7 ms·

Its not too late! Socialize more, exercise everyday, and take something for depression! Learn new things, I had a rough spell a few years ago which took its tol

Its not too late! Socialize more, exercise everyday, and take something for depression! Learn new things, I had a rough spell a few years ago which took its toll. Now what I find is I have to walk the razors edge everyday. Make sure I sleep enough, eat right (low carb and fasting), exercise twice a day. If I dont I start to lose the edge.

rubicon33 9y ago
Absolutely! I should mention that I have already covered the basics, which is why I strongly believe this is a social problem. I have: - Seen a doctor, gotten blood tests done, and verified all is "normal" - Eaten very healthy, home cooked meals since I started WFH. - Exercise 4-5 times a week. I am in "good" shape, and I am looking at registering to run my first marathon soon. - Drink lots of water. Mostly avoid alcohol.
- BatFastard 9y ago
  Go to some meet ups, join a church, coach something... Good luck!
  - derekp7 9y ago
    I really wish there were good community organizations that bring people together like a church, but weren't religious based. I guess that's what organizations such as the Moose lodge, or Lions club attempt to fill?
    - mythrwy 9y ago
      Agreed. Religion is a non starter for me but I would like to find some community groups doing good things with good people. I know about meetup.com etc but I'd like to have ties with something a little deeper. Preferably something without political and especially without supernatural overtones. I see there being a big need for this in the modern world.
      - geden 9y ago
        I find that sport fills this function for me. After being a very cerebral, non sporty child I was lucky enough to find sports I really enjoyed (badminton & tennis) in my late teens. When I've moved from city to city I've joined a good local badminton club and played in local leagues. With that has come vigorous exercise AND social interaction. Latterly its also brought the opportunity to contribute to local community through coaching my club's juniors. I find this challenging in a very rewarding way.
      - TuringTest 9y ago
        The local RPG and board games group fills that gap for me. You may vary it depending on your tastes about leisure activities, but there's a lot of social groups you can try.
      - jeffdavis 9y ago
        Even if you are not religious, you may want to reconsider church. It can be good for people and communities in many ways, and often for reasons you don't understand. Sometimes I feel like American culture is being sterilized. Just like white bread and a multivitamin, we only take what we understand and leave everything else behind. And then when we encounter social problems after eliminating church (or health problems when we eliminate natural foods), we are puzzled.
        mythrwy 9y ago
        I see good in churches. And I see bad. But most importantly from my perspective I see the fundamental basis being at odds with what I understand to be reality. I'm not saying churches don't fulfill an important function, they do. But the order of things changes and even though change can bring a period of chaos we generally don't go back, we go forward. What we know as "churches" are not growing, they are dying. For whatever reason(s) and this trend probably isn't going to reverse. So for me the solution is to move on to something with equivalent functionality but with less dysfunctionality.
        jeffdavis 9y ago
    - Wildgoose 9y ago
      Join your local Go Club - they're always looking for new players. Mentally stimulating and in my experience Go players often work in an IT-related field. Play Go and you will find new friends worldwide.
      - arghimonmobile2 9y ago
        The fact that you'd meet many people in IT would be a turnoff for me, since i prefer a diverse friend group. But YMMV.
    - CalRobert 9y ago
      I've never been, but I believe that's the idea behind https://www.sundayassembly.com/ https://www.sundayassembly.com/ .
    - lentil_soup 9y ago
      Something like a Third Place (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_place https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_place) ... And yes, this kind of environment should be encouraged more!
      - crookshanked 9y ago
        Thanks for sharing this. Interesting to read and introspect on.
    - maccard 9y ago
      Sports clubs fill that gap normally.
- dghughes 9y ago
  Consistent sleep is very important too.
mmel 9y ago
>"Take something for depression" What happy pills do you recommend?
- zdkl 9y ago
  No. Pills. For real, I'm not trying to be cute. Unless you're pronounced clinically depressed by a couple doctors, one should avoid the official benzo & related "happy pills". One thing that might help, is try to make some hippy friends. You're not expected to become one of them, but they have a lot to share, wink wink.
- jumanchiss 9y ago
  Red pill, it's not "happy" per se but it's what most people need these days.
- lentil_soup 9y ago
  Don't just take pills, see a therapist.
- bluetwo 9y ago
  The problem with medication for depression is that they generally have only ever been proven to help in cases of severe depression. They don't help with mild depression, but doctors are allowed to prescribe them for anything they see fit. I believe they have been over prescribed. There are related issues, like racing thoughts and anxiety, which are different and not all that uncommon. Lorazepam is actually pretty effective for these issues.
Caveman_Coder 9y ago
> "eat right (low carb and fasting)" Do you have any evidence that your recommendation is the "right" diet?
- graphitezepp 9y ago
  There is lots of evidence for lots of different diets being healthy, people have different dietary needs. However those things are pretty universally good ideas. Obligatory quick google links: Fasting: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4257368/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4257368/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4274578/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4274578/ Low Carb: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3595318/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3595318/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2989112/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2989112/

rubicon33 9y ago

Absolutely! I should mention that I have already covered the basics, which is why I strongly believe this is a social problem. I have: - Seen a doctor, gotten blood tests done, and verified all is "normal" - Eaten very healthy, home cooked meals since I started WFH. - Exercise 4-5 times a week. I am in "good" shape, and I am looking at registering to run my first marathon soon. - Drink lots of water. Mostly avoid alcohol.

BatFastard 9y ago
Go to some meet ups, join a church, coach something... Good luck!
- derekp7 9y ago
  I really wish there were good community organizations that bring people together like a church, but weren't religious based. I guess that's what organizations such as the Moose lodge, or Lions club attempt to fill?
  - mythrwy 9y ago
    Agreed. Religion is a non starter for me but I would like to find some community groups doing good things with good people. I know about meetup.com etc but I'd like to have ties with something a little deeper. Preferably something without political and especially without supernatural overtones. I see there being a big need for this in the modern world.
    - geden 9y ago
      I find that sport fills this function for me. After being a very cerebral, non sporty child I was lucky enough to find sports I really enjoyed (badminton & tennis) in my late teens. When I've moved from city to city I've joined a good local badminton club and played in local leagues. With that has come vigorous exercise AND social interaction. Latterly its also brought the opportunity to contribute to local community through coaching my club's juniors. I find this challenging in a very rewarding way.
    - TuringTest 9y ago
      The local RPG and board games group fills that gap for me. You may vary it depending on your tastes about leisure activities, but there's a lot of social groups you can try.
    - jeffdavis 9y ago
      Even if you are not religious, you may want to reconsider church. It can be good for people and communities in many ways, and often for reasons you don't understand. Sometimes I feel like American culture is being sterilized. Just like white bread and a multivitamin, we only take what we understand and leave everything else behind. And then when we encounter social problems after eliminating church (or health problems when we eliminate natural foods), we are puzzled.
      - mythrwy 9y ago
        I see good in churches. And I see bad. But most importantly from my perspective I see the fundamental basis being at odds with what I understand to be reality. I'm not saying churches don't fulfill an important function, they do. But the order of things changes and even though change can bring a period of chaos we generally don't go back, we go forward. What we know as "churches" are not growing, they are dying. For whatever reason(s) and this trend probably isn't going to reverse. So for me the solution is to move on to something with equivalent functionality but with less dysfunctionality.
        jeffdavis 9y ago
  - Wildgoose 9y ago
    Join your local Go Club - they're always looking for new players. Mentally stimulating and in my experience Go players often work in an IT-related field. Play Go and you will find new friends worldwide.
    - arghimonmobile2 9y ago
      The fact that you'd meet many people in IT would be a turnoff for me, since i prefer a diverse friend group. But YMMV.
  - CalRobert 9y ago
    I've never been, but I believe that's the idea behind https://www.sundayassembly.com/ https://www.sundayassembly.com/ .
  - lentil_soup 9y ago
    Something like a Third Place (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_place https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_place) ... And yes, this kind of environment should be encouraged more!
    - crookshanked 9y ago
      Thanks for sharing this. Interesting to read and introspect on.
  - maccard 9y ago
    Sports clubs fill that gap normally.
dghughes 9y ago
Consistent sleep is very important too.

mmel 9y ago

>"Take something for depression" What happy pills do you recommend?

zdkl 9y ago
No. Pills. For real, I'm not trying to be cute. Unless you're pronounced clinically depressed by a couple doctors, one should avoid the official benzo & related "happy pills". One thing that might help, is try to make some hippy friends. You're not expected to become one of them, but they have a lot to share, wink wink.
jumanchiss 9y ago
Red pill, it's not "happy" per se but it's what most people need these days.
lentil_soup 9y ago
Don't just take pills, see a therapist.
bluetwo 9y ago
The problem with medication for depression is that they generally have only ever been proven to help in cases of severe depression. They don't help with mild depression, but doctors are allowed to prescribe them for anything they see fit. I believe they have been over prescribed. There are related issues, like racing thoughts and anxiety, which are different and not all that uncommon. Lorazepam is actually pretty effective for these issues.

Caveman_Coder 9y ago

> "eat right (low carb and fasting)" Do you have any evidence that your recommendation is the "right" diet?

graphitezepp 9y ago
There is lots of evidence for lots of different diets being healthy, people have different dietary needs. However those things are pretty universally good ideas. Obligatory quick google links: Fasting: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4257368/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4257368/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4274578/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4274578/ Low Carb: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3595318/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3595318/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2989112/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2989112/