Apathy----I don't want to do ANYTHING!

MotherWolff

Banned
Recently I found out about a word called "apathy." For those of you who don't know what that word means, it basically means you have no interest in doing things and/or you don't care about anything. Even more recently, I haven't felt like doing anything at all. I literally lay in bed all day long. Sometimes I get out of bed just to take care of my hygiene(which I amittedly don't do as often as I should now), eat, answer Nature's Call, surf the web on my phone, or read(very little). I realize(like many of us on this forum) that I lost interest in just about everything, even videogames. As a child and young teenager, I loooved videogames. But now as a young 21-year old(I'll be 22 next sunday :p) I can't bring myself to really play them and when I do play them I get no fun out of it. I put this in the depression forum because I read that apathy can be a product of depression. So comments and advice would be very much appreciated. Can anyone relate? Help Motherwolff!
 

babegolden20

Well-known member
i totally understand what you are going through. Its definitely depression it makes you feel worthless like why do you even exist and you find no pleasure in things you used to. I have antidepressants i think it is working. HAVE you tried them?
 

MotherWolff

Banned
i totally understand what you are going through. Its definitely depression it makes you feel worthless like why do you even exist and you find no pleasure in things you used to. I have antidepressants i think it is working. HAVE you tried them?
Thank you for your reply, babegolden20. Yes, I know for sure that I'm suffering from depression. The way you described it is like the perfect reflection of how I feel from a day to day basis. But apathy convinces you not to do anything or care about anything. I've read that even people who aren't depressed can be apathetic. About the antidepressants, I've been on meds intended for bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, anxiety, and other major mental disorders aside from depression. Other than anxiety, I don't think I have those disorders. I can't understand why my psychiatrist won't prescribe me meds just for aiding with depression. In the past I've been on several different meds; paxil, zoloft, seroquel, abilify, and now respiridone.
 

thewiz

Active member
Just spent my entire 1.5 month winter break doing absolutely NOTHING. I had so much planned. Did nothing. It sure sucks and it gets aggravating.
 

MotherWolff

Banned
Just spent my entire 1.5 month winter break doing absolutely NOTHING. I had so much planned. Did nothing. It sure sucks and it gets aggravating.
Hey, thewiz. For me it's not aggravating(not sure I spelled that right :D) at all. Its more debilitating than aggravating or irritating. I think apathy really drains you. At first I thought it might have been laziness or procrastination. But apathy is far worse. Apathy makes Motherwolff feel like a statue. Does anyone have any ideas on how we can defeat or at least deal with apathy?
 
apathy.jpg
 

Kiwong

Well-known member
I am a reformed apathetic. Facing my own mortality about 5 years ago changed my perspective on things.
 

WeirdyMcGee

Well-known member
Ahh... I have yet to discover a way to escape the 'apathetic' way of life.
Depression has turned me into a robot.
Because of pre-existing medical conditions; I don't get hungry.
I have an alarm clock that literally goes off 3 times a day to remind me to eat something.

I don't feel attraction of any kind to anyone or anything.

I write a list each night, outlining the tasks I should force myself to do the next day and never feel a sense of accomplishment no matter how great the task was.

I don't feel joy in anything that I used to like.

It really sucks the life out of a person.
I'm not sure how I'm supposed to make it go away or if I'll ever feel good about anything ever again. My therapist seems to think I've got great chances but I haven't seen any improvement in the last year so I'm doubtful.

If you aren't getting professional help, I suggest you seek it.
It helps some people much much more than others. You may just be one of the lucky ones, you know?
 

AsTimeBurns

Well-known member
Same here, what I should be doing is going to all my lectures, doing my coursework, going to work. What I tend to do is come up with excuses and stay here on the internet.

The depression probably doesn't help, but I have a feeling it's probably mostly laziness to be honest.
 

Snowdrop

Well-known member
I can relate. I went to CBT and talked with my therapist - she was the person who first informed me of apathy. I don't feel like doing anything most of the time. I will make myself do things that I would've done before my SA/depression but never with as much zest or gusto as before.. I can remember in some distant part of my mind how it felt to actually be doing things, and enjoy them. Now, it's all different. I often wonder if I'll ever be the same again..
 

Minty

Well-known member
Human beings are motivated by happiness or by fear. Laziness doesn't exist because no one truly enjoys doing nothing. Nothing doesn't stimulate endorphins in the brain. In fact, the brain hates nothingness so much that if you sit and stare for a while, you'll probably start daydreaming.

But occasionally, we'll become apathetic to everything in an attempt to save ourselves from pain. We'll feel nothing. We'll become numb. It's just a phase though. Eventually, it will subside and you'll have to confront your pain again. Either desire for happiness will motivate you or the fear of the pain you're feeling will motivate you. It really depends on what type of person you are but you will change and start taking action again.

People can give you advice. They can tell you what you need to do to get rid of your apathy. But honestly, you're not going to do anything because you have no motivation, no concept of happiness or fear. You're in paralysis. Just give it time.
 

JamesSmith

Well-known member
The reason we are so depressed and don't have anything to do is because we aren't around people as much as people without SAD are. The reason these people seem like they are always doing something is because they are with friends or acquaintances talking to them. It's incredible how much time people without SAD spend talking to each other. It gives them something to do when there is nothing to do. I have a buddy who was a bum like i am for a very long time, but he was never unhappy or bored. Do you know why? He was talking to people almost all day. He lived with friends. It got to a point where he was so lazy he wouldn't get out of bed and his friends would just walk into his room when he woke up and would talk for hours. The only solution to boredom to your problem, motherwolf, would be to get more friends and acquaintances and talk to them often. If you never get enough people to talk to in your life on a constant basis you will always be depressed.
 

coyote

Well-known member
which came first - the chicken or the egg?

are we depressed because we have no social contact?

or

are we lacking social contact because we isolate ourselves due to depression?
 

JamesSmith

Well-known member
which came first - the chicken or the egg?

are we depressed because we have no social contact?

or

are we lacking social contact because we isolate ourselves due to depression?

All I know is that we are depressed because we don't connect with enough human beings socially. We don't have enough positive connection time to avoid depression. As a result of this failure to connect, we throw ourselves into isolation.
 

fitftw

Well-known member
I googled "I hate people and don't want to do anything in life" and got here lol

I'm almost 29 years old, unemployed and nearing homelessness unless I start making money in the next 2 months. I literally spend all day long in my room online, watching TV or playing the Playstation. I have no desire to go out and spend money even if I had money. I feel like life is slavery. People go to work and kill time, come home and kill time, day in day out it never ends. People deceive themselves into being content when if they would just face reality they would cry themselves to death.

I am nearing the end. I feel it coming. I want nothing from life. I don't want to contribute. Everything is a mess and I feel WW3 on the horizon. Life is a hypocrite.
 

ImNotMyIllness

Well-known member
I feel very apathetic. Why do I even try?! My life is a sunk cost. A waste of time....but then, my interests (and passions) thrust me on wild goose chases. I just enrolled in a college course and pursuing an ambitious project. I feel like I'm chasing my tail.
 
Last edited:
Top