Waking Up

Hello. I've read your post. I'm a retired health professional and would like to offer comment in reply.

Although you don't indicate how long you've been under treatment with medication, it's important to note that antidepressants most often reach steady-state plasma levels within four to six weeks with an outside period of eight weeks wherein you should experience considerable improvement. Realize that within the class of antidepressant medications there are many distinct forms that vary in positive results because they use variable metabolic pathways for absorption and efficacy. The response to treatment varies for patients because of the unique design of the medication prescribed. If you are under treatment but do not experience positive change, then it's very important for you to reach out to the prescribing physician to discuss alternatives to determine which specific medication provides the most positive response and efficacy while producing the least side-effect profile.

While avenues for social exchange have indeed undergone transformation, it is also the intent and targeted expectations by those using such avenues that result in perspectives of success versus difficulty. There are many reasons that individuals find their day-to-day existence to be lonely and without someone particular to share life. Failure in overcoming variable degrees of awkwardness associated with meeting others can obviously prevent forward movement, as well as the overshoot of expectations in transitioning from loneliness and isolation to regular and frequent interaction.

Indeed, the art of establishing oneself in the realm of a common social existence is not comfortable for some people and to some degree is a combination of hereditary factors and life patterns established at an early age of development. Humans, however, are all very fortunately endowed with the safety net of adaptation. In other words, when we look around us we tend to realize that there is someone for everyone, so to speak.

Isolation does tend to diminish the ability to meet others, so some degree of exposure is very naturally a requirement to increase one's odds of encountering what is most often unexpected friendship and/or relationship social encounters. Purely by-chance encounters are very frequently the kindling that often results in permanent connections.

While this is certainly common knowledge, my point here is that you should explore questions regarding why a contradiction of sorts is present in your instance. You do go to the gym as representative of one among many social environments and you do talk to people, but yet your day-to-day existence is one marked by the absence of significant others, either close friends or a partner.

The workplace is also an excellent resource for social connections and is admittedly absent as well due to anxiety. Does your anxiety interfere with the actual premise of seeking employment or does a work environment constitute significant anxiety? It is quite common to seek employment that suits your personality and low-key exposure is certainly a good way to describe your preference. Is this preference because of reluctance or discomfort in dealing directly with others? Have you explored whether any relevant circumstances are common to your isolation of home life and that associated with your job preference? I inquire because sometimes people erroneously seek out a premise where life feels totally safe wherein significant social exchange is absent and yet find that doing so results in an uncomfortable and even painful outcome. Do you see the conflict at hand here? In other words, targeting an environment within what you believe to be your comfort zone and best prospect very paradoxically results in a painfully lonely existence.

You might consider seeking part-time employment that offers you some social exposure without expectations of any detrimental effects that are largely irrational as a consequence of the anxiety such a premise might cause. Realize that the absolute worst that could happen is that the job simply doesn't work out for you, but you'll never know whether that consequence is real unless you actually experience it. You might be surprised to learn that such a job imposes absolutely no different techniques of social exchange than those you regularly utilize in talking to others at the gym. Performance anxiety is part of any new job and dissipates rapidly once you become accustomed to the tasks required of you by your employer. In other words, everyone established a comfort zone once they feel competent in the ability to perform all aspects of their job requirements. So try not to relegate yourself to a low-key workplace environment with the knowledge and experience that loneliness or low-key social contact results in a painful detriment to your life.

It's also critical to ask yourself whether relegation to what you feel that you need to be comfortable using your present perspectives could actually be resulting in factors that feed clinical depression. Consider that you already have anxiety, so your present course of action isn't necessarily going to eradicate it. It's quite possible that a change in your approach might just well result in a change to your difficulties. The act of creating a sense of comfort rather than requiring one beforehand very often results in greater confidence, less anxiety and a reduced environment of loneliness. Furthermore, no one is going to even know you exist if you seek out a work environment where you're tucked away and out of sight from others in general.

Before I close, I'll simply state that is your present life is not offering the sort of rewards and desires you seek then simply alter your course and change it. You certainly have nothing to lose and I know of no punishment for doing so. The distance from one life to another is no greater than walking through a doorway. Understand that the irrational fears of anxiety that is compounded by clinical depression are the only factors holding your feet to the floor. The act of trying imposes no actual harm and to your surprise, may very magically alter the context of your life that resolves much of the disappointments and longing for better circumstances.

Best regards