
Ask HN: People with depression, have your depression increased lately (Covid)? - tuyguntn
Since I started working at home I feel like my depression level is coming back to higher points, I am worried if I am doing something wrong or quarantine is affecting everyone in similar ways?
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burkean
In the first few weeks of working from home, my depression definitely got
significantly worse. I'm pretty sure that, perversely, I enjoy my job because
of the high levels of stress and anxiety (teaching) that normally distract
from deeper-seated unhappiness. By removing all the distracting stimulus from
my day-to-day, my mental health fell off a cliff fast.

In recent weeks I've mellowed out into a new normal. Have you heard about the
idea of the hedonic treadmill? It's the idea that being happy is a temporary
response to a positive change in your life and eventually your emotional state
returns to normal, even if your life continues being great. I'm beginning to
think it works the other way too: I've returned to my not-so-great emotional
baseline, even though my quality of life is objectively worse.

I'm sure others will chime in here with what strategies have worked well for
them but I thought I would add this observation because it surprised me and is
perhaps counter intuitive. All the best getting through this.

~~~
throwaway888abc
Default is happy. The rest we learned on the way.

[https://samharris.org/podcast/](https://samharris.org/podcast/)

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTrrRoBZSpg](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTrrRoBZSpg)

P.S. Obviously get out and travel doesn't work well those days... There must
be better days soon!

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gitgud
Yes working from home is wearing me down too. Reasons:

\- Video conferencing is boring and detached

\- Constant bad news being advertised in all forms of media

\- The terms "social distancing" and "self isolation" are depressing

\- Weather is miserable

What helps me is; good food, exercise, cuddling pets and family.

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662587649495439
Yes. I am feeling lonely and depression is causing me more daily distress than
pre-COVID19. I moved to a new city three years ago but have struggled to make
any meaningful friendships. Without the small talk and board game nights from
my workplace, loneliness consumes a lot of my mental space in these days.

Edit: In fact, this is my first HN comment. As a long-time lurker I thought
maybe participating might alleviate some of these negative feelings.

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s1t5
First few weeks were an improvement - no commute, lucky enough to still have a
job, no pressure to meet people, plenty of time to chill out, read, exercise
etc. Then it starts to wear off - the days get way too repetitive, boredom
increases, motivation to do anything at all disappears and you realise that
being forced into minor social interactions is pretty good for you.

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medialucky20
Yes it affected first few weeks. I was struggling to get a proper schedule.
Also there was no proper desk setup. Infact I took 3days off to feel better
and spend some me time.

Now I am performing better and feeling better too. I have proper schedule of
day. I use my commute time as metime to meditate or read something uplift my
mood. Thanks to good weather too

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brainfog
I'm in the same boat. I was already fraying at the edges before this all
started, but this past month has been brutal.

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moxd
It was until I realized I actually enjoy my current life a lot better:

\- no commute, I haven't used an alarm clock in months

\- I don't have to deal with stupid office chit chat

\- I spend a lot of time with my wife

\- I do yoga

\- I've been studying a lot more

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Red_Leaves_Flyy
Mines gotten a fair bit better. I'm spending a lot more quality time with my
s/o, and work has gotten a lot less stressful. I'd love it if my city stayed
this quiet.

