Some background (that may, or may not be, relevant):

My dad died under pretty awful circumstances three years ago, and together with my brothers and my mum, I spent about a month at his bedside while he faded. Now, Mrs SR thinks I was definitely depressed before that event, but there can be no question that I absolutely sunk after it. Consequently, I have been on 100 mgs of sertraline ever since.

In any case, since at least Christmas, I have struggled again – even on the anti-depressants – and can hardly get out of bed in the morning. Part of it is the fact that I go through a whole existential struggle to even want to get in the shower, but part of it is just pure, heavy fatigue. I have not made it into my office on time very often since January, and when I would normally eat lunch, I have taken to shutting off my office lights, locking the door, and taking a 20 minute nap. Then I fall asleep again when I get home.

On top of this, I feel generally lethargic, unmotivated, my joints often ache, and more often than not, I feel as if I have a minor cold coming on.

I can no longer tell if I am just being neurotic, or if there is something wrong with me. And I don’t know if, once you start allowing yourself to nap, you need more naps.

Anyway, your thoughts would be welcome. (And those of you who know me, your discretion.)

The 2 aren’t mutually exclusive…. 🙂

In you’re case I’d suggest getting yourself down the doctors for some blood tests….

I have little to offer accept the obvious question, i take it you’ve discussed this with your gp? It certainly doesn’t sound healthy, lazy breeds lazy but ime that’s a general can’t be arsed malaise rather than actual tired/sleepiness. Depression can also very definitely give you that malaise but again not ime tiredness.

Can’t you be both at the same time?

Why not speak to your GP in case there is something physical working on you?

Maybe, like the rest of us, you’re just getting older.

Mrs S and I are both guilty of falling asleep mid story with the toddler at the moment while putting him to bed at 7pm!

I think there’s definitely something in the whole SAD thing, it’s a pretty grim time of year and feels like it’s going to be winter forever. I’d also agree that naps beget naps, if i’m at home then 30 mins on the turbo will make me feel so much better than a 30 min nap, the level of resolve that requires though, even knowing that it’s true is often hard to muster. Are you getting any exercise in?

It’s much easier to motivate myself to go out for a half hour blast in the sunshine down by the river though. Knowing that those days are coming is just about keeping me going*.

*when summer gets here i’ll remember that I live in Manchester and I’ll either descend into a spiral of despair or MTFU and ride in the rain

I think you need to speak to your GP again as soon as you can mate. Explain what you’ve said to us and see what they suggest.

Sertraline is a great drug for some for me it didn’t touch the sides, there are other options. Good luck mate.

<b>Common sertraline side effects may include:</b>

* drowsiness, tiredness, feeling anxious or agitated

* indigestion, nausea, diarrhea, loss of appetite;

* sweating;

* tremors or shaking;

* sleep problems (insomnia)

Can I suggest that you talk to your GP about your dosage? It is common for people’s medication requirements to shift, and the effectiveness of the meds to alter over time. Don’t do anything suddenly.

EDIT: Quote functionality is still FUBAR.

I am in the same situation and suffer from the same issues, as outlined by Bodgy, above. I was taking Citalopram until 6 months ago, my doctor suggested Sertraline as she suggested they would work better with the Tramadol and Naproxen I use for pain, since taking the Sertraline, my sleep pattern has been dire, the dreams/nightmares are frighteningly vivid and I can sleep anywhere but the bed. I’m going to ask the doctor if I can stop them and go back onto the Citalopram.

Lazy?  Seriously?  You work about 3x more than anyone I know.

I’ve seen people talking about ‘self care’ recently.  I take this to mean looking after your physical and emotional needs.  If you don’t do this, then you will end up in a bad way, IMO. I recognised this in myself early on, so the stuff I do that people consider idle and lazy is a necessary part of me functioning properly.  That is things like surfing, watching telly, flying interesting places on Google Earth, or sometimes even doing nothing.  But basically it’s whatever my mind feels like doing.  Under stress, there are clamouring voices in my mind telling me I need to do this and that – and I will listen to each one and rationally decide how important it is.  But I *know* I need sufficient down time otherwise I’m going to become dislocated and ungrounded.  The idle time is actually me being myself, which is hugely important for me.

I suspect that you are a bit like my wife in feeling compelled to be busy much of the time.  Maybe this is why you are considering yourself ‘lazy’ for what looks to me like answering basic physical needs.  Your brain isn’t a machine, it’s a delicate organism.  You have to give it a bit of what it wants in return for a bit of what you need it to do.  Nothing in the world of work is as important as looking yourself.  I’ve read about dreams being our brain’s way of recuperating – this makes sense to me.  When you are asleep (and not overtired) your brain is free to let its impulses float around randomly, which is its form of rest.  So I also try to do this during the day – I let my mind wander cos I know it wants to, and I know for me this is as important as 5 a day.

You might also have a physical problem – a vitamin deficiency or possibly just the same string of viruses that we all seem to have had locally.  So probably a GP visit is worthwhile too.

Also, SaxonRider, can I add that you might need to be pushy and get a referral to a specialist if your GP isn’t showing enough due diligence and engagement with you. Owing to mental health funding cuts it’s increasingly common for GP’s to just take the cheapest route by doling out another prescription, without looking deeper into the causes of the problem. You have a right to an unimpaired quality of life, and your GP should be responsive or bump you up to a higher authority.

Could be the drugs, though depression and anxiety can also cause pretty much every symptom in the book.

Worth getting some bloods done though, especially with tiredness and the new recommendation to check for blood cancer at signs of fatigue.

Op – Don’t ask / look on the internet it will only fuel any anxiety/stress that you already have (as per a lot of the above posts)

Get yourself to the docs and ask about blood test, and their opinion etc etc

Could well be SAD, my worst time is usually January and February, the cumulative effect of many days without decent sun brightness since around September. Changes at work, increasing my stress levels haven’t helped, I’ve been feeling constantly wooly/jetlagged for the last month.

To top it all off, my cycling both indoors and outdoors has nose-dived since the beginning of Feb, so much so I only managed ~8.5 hours by the end of the Col Season Starter Challenge that finished yesterday. It’s not that I wanted the voucher, but usually I expect to to ride ~8 hours per week. It’s a miracle that today I’m only ~2000 feet elevation gain behind schedule for my 2018 target of 400,000 for the year, thank goodness for a very productive January on Zwift!

I did worry about getting a turbo trainer, because although it might keep me cycling more during the winter months, it would make me less inclined to ride outside in cold/wet weather, like we have had for almost two months solid now.

Sounds like fatigue to me, not laziness, so you just need to try to make some changes.

When was the last time you had a weekend to yourself, or with Mrs Rider?

It could be lots of things but including the medication.
Because it’s potentially so many things you can’t just change this but you do as others have said to get medical help. It might be changing the meds helps… but you can’t do that without your GP… it may be a bit of lazy breeds lazy… you might have some physical cause or just plain stress leading to more stress.

whatever, way the way you’re feeling the hard part is probably going to the GP in the first place…. get motivated to do something about it and get Mrs Rider to help.

equally it’s not going to go away by itself… doing nothing is not an option… way better to take that first step and have started… and after all that it might turn out to be something trivial that can be addressed

it may be a bit of lazy breeds lazy

Or maybe once you slow down and learn to relax you learn to appreciate life? 🙂

I’m just sticking up for the benefits of what people call ‘laziness’ by the way.  I agree with the rest of stevextc’s post.

Lazy is a Bourgeoise concept.

Not enough information for someone who doesn’t know you, but these thing are always a cumulative body of things, straw and camels back type of stuff, you need to unload that camel.

First thing imo is ditch those drugs, weaning down to zero is a good start, get your work life balance sorted and stop eating crap.

You say you can’t motivate yourself, well you need to force yourself, get an attitude on ye.

I find viewing the Rocky theme on Youtube can help in this department., life seems to have you by the scruff of the neck, time to turn the tables mate.

Get in the gym and lift some weights and ride up some hills, you’ll be tired for a reason, so no guilt trip there then.

What would your father say if he was still around?

I appologise in advance for any offence caused, but you did ask.

It doesn’t sound like laziness to me. It could be that the sertraline has stopped working (it can happen with SSRIs), it could be that winter is making things worse.

i would go the GP, see if they’ll do your bloods to check for anaemia, thyroid problems etc.

I’ve had the most horrendous depression episode since September, I resisted antidepressants until very recently when I couldn’t bear the dark thoughts and relentless exhaustion any longer. Been on fluoxetine for 12.days and it’s starting to make a difference.

I’ve tried sertraline in the past but it didn’t do a great deal for me, though everyone has a different experience.

It doesn’t help that it’s been dark and rainy forever. I’ve been going out for half an hour at lunch time to get whatever daylight I can find.

I’m on the same prescription and I am perma-knackered.  It’s a bloody struggle some days, just to do simple tasks. Don’t feel bad for feeling tired, just getting through the day sometimes with a black cloud is bloody exhausting! Nevermind throwing in all the normal day to day stuff.

My wife has just changed her meds, she was on 100mg of sertraline and she has had very little go for the three years she’s been on them, while she was pregnant she was on fluoxetine and had more energy. She’s just come off the sertraline and starting on venlafaxine, so time will see.

Sertaline can be pretty awful. Mirtazapine can work well. Helps with sleep too