I Had Depression/ Anxiety For 16 Years. About Ten Years

Posted on Mon, 5 Oct 2020

Question: I had depression/anxiety for 16 years. About ten years ago, it was more or less 'a head thing.' But then it progressed to a 'fully body thing.' What does that mean? It means now I can literally go to bed for 12 or 20 hours, or even 30 or 36 hours, and I will sleep 95% of the time. About five years ago, when this wasn't quite as severe, I went to the doctor's for a fully medical check expecting something to be seriously wrong with my body, an organ or thyroid, or something else in fact. But all the results came back negative and they said that I was okay. I truly don't think I'm okay. I'm suffering from moderate-severe depression, and yes, there is some stage where the depression seriously affects the stamina of the body. Obviously, this must be 'a chemical thing.' But what is it? I truly don't think that the medical community has found out. The typical doctor will just say, "Oh, you have a significant amount of depression and it affects your body." But that's rubbish and circuitous reasoning in my opinion. There should be a 'chemical reason' and it should be capable of being fixed or ameliorated. (I'm taking 20 m.g. of Lexapro and another drug for an undiagnosed mood disorder).

Answered by Dr. Shubham Mehta (13 hours later)

Brief Answer:
Stimulant medications.

Detailed Answer:
Hello
Welcome here.
I have gone through your details.
You feel that you have moderate to severe depression. And the main problem you are facing at present is increased sleepiness.

Yes, there are neurochemicals which are implicated in causing depression. The major ones are serotonin, nor-epinephrine and dopamine. The imbalance or deficiency of one or more of these can cause depression.

16 years is a long time and you have for such long period. In such cases, if the antidepressants does not show satisfactory response,(possibly resistant depression), ketamine should be considered. It can show immediate benefits. The effect however may be short lasting but it definitely help. Antidepressants can be continued after that.

Another option is stimulating medications like methylphenidate or atomoxetine or modafinil. These should however be used for short term only.

Please discuss these options with your treating doctor and proceed accordingly.

All the best.
Thanks.

Note: For further guidance on mental health, Click here.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Nagamani Ng