# Is dysthymia for good?



## Into The Light (Mar 3, 2007)

i keep coming back to wondering if i have had dysthymia. i don't know the answer. i've been having some ups and downs lately, after a short period of feeling amazing. i never had so much energy in my life. that seems to have gone for the moment.

if a person were to have dysthymia, does this mean you're stuck with it for the rest of your life? can it be completely be recovered from like major depression? or will it always be something that will be there and will need to be managed through cbt, medication and exercise?


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## David Baxter PhD (Mar 3, 2007)

Not in the sense that you'll always feel low or that you can't learn to manage it, no.

I think it helps to consider vulnerability to dysthymia or depression (or anxiety, etc.) as part of your personality... and a part that's not all bad either. The same things that make you empathic, sensitive to others, questioning of your own interpretations, reactions, and behaviors at times - all these things can make you vulnerable to mood disorders but they also make you the kind of person that others seek out to spend time with, to be a friend, or a life-partner. What you need to do is to identify the negative thinking patterns that lead you into low moods and to identify the specific triggers for those low moods in your case, and then to learn ways to counter them - both behavioral and cognitive.


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## just mary (Mar 3, 2007)

I've wondered the same thing.  It seems I feel good for awhile and then the smallest comment can send me on a tailspin.  It feels so overwhelming and I get so tired of the ups and downs. I can't imagine spending the rest of my life this way.

But that isn't offerring any constructive advice. I guess I just want to commiserate. So I don't know what the solution is but I think David had a good response.

:hug:  and take care,

jm


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## Into The Light (Mar 3, 2007)

thanks david. it certainly is a mixed condition isn't it? i have learned to see the positive aspects of sensitivity, and now that i know of it, i am glad to have this trait. i know i can manage the lows but sometimes i just get tired of things not coming naturally, that it's work.

mary, have you been diagnosed with dysthymia? or are you wondering whether you have it?


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## David Baxter PhD (Mar 3, 2007)

> It seems I feel good for awhile and then the smallest comment can send me on a tailspin. It feels so overwhelming and I get so tired of the ups and downs. I can't imagine spending the rest of my life this way.



That's what CBT (cognitive restructuring) is for... to help you learn ways to stop that tailspin so you don't have to repeat the same old self-defeating patterns for the rest of your life. It takes work, practice, and a certain amount of vigilance, especially in the beginning.


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## just mary (Mar 3, 2007)

> mary, have you been diagnosed with dysthymia? or are you wondering whether you have it?



No, I guess I was just identifying with your reference to "ups and downs", whether or not you can recover and if this is something you have to live with and manage for the rest of your life.  

Lately, I'm beginning to wonder if this is just who I am. I think I'll never change.  I've been comparing myself to other people and I've been feeling like such a loser.  And I know I shouldn't do that but it's hard not to.  I have a habit of imagining what others are thinking of me.  I feel slight, barely there, half awake, distant and out to lunch, just barely getting by.  

I tried talking to someone a few weeks ago. I went on two visits but it just didn't feel right.  How do you find a counsellor/therapist that you like and is able to help you.  I wish you could meet with someone ahead of time for 10 or 15 minutes before committing to an hour long session?

Anyway, I've gotten a little off topic, sorry.

Take care,

jm


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## David Baxter PhD (Mar 3, 2007)

> I went on two visits but it just didn't feel right. How do you find a counsellor/therapist that you like and is able to help you. I wish you could meet with someone ahead of time for 10 or 15 minutes before committing to an hour long session?



Sometimes it takes a bit of trial and error. I've had questions about a "trial session" before myself and I have done it once or twice but the reality is that, like many professionals, my income is time-based, so doing that doesn't help me pay the rent.

If you've been to someone you just don't feel comfortable with, try someone else. Usually, with a bit of patience, you can find someone you "fit" with.


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## Halo (Mar 4, 2007)

> How do you find a counsellor/therapist that you like and is able to help you.



JM,

I think like David said, a lot of it is trial and error.  I honestly don't think that there is one quick answer to your question but I can tell you that in my experience I have seen my fair share of counsellors, therapists, social workers, psychiatrists and a psychologist and really it all came down to what worked for me and what I felt comfortable with.  I does take some time to find that right match because like anything profession in this world, some are great, some are good and some are....not so good (being polite  ).  

I do want to say that I hope you don't give up your search to find someone because when you do find that right match, you will know it and it will feel just right.  The match will be made and you will be glad that you stuck it out and found them. To offer a ray of hope, I can say that it has finally happened for me and although it took a while I am glad that I kept looking and didn't give up or settle for less than.

Take care, JM
:hug: :hug:


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## Cat Dancer (Mar 4, 2007)

just mary said:


> Lately, I'm beginning to wonder if this is just who I am. I think I'll never change.  I've been comparing myself to other people and I've been feeling like such a loser.  And I know I shouldn't do that but it's hard not to.  I have a habit of imagining what others are thinking of me.  I feel slight, barely there, half awake, distant and out to lunch, just barely getting by.



I can relate to so much of what you wrote here. I really think these feelings are just part of depression. The hopelessness that comes across. The feeling like a loser, which you are definitely not. 

I think/hope you can keep trying to find someone to talk to about all of this. I believe you can change. It's a lot of hard work and soul-searching and sometimes I feel like I'm going backwards, but at this moment I honestly believe what I'm learning in therapy is slowing sinking in. 

Don't give up on finding someone to talk to. I want you to feel better. 

:hug:


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## Banned (Mar 4, 2007)

I was diagnosed with dysthymia when I was 17 and now I'm 32 and it's still with me.  It goes through phases, probably like most things - where things are really good and I think/believe/hope I'm going to make it, and I go through phases where I'm at the far end of the other way of thinking.  I've been doing really well for the 9 months - I credit that to my new therapist that I started seeing in June who actually "gets me".  I've told her I'm not naive enough to think I'll never relapse, and I've been told I'll have it for life, but I think even if I "have" it -  I can at least manage it so it doesn't interfere with my life to the degree it has in the past.


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## just mary (Mar 4, 2007)

Thanks to everyone for the support. :hug:  I agree it's a lot of trial and error, it just seems insurmountable when you're not feeling particularly positive.  

And sorry to LB for taking over her thread.  

I suppose there is always the option of briefly speaking on the phone with a potential therapist.  The last therapist I saw had a receptionist who I had to speak to before talking to him.  I really liked the receptionist but not the doctor.    A therapist I used to see would always return messages personally, which I thought was a good idea.  But everyone is different.

And like you said Dr. Baxter:



> my income is time-based, so doing that doesn't help me pay the rent.



Gosh, you psychologists are always thinking about yourselves, it's always, me, me, me, I need food, shelter and clothing...sheesh!  

Take care,

jm


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## Into The Light (Mar 4, 2007)

lol jm.. you didn't take over my thread  keep trying, find someone you're comfortable with, because it will make your life better. good luck!

bg can i pm you with some questions about your experience with the dysthymia?


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## David Baxter PhD (Mar 4, 2007)

> Gosh, you psychologists are always thinking about yourselves, it's always, me, me, me, I need food, shelter and clothing...sheesh!





Especially psychologists with teens and university students.


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## Into The Light (Mar 4, 2007)

does dysthymia require you to be taking anti-depressants permanently?


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## Banned (Mar 5, 2007)

ladybug said:


> bg can i pm you with some questions about your experience with the dysthymia?



Sure.

And to answer your other question - I go off and on antidepressants...probably not the best way, but I also want to know and prove to myself that I CAN make it without them...I'm currently off, and have been for two months, and so far I'm doing great.  Doesn't mean I might not be back on them next month.  Dysthymia can also move into a more severe depression, which I've experienced as well.  When I went off my antidepressants, I was on the highest dose I can be on, so it worries me that if these stop working, then what?  I've tried a bunch of others and most SSRIs make me violently ill.  I guess that's why for me, it's important to be able to function at least some of the time without them,  and give my body a break when it's safe to do so.

Wow - that was a long and not entirely relevant answer to your question LOL.


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## Halo (Mar 5, 2007)

BG said:


> Wow - that was a long and not entirely relevant answer to your question LOL.



I do think that it was a great, honest answer to the question....and yes a little long  ...just kidding :lol: :lol:


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## Into The Light (Mar 5, 2007)

thanks for the info, bg


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## Into The Light (Feb 15, 2009)

i'm feeling low about this again, and scared again, that this is what my life is going to be like. yes, a lot has improved in my life, but i still have the thoughts when things aren't 100% okay. i hate feeling this way.


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## Jazzey (Feb 15, 2009)

I'm wondering if what you're feeling isn't normal ITL.  Meaning that you've been sick lately and I would think that this would make anyone feel blue. 

I've been very low all week too.  But I've had outside stressors that I think contributed to that low.  So I don't know if it's my depression taking me for a ride again or, if it's just life and we can't expect to always feel great.  As long as we don't dip into the very low points.  I don't know if any of this makes sense?  All this to say that I hope that my current low is temporary just as I hope yours is.


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