[PaulHoule]

Some advice about anti-depressants.

It takes a few weeks for anti-depressants to work. Also, you will probably need to vary the dose or try a few different meds. You should check in with your doc maybe three or four weeks in and increase the dose if it isn't working. The general effect that anti-depressants have is similar in most people but people experience different side effects so "best practice" involves keeping in touch with your doc and trying a few things until you find a good fit. This one works better than most others

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venlafaxine

but I can't tolerate it because it makes my blood pressure go to 200/130. After a few years my doc suggested I stopped taking them, and tapered gradually. Depression and anxiety haven't dominated my life since then but I certainly did have some incidents like the day I couldn't stand the mess in the house, yelled at everyone in the family, and I got 40,000 steps cleaning without leaving the house. And that time I read a Robert Greene book, broke my gym bag hauling home most of the references home from the library, put it into practice, and got into some real misadventures.

Physical exercise, particularly cardio, is great by itself or as an adjunct to other treatment. When I was suffering from depression and unemployed I was doing two hours of cardio most days and it helped me get through. That's the kind of workload people do when they are training for a marathon and it might be too much for most people. Around 45 min to 1 hour you get a burst of endorphins which is powerful.

Some people find socializing with people is more satisfying than doing solitary things. I'm the other way, but instead of pushing yourself to do solitary things you should try to do more things with other people if that works for you.

[_yigw]

Actually my med doctor changed my meds from Escitalopram to Venlafaxine.

My problem is i can't convince myself to do anything other than stay in bed and rot, besides going out. In terms of activities i'm 95% outside and 5% inside. For example i found that i like studying around others, but when i'm attempting to do just that my brain starts the same routine "This is pointless. You won't go far", etc, etc. Even when i have to do activities with others my brain tries to convince me to go home (or stay home if i'm already there) and stay in bed.

I used to run, and i like running (paradoxically enough) but like everything else i can't convince my self to make it a habit even when i want to.

[thevagrant]

It's hard. I'm not consistent but when running daily, anhedonia will depart after 6 to 8 weeks. The first 2 to 4 weeks getting fit is a slog.

The right antidepressant also will make you feel normal but doing exercise or tasks, if the antidepressant is working, it can help dismiss negative thoughts (with conscious effort around your thought patterns)

If you have those negative thoughts enter your mind, you need to practice "not engaging" and clear your mind. Look into mindfulness or guided meditation. It'll take a fair bit of practice but it is very helpful.

"This is pointless. You won't go far" is an emotional response. If you can work on your thought pattern, shift it to "This may seem pointless but I am going to challenge myself, this short term task will lead to xyz goal."

It is hard though and I understand where you are coming from.

Last thing, avoid dopamine traps. Doom scrolling social media or any repetitive trap that feels good but is bad in long run. These give temporary satisfaction and ongoing term cost.

[_yigw]

I started to realize that, I've been depressed and anxious for so long that i don't know how to function in my daily life.