[Solrock]

Mind you, I'm not complaining.

I'm mostly wondering if anyone has had my experiences with anxiety. I have noticed when I've had strong depression, anxiety never really comes into play. I can be depressed and when something happens that would normally feel anxiety, I don't have any reaction or really any feeling about it.

It's weird because sometimes if I have a big enough anxiety it can CAUSE me to be depressed for several days. But again during that time nothing will make me anxious. Is anxiety like that for anyone else?

I'll also end by saying that it's ridiculous how anxiety doesn't even always affect how we handle high-stress situations!

I have to do five things at work within the next hour or my boss will be very upset? No problem. Wondering what a friend will think of a song I sent her? GAH!

[Ember_42]

My anxiety doesn't go away when I'm very depressed but it does significantly lessen. If I'm depressed enough I just feel kind of numb, like life hurts so much that I can't really feel anything else.

Sometimes when things are very busy at work I can kind of tune everything else out and just get things done. I so wish I could do that all the time.

[Solrock]

Originally Posted by Ember_42

Sometimes when things are very busy at work I can kind of tune everything else out and just get things done. I so wish I could do that all the time.

When it comes to tuning I've actually found a video game track (which is essentially just a repetitive 4-beat rhythm with ambiance behind it) to be very helpful in that regard. It occupies my brain but lets me concentrate on what I need to while filtering out all the anxiety.

[alpacalicious]

I experienced this. When I was very depressed, it's like my anxiety went away. I think it's because I was in a state of "I don't care about my life, I don't care about others", my depression drained me so much that I didn't care about things, I didn't have the energy to be anxious. I found an article in the past that now I'm not able to find, but it said that when there's depression, anxiety can decrease, but I'm not able to find the article.

I have experienced this too. So too do I find that excessive anxiety can trigger a period of depression.

Many of the CBT coping skills in my 'toolbox' can be used whether anxious or depressed. I have specifically worked a great deal on the first. I must say, in hindsite, that I have experienced fewer episodes of depression as a result.

[ABC1357]

I experience opposite. I didn't even realize I was depressed while my anxiety was so severe. I think we tend to miss smaller issue, even if the smaller issue is actually critical.

[Shazerac]

Originally Posted by ABC1357

I experience opposite. I didn't even realize I was depressed while my anxiety was so severe. I think we tend to miss smaller issue, even if the smaller issue is actually critical.

That sounds like mixed state. I get that a lot before I go into full on depression and then I wouldn't care if the roof collapsed on my head.

[Struggling Lawyer]

It sounds really pathetic, and is what makes what some of us are going through so challenging. If we are not experiencing severe anxiety, we are depressed. It's not a way to live life.

[Shazerac]

Originally Posted by Struggling Lawyer

It sounds really pathetic, and is what makes what some of us are going through so challenging. If we are not experiencing severe anxiety, we are depressed. It's not a way to live life.

I agree with you that it's no way to live. However saying pathetic sounds kind of judgy and harsh. Go easy on yourself. You didn't ask to be bipolar and I'm sure you are doing the best you can to get through the day.

[mountain gal]

So weird - I was just asking myself the same question this week. I've been oscillating between anxiety & depression the past several weeks. They are two physically difference experiences for myself. Depression - I sleep through the entire night, have difficulty getting up, feel lost/ down all day, and completely lose my appetite. Anxiety - I wake up in the middle of the night with thoughts racing, feels like someone is squeezing my chest, and I have to resist the urge go out for a 2 mile run at 3am. I also eat absentmindedly when anxious. Anxiety definitely makes me more "productive," albeit an unfocused kind of productivity. Not sure which is harder to deal with. Depression is definitely scarier and it takes a huge amount of energy to do the simplest things. With anxiety I can usually find a way to function. Not always easy to hide.