I wish I could change the circumstances of this post, but I have felt like I needed to share my experiences lately. Anxiety and depression are serious and can even be fatal so they definitely need to be taken seriously. But, there are things you can do to prevent it and even work through it.
As a coach and a parent, I can tell you that exercise is one of the best ways to clear your mind. Walking is all I can manage lately but I love the way I feel when I'm done. I walk with Ben and the dogs but I have also loved listening to music, listening to podcasts, scriptures or conference talks when I walk alone. I mostly love listening to the sounds of the morning like birds, sprinklers, cars leaving for work and even the cement factory busy starting their day. I've noticed that the days I don't walk, I'm far less productive on the days I don't get some good exercise in.
Breathing is another strategy I use. When I feel myself get overwhelmed, I take a few deep breaths and focus my energies and my mind on things I can control. This has taken some practice over the years. I need to decide what is worth my energy and focus on that; family, faith, students, immediate needs. I don't have the energy for drama, gossip or arguing. When I came to realize that, my life became much more peaceful.
Getting enough rest is one of my biggest struggles but it is super important. My brain sometimes can't turn off when I try to go to bed. I have created a routine that works for me and I follow it almost religiously. I head to bed around 8:30pm, change into my pajamas, read my scriptures and do an activity with my mind that helps me not think about all the "things" that would keep me up. I use the alphabet and each night come up with a topic and find words that start with each letter such as "food" A=apple, B=Banana, C=chips, etc. Other categories are things like names of stores, animals, countries and/or states, etc. This works most nights. When it doesn't, I move to another room and read for 30 minutes and then try again.
The Anxiety and Depression Association of America adds that eating healthy, getting involved in your community and finding a hobby are additional ways to prevent suffering from mental illness along with the ones I've mentioned.
If you've tried these things and you are still struggling, please seek medical attention from someone who understands mental health and medications to treat them. This is critical. Don't simply trust your family doctor if he hasn't been trained.
Lastly, reach out to family and friends for support. This is not a disease that I would be able to get past without the help and support from people who love me. There are days when those friends have come to my rescue with a simple text to check on me or a hug in passing. Suffering alone only makes it worse.
Having said that, I am grateful we live in an era where we have so many medicines available to help us out of our darkest days. What a blessing. After I tried everything I knew, I was glad I reached out and found a medicine to help me. This part of my post is a caution about the side effects of medicines. I have been taking a drug for my anxiety and depression for over a year now and I hate it but I absolutely need it to function. I am certainly not against them because I take them, but I worry that we are becoming a society addicted to the quick fix, the temporary solution to a long term issue. During the last year I worked really hard to do all the right things so I could get off this medication. While I blame extenuating circumstances due to school closures and Covid, maybe I wasn't as ready as I thought.
According to the mayo clinic, here are a few most common side effects that don't require letting your doctor know unless they are too bothersome:
More common
- Decrease in sexual desire or ability
- sleepiness or unusual drowsiness
Less common
- Body aches or pain
- change in sense of taste
- gas
- headache (severe and throbbing)
- heartburn
- increased sweating
- increased yawning
- loss of voice
- pain in the muscles or joints
- sneezing
- stuffy or runny nose
- tingling, burning, or prickly feelings on the skin
- tooth grinding
- unusual increase or decrease in weight
- watering of the mouth
I can admit that I suffer from eight of the side effects listed above. I want to sleep anytime I'm at home, I yawn all day long, I'm constantly aching all over, I've gained lots of weight and I won't bore you with the details of my sex life. Some of the side effects are manageable and others put me further and further into my prison of anxiety and depression. It's an awful cycle.
But, if you've exhausted all the suggestions for prevention and need medicine to kick start your recovery, it might be the thing you need to feel better. Talk with your family and your healthcare professional to make a decision that is right for you.
Resources:
*https://adaa.org/learn-from-us/from-the-experts/blog-posts/consumer/top-5-strategies-cultivating-your-mental-health
*https://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements/citalopram-oral-route/side-effects/drg-20062980?p=1
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