Know About Anhedonia!
Exactly the condition I’m going through, and maybe you are too, but you are unaware of it.
Recently, I came across this word, “anhedonia”, after battling a high level of anxiety and finding it difficult to perform daily activities or even feel happy in the most pleasurable and my favourite things.
I don’t want to take a bath; I don’t feel those initial feelings after listening to songs; I don’t want to see nature even though the surroundings are beautiful; now, gorgeous places don’t attract me to see them; my inner happiness while doing the most exciting and my favourite things is fading, while other people easily get the joy, but I’m pushing myself to do those things.
In this article, we are studying what “anhedonia” is and what we can do to come out of it:
Anhedonia:
It is a mental health condition, and this is a Greek word where an stands for without and done stands for pleasure; that’s how this word developed.
Let’s see what exactly happens in this condition:
· Mind not able to feel fulfilment and freshness:
Here, you only feel like you don’t want to do the daily routine after waking up, or your brain starts asking questions like, “Now I woke up, now what?” I’m not feeling the morning enthusiasm or the satisfaction of a new day.
· Motivation begins to wane:
While you’re going through this phase, you realise you want to succeed in that project, or you want to do something for your body, but you’re not feeling like starting it now. This is how lack of motivation takes place.
· Losing pure joy:
Here you notice your favourite passion you used to work on with full of emotions is now falling under the “ I’m not interested in doing this anymore” category.
Spending time with myself by going for a walk, watching a nice movie, or just immersing myself in nature is becoming difficult or not giving me joy the way it used to before.
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These are the symptoms we experience in anhedonia. Let’s talk about what to do to beat this:
1. Take advantage of your good time:
I’ve added this point based on my experience: whenever I feel good, I live in that moment; in those moments, I think only about things that give me relief. I also try to pull that time whenever I feel that condition hitting again, but sometimes pulling that beautiful time more is not under our control, and that’s the sad thing.
2. Share that you’re going through it:
I know this feeling is weird and hard to express every symptom, but tell the person with whom you feel comfortable talking that you’re feeling dull, fearful, want to cry all the time, and need help to come out of it.
Even think about taking therapy; don’t lose hope and don’t say I will never come out of it, even if you feel that way.
3. Know the importance of dopamine and try to increase it:
Most of the time, we experience immense pleasure because of high dopamine levels. In this case, although we’re having difficulty finding joy as before, take your time to think and ask your loved ones what you can do so that you can at least get pleasure for some time.
4. Work on your lifestyle:
Work on your sleep pattern: good, relaxing sleep definitely helps to resolve this condition. Apart from that, start slow, give time to your passion and work, and involve yourself in some physical activities; take small challenges; sometimes you will find it difficult, but still try at your own pace. A good diet routine is also essential to change the game.
5. Do more things that motivate you:
For example, if watching YouTube videos or reading articles about spirituality or any other of your favourite topics makes you feel positive, then take advantage of it. Slowly, if you do those activities, then that will definitely help bring you back to your old routine, to your old life.
Apart from that, as per my personal experience, visiting temples helps to connect with divine energy and feel inner satisfaction and happiness.
~Aditi Phadke
(Words by Aditi)
