normal and....life itself. Am I really even living right now? Or am I just a ghost pretending to be me....
JEG you sound terrible. This isn’t you. You have to believe me when I say you’re going through a funk. I’m not downing your feelings though. Funks are hell. But I know you and I know you like to laugh and talk too much to let this funk get the better of you. And you know you can talk to me anytime. Sending you lots of love and hugs 🤗❤️
God, I love you for that. S, I was just thinking about sending you a poem and I was anticipating your drawings & art. You see, that's what would make happy!
Beautiful post and well said. We spend so much time worrying about and looking after the people in our lives that we forget to make time for ourselves. One of the keys to overcoming anxiety is to let go of the guilt of the past and deal with future stressors in a kind and loving way.
You always say the perfect response. I know we all hate feeling trapped with our unwanted thoughts, but if we learn to love ourselves and be more positive towards our future, we don’t have to live this way. The past can’t change. But the future can. I gotta send you that app I was telling you about. I really want to get your thoughts on it. X
This post is everything I often envy people that don’t have to battle with anxiety and depression. Sometimes I feel alone in this. Whenever I talk to my family they never know what to say and it’s a trigger for me. I recently stopped taking my medication and my emotions are through the roof. I don’t want to take the medication anymore it made me feel like a zombie and put weight on me
Medications are so tricky. Here’s a really good article on them. Sorry it’s so long!
We Need to Stop Thinking Antidepressants Are 'Magic Pills'
Perhaps it’s the way they are shown in the movies. Maybe it’s the way we see them in commercials or even just their names. But let’s get something clear. Antidepressants are not “magic pills” you take to magically make you a happy, dancing unicorn.
I’ve struggled with depression for many years since my official diagnosis and for many years before that. I didn’t even know about antidepressants when I experienced my first serious depressive episode. When I started seeing a psychiatrist, it was the first time I learned about antidepressants. And from their name, I thought they were going to do wonders for me. I thought if I was good and took the prescribed amount at the right times of day, I could revert back to being the happy, go-lucky girl I used to be.
Boy was I wrong.
This, my friends, is the ultimate example of expectation vs. reality.
Expectation: Wake up sad, empty, numb. Take your pill and suddenly the colors are brighter, food tastes better and you’re in the best mood you could be in. Nothing can stop you from taking over the world!
Reality: You take your pills at the right time in the right amounts and there are no fireworks. No “aha!” moment. No jumping out of bed to go take on the world.
Why did reality fall short of my fantasy?
Because antidepressants are not some magic “happy pill” potion designed to make you invincible. They usually don’t make you happy and chippy, they usually don’t make you feel like you could take on the world and cook gourmet food. You usually don’t magically have pep in your step.
But what they can do though, is allow you to live a better-adjusted life. It’s not whipping up a five star Gordon Ramsay-approved meal. It’s sometimes just being able to drag yourself out of bed. It’s not luxurious bubble baths with rose petals and champagne. It’s sometimes just finally showering after spending three days in bed. It’s not Cinderella’s magical birds and mice helping you clean up so your apartment is sparkling clean while you sing songs and dance in the wind. It’s sometimes just finally picking up the dirty dishes and putting them in the sink because the garbage is starting to smell that bad.
Whether it’s a romanticized version of what we think they are or just a misconception of their name, antidepressants aren’t a magic potion that suddenly makes you happy. All they do is level the playing field so you can fight your depression. They give you a fighting chance of being able to live the life you want to life — the one you know you can have. It lets you do everyday things without feeling like it’s the end of the world.
T, I may be in a bit of a funk right now myself but, I'm never too down to help others. If you need to talk at anytime, I am here. Okay? You can PM me, as well. I will always listen to you and respond from my heart. My true friends say that is what I excel at the best, listening and speaking from my heart. Have a blessed day, my friend!
I say yes to my kids having a loud friend over like today when I would actually love to have complete peace and quiet. So then I make up for it by giving myself a break; I start doing something I love instead of cleaning you know, do my nails or something.
((((((Star)))))) I love that! One of the best things to do having this illness is things for yourself. Fun things like you did with your nails. When we actually do something nice for ourselves, it feels so great. It’s just believing that we deserve it is the problem. That’s why I posted this; to be gentle with ourselves 💜
Thank you for your inspiring post. It helps to know there are others that relate to what many of us are going through daily. I love the way you expressed "just showing up to life as a accomplishment." I never thought of it like that. I wake up with anxiety and depression thinking of the few things that I have to do today and thinking that I don't have the will to get through what I need to do. At the end of the day I try to feel good that at least I got some things accomplished.
Thank you so much for this inspiring post. I think about this all the time. I see people who don't have generalized anxiety disorder and depression, and I really wish I could be more care-free. I'm often really hard on myself for not accomplishing more, when I know I'm doing the best I can. I love how you said that sometimes just showing up for life is the biggest accomplishment of all. It definitely feels that way for me, especially living with mental illnesses.
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