Depression

Post Reply New Topic

Ok. I have posted a few threads here asking questions, and now I want to know, is it normal for people with AS to cycle through depression and high confidence? I read some where it was a trait of AS and I was curious if that was true. My aspie boyfriend does go through that. He's happy, he's sad. He's up, he's down. He feels he can take on the world, and then he feels lower than an worm. A week ago he was to the point he wanted to cry, and then later he was happy he got accepted into college. Yesterday he told me he felt pathetic. And when he emailed me around midnight, he seemed so much better.

Sounds like me. Sometimes, I'm almost on a high, then I can get quite weepy. It's not like with my bipolar aunt, who would go into a mania or depression for weeks or months on end. I can go from one to the other within an hour or so. And it's nowhere near as extreme as my aunt either. But, it's also very possible for me to be feeling really down about something and no-one suspects anything is wrong, because I've decided that I'm going to put on my 'cheerful face'. Just putting on a cheerful face can be enough to pep me up again too.

I do. Sort of. Mostly low self-esteem with brief flashes of confidence. Feels more like manic-depressive disorder/bipolar disorder in your case though. Which, according to wikipedia, people with AS are more likely to have.

If this is the case I'm afraid there's no easy solution.

Yes, that is common with me, more good than bad recently though.

I don't I am depressed most of the time.......but sometimes I feel numb or on really good days maybe mildly content. So yeah I am not sure if that's normal for AS specifically, but it would be normal for Bi-polar Depression and I am sure people with AS can have that disorder.

I have depression, and suffered through it for years before I went on an anti-convulsant that happens to have an anti-depressant side-effect. Now I have periods of simple low confidence interspersed with occasional highs and all-out hypomania. But I doubt that's at all what you're getting at...

I know his mom has manic depression, and she was just recently diagnosed with MS. Simple things can make him feel better when he's depressed, like a change of scenery, and sometimes talking to people who love him.

That sounds like me, but I think I have some strong Bipolar traits.

Don't know if it's normal, or if it counts as a cycle, but that describes me: supremely confident and supremely depressed, but usually at the same time. About different things. I know I can achieve what I want, so I am highly confident. But I also know that it means I will always struggle to fit in, struggle to pay my way, disappoint people around me (because they want very different things), and always be alone. High confidence and deep depression can go together.

Love your avatar by the way.

Thanks. Thank you everyone for answering. I'm glad I have some place to go to ask these types of questions.

I'm currently suffering from major depression that stemmed from all places, a anime convention. I will not discuss the details but I will tell you that not having a social network, getting useless stock advice, and not having an opportunistic to get out of this rut without making it worse will make living a lot worse.

Depression, yes. High confidence, no. At least not for me. I think I was born depressed. I've never really felt happiness before and it's an alien concept.

sounds like some bit of an emotional dysregulation problem. I was a lot like the way you describe in my late teens and early 20's. It's been ten years and it's evened out more. I've had bipolar type symptoms in the past, but I've been able to manage by just working with the way I'm feeling and getting to know how much I can and can't handle. I don't think I'm bipolar though but I've had severe episodes of depression a few times. It can be exhausting and depressing managing AS symptoms.
On the outside it did appear very unstable but it was pretty easy to explain, looking back now. I'd force myself to do too many things because I wanted to have fun and handle more.
So, for example, I'll feel happy because I'm finally back in college. I'm taking more classes this semester, which means I'm taking on more responsibility and I feel good about myself for it. It's a boost for my self-esteem and my confidence goes up! Then, later in the day I'll start working on my homework and find I'm having trouble with an area of my subject and then realize I also have to read about the same amount for my other classes. I start panicking, worried about having trouble with the other subject. 'What if I can't handle it?!' I overwhelm myself and start beating myself up over it, making me feel like I've already failed. By the time I go through all that, I'm exhausted and am definitely not too happy anymore. Just feeling, pretty disappointed with myself.
It's not a chemical imbalance but a perfectly logical explanation for the experience I go through when I try to do too much. On the outside, it appears unstable to others, but if one pays closer attention to what's happening-- it makes sense.

@ leozelig
"So, for example, I'll feel happy because I'm finally back in college. I'm taking more classes this semester, which means I'm taking on more responsibility and I feel good about myself for it. It's a boost for my self-esteem and my confidence goes up! Then, later in the day I'll start working on my homework and find I'm having trouble with an area of my subject and then realize I also have to read about the same amount for my other classes. I start panicking, worried about having trouble with the other subject. 'What if I can't handle it?!' I overwhelm myself and start beating myself up over it, making me feel like I've already failed. By the time I go through all that, I'm exhausted and am definitely not too happy anymore. Just feeling, pretty disappointed with myself."

This is exactly what happened to him. He had a difficult time understand some algebra and he began to panic. He felt that he couldn't do it. That was yesterday. Today he is confident again.

well said! -- this is me as well

It's all oversensitivity.