Lack of Motivation - A major problem for me

One of my major problems/symptoms is lack of motivation. I really have to force myself to do things - go to the store, take the trash out, go visit my brother even brush my teeth or take a shower! I end up doings like taking care of my hygiene but man everything is a chore! I really have to force myself with so many different things - I cannot blame it all on depression because sometimes I am not feeling down and still get this way! Anybody else feel like they really have to push themselves to accomplish somethings? Even simple small things?

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yes - I am sleeping in bed with a pile of trash and dirty dishes covered with food simply because I have no desire to do anything about it

I mean I have a desire - but I cannot connect that with the part of me that actually does something

Iā€™ve been so agitated and irritable
and I havenā€™t cleaned at all in 3 wks

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Dear Mr. Wave

Rob, Iā€™m sorry your having to fight so hard. Considering all the med changes and the stress of helping your Mom, I think youā€™re doing really well if you can still fight to get all this done. I wish I had an idea to make it easier for you.

I hope you donā€™t mind me asking; but do you feel your lack of motivation might be due to exhaustion and stress, or med side effect?

Do you feel more energized when you are relaxed?

Thank you for letting me post

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Motivation is definitely a huge problem for me. Like the crazyfrog on post #2 said, it like thereā€™s a connection problem between the desire to do something and actually doing it. Iā€™ve even noticed that it has nothing to do with laziness, example: I canā€™t force myself to get up and take the trash out if I wanted to, but I can get up and run around in circles randomly until exhaustion if I wanted to (I donā€™t though because that sounds like a silly thing to do).

Itā€™s like no matter what decision I come to on whether Iā€™m going to do something, my subconscious can override my decision. I used to think that those inactions were actually being controlled by some part of my mind that can predict the future; that it was only allowing me to do thing Iā€™m ā€˜supposed toā€™ do according to my destiny. I have other theories now, but I shall refrain from discussing them.

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I read an article that said you donā€™t get motivation to do things first.You do things first and this will build motivation.You do things no matter how small they seem and as many as you can and it will cause your motivation to do other things to rise.

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Lack of drive and motivation is also a great problem for me. I try to break down my to-do list into the days of the week and that way I get some stuff done. Standing up in the mornings to take a shower and brush my teeth remains a challenge for me. Sometimes I even go hungry because I cannot find the motivation to fetch or make food for me. Washing the dishes is also a difficult task

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Itā€™s well said and I agree,I do these step oftenā€¦but I remember when my mood was very low,itā€™s almost impossible to do things,thatā€™s just me

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My motivation is terrible too. I do a THC test and psychoeducation for an hour every friday, thats literally all I really do each week, other than chain smoke tobacco

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wow, such a good idea youā€™ve provided. Sometimes I am in low motivation and donā€™t feel like a move to do things. I think I will try to do some small things first and then get the motivation to do the big things.

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Hey @kidsister I think for me it a combination of 4 things - 1. a low level of constant chronic depression - intermingled with deeper more debilitating depressions - 2. stress - the more I am stressed the worst off I am with motivation ( I have been more stressed lately) - 3. the medications I take - they are sedating to say the least 4. Avolition - a Negative symptom of schizophrenia (lack of drive and motivation) - I think it is a combination of all 4 factors for me
Yes, I am more motivated when I am relaxed, and I have not been so relaxed lately - just upped my Klonopin dose, I am waiting for it to take effect

thanks nick, I think I will do exactly thatā€¦I rinse the dishes so they donā€™t stink in the sink, but itā€™s time to do themā€¦has been for several daysā€¦Iā€™m off to do the dishes !!

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Thatā€™s exactly how it is for me. I need to start small and get on a roll. When I look back at that list of ā€œfinishedā€ I feel much better and have a little more motivation to try and do that one last thing.

@Wave- Itā€™s hard getting all that done during a hit of depression. Congratulations on keeping up the fight.

Iā€™m glad your working around it the best you can. Itā€™s hard to keep moving during a med change. Iā€™m wishing you the best, and hope you find that extra strength to keep going.

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Is your depression becoming more constant for longer time now?

I also have a terrible lack of motivation. I havenā€™t cleaned house as much as I should have, and I grumble every time my husband wants me to take him out. I just want to stay in bed all day and read and eat.

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Iā€™m sort of at this odd point where if I do that too much, my head circus will amp up and then Iā€™m stuck. Too still for too long and no other stimuli and Iā€™m right back in the head circus because itā€™s the only thing I have to focus on.

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Believe it or not my depression has improved some, thanks to the Lamictal. It still does not mean I am depression free - it is just that it has improved some, I have never been a happy go lucky type person. A constant chronic low level type depression called Dysthymia exists within me - I also get from time to time deep ocean bottom type depressions.
If I was not on this medicine - God knows where my depressions would take me - thank God for meds - right?

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i generally go in fits and spurts. iā€™ll do nothing except washing, drying and load the dishwasher for days and then suddenly iā€™m a cleaning dervish and will stay up all night cleaning my house. just wish it was more often is all.

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right now i cannot even comprehend how to start small.

I have some chicken bones from chicken I made 2 weeks ago on a cookie sheet in my dining area - I really want to th row those out at least - but like I just donā€™t do it

I tell myself I can put them in one of the empty popsicle boxes and take them out when I go out for apt or to water aerobics, I havenā€™t managed to do that yetā€¦

iā€™m so afraid someone from my family is going to want to come over, if they see my apartment they will do nothing but scream at me

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Its sometimes hard to bring myself to do things like clean or take the dog out. But today I did dishes with out being told to. I didnā€™t make the bed though. My mood has gotten better since the psychiatrist raised the dose of invega but wants to put me on injections of invega once a month.

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I have the same problem. The thing that helps me the most is to write down what I want to do on the calendar. The more time I have before I have to do things the better. Then I can get ready to do stuff. If I have to do dishes I just tell myself okay, I am going to do the dishes, but I donā€™t have to do it this second. I will take a break for an hour and then do it. I have to negotiate with myself. It makes things way easier. Also getting lots of sleep really helps.