[Crook32]

People just don’t understand the psychological pain that depression can bring and how debilitating it is. For me it also puts my anxiety into overdrive. So sleep is the only thing I can do to get relief. It is so hard to describe the feelings to people so they just think you are faking.

How would you describe the psychological pain to someone?

[tecomsin]

It feels like my brain hurts when I'm seriously depressed.

I want to runaway from the pain and not think about it. My depression is mixed because I can't sleep and go into overdrive doing things (both productive and nonproductive) to get my mind off of my negative thoughts or I start saying negative (rather than uplifting things) to my husband. I would rather complain than cry. (But it would be better for all if I would just cry but the thought of it makes me want to push down that feeling before it rises all the way from deep in my gut. ) When I am depressed, I am a downer to be around and I can ruin other people's days as well. At the job I just left--people said they were going to miss having such a positive and upbeat person around. If they knew my other side--they would be shocked.

[sarahsweets]

like a punch to the gut. The kind of pain that is swift and takes your breath away all at once.

[piano97]

Emotional pain is not much different than physical pain imo.

It hits the same neuro pathways signaling something is wrong, and is uncomfortable in the same way, there's just not a spot you can point to and say "it hurts really bad right in this spot on my arm" and emo pain is generalized, not specific to one location.

That you can't 'point' to it causes secondary stress and a negative feedback loop, which creates additional challenges and even more pain alongside anxiety, etc. These things are quite distressing.

I think we can get caught up in thinking mental illness stuff is so different from physical illness. IMO it's not. Mental is physical.

There's pretty decent research done on the subject now, that something like tylenol can actually ease emotional pain (short-term). The pain and medication both hit the same neuro pathways that cause the discord, and relief.

Not suggesting we all take tylenol 3x a day everyday LOL, our liver would not be fond of that, but at times I think it should be part of acute treatment on particularly tough days and the subject needs talked about on a physical level. This helps break down stigma, and secondary stress.

Some or all of this is unconventional to discuss, I understand. But appears to be true and clinical research has been done to confirm these things. Just hasn't been talked about much (yet).

We beat the hell out of ourselves frequently and feel quite misunderstood at times but when attempting to explain things to other people, such as emotional pain/depression pain in general (which is quite debilitating), I think it can help others to understand by using the information I presented above.

[downandlonely]

I have also heard inflammation can cause depression, so anti-inflammatory medication (such as aspirin) could help. But again, we can't have too much of that.

For me, anti-depressants work best.

[piano97]

Indeed it can, and there's evidence to suggest that those with mental illness have chronic inflammatory problems. Which explains why nutritional interventions can be part of the picture when treating mental illness.

[Merlin]

Most people have experienced some grief and loss, either from the death of a loved one, the loss of a job, or a break up. They are familiar with that emotional pain, so I compare my depressions with those events. I stress that it lasts a long time and I cannot always identify the cause and that it is not exactly the same. I stress that social support helps, but doesn’t make it disappear.

[piano97]

Very well articulated Merlin.

[Sunflower123]

To me, the psychological pain of a major depression is as if you lost your loved ones and everything else that mattered to you in life and there is nothing left but bleakness. It’s excruciating.

[Wild Coyote]

Originally Posted by Jennifer 1967

To me, the psychological pain of a major depression is as if you lost your loved ones and everything else that mattered to you in life and there is nothing left but bleakness. It’s excruciating.

Well said! I feel this way, too.
Utter hopelessness.


WC

[boogiesmash]

Hurts. Hurted a lot and had instances I just wanted to end it. And I can still feel it at its hardest when I just think of that night I attempted suicide.

[Aurelius710]

Constriction. Like a weight on your chest that keeps you immobile. Unable to breathe, call out for help, do much of anything really. The longer it sits, the heavier it becomes until you start to sink into a deepest darkest you might not be able to escape from because you just know something in that abyss wants a piece of you.

It hurts for sure, but it is unbearably lonely too.

[Unrigged64072835]

Like getting kicked in the gut on a constant basis.

Agony over everything I did, everything I said, every misstep, every mistake, all the criticism, all the rejection, all the abuse and torment. Just never-ending, relentless condemnation of my existence. Pure hatred lashed out at my brain to the point where it doesn't make sense to live anymore.

That's what it feels like.

[jaysmotogp]

Originally Posted by Jennifer 1967

To me, the psychological pain of a major depression is as if you lost your loved ones and everything else that mattered to you in life and there is nothing left but bleakness. It’s excruciating.

This exactly how i would describe it for me. Feels like everyone i cared about all died the same day. But over and over.
And i’ve already lost a lot of loved ones
( three in a three month period once) so that of course doesnt help

[~Christina]

Originally Posted by Jennifer 1967

To me, the psychological pain of a major depression is as if you lost your loved ones and everything else that mattered to you in life and there is nothing left but bleakness. It’s excruciating.