Completely Depressed D1 Runner

The way wrote:

Bear and forbear

Sustine et Abstine

Be patient and endure

This is good advice.

The number of people in the USA on anti-depressant drugs is utterly shocking. The solution is fairly straightforward - mindset/attitude/philosophy/code

We have the wrong attitude about life.

- Life is not a picnic

- Life is a series of mountains to climb, never-ending challenges to overcome and endure

- We should expect ups and downs

- Very little in life is under our control. Much less than we think.

Basically, it's not what happens, but how we handle it.

Our version of being "positive" is all wrong. We expect positive things to happen, but what we should really do is focus on responding to what actually happens in a positive way. That's a massive difference in the way you see and respond to life. Total paradigm shift.

Lots of us go through most of school and even into early adulthood with long strings of "success" without facing much adversity. When adversity comes we get spun up, depressed, bummed out. We crack, whither and wilt because things are not going as planned.

But that's the wrong attitude. The right attitude is to expect adversity and then face it with patience, calmness, wisdom, self-control, endurance, courage, logic, intelligence and basic virtue. That's where contentment and satisfaction lives. Not in the external circumstances over which we have no control.

We can do everything "right" and still have everything go "wrong". That's life. Expect it. Control what you can control and endure the rest. This makes you strong, wise and satisfied with life. Life is an adventure. Keep an even keel through ups and downs. This gives you deep strength as a person. This strength helps you do good things for yourself and others. It keeps you in the game, in the fight.

A lot of decent and even good advice here, even the above post about attitude, but if you are depressed, you can't just reason your way out of it. Don't feel like it is all your fault, but do take some steps to build a support system.

Definitely find a therapist - could be social worker or psychologist - try opening up to a professional about how you are feeling before you jump to meds, UNLESS you feel suicidal. You may need more immediate intervention. It gets better, it truly will, though I know when you're in the thick of it, things can seem pointless. Hang in there.

As for girls, I agree that just having a girlfriend won't solve your internal conflict, but trying to not overanalyze your interactions and just be yourself and making a few connections will help. Chances are you overly critical of yourself and people see you in a better light than you do yourself.

Check out campus metal health services and try out a few appointments. Your first therapist may not be a good fit, and that's ok. Keep looking.

wishing you the best.

I don't agree with that. Change your paradigm and everything can change for most people who are depressed and anxious. Sure, there is obviously heavy duty full on legit clinical depression, but I don't think that is what we're talking about here. Most of this stuff for most people is self-inflicted by not having the right perspective. Go to third world countries and you don't see it, even when their lives are much rougher than ours by almost any measure.

Although I don't think a girlfriend will solve the root cause of your depression, I know a good system for getting girls if you insist on pursuing this.

The D.E.N.N.I.S. System.

Demonstrate Value - Dennis pretended to purchase medications for his ill grandmother from Caylee. He then proceeded to

Engage Physically - by taking her on a cheap date to a closed restaurant with the backup plan of pizza and a movie. Mac played wingman and said he saw a spider, causing them to watch the movie on Dennis' bed which led to sex.

Nurture Dependence - Dennis prank called her as an angry neighbor, threatening her life. She grew to need him, and then he proceeded to

Neglect Emotionally - he continued to prank call her but didn't show up for her, causing her to fall into emotional distress.

Inspire Hope - he showed up at her window, telling her that he was afraid to love and that she cured him. After having emotionally passionate sex, he sneaks away in the middle of the night to never be heard from again -

Separate Entirely.

In all seriousness, and others in this thread have touched on this, you need to find a purpose or something you're passionate about that can distract you. I struggled mightily with depression in college. It wasn't until my best friend told me that her mom told her to stop spending time with me because I was a "Loser Druggy going nowhere in life," that I started making moves. It pissed me off so much that she would judge me for what I was going through, it was the perfect energy I needed to thrive. I put that in the back of my mind with everything I did. I ended up graduating with a 3.0, breaking multiple school records (Division II School), dated many women, and now still run a lot with many friends with over a six-figure income. Not that any of that matters. What mattered to me was being happy again. Which I am because I have a purpose....being better than a person who judges others and humbly rubbing it in their face : )

You got this! Anything is possible, it truly is.

If you feel bad for pushing people away; I’d start by apologizing to those people.

I think that you should seek out counseling either from a community resource or from your own university. If you have a particular religious belief system perhaps talking to someone from there might help.

Good luck