Depression Support Group
Depression is a real and debilitating condition that is often misunderstood by family and friends. Its meaning can range from a prolonged period of sadness to an actual mental illness with specific symptoms. Find and share experiences with others who are going through the same struggles.
I'm curious if anyone has any trouble with focus/concentration due to depression, and any description of what it is like or how it is compared to before your depression started or between episodes.
Before I let my depression get the best of me (4ish years ago), I always scored quite exceptionally on standardized tests and in my college courses, but now I have very long episodes of depression and anxiety and it seems that when I try to recall information or work through long math problems/proofs, I can't speed through them like I could before and I get headaches when I need to concentrate on anything extremely complicated.
My roommate (whom I am not close with and I do not approve of substance abuse) uses Adderall to study for calculus exams and says that when he takes it, he can speed through problems and remember everything fine, which is a fairly accurate description of how I naturally worked on things before I was depressed, which is what led me to wonder if it is a common problem among other people that suffer from depression.
If you have these issues or you had them in the past, and you are on medication now or seeking some other form of help, I'd be curious as to what specific medications help the most with concentration and focus, if the medications tend to make your mind fuzzy or cloudy, or if you've had any positive experiences with anything else. One worry of mine is that I could try to get help with my depression, and the medications will make my brain fuzzier than the depression makes it and my school work will be harder than it is now.
Before I let my depression get the best of me (4ish years ago), I always scored quite exceptionally on standardized tests and in my college courses, but now I have very long episodes of depression and anxiety and it seems that when I try to recall information or work through long math problems/proofs, I can't speed through them like I could before and I get headaches when I need to concentrate on anything extremely complicated.
My roommate (whom I am not close with and I do not approve of substance abuse) uses Adderall to study for calculus exams and says that when he takes it, he can speed through problems and remember everything fine, which is a fairly accurate description of how I naturally worked on things before I was depressed, which is what led me to wonder if it is a common problem among other people that suffer from depression.
If you have these issues or you had them in the past, and you are on medication now or seeking some other form of help, I'd be curious as to what specific medications help the most with concentration and focus, if the medications tend to make your mind fuzzy or cloudy, or if you've had any positive experiences with anything else. One worry of mine is that I could try to get help with my depression, and the medications will make my brain fuzzier than the depression makes it and my school work will be harder than it is now.
If I make sure I have lots of natural light in the room and drink plenty of water my concentration is tons better. I have also started taking Omega 3 fish oils, which seems to help.
Good Luck :)
I am taking that year off to focus on the issues I was trying to escape using the fiction.