Ok, Anxiety And Depression Has Gone But Now Life Is Boring!!!

NIRELANDGUY · Post by **NIRELANDGUY** » Sun Jun 15, 2008 8:24 am

This will sound odd but I suppose its a typical example of the "Grass is greener" etc, I've been so caught up in anxiety and depression 24/7 for about 10 years that now its gone I don't know what to do with myself. Anxiety is horrible and its something I am glad is gone, but in an odd sort of way it was almost like a hobby or interest, it was something I focused on constantly. Even going through the program, I got up every morning with soemthing to look forward to, but now its gone and I am recovered I am bored with life.

Theres nothing to worry about, nothing to be scared off, my life has a calm about it now, before it was like a sea in a storm, now its just still like on a calm summers morning.

I really just don't know what to do with myself. I think I need to do something with my life but what I don't know, due to my years of anxiety I have no interests in anything apart from anxiety oddly enough, Its like I've lost a friend or something.

Have any of yous got to this point? Or can you relate to what I mean?

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sun Jun 15, 2008 8:35 am

yes but i had not the words to describe it like you. i guess i have the goals of life now. doing what i could not before.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sun Jun 15, 2008 8:56 am

Originally posted by mikee b:
yes but i had not the words to describe it like you. i guess i have the goals of life now. doing what i could not before.

Yes I thought I did do a rather good job at explaining it

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sun Jun 15, 2008 1:31 pm

It's amazing how much time and energy we had put into fear and anxious worrying isn't it? When it's gone there is a void. I had just posted a thread on Is calmness boring? due to the fact a few of the people I know were telling me I had lost my pizazz. I was wondering if I seemed boring to them now. It seems to work almost like an addiction- If you stop drinking you usually change what you do and who you do it with so that you stay recovered. It may be similar with anxiety. We may need to make a very big change in how we live our lives and who we do it with, and learn to get our high from something positive and not the anxiety/fear we had been living with for so long. I can relate to what you are saying and I'm trying really hard right now to accept the new calmness and be Ok with it. It's a whole different ball game. I kinda feel like I lost a friend too, but it's a friend I needed to lose and say goodbye to.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sun Jun 15, 2008 1:59 pm

I wonder if we like having the anxiety because it fills up our mind?

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sun Jun 15, 2008 2:12 pm

I think we feel we're missing something because we've gotten so used to it. Even though its anxiety, we know it so well there's a sort of comfort in the familiarity of it. We know how it feels to be anxious and depressed. It reminds me of hiccups. You have them for a while, and when they finally stop, you anticipate the next one and when it doesn't come, you miss it. Strange analogy I know, but its what came to mind. Anxiety and depression has been the ruling factor in our lives. When it goes (as I hope mine continues to do) we'll need to find something else for our minds to keep busy with. But that will be a good thing. I'd rather feel the calmness and peace than the anxiety any day.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Mon Jun 16, 2008 10:12 am

This is a part of recovery that is rarely ever talked about. I agree it takes up so much of our time, that it's weird without it.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Mon Jun 16, 2008 10:57 am

MichaelLove - You're right . It is a part of recovery that is rarely talked about. It takes awhile to adjust to being without that adrenaline/fear thing going on all the time. It's just so different. Better, but different.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Mon Jun 16, 2008 10:59 am

I can hardly believe what I read regarding missing anxiety. I was hoping that you could dig a little deeper here in helping me to understand what exactly it is that is being missed. We do everthing out of motivation so I guess I am asking what is your motivation with wanting/needing anxiety in your life as you know/knew it and now don't have it. Your statement of not knowing what to do with your life - what did you do before? Your able to do things now that you did not do before and you don't like that and would rather feel the anxiety? Is that what you mean?

I suppose if I feel you have a motivation that you would be able to explain a little deeper - thanks for your clarification if so choose. I am just trying to help myself understand others who make statements in this forum that I want to understand better and perhaps I am not understanding truly what you mean. It's all good friend.

Ricky

Carolyn Dickman · Post by **Carolyn Dickman** » Mon Jun 16, 2008 11:27 am

I can't speak for the person who initiated the thread but for some of us who have lived with anxiety and fear for so long it has become part of our identity and how we see ourselves. When it is gone it's like we have to reinvent ourselves because we have been so used to being and feeling a certain way. I am happy that my anxiety has diminished and that most of my fears are gone. It's a big change for some of us, as we have been so used to functioning on a certain level and we now are functioning a whole lot differently. I don't miss the anxiety, but the anxiety took up a lot of the day to day mental energy. Some of us have to learn how to replace this with other things, and things that are positive because our brains were just not used to thinking in that direction.