u/Prestigious-Pack8440

Hi all, I (34f) have a history of ulcerative colitis but am very fortunate to have been in remission for several years. I took Immuran for about 10 years but had to go off it due to neutropenia. I quit a few years ago and so far things seem ok.

However, although my colitis symptoms are in remission, I am often exhausted and have a hard time thinking straight. My doctor says that some people with colitis have lingering fatigue. I read online that low grade inflammation can also have cognitive effects. Has anyone here experienced this and found anything that helps?

It's been extremely hard to hold a job or navigate interpersonal dynamics because I feel like my brain isn't working properly. Antidepressants and ADHD medication helped a bit, but I still feel very tired and disoriented. I want to have some agency over my life again, but doctors seem to just be telling me there is nothing they/I can do, which has been pretty discouraging. Even little daily life tips for how I can navigate this would be a huge help.

34f struggling with anhedonia, thought clarity, and severe fatigue. History of autoimmune disease (ulcerative colitis) but in remission. I take magnesium, iron, and vitamin D, and was recently prescribed vyvanse, which helped with energy and mood but not thought clarity. Oddly, antidepressants helped my reading comprehension but not motivation.

Tips? I am open to vitamins, lifestyle changes, anything. Just desperate to get out of limbo after 5 years of feeling half-asleep.

Hi, I (34f) have been struggling a lot with motivation, planning, and feeling mentally "on." I have always had some degree of difficulty with motivation and focus, but in university, I realized I could manage this with energy drinks. I was even able to complete a PhD this way. However, my functioning has been very inconsistent, and I would like to find a better way to manage.

In the last five years, anhedonia got way worse. This also came with extreme fatigue and episodes of dizziness/lightheadedness. I had an iron infusion and vitamin d prescription but it didn't help. I can still kind of manage it with energy drinks in a pinch, but my baseline functioning makes it feel impossible to work towards goals. I can't remember things and it feels like I'm drunk or high even though I'm not. If I have a 300mg caffeine energy drink, I feel clear headed for a few hours.

I have been diagnosed with MDD, OCD, ASD level 1, and my family doctor ssuspects inattentive ADHD. I took 40mg celexa for 14 years, and it helped with reading comprehension but not cognitive issues or mmotivation. I stopped taking it about a year ago, and initially felt better but then even worse. My doctor switched me to 20mg Vyvanse about a month ago, which was initially great for motivation and not needing the constant energy drinks. But my reading ccomprehension fell apart.

Do I have a better option than the ssri + energy drink combo? I am in a competitive career and need to be able to read and think clearly, but these last few years I've had so many thinking difficulties that I'm worried I'll have to totally change paths. The worst part is I'm not sure what went wrong to cause this sudden decline in motivation / thinking clarity, and I'm worried it will get worse. I hope this post makes sense.

Hi, I (34f) have been struggling a lot with motivation, planning, and feeling mentally "on." I have always had some degree of difficulty with motivation and focus, but in university, I realized I could manage this with energy drinks. I was even able to complete a PhD this way. However, my functioning has been very inconsistent, and I would like to find a better way to manage.

In the last five years, anhedonia got way worse. I have been diagnosed with MDD, OCD, ASD level 1, and my family doctor ssuspects inattentive ADHD. I took 40mg celexa for 14 years, and it helped with reading comprehension but not cognitive issues or motivation. My doctor switched me to 20mg Vyvanse, and it's been great for fatigue and anhedonia, but my reading ccomprehension fell apart.

Do I have a better option than the ssri + energy drink combo? I am in a competitive career and need to be able to read and think clearly, but these last few years I've had so many thinking difficulties that I'm worried I'll have to totally change paths. The worst part is I'm not sure what went wrong to cause this sudden decline in motivation / thinking clarity, and I'm worried it will get worse.

Hi, been on cipralex (10 mg) about 15 days. Was previously on Celexa (40 mg) for 14 years; worked great for about 10, but then starting having an awful time with apathy, anhedonia, brain fog, etc. Also struggled pretty consistently with tiredness and executive dysfunction, though I had those before too and assumed it was just my personality. Tried Wellbutrin with mixed success (150 mg was good for motivation but felt crushingly sad so had to stop).

My question is: the Cipralex is helping with sadness and somewhat helping with energy, but I’ve felt dumb and uncreative (I work in creative writing / academia). Unmedicated I had ideas but was too overwhelmed by racing thoughts and misery to get anything done. Now, it’s like 75% of my thoughts are just… gone. No longer spending all day sobbing about intrusive thoughts, but no creativity or exciting connections either, to the point that the life I planned on feels even more impossible than before. Before, I was crying every day about feeling trapped in my life (no partner, poor economic prospects, autism making everything difficult); now I’m less sad, but I still feel trapped, and maybe even more so.

 

For others who have experienced this: do you recommend sticking with it and seeing if the mental dulling goes away, or are these red flags? I am talking to my doctor soon but she lets me guide the course of actions. I just don’t know how to get back to an intellectually alive, creative life after being such a wreck these last years. My experience on Cipralex is the calmest I’ve been in ages, but I still feel hopeless, and maybe even more so.