Have you thought about getting a turbo trainer or spin bike so you can exercise at home?

Turbo set up in cellar. Haven’t used it for a while – not since birth of my daughter in August. I have been riding to work up to 4 days a week (approx 35 mile round trip). It helps, but not as much as a no pressure ride in the daylight.

However, i wonder if an initial kick from some pills might get me through this patch.

Mrs North has spoken to the same organisaiton she used for her CBT, and someone is going to call me tomorrow.

Cheers, Tom.

Keep talking to the specialists. My GF finds her weekly chat with her nurse good and it helps to guide her consultant in diagnosis and tailoring her prescription a bit more. Things have improved well since she has had more regular contact. God knows what she’s on currently, it hasn’t been regular for a while, but she’s been getting steadier and happier.

Have you tapered your way off them (rather than just dropping from dose to no dose)?

Yeah, went 1 on 1 off for a week then down to zero, think i should have maybe spread that out a bit more, but i don’t want to go back up the way now – just have to ride it out a bit I guess

Have you thought about getting a turbo trainer or spin bike so you can exercise at home?

Turbo set up in cellar. Haven’t used it for a while – not since birth of my daughter in August. I have been riding to work up to 4 days a week (approx 35 mile round trip). It helps, but not as much as a no pressure ride in the daylight.

However, i wonder if an initial kick from some pills might get me through this patch.

Mrs North has spoken to the same organisaiton she used for her CBT, and someone is going to call me tomorrow.

Cheers, Tom.

Hi Tom,

I find that just riding my bike helps, but it is only when I get up to about 75% of max hr for 40 minutes that I really get the benefit.

If I do not get my heart rate up high enough and keep it there I get a bit of benefit, but it doesn’t really pull me out of being depressed.

I’ve done a fair bit of reading about this and the consensus is that you have to go pretty hard for a reasonable amount of time to have any decent effect on mood.

If you don’t have one, it’s worth getting hold of a cheap heart rate monitor. 3 sessions a week of 40 minutes at 75%+ max hr will really make a difference to your state of mind. Laptop or tv is essential to stop the boredom.

I have struggled with depression for 20 years, have had tons of therapy and meds and it is pretty much the only thing that I can count on to work.

By all means look into ssri’s, but it is really worth trying hard areobic exercise as well.

http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&safe=off&biw=1440&bih=716&q=runners+high+depression&btnG=Search&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=

kudos – interesting what you say about the level of exercise.

Back in the summer, I was using the commute as a hard session, and was doing more (chaingangs, etc.). I do use an HRM (every ride – yeah, I know).

The trouble with my commute is that, while it isn’t really heavy mileage, the cumulative effect of that plus dealing with new baby and a busy job (well, I should be busier) means that I’m pretty tired (whioh I know doesn’t help).

I might drive one or two more days, and fit in an evening turbo session instead (sufferfest, natch).

I have tried Gabapentin as a preventative for my Cluster Headaches, didn’t do much of anything and that was four tablets three times a day.
Supposed to be for Epilepsy, but gets used for nerve pain like shingles too.

I’m another who has been on the same pills as you. I found it very had to speak to people especially work and felt the same as you.

Once i told work and my freinds it felt so much better and got some support.

A mixture of excercise, healthy eating, talking and reading CBT books helped. Also lots of fresh air.

I now take a herbal pill called kalms which you can just get from a chemist and beleive they help now.

Don’t be annoyed at yourself for this creeping up on you. There’s a massive grey area between just trying to overcome a bit of feeling blue while trying to get on with things and realising that you may be depressed. It takes a bit of help to control it.

schroedingerscat does the quetiapine not act as a sedative for you? I’ve been taking it for two and half years (now with Lamotrigine and sometimes Trazedone) and it still knocks me out and leaves me partially zombie like for half the next day. I didn’t get my prescription on time last week and went without meds for a couple of days. On the second night without, I just couldn’t sleep. Stayed awake most of the night, got three hours sleep but felt less tired than ususl the next day.
I wouldn’t want to not have that sedative option though – I need to be knocked out.

I hope things pick up for you soon ourmaninthenorth.

A friend has just killed himself despite counselling, medication and a lot of support around him. He didn’t see that there were more options around him than he saw.

Life’s too short for bullshit, what really makes you happy?

Other meds sound like a good option, but be careful of dependency. Can counselling help with the crux? You mention tiredness too, maybe your food intake can be adjusted to help you either have more energy/recover from the physical and mental demands of your day. Root instead of the leaves…?

(sorry if this is clumsy, I’m a little off balance in response to said friend!)

Good luck getting on top of this, looks like a lot of others wish you well too.

(oh B12, daylight bulbs and a more interesting training area help with winter adjustment too) yes, I also over use brackets. (they’re like sentence seasoning)

From personal experience look at the long term solutions. I’ve tried many types of medication, but the side effects have always been worse than any gains. I’ve seen medication as a short term solution, but you may need to look at what triggers your depression, and work on that to find a long term solution.

I’ve accepted it myself and dont think i’ll ever cure it,just learn to live with the condition. I just see it like asthma. Some things will trigger, it some things make it better, and its an illness i’ll aways have.

Find what works for you. Personally I’ve found a good diet helps, regular exercise, sunlight and being outdoors, and finding an escape (riding the bike, climbing). May not be easy with a small baby but hopefully you can find something that works.

Hopefully you can struggle through the bad days, and spend some of the good time with your wonderful daugther and wife.

Sorry to hear that Tom, I think a trip back to the docs sounds like a good idea. That and a lot of cuddles with your daughter 🙂

I took citalopram for 6 months after a bit of a crap spell with bereavemnet and redundancy about 2 years ago. I’d had a few bouts of depression in the previous 10 years but not to this level (and before I just ran away from everything but being older, wiser and with a mortgage and wife I realised this wasn’t the best course of action). I’d always used excercise and counselling as a way of dealing with it but found Citalopram to be good in the short term. 6 months in though with a baby on the way I just didn’t like how it made me feel so came off, don’t know about anyone else but wasn’t a big fan of the slightly detached numb feeling.

When I think about it I probably should still be on something to control moods and help with focus and concentration but can’t help but feel chemicals aren’t the long term solution

Try on line CBT – livinglifetothe full.com seems to be helpful to many

I thought i was on my own 😐

I’ve been on citalopram for over a year now,along with pyridoxine.
I didn’t ride bikes since i was 15,bought a voodoo and a cx bike and ride 3 or 4 day’s a week,with a long epic on sundays.

I had a nasty work accident 3 years ago and lost 2 fingers on my left hand. That started me off i think.
Riding my bikes and driving my kit car help me enormously.
I am still up and downy sometime’s and feel sorry for my girlfriend.

Work are sympathetic,so all good there.

I think i will always have “demons” i just hope i can continue to control them

Wish you all the best pal 🙂

Well my heart goes out to you OP. Although I have had my brushes with depression my brother, since we were at university has suffered greatly. Going on 12 years and being sectioned twice he is finally on the road to recovery.

We are very close, the whole family is so I have been with him through the highs and the lowest of lows. It’s horrible from the outside and I can’t imagine what it’s like from the inside so I can only offer limited advice.

My brother has been on lithium for many years, the dosage makes a huge difference in his well being so has regular appointment with his GP to find the best balance. It has helped him a lot but so has the support from counseling.

Over the years he has learnt to cope. I remember talking to him about how hard he feels to get out of bed. Over time we spoke about his fears about getting a job. That was a huge step forward. He now has a full time job and we speak about how hard it is to deal with the idiots he works with.

What I am trying to say is that one step at a time… You see things in front of you that you want to change but you can’t take them all on at once. If you are on meds go see your GP as they might not be right for you at the moment. Alongside the meds it takes your in-put. If you are not doing so well at work make them aware of your situation. People are understanding.

Just don’t give up, one step at a time.

Hope things go well for you