![[dr. bob]](/dr-bob-sm.gif)
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
[email protected]Shown: posts 1 to 14 of 14. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by avoet on April 30, 2001, at 17:35:01
hey guys.
when i wake up in the morning all my symptoms (depression, anxiety, obsessive thoughts) are much worse right when i get up - especially the depression. i feel sad and anxious as soon as i get up in the morning and then it wears off during the day. anyone else experience this?
Posted by katrina on April 30, 2001, at 17:47:09
In reply to does anyone else feel worse in the mornings?, posted by avoet on April 30, 2001, at 17:35:01
> hey guys.
> when i wake up in the morning all my symptoms (depression, anxiety, obsessive thoughts) are much worse right when i get up - especially the depression. i feel sad and anxious as soon as i get up in the morning and then it wears off during the day. anyone else experience this?Nope, I am the opposite variation. I can get going, but it's worse at night.
Posted by JahL on April 30, 2001, at 18:06:40
In reply to does anyone else feel worse in the mornings?, posted by avoet on April 30, 2001, at 17:35:01
> hey guys.
> when i wake up in the morning all my symptoms (depression, anxiety, obsessive thoughts) are much worse right when i get up - especially the depression. i feel sad and anxious as soon as i get up in the morning and then it wears off during the day. anyone else experience this?YES. It takes me hrs to get going. I would get much more done @ night were it not for the fact that shops are shut, people are asleep etc., little things like that. Don't know that my depression ever varies but anxiety definitely subsides as the day progresses...
Posted by Michele on May 1, 2001, at 0:45:01
In reply to Re: does anyone else feel worse in the mornings?, posted by JahL on April 30, 2001, at 18:06:40
I soooooo know what you mean! I have always been that way.... very depressed the first like 4 hours of waking up..... then the rest of the day I'm just fine. Weird huh? I've been living that way for years.. and now I'm really trying to do something about it. I started seeing a psychologist.... what a funny thing to see him for.... "UH... doc, I'm depressed in the morning." :-) But... I'm working on a few different things.... one is getting up and immediately getting on the treadmill and walking for like 15 minutes. That does help... but 5 out of 7 days I just can't seem to do it! Anyway... I really am going to beat this.... and when I figure out how.... I'll definately let you know how I did it. Hang in there....
Posted by Neal on May 1, 2001, at 1:45:41
In reply to Re: does anyone else feel worse in the mornings?, posted by JahL on April 30, 2001, at 18:06:40
I think many depressives tend to be night people. I'd just love to stay up until 3am every night! Anyway that morning depression thing was helped for me by some Klonopin and a big dose of Neurontin at bedtime. Goodnight, everyone!
Posted by Noa on May 1, 2001, at 17:39:53
In reply to Re: does anyone else feel worse in the mornings?, posted by Neal on May 1, 2001, at 1:45:41
Mornings are hard for me. It takes me a long time to rev up. I have gotten to a point where I make myself suspend judgment about what the morning mood is and means, and not labeling it as depression, but just routine morning low mood. Seems odd, I know, but it really helps me to do so. That way, I don't get the anxiety and depression about feeling depressed. After a while, the mood wears off and I feel better.
BTW--a good discussion of coming to terms with our individual mood variations is in the book "The Biology of Success" by Dr. Bob Arnot.
Posted by Michele on May 1, 2001, at 18:23:48
In reply to Re: does anyone else feel worse in the mornings?, posted by Noa on May 1, 2001, at 17:39:53
> So how do you deal with your low mood mornings? Are you able to just ignore it and keep on going? I can't seem to get myself in the shower for a couple of hours. Ugh, Any advice?
Posted by BrittPark on May 2, 2001, at 12:21:02
In reply to does anyone else feel worse in the mornings?, posted by avoet on April 30, 2001, at 17:35:01
> hey guys.
> when i wake up in the morning all my symptoms (depression, anxiety, obsessive thoughts) are much worse right when i get up - especially the depression. i feel sad and anxious as soon as i get up in the morning and then it wears off during the day. anyone else experience this?I too feel worst in the morning and start to feel
better by the end of the day. This pattern is
commonly associated with the melancholic subtype
of depression.
Posted by JahL on May 2, 2001, at 13:28:19
In reply to does anyone else feel worse in the mornings?, posted by avoet on April 30, 2001, at 17:35:01
> hey guys.
> when i wake up in the morning all my symptoms (depression, anxiety, obsessive thoughts) are much worse right when i get up - especially the depression. i feel sad and anxious as soon as i get up in the morning and then it wears off during the day. anyone else experience this?As part experiment/part insomnia, I didn't bother going to sleep last night. I feel like shit, but am strangely free from the crippling anxiety that normally follows sleep. I've got more than usual done today.
There are of course plenty of studies on sleep-deprivation & its possible AD potential.
I realise this is not a viable course of action for anyone with a job, life etc, but there you go;)
J
Posted by Michele on May 2, 2001, at 14:04:02
In reply to A solution?, posted by JahL on May 2, 2001, at 13:28:19
J..... that is really interesting. I'm out of work right now on medical leave.... I think I'll experiment and give it a shot tonight.... what the heck, whatever works.
Posted by Noa on May 3, 2001, at 15:40:46
In reply to Re: A solution?, posted by Michele on May 2, 2001, at 14:04:02
I allow myself a long time in the morning, and don't make myself get ready right away. I get up, take my medication, and then do something (eg, play computer games) for about an hour, until I feel awake enough to start getting ready. I suppose it helps that one of my meds is adderall, so the hour gives it time to kick in and make me more alert. Of course this means waking up really early.
But essentially, it helps to find a morning ritual of some sort. Not to jump right into getting ready, but some kind of "time out" activity to ease into being awake. At one point in my life I used to make a cup of herbal tea and just sit on the couch and drink it. Sometimes, reading was the ritual. Find what works for you. The point is to not expect yourself to be in full executive functioning mode immediately upon awakening.
The other major component of this is getting enough sleep. If I get myself into bed early enough, I usually wake up without the alarm. For me, it is kind of funny that this happens because I used to be the sort who would hit the snooze eleven thousand billion times or even just sleep right through the alarm. I don't know why, perhaps my meds cause this, but I tend to wake up at least 10-15 minutes before the alarm (if I have gotten into bed early enough, which is the habit part that is very challenging).
I also don't drink caffeine anymore. That helps a lot. It is a bear to go through the withdrawal, but it has helped with the ability to fall asleep and also has made waking up much better.
When I drive to work, some days I am in a good mood, other days I am still in the early morning funk, so I play an upbeat radio station to liven me up and by the time I get to work, I am usually fine. Again, if I had enough sleep (ie gone to bed at a good time), I am usually in a good enough mood by the time I am dressed and out the door. But if I am not rested enough, I am grumpy.
As for the sleep deprivation thing--I have had times in my life when I noticed the effect, but it didn't last because I became fatigued if I tried to keep going on too little sleep.
Posted by Michele on May 3, 2001, at 16:06:49
In reply to Re: A solution?, posted by Noa on May 3, 2001, at 15:40:46
> I allow myself a long time in the morning, and don't make myself get ready right away. I get up, take my medication, and then do something (eg, play computer games) for about an hour, until I feel awake enough to start getting ready. I suppose it helps that one of my meds is adderall, so the hour gives it time to kick in and make me more alert. Of course this means waking up really early.
Thanks noa..... this is really good advice. I'm going to try and get in the habit of getting up an hour earlier.... anyway, thanks for the suggestions.... I'll definately give them a try!!
>
> But essentially, it helps to find a morning ritual of some sort. Not to jump right into getting ready, but some kind of "time out" activity to ease into being awake. At one point in my life I used to make a cup of herbal tea and just sit on the couch and drink it. Sometimes, reading was the ritual. Find what works for you. The point is to not expect yourself to be in full executive functioning mode immediately upon awakening.
>
> The other major component of this is getting enough sleep. If I get myself into bed early enough, I usually wake up without the alarm. For me, it is kind of funny that this happens because I used to be the sort who would hit the snooze eleven thousand billion times or even just sleep right through the alarm. I don't know why, perhaps my meds cause this, but I tend to wake up at least 10-15 minutes before the alarm (if I have gotten into bed early enough, which is the habit part that is very challenging).
>
> I also don't drink caffeine anymore. That helps a lot. It is a bear to go through the withdrawal, but it has helped with the ability to fall asleep and also has made waking up much better.
>
> When I drive to work, some days I am in a good mood, other days I am still in the early morning funk, so I play an upbeat radio station to liven me up and by the time I get to work, I am usually fine. Again, if I had enough sleep (ie gone to bed at a good time), I am usually in a good enough mood by the time I am dressed and out the door. But if I am not rested enough, I am grumpy.
>
> As for the sleep deprivation thing--I have had times in my life when I noticed the effect, but it didn't last because I became fatigued if I tried to keep going on too little sleep.
Posted by Laura Jane on May 6, 2001, at 12:00:46
In reply to does anyone else feel worse in the mornings?, posted by avoet on April 30, 2001, at 17:35:01
I was extremely depressed in the mornings when I was on zoloft. Now I'm on Prozac and I don't feel that way. It's a bitch to get out of bed in the morning, and I'm constantly bargaining with my snooze button, but I just feel tired, not depressed. I hate my job, which makes getting out of bed more difficult since that's where I have to go. If anything I think I feel worse at night. I think it's because I feel guilty for not doing as much (homework, housework) as I think I should.
Posted by Irene on May 8, 2001, at 16:18:05
In reply to Re: does anyone else feel worse in the mornings?, posted by BrittPark on May 2, 2001, at 12:21:02
Can you tell us more about the melancholic subtype?
I also wake up with a wave of anxiety and fatigue washing over me. The anxiety is yucky, but I'm too fatigued to get up. I try to distract myself form it by reading a book until I feel able to get out of bed. The anxiety and fatigue stays with me until afternoon when it starts to wear off, and then I'm usually totally fine by 7:00pm!
Irene> I too feel worst in the morning and start to feel
> better by the end of the day. This pattern is
> commonly associated with the melancholic subtype
> of depression.
This is the end of the thread.
Psycho-Babble Medication | Extras | FAQ
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
[email protected]
Script revised: February 4, 2008
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/cgi-bin/pb/mget.pl
Copyright 2006-17 Robert Hsiung.
Owned and operated by Dr. Bob LLC and not the University of Chicago.