depressed versus emotionally exhausted-How to describe to NT

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How do you explain the difference, even to yourself? I know the difference in how I feel but am not sure how to put words to it.

Are there medicines that might help? I had a really bad reaction to an anti-depressant but my doctor does listen to me if I ask about other types. So if anyone has experience with other medicines, please let me know.

Are there medicines that make people who cry easily (my type of meltdown) cry less often and less easily?

Hi Uhura,
Im right with you on this one, unfortunately I don't have any magical answers for you. I cry easily when overwhelmed and out of headspace as I call it. I call it being out of headspace when I am overwhelmed by too much buisy happenings around me, and no time to myself to just chill and think alone. Is this when you get upset? when you have been overly involved, or emotionaly buisy?

Strattera. Your actual Prozac and such kept making me extremely tired.

That's a difficult one but people on the spectrum are more prone to emotional exhaustion because they can't identify, process or discern certain emotions as well as other people can, this leads to a person to being in a state of confusion which leads to them over analyzing and over thinking a certain thought or event that has occurred, this leads to emotional exhaustion. The ability to fixate on certain situations and emotions doesn't help either which is something people on the spectrum are prone to do.

Depression, on the other hand, that's even more difficult to explain but I think it's to do with having a negative thought process and negative core beliefs of yourself, for instance, reliving or reaffirming a failure or event in your past that caused you trauma, rejection, pain, loss or hurt.

I could say I was suffering from emotional exhaustion for a few weeks, up until about a week ago. I wasn't depressed, more angry and frustrated and thinking too much and too deeply about certain issues, not crying, except for when I had an outburst at someone. I never took any medication for it (I've never taken any anti-depresants). However, I think my situation wasn't helped by the fact that my diet wasn't the best - eating the same foods for breakfast and lunch every day and not drinking enough. Time has healed me.

I agree with that but also add that even when they are difficult to label, I am very aware of when the emotion changes. I have managed to label emotions and recognize them for what they are, it is just that when it changes even in the slightest way, by degree or to a different emotion, I am over aware of it.

<< Edited by member of moderating team, to show first paragraph is a quote from Wolfheart's post >>

They are actually very much the same, to me. Lots of people think of "depressed" as meaning "sad", but that's not the experience I've had about it. Many people when they have depression do have more sad feelings; but for me, depression expresses itself more as a lack of motivation, a bone-weary tiredness that stops me from thinking and planning and doing useful things. My body feels heavy--not because I'm physically tired, but because it feels like it just takes so much work to move. Does that sound like what you are referring to when you say "emotionally exhausted"? If it does, maybe what you are describing is the sort of depression that comes out as tiredness and lack of motivation, maybe even lack of emotion, rather than the intense sadness some people think of when they say "depression".

Yes, antidepressants can be useful. I had to try quite a few before I found one that worked for me, and unfortunately everyone is different. An antidepressant can't make you happy, though; it can only make it a little easier to recover from the depression. What you'll feel, if it works, is that it gets just a little easier to think, a little easier to get yourself out of bed and out in the sunshine, a little easier to care about showering or cleaning your room. That sort of thing. It's a subtle effect, but it can be very helpful during recovery, especially if you are also seeing a therapist to teach you to combat the unrealistically negative interpretation of the world that often comes with depression.

Again, yes. Antidepressants have been known to help some people with that because they help with anxiety. Some people take neuroleptics (also known as major tranquilizers or antipsychotics) like Risperdal, but these are often a last resort because they have problematic side effects much of the time, and are known to cause permanent movement disorders occasionally. Some people are better on ADHD medication, if they have ASD/ADHD, because ADHD meds help you with planning and organization so that you can get a better grip on the future, think more carefully about things, and not be so thrown off guard when things go off-kilter. There are also mood-stabilizers, which are used to help with epilepsy, bipolar disorder, and borderline personality, which can help if you have mood swings.

It's really down to the psychiatrist's opinion here. I'm not a doctor and I don't know what a doctor would think about your case. Maybe he would think you don't need any medications at all; maybe he would try medication. All medication has side effects, and none are magic cures. The best medication simply makes it easier for you to handle your own problems, both by learning on your own and by learning from a counselor or from each other in a support group. A good doctor should listen to your requirements about medication--for example, I always insist that I do not want anything with a sedative effect, because I know that makes me tired and makes it much harder for me to think clearly. He should inform you about the alternatives and get your input. He should be aware of the drawbacks and benefits of any possible medication. And he should have a good understanding of non-medical treatment for your problems; for example, perhaps relaxation training would help, or a psychiatric service dog, or a change in your environment to remove stressors. A good doctor treats you with respect and listens to what you say; and if you have trouble communicating with him, he works hard to make sure he can understand you and that you can get your ideas across. If your doctor doesn't treat you like that, get a different one; your mind is your most precious possession, and you want to make the most of it.

Callista,
I don't feel they are the same. To me when I am emotionally exhausted it is more like I can move physically with no problems, just can't handle any more stimuli. So if I am home alone, and the house is quiet, no phone calls, not bright lights, and no one t touch me, I am fine.

I experience depression as not wanting to live or see anything positive. Like you when I am depressed I don't have any motivation to do anything. When I am emotionally exhausted I can see positive things with no problem. Emotionally exhaustion is the step before a meltdown to me. The emotionally exhaustion happens much more often than than depression to me.

When I was on an anti-depressant I became suicidal and was much worse than before trying it. Anxiety however has not stopped. The depression is managable to me and the therapist is helping.

Verticalmum's description is closest to what I feel.