Posted by Ines on March 4, 2007, at 17:57:37
In reply to Chicken before egg? Anxiety before depression?, posted by UgottaHaveHope on March 4, 2007, at 12:46:15
> I was talking to a pdoc recently and he said something that just slapped me in the face: "Anxiety very, very rarely comes before depression."
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> It has made me rethink my entire situation.
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> I have always thought I had an anxiety first, and then if the anxiety got really bad, withdrawal and depression.
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> When all of this started in 1997, it began with just an absolute rush of adrenaline out of nowhere, or better described as "free-floating anxiety." I could not calm down and have difficulties doing so in the years since. It must be noted in the past 10 years, whenever I have been able to find something to calm me down, I have been able to cope with life so much better.
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> However, I do recall during times before 1997 I was midly depressed, like your typical person. It was never clinical depression, though. I never sought or felt like I needed treatment. In other words, it was manageable without any therapy or medication (although looking back, maybe one or both wouldve been beneficial).
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> Now I am wondering, based on the words of the wise and veteran doc, that perhaps years and years of mild depression led up to the breakout of anxiety.
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> Does any of this make sense? Thanks, Michael
I think it does. I've had various levels of depression on and off since my teens, but until my 1st episode of clinical depression I had never suffered from anxiety. In fact, I was a remarkably calm person. During that 1st episode I developed severe anxiety, and that's stayed with the permanently since then (even through periods of feeling good by my standards). I grind my teeth pretty much all the time (don't even notice it) to the extent that I've cracked a whole load of them and have bad gum retraction, and I keep getting stress related things (ulcers etc). I find I get incredibly anxious at the first sign of mood plumeting- I know I make it worse but can't control it- I become a giant grinding machine! In my case I believe it is in great part the effort of trying to keep a normal day to day life while having serious mood issues- it takes so much out of me that I end up completely drained and feel I'm always on the verge of not coping. Which makes me incredibly anxious! Definitely chicken and egg...
poster:Ines
thread:738229
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20070302/msgs/738329.html