Running with depression

Go for runs through the forest and get lost in nature.

Don’t isolate

Connect with others even for trivia stuff

Wow, your PR's are almost identical to mine when I graduated from high school.

800m - 2:07.17

1500m - 4:20.09

3000m - 9:25.50 (h)

I was depressed in high school and began taking medication midway through the 11th grade.

I don't know whether it helped or not. I went through most of my 20's not on meds. Now back on 'em.

Anyways, running was somewhat of my salvation in school.

I was like you and quite competitive.

You should know whether you're depressed or not.

If you have the competitive desire, that should pull you through anything.

Succeeding in competition is quite gratifying and working towards that goal, with determination, is a fulfilling endeavour.

On the other hand, if you are simply not happy with your life, by all means, don't force yourself to train.

Find something else that brings you happiness. But, don't expect great results if you're going to miss a lot of training.

High expectations without preparation can lead to disappointments.

Life is full of disappointments.

The key I believe it to enjoy every moment and be grateful for everything.

Watch some Rob Krar videos on youtube. He suffers with depression. I do as well but I just blend in as another fat guy. Things can get better and if it's chronic you'll learn ways to deal with it. If you start running again you can lose yourself in the run and that will help temporarily. Definitely get some help.

God bless you!

““For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭8:38-39‬ ‭NIV‬‬

http://bible.com/111/rom.8.38-39.niv

Not saying this as a joke, but up your red meat consumption.

https://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2018/07/study-links-depression-to-low-blood-levels-of-acetyl-l-carnitine.html

S m o k e. w e e d. E v e r y d a y

I just wanted to respond to say you are not alone. I have dealt with lifelong depression and while there are many different levels of severity and many different treatments (for example- I only got better after finding the right medication. I was worried that the medication would hurt my running but it's amazing how much better my training was once I no longer wanted to die...). Many people never need medication. There is no right answer.

That said, what helps me the most when I am not in a good place is to just tell myself I have to get out the door. It's almost like a 5 minute rule. I can force myself to do anything for 5 minutes and with running once I've been running for 5 minutes I'm more likely than not going to stick it out. The other thing that helps is running with others- my club does a track workout every week and making sure I went there helped a lot in making sure I kept doing the hard stuff (aka speedwork). And the good thing about training that intensity is you can't really focus on how you are feeling.

I would suggest talking to someone you trust- like a coach if you are comfortable, with your concerns. They are the ones who can really help you the most with training.

Good luck!

Do not go on meds unless you're mentally too weak. Mine was due to relationship problems and my inability to have meaningful relationships. Essentially I was a Pure Love runner before all of this happened. And then I realized something: We're all superficial, we "network"or make fake friends to have opportunities, and looks first, personality later.

You can either let depression prevent you from savoring years of your life. Or you can learn to live with it, cope with it, and still perform actions towards accomplishing your goals. This is why running on the Pure Hate Path is the only Path because you run on instincts.

Have you ever seen a depressed rabbit or ladybug not eat or move around because of their mental state? No! You must eat and move! Mental anguish weighs nothing. It physically weighs nothing. However, mental anguish makes you sluggish. Learn to live with it.

https://imgur.com/a/2EeykUM

I get really depressed after many races when I look at the results and see how far behind people I am and how slow my times are. This happens after 90% of races.

Get back into your running gradually

Make sure you get help with your depression both from doctors and family.

Do not bottle it up.

It is very common, especially at your age and other people can help get you through it

struggle myself and running has been my "medicine." I find when I'm unable to do it (injury/sick) etc. I can spiral very quickly. Key for me is just doing it. I don't run insane mileage but I run enough to keep myself content. It's all about balance. Since you're in high school focus on this winter just building a nice base for yourself. Maybe a couple tempos and strides in there. Even in the worst weather a run is better than no run at all. Keep at it one day at a time.

Also like what "better living through chemistry" said. I know plenty of runners on medication for depression and anxiety running well and prs. And if not that's okay. At the end of the day running prs isn't going to make you content.

Wishing you health bud

I echo connecting with others even if you don’t want to. Running helps some.

Ignore the mentally weak comment —it’s brain chemistry not willpower. Take meds to restore chemical balance, but know 1) it can take a few weeks to start to feel an effect, 2) you have to be consistent, and 3) not all meds work for all people - tell your doc if you’re feeling bad or it’s not working.

Be open with good friends and your coach if you trust them. Forgive yourself.

Know some running days may be harder to manage on your bad days. Work with it and savor when you feel fast.

Committed Runner wrote:

High school senior here. Just found out that mono was a misdiagnosis and it was actually depression. I want more than anything to make it to State. Because I thought it was mono, I stopped running the past two months. Any advice you guys can give me? I didn't get a chance to ask the doctor. PRs: 2:06/4:39/10:15. Trained almost every day (up to 40-50mpw) the summer before this track season when I set the PRs. Winter training wasn't great the season these PRs were set.

Read "cancer guy's" thread about breaking 20 for 5k, if you still feel sorry for yourself, watch "Requiem for a Dream", if you aren't feeling better after that, than you probably have what the boys in the lab are calling "deluded-middleclass-Americanism". It stems from placing value on things which have none.

Committed Runner wrote:

High school senior here. Just found out that mono was a misdiagnosis and it was actually depression. I want more than anything to make it to State. Because I thought it was mono, I stopped running the past two months. Any advice you guys can give me? I didn't get a chance to ask the doctor. PRs: 2:06/4:39/10:15. Trained almost every day (up to 40-50mpw) the summer before this track season when I set the PRs. Winter training wasn't great the season these PRs were set.

. . . Hmmmmmmmmmmm . . .

. . . . ... . . . ...

. . .

Unfortunately, it turns out that all of the dendritic spines in your very tiny human neural network are so damaged that the total neuron volume in your entire cerebral cortex is now exactly equivalent to the total volume of an 'uncooked' . . . grain of basmati rice.

Oh well.

I am sorry about that.

It turns out that there is no hope for your cerebral cortex.

No pharmaceutical treatment that is available today will 'fix' your cerebral cortex.

In conclusion:

1) There is NO HOPE . . . FOR YOUR cerebral CoRTex. Oh well.

2) It's NOT a BIG surprise.

3) Have a nice day.

Thanks for all the advice, guys. I've been working on being positive and just some daily practices (cold showers, meditation, etc.) I'm going to talk to a therapist soon so that should help. How did you guys build back up for running, though?

Committed Runner wrote:

Thanks for all the advice, guys. I've been working on being positive and just some daily practices (cold showers, meditation, etc.) I'm going to talk to a therapist soon so that should help. How did you guys build back up for running, though?

Just put on your shoes and preferably go run through nature. Get sunlight and eat plenty of animal products. Often runners make the mistake of focusing on carbs for nutrition. This will cause short term and long term problems.

What's Depression's last name?

Nothing wrong with medication if you choose to go that route.

You are obviously too mentally weak to use your real name, which seems to be the common trend on LetsRun.