Agave syrup is great substitute for sugar.

Low GI stabilaze your blood sugar and it's sweet.

For chochoholics I recommend cacao nibs.


Regards
Uli

B.Be; it's sounds to me like you ARE on the right track....cravings are hard to deal with, (i divorced Ben & Jerry when I stopped taking Zoloft a few years back, before that we were together every night).

I read bits of Dr. Oz's new book (he was on Oprah yesterday)...when a craving hits, you want to CRUNCH....baby carrots, granny smith apple slices, I sometimes use this slightly sweet cereal with a high fiber content..(little squares, kind of tastes like oatmeal cookies...the name escapes me)....try freezing the grapes too.

if you're not employed right now, you probably don't have health care that would pay for therapy and it's expensive. you can self-motivate with the people here, it's been a tremendous support net for me in the past.

one step at a time leads you closer, you can do it.

BlessedBe: Everyone here has given fantastic advice already, but I thought I'd throw in some of my own suggestions. We're sorta in the same boat- about the same age and weight, and I've been dealing with pretty serious panic attacks for the last couple years. When I first started having them I was tempted to just give up. I ended up going to the ER (uninsured... not fun, and insanely expensive) because I thought I was having a heart attack. When I found out I wasn't, I went home, crawled into bed, and stayed there for about a week. Nearly cost me my job.

I'm not going to say I'm 100% better now. I still have panic attacks but I've learned what works for me (small doses of xanax at the onset of an attack) and what doesn't (daily meds). There are a billion things in my life that aren't going the way I want them to. When I fix those billion things, a billion more will pop up. The ONLY THING you can do is decide what you want out of life and then go get it.

I know it's hard to find a job when you're dealing with depression, but you MUST try to do it. It might not be a fantastic job, and it might not be one you plan on staying in for several years, but you've got to find something to do with your days that will remind you that you have valuable skills. Holidays are coming- all manner of retail places are hiring. Looking back on my initial trouble with the panic attacks, I'm so lucky that I was able to keep my job. There's no telling how awful things would have been if I had been allowed to not leave the house.

So get out of the house! Go to the park, go for a walk. Not only will you feel better, you might even meet some people. Not having many friends is not a problem unless you feel like it's a problem (and the fact that you said "only one friend" certainly makes it sound like you're not happy with it).

Finally... and apologies for the length of this... alcohol and drugs and food and sex aren't the only addictive behaviors. Spending 12 hours a day on the computer is a sign that you have a very serious addiction. You've got to set some boundaries for yourself- that's 12 hours out of the day you could spend improving your life. Good luck!

BlessedBe - one thing you might check into regarding therapy is your local college, if there is one, as they usually have a clinic and it's usually free or very inexpensive. If there is no local college or something similar, try calling a local women's shelter or even the mental health unit at your local hospital and ask them for some advice about therapy - there are lots of places to get help. One of the biggest obstacles is just getting over your own fear of getting help; once I got over that and realized I was depressed I found it much easier to find help.

Just a thought.

BlessedBe -
I'm no doctor & can't give you medical advice, but what you're experiencing sounds so much like myself - altho I'm far from 25yo, LOL. I've tried many different anti-depressant meds & some of them worked but the side effects were too much to deal with & some of them didn't work at all & some of them made my depression worse. You have to work closely with your doctor to find out the right med for you. It doesn't sound like Effexor is the right med.

Once you get 'your head straight' - then you can work on the body. Believe me - no matter what you decide to do or try to do, concerning diet & exercise, it simply will not matter until you can think clearly & positively.

Good luck - and please keep coming here. The support here is absolutely amazing & can literally make all the difference in the world.

Try this website - it has a lot of very useful and informative facts about depression.

MedicineNet.com

go to medical terms, and click on depression. From there you read about depression, the medicines used to treat depression, and what each one does & possible side effects.

Does anyone know about agave syrup? I have never seen it here in NZ. Just wondering what it tastes like etc

Ditto the cacao nibs

Any info appreciated as I love sugary stuff too

Sweetpea:

Agave syrup is avaiable in health natural grocers as cacao nibs should be too.

Otherwise on ebay you could find it for sure.


Good luck
Uli

Agave syrup is available on Amazon. (you can use the link at the top of the page for Amazon...) Make sure you get the 100% BLUE agave, or the GI is not that low. It is suitable for diabetics, and tastes like honey. I use it for cooking, sweetening tea, etc.

I'm not a doctor, but I do have (or did have) depression. It definitely sounds to me like you're still depressed. I recommend talk therapy if you can afford it as well as experimenting with different drugs and dosages.

I highly recommend the book Feeling Good, by David Burns. It really helped me with my depression.

My doctor put me on Cymbalta. I hope it works, though I've read that the withdrawl symptons from it are insanely nasty.

As for other things... Well, things haven't improved much around here. I'm still trying to find a job, and my parents aren't helping any. Today worse than others cause it's that time of the month again. You ladies all know how that is. I just get crap all day long about it. I don't know if they even realize how their words make me feel. So many times I just want to go grab a knife... But I never would. I think it, but I could never do it. Sorry, I know this isn't a psychological forum, so I'll shut up now. ^_^

On another note, my mom ordered this urban folding trampoline thing that comes with workout videos. We're going to try it, since it has support bars. Might be fun.

What do they say? In real quotes ... not what you think they mean.

My mom is all like "Fine, just sit on your *** all day." And when I told her this morning when I woke up that I wasn't feeling well, period plus sinus headache =very bad, she's like "I don't care. You have to get a job." I know she's just trying to help, but her words make me feel really bad. I've told her that, but she just keeps doing it. I don't know what else to do to make her see that her way of wording isn't only not helping, it's making my depression worse.

It's very hard to get people to change. Chances are your mother has had the same habits for a long time. Maybe in this case you need to switch perception backwards.
Ya know when I asked ... not what you think they meant? How about if you take it upon yourself to believe that your Mom really meant "You know I want the best for you. I'm sorry you don't feel well but life goes on. Take some ibuprofen and tea. You'll feel better soon and can go job hunting today."

It's a bugger of a struggle getting others to change. You can really only have any authority over your own mind.

I know what you mean. I just wish she'd use more of a positive approach than a negative one. Catch more flies with honey, right? That and I wish my sinuses weren't attuned to the weather. My head acts like a friggen' barometer half the time.

My Mom is in her 70's and was raised in a family who believed that if you complimented a child they'd get a fat head and stop trying. We're never going to change her!
I'm sure she thinks that if she comes here and picks at my housekeeping enough, I'll get better at it. All I've gotten better at is having her here less. Funny and sad too.