So I’ve recently started therapy and have been on medication for my anxiety and depression, but I’ve relapsed into bad times so many times it’s hard to stick to anything because it always gets bad again. I get anxious about even talking to my own family and can’t even finish simple tasks. I can’t imagine a life without my mental illnesses but I think I finally do want to actually live instead of isolating myself for any more years, but it’s so hard to do anything. I honestly didn’t think I’d even live this long but here I am. Is it even possible to get better for longer than a week or two?
(Hope you all are doing ok, if not then I hope you’ll do better soon!)
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I understand relapse because for me its like im happy then all the sudden some thing happens or nothing at all and i just get depressed and anxious again and it upsets me that i can’t always be happy like people want me to be. I dont know if you can relate to that because everyone is different but sometimes to get less anxious around family you have to tell them everything that is going on i understand this might be difficult or maybe you already have and it hasn’t changed anything and im sorry about that. Imagining a life with you a mental illness is hard at times especially when you have had it for a while because it comes to be the reason for most of your feeling or decisions, but it shouldnt be. And i am soooo proud that you have now realized you don’t want to isolate your self and want to live. It is always going to be hard to do things which is not what you want to hear but it is true. but i want you to know you will get better and like you said your still here thats good it means your a strong person. And yes it is always possible to feel better form long. But can i ask is there one thing that you can think about or do that will make you feel better for at least a little while or what have you done in the past to make yourself feel better
Thanks for the reply 
And yeah I have some things that make me feel better like listening to music, drawing and honestly just doing anything that needs a lot of attention. Unfortunately I’ve just started to do these things and completely ignore the problems which makes everything worse…
I hope I’ll learn to deal with things in a more healthy way through therapy though. Life is hard and relapsing sucks 
Of course
And ik this sounds like a waste of time but have you ever tried writting things down like how you feel. I hope you get better with therapy but im always here 
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I think I tried that once but it somehow made me feel worse haha. Haven’t really thought about it since, maybe it’s time to try it again and see what happens, thanks!
Your welcome and its kinda inbetween for me too tho but i really hope you feel better soon
From: kaaaatie
life is full of ups and downs. A week or two is actually an amazingly long time in the scheme of things. When you’re “going down”, remember in a bit, there’s the upswing and keep pushing for that. Little steps! You got this! (and keep going with that therapy, awesome step and I’m proud of you!)
From: nevxrmeant
sometimes it can be the case, that we are subconsciously not ready to let go of what we are feeling right now, and thats okay. Every step of progress, is good progress. The steps you are taking are amazing ones, and slowly but surely you will open up and be ready. Love yourself, be healthy and happy <3
From: lobrotv
Starting therapy is a fantastic start! You’re already growing. Asking this quesitons proves growth because you wouldn’t ask it if you couldn’t grow. You absolutely can get better. Growth is exponential and one day you’ll look back and you’ll see how far you’ve come. <3
From: penguinsgorawrx
reach out to someone you trust or want to trust and I think thats the first step and learn to get the most out of the therapy sessions don’t be afraid to ask questions <3
Yes it is possible! I thought for so long I could never get out of these cycles but after spending time with psychiatrists and really starting to work on what helps me. I am to the point that the cycles are now more widely spaced, I am talking matters of months of up times and then a short period of low. With their help I now have coping mechanisms on how to deal with those down times.
The main part that has really helped is regulating my sleep cycle. I started to see that the pattern of my cycles matched my insomnia times. I now have medication to treat that and with a regular sleep cycle it has significantly helped me. I do not know if that will help you but if you relate at all please just gimme a shout <3
Relapse is very hard and frustrating! Unfortunately with mental illness and addiction it is just part of having the condition. This doesn’t mean that you can’t get better and live a happy life it just means it may take longer to get there and it may not be your perfect ideal word. You are so strong for opening up and engaging in treatment like taking meds and therapy. They are all positive things that will 100% pay off. Sometimes these things take time and we have to have compassion for ourselves because this crap is hard to deal with yet we are still fighting! From what you’ve said it sounds like you are doing the best you can and should be very proud of yourself 
One therapist told me that when you have chronic depression or anxiety, you literally rewire your brain. Serotonin and dopamine receptors don’t work like they should, and you only get off on feeling negative emotions. That’s why MDD folks feel numb day to day and lean into the pain when they want to feel something.
Antidepressants and mood stabilizers will prop you up while you recover by stabilizing your brain chemistry, but they won’t cure chronic depression and anxiety all by themselves. It’s going to take time and effort, and unfortunately there are no shortcuts. You’re going to have to practice being calm and kind to yourself, and that’s really hard when your brain’s new default setting is to be anxious. Things that have helped people on here and in the population at large are meditation, journaling, spending even just a little time out in the sun, gratitude journals, healthy diet and exercise, steady daily routines and good sleep hygiene, and doing fun or satisfying activities with a sense of purpose (not just going through the motions). These aren’t just nice things to do, they go a long way to correcting your thought patterns and brain chemistry. If all that sounds like a drag, it’s because none of it is easy to start. It’s like starting physical therapy for a chronic injury–it’s going to take a lot of effort and be really tiring, and it will get frustrating if you don’t see quick results. But stick with it! There will be good days and bad days, and there probably will always be, but if you keep on rehabbing your mind muscle, over time it’ll be easier to be content and stay calm when things go wrong. I can’t say I practiced all the above techniques myself, so it took me years to heal; but what kept me going were the notions that what I was feeling wasn’t normal, that I wasn’t well, and that life could be better than it was.