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I suffered from extreme anxiety / moderate depression last spring. I also stressed myself out because I had to maintain a certain GPA to keep my scholarship (I'm in college).
As the semester ended, I was working on methods to reduce my social anxiety / improve my self esteem. As my anxiety went away, and as I started to like myself more, the effects of stress set in.
1. My libido was gone.
2. My interest in stuff I liked faded greatly.
3. My memory and ability to maintain a conversation / stay on point faded severely. I couldn't form sentences very well as my mind would fracture - I would think of something, and minutes later I'd be lightyears away from where I started because I would think so tangentially.
Today, I have a pretty good self esteem. I am no longer socially anxious, I get plenty of sleep, and I exercise daily. I eat very well, and I make sure to take care of myself in all ways.
Yet, I feel like the effects of stress are still here, months later. My memory is HORRIBLE - I will tell a friend a story, only to find out I already told him days earlier. I struggle to recall info, making it hard to maintain conversations. And, I'm not interested in a lot anymore, so that makes it hard to maintain relationships.
Yet, I don't feel like I'm depressed. But, these effects of stress are starting to depress me. Plus, I'm afraid that if I treat this girl as a friend, she will look at me as a brother... someone she isn't attracted to anymore. It really sucks. I wish I could do something about it.
I've never taken medication for depression or anxiety, and I never will.
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