I’m grateful that my dip into depression and anxiety last night has nearly dissipated this evening.
I’m grateful for my bicycle that took me through an amazing ride through my beautiful city.
I’m grateful for this forum where I can connect with like minded people.

Hello,

I’m sorry to hear of your diagnosis. I also have OCD so I have some idea of what you are going through. I also understand how difficult work can be, such a trigger to OCD issues!

I don’t know what sort of help you have been offered. You don’t mention what sort of therapy you are having. Is it Cognitive Behavioural Therapy? I had that and I found I had to have a lot of sessions before I got to a point that helped me.

Are you taking any medication? I do and I find it helps me with my OCD very much. It doesn’t take it away but it helps to ease it. Of course this isn’t for everyone and you would need to talk to your doctors about that option.

I’ve found that I need a really high level of self care. I need to make sure I’m eating enough, getting enough sleep and rest, probably more so then other people. Is this something that you could do for yourself or that might help you?

In terms of work, when I was going through a really bad OCD phase, I quit my job and started doing temp work through an agency. The pay was lower and there was no job security at all, but for the most part there was much less pressure and this helped my anxiety.

I don’t really have any other advice then that. I really hope that you find some peace soon.

I feel like I’ve wasted years, too. I’ve been taking college courses since I was 17 and a junior in high school. Now I’m 23 and have yet to get a college degree. I just can’t pick a major. Like you–and many others on here–I struggle with depression and anxiety. Nothing excites me, nothing interests me, I really don’t have much of a passion for anything. I’ll pick something that I think seems cool and a month or two into it my motivation is GONE and I end up dropping my classes. I’m really not sure what to do.

Be glad you have a degree 🙂 I assume that will help in getting you some type of job, even though it may not be what you’re passionate about?

Good luck to you!

I experienced detachment a year ago over the summer. I had no idea what it was, and it was TERRIFYING. All I knew was that I would randomly wake up in the middle of the night and my body was moving but my mind wasn’t thinking about the motions. I’d look down and literally think…”When did I walk here?” and I would look in the mirror and think, “This isn’t right…I’m looking at myself from outside of myself.” Scary, scary times. I remember the RELIEF I got when I told my mother about it and she said, “Oh yeah, I’ve heard of that type of thing happening during panic attacks.” It didn’t make it stop, per se, but boy did it make it less scary when I knew I wasn’t actually going crazy. Or being abducted by aliens. O_O

Let me clarify and maybe I misunderstood you a little bit…there’s nothing wrong with helping others…I guess my point was make sure you are helping yourself first?
Sorry if I confused you tinydisciple…maybe I was a little confused as well.
Peace

wow.the last part has blown me off my wits.i myself from general anxiety,and till this very point of time,felt that the only way i can cure it is by helping others and getting the answers for myself,from myself.i almost thought that this was something heroic,that i am in a muddle,and i can still help other people,but this was an eye-opener,truly.
i failed to recognize that whatever i come up with helping others gets blown away in the wind when i truly need it…
thank you so much for the much needed insight.

Hi Sarah

I hope my input here will help you see you are not alone. I am 47 and had a pretty good life until 2009 when my world fell apart….i mean literally…i lost everything including my sanity. What i went through is still affecting me and i have been spinning out of control ever since trying to fill that void. I have moved countries and back again numerous, times tried different things that my friends thought were mad until i realised i didn’t have any friends anymore. I was the “loose cannon” Now i am a rock bottom with no job no money but i have one friend who has stayed with me through all and even though i am still beating myself up emotionally (and drinking and smoking heavily…something i never did prior to all this…)

So i decided to get help and went into a clinic for severe depression, paranoia, anxiety and general feelings of hopelessness.

There has to be an end and a way out…sometimes we have to fall apart but at some stage we have to climb out and never be afraid to ask for help, professional help that i know from experience, friends can’t deal with and will back off as they did to me.

Due to the decisions i made in my life, life will never be the same, ever but we just have to have faith and keep going forwards…step by step…….

My warmest Regards to you…..and alll others who post here…..

• This reply was modified 11 years ago by Sara Lindsey.

Hi Sarah

I hope my input here will help you see you are not alone. I am 47 and had a pretty good life until 2009 when my world fell apart….i mean literally…i lost everything including my sanity. What i went through is still affecting me and i have been spinning out of control ever since trying to fill that void. I have moved countries and back again numerous, times tried different things that my friends thought were mad until i realised i didn’t have any friends anymore. I was the “loose cannon” Now i am a rock bottom with no job no money but i have one friend who has stayed with me through all and even though i am still beating myself up emotionally (and drinking and smoking heavily…something i never did prior to all this…)

So i decided to get help and went into a clinic for severe depression, paranoia, anxiety and general feelings of hopelessness.

There has to be an end and a way out…sometimes we have to fall apart but at some stage we have to climb out and never be afraid to ask for help, professional help that i know from experience, friends ca’t deal with and will back off as they did to me.

Due to the decisions i made in my life, life will never be the same, ever but we just have to have faith and keep going forwards…step by step…….

My warmest Regards to you…..and alll others who post here…..

Dear Laim, Your post really struck a cord with me. Although you may not see today how you will use your education for a particular career path, spending time in school helps us learn to see the world in new perspectives and university study is important for gaining vital skills that you will use for the rest of your life in unexpected ways. I was in university for 14 years. I pursed an undergraduate degree, masters, and doctorate. There is virtually no work in my field of expertise. The same is true for many academics I know in various disciplines. We are all left back where we started. Some living in the communities where they grew up others barely earning enough to get by in low wage work that they could have done after high school. All unable to get a job due to over-qualification. You are very young still. If you are certain that you would like develop your career along the lines of psychology, psychotherapy (such as psycho-dynamic psychotherapy) remains an option without a Masters degree. If you are not sure what will be the right course for finding a livelihood, there are many meditations that can aid in the discovery of your life path when at a cross-roads such as the one you describe. Brenda Stanger has a meditation called Into the Pause, that can help you sit back, breathe, and discover new options that you might not be able to see right now because of fear, anxiety, and distress. You will be fine, you will find the answer, and this time shall pass and new option will open for you. I hope that you find all that you are seeking and that peace, love, and light fill your heart again. Namaste.

@ peter-i really admire the pragmatism of it all…i mean,once you look outside the bubble of anxiety and self doubt,life doesn’t seem as debilitating after all…

• This reply was modified 11 years ago by tinydisciple.

If you’re living with anxiety and depression, I’m worried that there’s probably not much anyone can tell you that will help because you believe your own thoughts while your mind is still playing tricks on you and therefore, your mind will probably undermine any advice with another barrage of self-doubt and negative self-talk.

I see it in your post, “I’ve wasted….I will be passed over….I haven’t done anything….I haven’t really got anything….”

It’s amazing how the mind overgeneralizes and tells you so many nasty things that are completely untrue. I could rant about this topic for hours, but I highly recommend meditation, mindfulness, and ACT therapy.

But let’s give it a shot nonetheless…

Practically speaking, no education is ever a waste. Now that you have a post-secondary degree, life will open doors for you that are not available to those with only a high school diploma. So, if you can set aside the negative self-talk for a moment, it’s time to come up with a strategy and Plans B through Z.

Even at the risk of not getting in, can you still apply to the Masters program?

If you don’t get in, is there any additional schooling you can take to boost your prospects for another application?

What kind of jobs might be available for someone with your field of interest?

What state is your resume in and are you ready to apply for job postings that may come up in your field or something related?

What kind of temporary jobs would you be willing to take on in the mean time, just to keep yourself busy, have some income, and get some breathing room to come up with alternative options?

Where might you be able to connect with other like minded people in your field who, if you made the time and effort to really connect with them, could broaden your thinking in terms of possibilities that you haven’t considered yet?

Hope this helps.

hey,i can completely understand the scenario…and let me warn you,i am no wise owl,rather,i am just 18,younger than you,obviously,but i can definitely empathise with you,and maybe,in the midst of it all,help you somehow.

i have lived with anxiety for as long as i gained my senses.the worst part-i was always in denial.that i am OKAY and this is how it is supposed to be…now the reasons for the anxiety were many,living in a dysfunctional family,a very difficult mother,a sibling who is intellectually challenged.i don’t remember one moment as a kid,when i was at peace.
call it conditioning,but definitely,i was wired to be stressed out at the smallest of pretext.but my talent was-i could hide it from the world.i could put up a fake grin and pretend that i am strong,as the anxiety builded up inside…

my jaw dropped when you said “at the moment I am angry with myself for letting it affect my life still, as I feel that my state of mind is part of the reason that I didn’t get the grades I wanted.”….it was like the *a-ha* moment where you cleared the mist in my own mind,because i finally recognised what was eating me up too.i feel the same way…and then it hit me,because more often than not,the answers are always within you,but you are able to extract them more articulately when you are trying to help others.like i am,now.

the first thing we should stat with is to STOP BLAMING ANXIETY for anything and everything wrong that has happened.that would be feeding your anxiety with what it wants,your defeated spirits,and then soon enough,you will find yourself blaming anxiety for everything wrong in life.so,we first start by fully accepting our anxiety,and assuring ourselves that we will work with it,and not without it.the more we resist the anxiety,the wilder it is going to be.

the second thing,your *average grades* and how it might affect your job prospects.first ,you really have to be very clear whether you could somehow gain the degree you feel is going to strengthen your prospects.if it is impossible in the current scenario,leave the idea for once and for all.big deal.move on.now,what do we do with the degree that we have,i am thinking,go out there in the world,AND FACE IT ,HEAD ON. i am not going to say naive things like it’s going to be okay…there are things beyond just a job.no.your career is important to you,that’s why you are stressed,AGREED.but what do you do about it??

when i am in a fix, i ask myself-WHAT’S IN MY BOAT.can you control that other people have a better degree ,and hence a better job prospect than you.no. can you control whether the employer is looking for just a degree or a person who is actually meant for the job.no.can you control the outcome of every interview that you are going to give.HELL NO.what is in your boat is-going out there and fighting for it,till you run out of breath.period.