Coco, I have this problem and very much so. Also, I have a lot of curly hair which gets tangled very easily, and when I am feeling the way you describe, I can only take a shower but not wash and condition my hair. If I go for days without detangling and eventually find enough determination and energy to take a proper shower, I can spend and hour trying to detangle. So I know that if I neglect the task of detangling, I would eventually face a true ordeal. And yet, when I feeling the way you are, the intellectual knowledge does absolutely nothing to motivate me.

What helps me motivate myself to take a shower is a collection of lovely shower gels. They are sensuous and pleasant, and, when I take a shower, I get to decide which one I will use today. I can send you suggestions if you think it will help you, as I have gone through quite a few.

Another thing that helped me was affixing a toothbrush holder to the walls of my shower. Then I wash myself and brush my teeth in one fell swoop, so two major hygienic feats get accomplished at once. And then I am happy.

I have not found a way to motivate myself to wash and condition my hair, but at least I have gotten better at washing the body and brushing my teeth. Oh, and the last one - for your gentle parts - get the "sweet spot geranium lavender" - it has a lovely smell and the right pH for the vulva. What else? Colorful towels.

My first post on this board was about not managing the hygiene even when NOT depressed. A lot of responses. A lot. If I am not mistaken, BlueInanna has a thread in BP success stories, on taking a shower. Many more people, from time to time, post about it. So many that I wonder out loud why it is not in the DSM - the struggles with daily hygiene!