Anybody recommend something to numb emotions?

Ive been so **** depressed for so long and nothing seems to work except maybe in the short term. Id just like to have a day where i dont feel so overwhelmed. Today its so bad it feels like im physically in pain.

Can anybody recommend any drugs, herbs legal or otherwise that help numb emotions?



Btw this is not one of those woe is me posts. I dont want pity or anything like that, im genuinely looking for a way to deal with this soul cancer with which i live on a daily basis. It eating away at my sanity and my resolve to even continue. I either feel like a monster or like i dont exist and to say its hard to live that way would be the understatment of the century.

I can only recommend what it is that has worked for me, Tai Chi Chuan & Qigong.

I got along so well with it that I'm now a teacher, but even training it a little can make a difference.

Hi,
I don't have any meds to recommend but I do recommend walking. Log off the forum, put your shoes on, open the door and go for a walk for a least 30 minutes. If it's cold or raining, go anyway, just put on a coat and hat. It won't get rid of any problems you have (meds won't either) but it's a mood booster and will help clear the cobwebs out of your mind, as I like to say.

-Teresa

Numbing emotions doesn't work very well usually but you can try to calm them. Spending time in nature or some place that elevates your spirit, be it a church, a museum or a pet hostel.

SofiasMami said:

Hi,
I don't have any meds to recommend but I do recommend walking. Log off the forum, put your shoes on, open the door and go for a walk for a least 30 minutes. If it's cold or raining, go anyway, just put on a coat and hat. It won't get rid of any problems you have (meds won't either) but it's a mood booster and will help clear the cobwebs out of your mind, as I like to say.

-Teresa

Click to expand...

^ This...totally agree, by far the best way I've discovered to boost mood naturally.

ringwood said:

SofiasMami said:

Hi,
I don't have any meds to recommend but I do recommend walking. Log off the forum, put your shoes on, open the door and go for a walk for a least 30 minutes. If it's cold or raining, go anyway, just put on a coat and hat. It won't get rid of any problems you have (meds won't either) but it's a mood booster and will help clear the cobwebs out of your mind, as I like to say.

-Teresa

Click to expand...

^ This...totally agree, by far the best way I've discovered to boost mood naturally.

Click to expand...

I absolutely concur. By far the best antidepressant I've found for me has been cardio. I say this as someone who used to be on several meds for depression and anxiety. As a nurse, I still do believe that doctor-prescribed meds can be the right choice for many patients. They're not effective for everyone though, as in my case. I'm thankful that I discovered the mood benefits of exercise. I struggled for years with crushing depression.

Just want to say thanks everybody for taking the time to reply. Kinda feel like honeysuckle. I went to the VFW and bought some beer and been drinking a little bit. Life is really hard to deal with on the long term when youre doing that whole solo thing. Im married and it still feels like that, even more so sometimes. Its sunday here, i live in the bible belt so they dont even sell beer here on sundays. Even more humiliating i been in the military twice but dont even have an ID because of more of lifes bullshit, so no military id, long story.... so my wife had to buy the beer, i just sat there quiet and handed them the money when they asked for it.

I walk about two miles a day with my dogs in a deserted field. But lately even that doesnt help. Id just really like a break, it sucks feeling like youre not in control of your own mind and life.

shadetree said:

Just want to say thanks everybody for taking the time to reply. Kinda feel like honeysuckle. I went to the VFW and bought some beer and been drinking a little bit. Life is really hard to deal with on the long term when youre doing that whole solo thing. Im married and it still feels like that, even more so sometimes. Its sunday here, i live in the bible belt so they dont even sell beer here on sundays. Even more humiliating i been in the military twice but dont even have an ID because of more of lifes bullshit, so no military id, long story.... so my wife had to buy the beer, i just sat there quiet and handed them the money when they asked for it.

I walk about two miles a day with my dogs in a deserted field. But lately even that doesnt help. Id just really like a break, it sucks feeling like youre not in control of your own mind and life.

Click to expand...

(hugs) that sounds terrible - especially the beer, I don't support drinking when one is feeling down, because usually it brings even more "down", but knowing that you cannot get it because of the bible belt I think would drive me crazy. Ahah, sorry about suggesting a church earlier, didn't have that kind of churches in mind
Do you have/can you get anyone to talk with you, or better to listen to you? It sounds like you are going through a really rough period, so maybe just venting maybe could help a bit to control what is bothering you?

physical remedies: the dumb aromatherapy seemed to work for me when in massive dosages (think perfumed sauna for hours or days), especially orange, geranium, bergamot, neroli, and ylang ylang

I read that john's wort works pretty ok, and acupuncture worked for me but it was pretty short term; lately I have been experimenting with saffron (yes the spice) and that also was surprisingly effective.

must say that vitamin D brings my mood up too.

Peaches said:

shadetree said:

Just want to say thanks everybody for taking the time to reply. Kinda feel like honeysuckle. I went to the VFW and bought some beer and been drinking a little bit. Life is really hard to deal with on the long term when youre doing that whole solo thing. Im married and it still feels like that, even more so sometimes. Its sunday here, i live in the bible belt so they dont even sell beer here on sundays. Even more humiliating i been in the military twice but dont even have an ID because of more of lifes bullshit, so no military id, long story.... so my wife had to buy the beer, i just sat there quiet and handed them the money when they asked for it.

I walk about two miles a day with my dogs in a deserted field. But lately even that doesnt help. Id just really like a break, it sucks feeling like youre not in control of your own mind and life.

Click to expand...

(hugs) that sounds terrible - especially the beer, I don't support drinking when one is feeling down, because usually it brings even more "down", but knowing that you cannot get it because of the bible belt I think would drive me crazy. Ahah, sorry about suggesting a church earlier, didn't have that kind of churches in mind
Do you have/can you get anyone to talk with you, or better to listen to you? It sounds like you are going through a really rough period, so maybe just venting maybe could help a bit to control what is bothering you?

physical remedies: the dumb aromatherapy seemed to work for me when in massive dosages (think perfumed sauna for hours or days), especially orange, geranium, bergamot, neroli, and ylang ylang

I read that john's wort works pretty ok, and acupuncture worked for me but it was pretty short term; lately I have been experimenting with saffron (yes the spice) and that also was surprisingly effective.

must say that vitamin D brings my mood up too.

Click to expand...

Its okay about suggesting church it was a good suggestion. I do pray and im a christian, but i drink occasionally. I dont think its a sin to drink as long as you dont lose control or get drunk to where youre running naked through parking lots lol. Strangely enough im feelin a little bit better now, i passed out and took a 3 hour nap with my cat and woke up and now im completely sober again, not that i drank that much anyway. Also yeah ure right alcohol is a depressant and its not the best thing but sometimes occasionally it helps me relax, i just was feeling so bad all day today that i didnt know what to do except self medicate.

As far as having somebody to talk to, i mean i can talk to my wife and im actually in therapy right now, but the therapy doesnt help much and im just really frustrated at this stage in my life that im not doing better, dont have friends etc. Im also on meds for depression but they dont work all the time. Right now my only friend in the world pretty much is a person that lives on another continent that weve been emailing back and forth for two years and shes amazing, but ill probably never meet her in real life, so that feeds into the depression sometimes too.

I just want, if i cant have friends in this life to at least have some sort of peace, thats something ive never really known in my entire life.

The problem one has with "losing control" of drinking is that most people with a problem don't realize they've lost control at all. They think they are perfectly fine and there's nothing wrong with their drinking. I'm NOT saying you have a problem, I'm just pointing that out and advising you to be careful with it.

If therapy isn't helping you, you may want to consider finding another therapist (depending on how long you've been going to the one you're at). Not every therapist will be the right fit for every person.

Peace comes with self discovery and hard work. You may not ever be at peace with your life, but you can be content, you can accept the areas of life you can't change and work on what you can.

As for your original question, I've always found that running would help me a lot. But, running was my thing, it's not for everyone. Find something you enjoy and do it, make yourself do it, if you are too down to want to do anything. Find a new hobby, take up bowling or something. Anything to get you out there to meet other people.

I had wished not to feel emotions when I was hurting so much recently. I think I got my wish... and I've felt numbed for quite awhile now. It's not good.. it feels empty and not just your emotions are gone, it affects everything else in your life... and your desires, goals and dreams vanish with the emotions. Anyway, I hope you will feel better soon, shadetree.

I think I've reached the numbness stage after a long, emotional battle with my heart and soul.
On the one hand, it is a relief not to be a babbling, uncontrollable tear shedding fool. At least I can manage to get through the holidays, which is still quite difficult.
Being devoid of emotion / numbness that continues onward will not be good, for that will just make me question why I bother to stick around above ground anymore. What would be the point?

ladyforsaken said:

I had wished not to feel emotions when I was hurting so much recently. I think I got my wish... and I've felt numbed for quite awhile now. It's not good.. it feels empty and not just your emotions are gone, it affects everything else in your life... and your desires, goals and dreams vanish with the emotions. Anyway, I hope you will feel better soon, shadetree.

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Thank you i appreciate it, ive been to that numb stage before myself so i know what you mean, i just wish there was a way to turn it on and off at will i guess so i could take a break. Im sorry to hear youre going through all that as well, I hope things get better for you too. Im feeling a little better today, dont know why yesterday was so bad, thats the hardest thing about all this is it comes and goes at random.

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ABrokenMan said:

I think I've reached the numbness stage after a long, emotional battle with my heart and soul.
On the one hand, it is a relief not to be a babbling, uncontrollable tear shedding fool. At least I can manage to get through the holidays, which is still quite difficult.
Being devoid of emotion / numbness that continues onward will not be good, for that will just make me question why I bother to stick around above ground anymore. What would be the point?

Click to expand...

I hope you get out of that and find value in life again. Like i had said in my other reply ive been there and i know its not fun, my main reason for wanting to return now is without the numbness it really feels like im going crazy sometimes.

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Alma lost her spoon said:

I can only recommend what it is that has worked for me, Tai Chi Chuan & Qigong.

I got along so well with it that I'm now a teacher, but even training it a little can make a difference.

Click to expand...

Ive always wanted to try some form of martial arts, more for the mental thant he physical. I dont know where i could learn Tai Chi around here I live in a very small town. But thank you for the recomendation. Also its great youre a teacher, teachers are amazing people.

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TheRealCallie said:

The problem one has with "losing control" of drinking is that most people with a problem don't realize they've lost control at all. They think they are perfectly fine and there's nothing wrong with their drinking. I'm NOT saying you have a problem, I'm just pointing that out and advising you to be careful with it.

If therapy isn't helping you, you may want to consider finding another therapist (depending on how long you've been going to the one you're at). Not every therapist will be the right fit for every person.

Peace comes with self discovery and hard work. You may not ever be at peace with your life, but you can be content, you can accept the areas of life you can't change and work on what you can.

As for your original question, I've always found that running would help me a lot. But, running was my thing, it's not for everyone. Find something you enjoy and do it, make yourself do it, if you are too down to want to do anything. Find a new hobby, take up bowling or something. Anything to get you out there to meet other people.

Click to expand...

Thanks for the advice, i only drink like maybe once a month, and before this i hadnt had anything even so much as a single beer in about 3 months. But yeah youre right its best to watch that stuff, but luckily its not a problem with me. I get bored with drinking honestly if i do it for long periods of time. As far as the hard work, my main issue is irrational thoughts due to a mental disorder and lack of good therapy to treat it, so a lot of this comes from that. The therapist im seeing is doing her best and she genuinely cares i just think the treatment choice isnt the best. But right now im sticking with her to see how it turns out. As far as getting out to meet people, id love to do that but the APD prevents it, hence the vicious cycle of always being stuck at home alone. But im working on it.

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SofiasMami said:

Hi,
I don't have any meds to recommend but I do recommend walking. Log off the forum, put your shoes on, open the door and go for a walk for a least 30 minutes. If it's cold or raining, go anyway, just put on a coat and hat. It won't get rid of any problems you have (meds won't either) but it's a mood booster and will help clear the cobwebs out of your mind, as I like to say.

-Teresa

Click to expand...

I actually walk 2 miles a day with my dogs, it normally does help quite a bit. Just yesterday was one of those days i guess. The woods is one of the only places i feel at peace, but it normally only lasts while im there.

Numbing you're emotions won't do that much for you, in fact it'll make you worse. I tried to numb my emotions before and it backfired, however doing things around the house will work out for you. Even meditating will help you out in the long run, you'll feel calm after you're done. Try to do it a few times a week. =) I'm sure it'll help you in the long run, it helps with anxiety and from you feeling overwhelmed.

Actually doing things around my house is likely to be a whole lot more productive....you should see the state of this joint

ladyforsaken said:

I had wished not to feel emotions when I was hurting so much recently. I think I got my wish... and I've felt numbed for quite awhile now. It's not good.. it feels empty and not just your emotions are gone, it affects everything else in your life... and your desires, goals and dreams vanish with the emotions. Anyway, I hope you will feel better soon, shadetree.

Click to expand...

(hugs) I hope you feel better soon too LF.

WallflowerGirl83 said:

Numbing you're emotions won't do that much for you, in fact it'll make you worse. I tried to numb my emotions before and it backfired, however doing things around the house will work out for you. Even meditating will help you out in the long run, you'll feel calm after you're done. Try to do it a few times a week. =) I'm sure it'll help you in the long run, it helps with anxiety and from you feeling overwhelmed.

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Never quite been able to get the hang of meditation, my form of meditation usually comes in the form of writing, its hard to block out thoughts unless it just happens randomly. Its a good suggestion but i dont think itll work for me unfortunately. I can clear my mind for small periods of time, but most of the time its like a river, sometimes a small stream, sometimes a raging flood threatening to break the dam and destroy the little village in my head i live in lol.

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sothatwasmylife said:

Actually doing things around my house is likely to be a whole lot more productive....you should see the state of this joint

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Yeah i know what you mean man, we cant seem to keep this place straight either. Sometimes i think if we had insurance id just drop a match and call it a day lol.

shadetree said:

ladyforsaken said:

I had wished not to feel emotions when I was hurting so much recently. I think I got my wish... and I've felt numbed for quite awhile now. It's not good.. it feels empty and not just your emotions are gone, it affects everything else in your life... and your desires, goals and dreams vanish with the emotions. Anyway, I hope you will feel better soon, shadetree.

Click to expand...

Thank you i appreciate it, ive been to that numb stage before myself so i know what you mean, i just wish there was a way to turn it on and off at will i guess so i could take a break. Im sorry to hear youre going through all that as well, I hope things get better for you too. Im feeling a little better today, dont know why yesterday was so bad, thats the hardest thing about all this is it comes and goes at random.

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Thank you for your kind words, shadetree. Glad you're feeling better already.

SophiaGrace said:

ladyforsaken said:

I had wished not to feel emotions when I was hurting so much recently. I think I got my wish... and I've felt numbed for quite awhile now. It's not good.. it feels empty and not just your emotions are gone, it affects everything else in your life... and your desires, goals and dreams vanish with the emotions. Anyway, I hope you will feel better soon, shadetree.

Click to expand...

(hugs) I hope you feel better soon too LF.

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Thank you *hugs*
Hope you're doing okay there.

Anti-depressants... Specifically SSRIs. Honestly, though. They just make you a dull zombie. I'd go for Wellbutrin, an NDRI, instead... Your reaction to it might be negative, though. Which means you might be super agitated all the time and feel physically uncomfortable. If your reaction is positive you will feel energetic and happy. Really I'm not a doctor, this is just my experience. Go see a phyciatrist...

Personally... I use Lamictal as a mood stabilizer, caffeine/healthy foods for energy, and Noopept (a nootropic supplement) for focus. I need some L-Theanine and Choline to even out the Noopept though. I don't rely on medication fully. I live healthily too... but meds give me the focus and energy I need to do so.

I'm not sure I'd recommend numbing emotions.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/201...r-brain-on-psilocybin-might-be-less-depressed

Psilocybin could possibly be beneficial to you. However the negatives are that it is illegal abd tgat results may vary greatly depending on factors within one's own psyche and that of the environment and setting one takes it in. If one were so inclined, I would suggest they do a lot of research, read up on other peoples experiences, and plan accordingly. Such an experience is not for everyone. However, the research does reflect what has been known for a long time by the learned few. I would name a few other compounds, however, in my personal opinion, psilocybin is relatively safe, comparatively to synthetics available. However, the wise know, any such mental journy commands respect and demands responsibility, in the form of proper knowledge, preperation, and ritual.

As for me, such is not an option.

I have a nice list of things I can fall back on, to try and get myself through the rough patches. Exercise, eating healthy, getting outside, and the arts. I find there is a lot to be found in creating something, even if it is trivial. There are also the vitamins, teas, herbs, auromas, and various physical disciplines, of which some have suggested.

And though, I have listed an ancient sacred sacrament practiced by some ancient tribes (and still to this day), there are many Native American tribes, that did not have ready access to psychedelics, however, they still managed their own rituals that would lead to discoveries of the self. Often such rituals included intense fasting, solitude, extreme physical duress, basically, shaking things up, big time.

With that being said, I wonder if it would not be beneficial to take a sort of solitary journy somewhere, out in nature, and just spend a few days, looking for, 'something', or waiting for, 'something', to come to you. Perhaps plan a trip, bring a camper, fast, take only neccessary water. I wouldn't recommend such a thing to some one who is taking prescribed psychatric meds, or to some one in poor physical health, however if neither is the case, perhaps a sort of, self concocted, 'vision quest', might bring some insight...

That's my 2 cents. Good luck to you. There is much beauty in the world, though it often eludes me, I still manage to find it here and there. May you find some, or may it find you.