how do you cope with morning blues

[mc steamy]

my anxiety/depression is at its worse once i wake up in the morning. regardless if i had a good day the day before, or a good night's sleep, once i wake up in the morning, i get anxious. at first it was affecting me by letting it not making me go to work. now i am able to drive and go to work but i feel sad (i used to love my work). i know that this is something that can be corrected. i just dont know how to cope with my morning blues. i pray once i get inside the car while warming the car up. it helps but when i get to the office i get restless and just want to go home.

the hardest part of my day is during the morning. does anyone have the same problem? how do you cope with it?

[richy1991]

i sort of have the same problem, my anxiety is worse when im coming concious from a sleep, but not just in the mornings, even if iv had a lil nap anytime in the day, as im waking up i feel at the top end of my anxiety.
i feel if i just stay lying there then it gets worse but if i get up straight away and start/continue my day, the anxiety fades
try and find something that makes you happy in the mornings
i like to get up and listen to music, or go and see my dog, or have a quick blast on a video game
i know these may not be practical for you but try and find something thats suits you
make your mornings happy :)

richy

[JaneB]

You wake up a little early, maybe 30 minutes before you'd like to. Immediately the floodgates open and you can't stop thinking about the day's responsibilities. What should you do first? Will you do it well? Why can't I just put this out of my mind and sleep for just a few more minutes? But your mind is up, so you've got to get up too.

Yeah that's me pretty often. I cope by going to bed pretty early (maybe 11 or 11:30 p.m.) so I won't be as sleep deprived if I wake up too early. Then when I do wake up I do the following: 1) Focus for 10 minutes on all the things in life I have to be grateful for 2) Turn on some happy music on my stereo 3) Make a healthy breakfast 4) If I have time, read part of a magazine article in Wired (I love Wired). It's not fullproof, but it helps a lot!

[Nikita]

I have a TV in my bedroom and when I wake I turn it on and listen to the news which distracts me from myself. The other day when I turned it on there was a commercial about St. Jude Childrens hospital. They deal with children with cancer. It was so sad to see these angels going thru hell and yet they smile and dont complain at all. There they were with little bald heads from chemo and they still smiled. Right then I thought, my problem is not so bad. If they are so young and can handle their problems who am I to complain about mine. That day I got up and the world looked good to me. I was alive and funtioning. I could walk, go outside, eat what ever i wanted and so many other things. So now I wake with TV and see that others in the world are inmuch worse shape then I am. Then my day and problems seem minor.

[murdoch]

Try to go for morning walk, do some breath exercises there, listen some light happy mood music, do other things that bring smile on your face etc. are some of the tricks to deal with these tough calling situations.

[mc steamy]

thanks for the reply guys. here are some of my responses:

1. i do try to start my day early once i get up in the morning because if i dont, id end up delaying getting out of bed, more anxiety sets in, i wont report to work.
2. nothing makes me happy now. not even those things that make me used to like work, just watching tv, biking, etc. right now im both having anxiety attacks and depression as well.
3. i do get a lot of sleep. thanks to the medication im taking.
4. i agree that i have to be thankful for all the blessings that i have.

right now i feel like im the saddest guy alive. i have so many things to be thankful for, like a great wife, a good job, nice pay, lots of loving dogs, a loving family...materially i could do better but i can not complain with what my wife have. but i dont know why im still sad. its like something is missing and most of the time, my anxiety/depression weighs over the blessings i have in life.

for the past few days ive been praying and telling God that im so tired already. not tired from work but tired of fighting my anxiety and depression everyday. its so hard to cope everyday and its so hard that i always have to put up a strong facade or at least a normal facade everyday. but deep down inside im scared and sad all the time.

and all this is strongest in the mornings. i hope to have better mornings soon. at least its a start.