depressed?

hello,

I've been struggling with strong feelings of emptiness and sadness but am not entirely sure if what I am experiencing is depression. It's hard for me to be happy, and it seems as though the hardest parts of my day are getting up in the mornings, standing still, and breathing.

i've experienced increased feelings of anxiety and somewhat of a hopelessness that has become overwhelming. i think often about how i would die, but i've never seriously considered suicide as an option.

if anyone can give me some insight into what i've been feeling and experiencing, please reply.

I am not a doctor but it sounds like depression to me. There is a depression test you can take on pc. I took it once and was discouraged because it told me what I already know, that I suffer depression. The hardest most depressing part of my day is also in the morning. I understand how you feel because everything you are describing sounds like my experience. I wish I knew something good to suggest other than medication and seeing a therapist. Best of wishes to you. Keep posting here on pc. We care.

Hello & Welcome, ElizabethS210.

For reference:
PsychCentral Depression Resources
PsychCentral Depression Quiz (This is simply a screening test; it is not diagnostic.)
PsychCentral Sanity Score Quiz

Situation permitting, talk to your doctor about your symptoms. Please make yourself at home here.

thank you for responding. Unfortunately, i don't think that therapy is in the cards for me as going to it previously caused a lot of tension in my household :/ and possibly taking medication scares the living crap out of me as i've seen the negative effects of it in people close to me.

I've debated trying to tell my best friend about the feelings i've been having and the reality that i might be suffering from depression, but i don't want to drag her into this dark hole that i've found myself in. Any suggestions?

Acceptance is a process if you are suffering from depression and anxiety. Posting here is a good start. I would say take all the tests and do some self diagnosis and get back to us.

Sounds like depression to me, too, but I'm no expert. At least talk to you GP and see what he suggests. Talking to your friend may be a good idea but she may not be able to comprehend what you are really feeling. It's something that's hard to understand it unless they've been there.

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I took the test twice, and both times I ended up within the range of moderate/severe depression

All from your post. Trouble standing still and breathing sounds like pretty serious anxiety. Depression and anxiety often go hand in hand for some reason.

How old are you?
Do you have a history of this before now?
Is there any situational stuff going on right now that could be causing it?

I'm 17. The sadness and pain has been a prominent factor for as long as I can remember, but i never said a word and kept it to myself. I've struggled with anxiety for a few years now, but recently everything has been accumulating and getting worse. There's nothing too specific that is occurring right now, other than the fact that I've been thinking a lot more about things that have occurred in the past and things that might happen in the future. My father has been emotionally distant my whole life and i've been fearing that in the near future he will cut off all communication with me as he did with my other two sisters (older). I've suffered a lot of verbal abuse from my mother who would call me "useless", "stupid", "worthless", and tell me she didn't love me at times.

sounds like enough to me. and there could be genetic/biological factors as well. Very hard at your age if you don't have parents who would support you getting help. I would strongly recommend therapy if you can swing it somehow. Hard to recommend meds to someone your age but many people your age are on them and younger. No shame in getting help.

You can find a lot of support here. We go through the same things and understand.