I know for me, my depression is predictable while my anxiety is both predictable but unexpected depending on situations.
I know I get depressed talking with my Mother and Sisters.
I know sad news or a subject close to my heart can cause depression. Certain times of the month cause depression.
If someone else in my family is depressed sometime I do to.

For anxiety; My parents, my sisters, church, meetings with my boss cause me anxiety. But so does unexpected surprises... of any kind!
Reason why I try and have a backup plan.

My depression can hit out of the blue! Of course it often correlates with the weather...I was fine this winter until I had a stretch where I worked too much, was tired and then it snowed in March (I know, I know, I live in Michigan).......POW! Very unhappy....

-animaldoc

I've never been anxious and rarely depressed until this last year when my hubby lost his job and our family was uprooted to Virginia about 6 months ago. We got to Virginia two weeks before September 11 and live 5 miles from the Pentagon!

Now, anxiety comes out of the blue and smacks me upside the head! I know that my future is in the Lord's hands, but I sometimes want to hold onto the anxiety. I guess the trauma was worse than I thought and now I worry that he will lose his new job. We'll find out in two months. In the meantime, I just try to keep on and keep a positive attitude.

I've also been trying to keep track of my moods in the journal section of this forum to see if there is a correlation to moon times. If I still had a uterus, I guess I'd be better able to expect things?!

Also, I am a person who eats when anxious or frustrated or angry. It sure is hard trying to low carb during these times, as the food that cries out to me usually comes in a crinkly bag and contains tons of sugar and flour!

What do other "anxious eaters" do when the need for sweet or crunchy attacks? What is the backup plan you speak about?

I completley relate. The smallest things can set me off. Listening to things can depress me (Sometimes even things that aren't depressing.) I can't watch the news or even the tv anymore. I can't take even seeing stupid things in fictional shows. I also find myself taking things for other people, like if something's happened to my mom or my husband at work or where ever, it bothers me more than them.


Melissa

When I have an anxiety attack I do one of several things:
*Deep breathing (Simple but it works),
*Laugh (We used this for voice lessons when I was in high school, at first its corny but you do end up laughing),
*Drink a bottle of water (I actually have a habit now of grabbing my liter bottle of water (full if I'm lucky) and I drink it as I flip through channels on the tv),
*Gameboy (There's just something about fighting Pokemon that calms my nerves!).
*During the Summer, I take a shower (Its too darn cold in my apartment during other seasons).
**What I absolutely had to do, is trade my eating healing for a completely new healing. When I tried using jerky or celery or what ever it set me up for a low carb binge and that just doesn't work either.

Gee I hope that this list inspires some creative solutions of your own. Share them!

Oh a bunch of flowers does wonders as well, girls!

Your ideas are excellent. I won't go into a great deal of explainations for why they work but there are many good ones. For the breathing deeply for just an example, when I have an anxiety attack, my breathing becomes very fast and shallow, which makes my heart scream for oxygen and pound faster, then the adrenaline rushes because my heart is and the faint feeling begins, by taking a couple deep breathes, my body gets the oxygen it is scream for, the heart slows down and the faintness goes away. I sometimes have to do this when I'm cooking. Water is another reason why the body will scream for attention. Laughter releases seritonin which is always a good thing.
I have suffered from depression and I can honestly say there are times when medication is needed and there are times when taking better care of yourself and exercising make a big difference. Be honest about the difference is very important. Good luck and by the way one more addition to your list, the sun tanning boothe got me through Februrary, now I only went for 10 minutes twice a week, so it was not for the tan, it just seemed to get me through the gray month.
Yours Truely Jo-Ann

Water : drink it, bathe in it, swim ... whatever
Air : breathing, exercising (which does force you to take deeper breaths)
Movement : Walking, Laughing, Action of some sort. Whirling first clockwise and then anticlockwise supposed to be especially good.

All help.

{I get depressed talking with my Mother and Sisters...} Lessara this one is especially for you . A book I read and put into practice helped me a lot. Can't find it right now (why is it when you want something it eludes you) but it is called "Psychic Protection" by William Bloom. The six months before my dad died I was practically suicidal - I did not even know (my family worry about telling me things that could send me into a down period) that he was ill and in hospital.

Take Care.

I got side-tracked last night. It was the title of the thread that brought me into it. Reading all the posts I forgot the original question.

Does your depression and/or anxiety hit you unexpectedly?

Not any more. It used to in my pre-lowcarb days. My mood swings stabilised within days of Induction - I put a lot of that down to insulin instability.

Now I gently slip into negativity when I am tired - often a half-hour lying down is sufficient to lift me out of it. Sometimes a half-hour lying down is enough to lull me into a pleasant sense of relaxation which involves effort to get up and get going again. A fine balance between rest and activity. But the rest is important if I am not to let negativity slip into depression.

Take care.

I'll see if Barnes and Noble has that book! or at least the library.
It was recommended before but as always I misplaced the information to look it up
Today I walked to work. Why is it I forget how fun it is to walk to work? Well, I'm fortunate, with the car I normal get rides from, dead. Walking is going to be my mood of transportation.
Lucky me!

I used to like walking to work, too. Or bicycling. It's a good thing you could go anywhere in town within four miles! :-)

I have been dealing with anxiety attacks for about a year. My husband is in the military and he was gone to Germany for 3 months. I had gotten really sick and could not even get out of bed. It scared me to death because I have a 6 yr. old and I thought I was dying. And I was so worried that I would be dead and she would be alone! I know to some that sounds really stupid but when it is happening you feel so out of control. I have continued to have them since then and sometimes I have to drop everything even when I am the next person in line at the supermarket and get out- I just can't feel trapped.
I have only been on the Atkins diet for 2 weeks so I am not sure how this is affecting it but since I have been working out I have only felt an attack coming on maybe twice and it used to be twice a day!
The one thing that does help me get through one is to call someone supportive. I call Mom or my husband on my cell it seems to help if you just talk to someone and it can be about anything- I do know what you are going through and there is support out there, you are NOT ALONE !!! And you are not CRAZY!!
I hope you can find some peace!!

Exercise will help, seritonin and endorphins are released when you do that which will definitely help your body.
My husband is in the Navy so I understand your home life, it is difficult.
I am concerned for you, the fear of death is common for people suffering from depression, so is the anxiety attack. Maybe a visit to your doctor might be in order, even just to get reassurance that you are not having a heart attack or that you are not alone in this.
I was on medication twice in the last seven years and did not have to stay on it long but it helped me, I am not suggesting that medication is required for you. I'm just saying that mental health is very important for your quality of life and that there are alot of options available these days including groups, exercise, music, massage, and medication. All of which have track records that have been shown to be helpful to different groups, just look for options that appeal to you. I'm so glad you have your mother and that you are able to talk to her. I too have a 6 year old and have found that stopping and taking a deeper breathe helps, along with the exercise. I now know that I do not require medication for these symptoms, but I am willing to take them if that is what it takes to get me over a major hump (my episodes were hormone related, post partum and after pregnancy that went terribly, terribly wrong). Life is not easy but it is worth living, now go hug that kid of yours, exercise and remember to breathe. My prayers are with you.
Yours Truely Jo-Ann

Thank you so much for your post- I have gone to the doctor because I thought I was having a heart attack- only to start balling my eyes out as soon as she asked me what the problem was today. She did give me some med. but they seemed to make it worse- she felt like it was because I was so worried about being addicted to them that it was giving me a whole other set of problems. It is interesting that you said your attacks are hormonal. I have been able to track a pattern of attacks right before I start and during- I wonder if this is common? Do you know?
Anyway, thank you for understanding and I hope the best for you as well!

I have more panic attacks before my cycle than say mid month.

Yes, two days before I start I either clean the house or keep busy other ways, otherwise I find I'm in a state of panic. I know that this will happen so I plan attivities that don't require me to be in stressful situations, like driving downtown in rush hour. I do this for myself, not because I'm afraid, I know I have good days and bad days, it is part of who I am. As far as getting addicted to medication, you have to solve the first problem (the one you are on the medication for) before you give yourself another one. Part of every person I know who has required medication has said to themselves "I don't need medicattion, I should be able to handle this without medication or I'll get addicted and some even see medication as a sign of weakness." In fact it is the brave that seek help. Few that have had there life given back to them through medication have had to stay on it for years, but if they do, it is because their body is missing something that makes you function happily. Addicted or supportive of healthy functioning. It depends on how you look at it I guess. I did the crying thing too. Infact the crying helped, getting out (although I found this the hardest, it got better), and having someone I could be honest with. My prayers are with you.
Yours Truely Jo-Ann