Depression, Anxiety or both?

[birdgirl94]

Hi, i'm new here but really need some advice..

I'm a 20 year old girl and have had troubles with low mood and extremely low self esteem my whole life. I started self harming when I was 15 and continued until I was around 17. I first had counselling when my mum found out I was self harming and forced me to go, at this time I didn't know why I was self harming, I just felt so low all the time.

Skipping forward to about 2 years ago, I struggled with social anxiety for reasons i'm not sure of, I lost alot of friends and really struggled to do day to day tasks, my boyfriend said I needed to get help and I agreed. I got more counselling and although I felt like it was sort of helping, I never really felt like we were tackling my low mood and wondered if social anxiety was really the cause of feeling so low all the time. I stopped my counselling after a few months as I felt I was better.

Now about 6 months later, my anxiety is back with a force, I feel scared to do such normal tasks such as go to the supermarket, even with my partner. But this time it is the sadness I notice more, I struggle to get out of bed and cry all of the time.

Does anybody think this could be depression more than social anxiety? I'm really confused and unsure of what to do next. There are some days I am fine, happy and content and others I can't seem to think i'll ever feel ok again.

I am going to the doctors tonight to talk about this but I just wanted an opinion from somebody who maybe has felt the same way?

Sorry for the long post!!!

Thanks

[WantToChange]

I have been the same in the past. Before I started taking medication, I got really anxious a lot of the time. I do still suffer from anxiety at times as things can build up in my head too much but eventually it is released and I feel ok again.

When I used to get really anxious (breathing heavily, my thoughts running at a hundred miles an hour and getting over-excited about things) I would crash afterwards. The way I can explain it is that for every high there is a low. So whenever I got really anxious, depression would soon follow and I'd feel really down. Now I try to remain level headed about things so my emotions will be more stable.

I think you may be suffering from both conditions, like me. Obviously I don't have the authority to say for sure, but it sound similar to me. It is normal to have periods of depression when you suffer from anxiety. Ask your doctor if you might have anxiety with associated depression? Your doctor may refer you to a specialist as GPs are often unsure.

Don't feel down on yourself though, you are young and still have lots of time to get yourself sorted. I am 24 and have only been feeling better over the last 6 months or so.

[birdgirl94 in reply to WantToChange]

That makes a lot of sense, and when I think about it like that, my low mood usually comes with or after strong feelings of anxiety.

Thank you for sharing this with me, it has made me feel better that i'm not alone.

I have made an appt with my doc tonight so I will be sure to mention this.

What meds do you now take? Have they helped you?

Thanks again

[WantToChange in reply to birdgirl94]

Hey, no worries at all.

I take citalopram 30mg. But that doesn't mean that's what you should or will actually get. Your doctor knows best I'm sure. How did the appointment go anyways?

[birdgirl94 in reply to WantToChange]

The appointment went ok thanks, I was given 10mg of Citalopram. Was a bit apprehensive to start taking the pills, but with some encouragement on here, I took my first dose this morning, been feeling really sick all day, a little better now. I'm going on holiday next week and am really anxious that the pills/side effects will ruin my holiday

[Hidden in reply to birdgirl94]

Hi bird girl

I answered your other post this morning I started my citalopram yesterday and I have started with the sick feeling I have just spoke to a pharmacy and they said it will pass in a few days. Take care xxx

[WantToChange in reply to birdgirl94]

I didn't feel sick. I just felt exhausted and slept a lot. This passed after two weeks. I didn't notice any difference in my anxiety until I went up to 20mg. Just persist with them. It may have been an idea to wait until after your holiday.

[mcdizzy]

I really hope your appointment went well and your doctor listened to your concerns. It's a horrible place to be in when you're not sure if it's anxiety, depression or maybe a mixture of both. Hopefully your gp has helped. Xx

[unhappy222]

You most definitely can have both one can exacerbate the other. The sheer exhaustion of feeling anxious can push you down. Probably if you resolve the anxiety your depression will ease. I've gone up from 20mg to 40mg due to intense pressure (my sister's in intensive care) and I was her only carer). I've noticed that when the dose was increased to combat my increased emotional distress my anxiety rose slightly and then settled down. So I would say that because you are new to medication then don't become unduly perturbed as it may just be how it works in some people. If you still feel anxious you may need something in addition to the Citalopram but see how it goes because it can take a few weeks before the full benefits are felt.