MDD And Anxiety

[aliceinwounder3]

I was diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder about four months ago and it’s been a tough journey so far One of the biggest struggles I face every day is getting out of bed in the morning. Most days I wake up feeling completely exhausted, and I just end up staying in bed I eat mindlessly scroll through my phone, and it feels like I'm stuck in a cycle that I can’t break out of I know it’s not healthy, but it feels like I have no energy or motivation to do anything else

I’ve been trying to push through, but some days feel like a complete loss. The anxiety that comes with MDD doesn’t help either and it only makes things harder I want to get better, but I’m just struggling to find the energy or will to change my routine

I’m reaching out to see if anyone has strategies or tips that have worked for them in terms of managing mornings, overcoming the urge to eat or just finding ways to get out of where i am I know I need to take small steps but I could really use some guidance

[Ru-bee]

Hi @aliceinwounder3 and welcome to the forums.

Reaching out is a really great first step, and shows that this is something that you really want to change and seek support for. It's not an easy thing, I know when my anxiety gets really bad I also struggle to find the motivation to get up and off my phone. It doesn't help that pretty much all the apps on our phones are designed to keep us engaged and it gives us that comforting distraction from thoughts. I do know that for me even though it feels good in the moment, getting stuck scrolling only sustains my anxiety. 

I've started trying to play a bit of defense with my phone... I had to remove all my social media apps and youtube because no matter how hard I tried I just didn't have the self control to stay off, especially in times when I was struggling. I've also found setting my alarm and putting my phone on the other side of the room helps to at least get me up to turn it off. Once I'm up it's a little bit easier to stay up, even if I just relocate to the couch. 

I also try to give myself things to do in the mornings, things I actually enjoy like having some time to knit, or read, or catch up on a few episodes of a show. Having something to look forward to doing has been a real help for me.

So I guess overall for me it's about planning ahead, because once I'm in the scrolling cycle it's so hard to snap out of it. It is all about small steps though like you said, and knowing that things aren't going to work all the time, some days might feel harder and that's okay, 2 steps forward and one step back is still a step ahead of where you were to begin with 🙂