Like we often talk about at The Depression Project, when you're in a depressive episode, it's really,Â ï»żreallyÂ ï»żcommon to struggle with "depression overwhelm". And, if you can relate, then in order to help you feel understood and that you are not alone, in this blog post, we'd like to share with you a free excerpt from our "Depression Overwhelm" Journal that includes a variety of quotes about what "depression overwhelm" feels like, looks like and sounds like - as told to The Depression Project by members of our community.
Are you ready?
Free excerpt
Quotes About What "Depression Overwhelm" Feels Like
- "Like everything is just too much."
- "Confusion and uncertainty over what to do next â to such an extent that it feels like torture."
- "Itâs mentally and physically exhausting."
- "Sensory overload."
- "It feels like everybody is asking for too much from you."
- "It feels like you have 1,000 web browsers open all at once â and that each of them are frozen."
- "It feels like thereâs a timer somewhere thatâs ticking until I break down."
- "It feels like thereâs a cloud of fog in your brain that never seems to leave."
- "The overwhelm can become so âoverwhelmingâ that it leads to hopelessness, despair and misery."
Quotes About What "Depression Overwhelm" Looks Like
- "A messy house ⊠dirty dishes piled in the sink ⊠lots of unclean clothes."
- "Seeing / thinking about all that has to be done, putting off dealing with it because it feels like too much, and then beating myself up for not doing anything."
- "Having so many things to do but not doing any because my brain canât prioritise them."
- "Being paralysed by even the most simple of tasks ⊠to such an extent that it can be difficult to breathe."
- "Being unable to maintain a single thought, because your mind is constantly darting between all the different things that you have to do."
- "Lying in bed and sleeping a lot because you just canât face anything."
- "Lying in bed and being unable to sleep at night because youâre stressed out thinking about all the things you have to do."
- "Distracting yourself with things that give you some temporary relief â like books, TV, music, etcetera."
- "Getting upset and snapping over little things that wouldnât otherwise bother you because youâre operating so close to âbreaking pointâ."
- "Struggling to connect and be present in the moment because youâre so caught in your head."
- "Binge eating and doing other self-sabotaging things to try to give yourself some pleasure and relief."
- "Trying to get out of your responsibilities because they feel like too much."
- "Acting impulsively to try to reduce your overwhelm â such as by quitting your job, cutting people off, etcetera."
Quotes About What "Depression Overwhelm" Sounds Like
- "I have to do everything RIGHT NOW!"
- "Where do I start?"
- "Itâs all too hard."
- "I am [insert self-criticism here â e.g. âuselessâ, âlazyâ, âhopelessâ, ânot good enoughâ, âworthlessâ, etcetera]"
End of free excerpt
If you can relate to some or all of the above quotes, our friend, then like we've said, please rest assured that you are not alone, and that feeling overwhelmed when you have depression is extremely understandable given how exhausted, unmotivated and numb depression can make you feel.
All our love,
The Depression Project Team.
P.S. In addition to helping you feel as if you're not alone, we created this journal in order to:
- Help you better understand âdepression overwhelmâ;
- Share with you a wide variety of strategies to help you overcome âdepression overwhelmâ â so that you are better able to function, attend to your to-do list and get things done.