As an update, I saw my GP and described the qualities of these periods I have (dense and lasting periods of sadness/anguish and general low self-esteem; continuous fatigue no matter how I've slept; complete absense of appetite; non-suicidal but recurring thoughts of death, the feeling I'd rather not be alive; a feeling of intense cold despite putting on more clothes or a heater; inability to relate or communicate or take responsibility), and he agreed it was some kind of depressive illness. I've just had a blood test to rule out a thyroid problem (and lupus) and other unlikely things and he'll see me next week to discuss more in-depth.
It's not really stress-related, what I go through, but it does seem to be triggered by things. Not always events, but processes and feelings and things that relate to how things are in the world.
I'm the same as you -- or have been until now. I brush off these periods of darkness as normal considering I am generally unhappy with where I am in life, and work at fixing the things that trigger me instead of working on my own reactions to them.
Now I've come to realise that my way of dealing and thinking does not equip me well to help myself, and I just need outside help.
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