I really do not feel like doing much. I do not have the motivation to go anywhere, I just relax and take it easy when my moods are stable. I do not think it is because of depression, I am not depressed every minute. Are their meds for this? This is getting a bit too much - lounging about, not feeling like stirring the waters - comfortably numb
Hey @Wave, I have suffered from this for years. Like a puddle of muck. Is Provigil/Nuvigil an option? Iām gonna guess not, but just thought Iād throw it out there.
I finally forced myself to go for a small ride around town - It seems like I have to really push myself these days - Provigil would probably send me into a manic frenzy but I appreciate your support @alien99 - thanks
What about Straterra? Contrary to popular belief, it is a stimulating antidepressant.
The problem with my times of no motivation is that it doesnāt register in my head as a problem. Itās like Iām accepting it without realizing the damage that Iām doing to my life and sometimes friendships. The only thing I can relate it to is the scared feeling Iād get when staying over at a friendās house as a kid (or other childhood fears and reservations). I have to learn how to put up with the fear and put it aside. Itās like how I used to get up and sing in front of my church. I had to force myself to do it.
I guess itās like my professor said about acting, āno one has died from it.ā
It might help to develop some mantra.
I cannot take anything stimulating - It usually worsens my anxiety - causing mania. I guess I am going to have to just accept it - I am going to have to push myself and try to do things regardless of how unmotivated I feel, it really is frustrating
I hear you @Wave. My apartment is a disaster, and I have no gumption to clean it up. I have avolition big time, and my wife yells at me for it, making me want to do even less - know what I mean?
Yeah i do @alien99 My bedroom is a huge mess and I do not have the drive to do a thing about it - Avolition is a terrible thing to have, lately it is unbearable
What you are describing is the negative symptoms of schizophrenia. They are a black dog that hurts most sz.'s.
Abilify was one medication that helped me with that, but I wonder about the need for designer drugs to help with motivation. I think the only thing for us to do is muddle through. Take it easy.
I know exactly how you feel. My mom gets so frustrated with me because I always put off doing chores. If I think it is bad now, it was really bad when they lowered the Seroquel. Apparently that helps with negative symptoms. It doesnāt help all the way but with the dose Iām on now itās tolerable. I actually swept and moped the kitchen floor and cleaned the cat boxes yesterday. When my meds are good things arenāt so hard. Ask your doctor about the Seroquel, it also helps with moods.
I loved Seroquel, but had to get off of it beacause of thyroid issues and very high blood glucose results - but it was a good med for me
@SunGirl and @Wave, I had a spectacular experience (med-wise) on Seroquel, but I gained 25 pounds in one week! Doc took me off of it.
When I took seroquel it knocked me on my ass for 2 weeks before I chose to stop taking it. It was like one 14 day long daze/hibernation. Also gained 25 lbs in that time too. Canāt say it helped motivation at all since I was asleep most of the time.
I have really bad avolition too. I try to fight it with a little caffeine (100mg from an energy drink) and do small things I donāt normally do like clean the AC filter, dust the ceiling fans, or anything technological on my computers Iāve been putting off (as simple as updates or sorting files into folders). Things quick enough that I can just randomly walk over, do it, and done.
I have a nurse who comes to my house once every week or every other week to give me my Respirdal shots. I tell her that I have absolutely no motivation to wash my dishes, clean my body, my mouth, my house, my clothes, or even change my clothes. I sleep in my clothes and wear the same clothes for days, sometimes weeks. Lately, I have lost my best friend in the world, and now I have only one remaining friend and I use every excuse in the book not to socialize with her, preferring to remain alone in my home. My Dr.s and my nurses think I am doing wonderful because I compose and record classical music, and I do yoga on occasion. Although the paranoia that plagued me for years is much better than before, I still experience low, mumbling voices every day, like a t.v. on in the next room. These voices do not bother me in the least. God talks to me interactively every day, several times a day, and I can talk to Him whenever I want to. I donāt know if this is schizophrenic illusions or if it is really God. I tend to think it is really God. Godās communication is usually always kind and helpful.
I would like to hear from someone if they have experiences like I do, first of all. Secondly, if people think I am doing poorly, or on the contrary, wonderfully, as my caregivers believe. Thank you.
Thatās always baffled me to whether it is considered āvoicesā or not. I get that same experience off and on and never really considered it to be āvoicesā. You canāt make out whatās being said and it always sounds like a male host on a talk show talking. I thought I just grew up with there always being TV noise in the background from my parents watching talkshows (usually Jerry Springer) that it has become something my mind expects to hear, so I hear it.
@Wave Seroquel has a lot of harsh side effects, but Iāve learned from the two times we decreased it that it does a lot. I donāt think Iāll ever be able to go off of it.
@anon40540444 It made me gain a ton of weight. Itās my fault too because I stopped watching what I was eating and stopped exercising. Since decreasing it my appetite has gone down a lot and Iāve lost weight. At a lower dose than I was on before it doesnāt have that side effect and still works at helping with my motivation. Maybe you could try a lower dose since you had such good results.
@Apokalypz How were they increasing the dose? Ideally you should start at a small dose until your body gets used to it then raise it. It should be done very slowly. It does pack a punch though. When your body gets used to it you donāt feel sedated anymore. Even in the beginning I would take it at night and by the time I woke up I would feel fine. Maybe youāre just sensitive to it.
@mylifeiswonderful68 Are you depressed? It could be that or symptoms of sz, but it doesnāt sound like you are doing well. Your nurse must be blind not to see that. The fact that you even have a nurse coming to your house says something. People who can function go to their doctorās office. And the avolition, withdrawal, and auditory hallucinations are not good signs. Hearing mumbling is an auditory hallucination because other people donāt hear that as part of their everyday activities. Positive symptoms are ones that are added on to a personās experience, just as with negative something that should be there is absent. I would talk to your doctor. With the right meds everything changes. I used to think I was lazy until I got the right dose of seroquel. Now it is so much easier then before. Iām still trudging uphill but now I am not pushing a boulder. Good luck, youāll be all right.
@SunGirl, I was only on 200 mg and I ate the house. Never again. Iām still losing the weight it put on me. Weak antipsychotic to boot.
I do this. Previous to this i went the other way round and would spend my time in my pjs,hardly ever getting dressed. I call what i experience āaimlessly driftingā. I canāt think of long term plans and goals. Ambition and drive are words that donāt exist in my personal dictionary.
i am the same. avolition is a bitch that kicks and kicks hard. i hate my life at the moment but iām waiting for the lower dose of haldol to kick in so i can get back to at least cleaning my house and taking the dogs to the woods every day. right now, all i do is lay on my bed, online, read, drink coffee and smoke and itās doing my nut in. there r so many things iād like to do but i just donāt have the motivation for them. i hate it soooo much. i wish i was normal
In my case it could be the meds causing Avolition? or my baseline mood is mild depression? and then I will dive into deeper depressive states from time to time? It is very frustrating to say the least. Pinpointing the reasons for me basically being a lump on a log could help with finding the correct treatment for it