Anhedonia Doesn't Have To Steal Your Future!

Summary

Dieses Video skizziert das Phänomen der Anhaftung, einer Symptom von Depression, die das Belohnungssystem des Gehirns stört und das Gefühl von Freude oder Genuss unterdrückt. Der Schöpfer vergleicht dieses Erlebnis mit einem akustischen Kammer, der stillste Ort auf der Welt, und diskutiert, wie man trotz emotionaler Leere an Erfahrungen teilnehmen kann, die zukünftig positive Erinnerungen hervorrufen können. Er ermutigt dazu, in schwierigen Zeiten aktiv zu bleiben, um zukünftige emotionale Belohnungen zu sichern.

Takeaways

• 🧠 Anhedonia ist ein Symptom von Depression, bei dem die Belohnungswege im Gehirn gestört werden und man keine Freude empfinden kann.
• 💡 Die Belohnungswege im Gehirn sind neuronale Übertragungen, die es ermöglichen, Emotionen wie Freude oder Begeisterung zu empfinden.
• 🌐 Anhedonia kann dazu führen, dass man Aktivitäten einstellt, aus denen man normalerweise Freude hätte, was das Leben beeinträchtigen kann.
• 🗣️ Anhedonia kann das Leben beeinträchtigen, indem sie eine Kettenreaktion auslöst, bei der man die Tätigkeiten einstellt, aus denen man keine Freude empfindet.
• 🕰️ Es gibt drei Zeitrahmen, in denen eine Erfahrung Freude bringen kann: während der Anticipation, während des Erlebnis selbst und nach dem Erlebnis.
• 🔄 Angst stößt oft die Freude bei der Anticipation von Belohnungen, während Depression und Anhedonia die Freude im Moment des Erlebnisses untergraben können.
• 🔄 Manche Menschen erleben sowohl Depression als auch Angst, was zu einer Überschneidung von negativen Emotionen in allen drei Zeiträumen führen kann.
• 🔄 Man kann in der Zukunft positive Emotionen über Ereignisse empfinden, die zuvor keine positiven Emotionen ausgelöst haben.
• 🌟 Es ist wichtig, an die dritte Zeitachse zu denken, auch wenn man in der Gegenwart oder bei der Anticipation keine positiven Emotionen empfindet.
• 💡 Trotz der aktuellen Unfähigkeit, Freude zu empfinden, kann es von Vorteil sein, an Erfahrungen teilzunehmen, die zukünftig positive Emotionen hervorrufen könnten.

Q & A

Was ist Anhedonia und wie ist es mit Depressionen verbunden?

Anhedonia ist ein Symptom, das häufig mit Depressionen einhergeht und beschreibt den Verlust des Genusses oder der Fähigkeit, Freude oder positive Emotionen aus Aktivitäten zu empfinden, die normalerweise belohnend sind.

Wie funktioniert der Belohnungspfad im Gehirn und was passiert bei Anhedonia?

Der Belohnungspfad ist eine Reihe von neuronalen Übertragungen oder chemischen Signalen, die durch Gehirnzellen passieren und es uns ermöglichen, Emotionen wie Freude oder Begeisterung zu empfinden. Bei Anhedonia wird dieser Belohnungspfad gestört, sodass diese Emotionen nicht mehr oder weniger stark empfunden werden.

Was ist ein Echokammer und wie ist sie mit Anhedonia vergleichbar?

Eine Echokammer ist ein riesiger unterirdischer Bunker, der von Microsoft für Sound Engineering oder Schalltests gebaut wurde. Sie ist so still, dass man dort fast keine Geräusche hört. Diese Stille kann unangenehm und unerträglich sein, was eine physiologische Version von Anhedonia darstellt, wo man sich von allen äußeren Reizen abgeschottet fühlt.

Wie kann Anhedonia das Leben einer Person beeinträchtigen?

Anhedonia kann dazu führen, dass Menschen Aktivitäten meiden, aus denen sie normalerweise Freude empfunden hätten, da sie keine positiven Emotionen mehr erwarten. Dies kann zu einem Abstieg in die Depression führen und das Leben einer Person negativ beeinflussen.

Was sind die drei Zeitrahmen, in denen eine Erfahrung Freude bringen kann?

Die drei Zeitrahmen sind: während der Erfahrung, während der Vorfreude auf die Erfahrung und nach der Erfahrung, wenn man sich an sie erinnert. Anhedonia kann die Fähigkeit stören, Freude während oder vor der Erfahrung zu empfinden, aber manchmal kann man später in der Zukunft Freude empfinden, wenn man an die Erfahrung zurückdenkt.

Warum kann es wichtig sein, Aktivitäten während depressiver oder anxioser Phasen trotzdem zu unternehmen?

Es ist wichtig, weil diese Aktivitäten zukünftige positive Erinnerungen schaffen können, die man in einem besseren emotionalen Zustand dann genießen kann. Es ist eine Art, in die Zukunft zu investieren, indem man sich emotionale Möglichkeiten erstellt, die man später nutzen kann.

Wie kann man mit der Vorstellung umgehen, dass man in Zukunft möglicherweise an Aktivitäten Freude finden kann, wenn man sie im Moment nicht genießt?

Man kann versuchen, sich zu überzeugen oder zu glauben, dass man sich in Zukunft in einem gesünderen emotionalen Zustand befinden wird und dann die Emotionen, die man während depressiver oder anxioser Phasen nicht empfunden hat, nachvollziehen kann.

Was passiert, wenn man während depressiver oder anxioser Phasen keine memorablen Erfahrungen macht?

Wenn man keine memorablen Erfahrungen macht, kann dies zu einem leeren Bereich im Leben führen, in dem es an bedeutsamen Erinnerungen mangelt. Dies kann das Gefühl verstärken, als ob man das Leben nicht vollständig erlebt hat.

Wie kann man praktisch die Idee umsetzen, auch während depressiver oder anxioser Phasen an Aktivitäten teilzunehmen?

Man kann sich auf die Idee konzentrieren, dass man sich diese Erfahrungen als Investition in die Zukunft ansieht, die man später nutzen kann. Man kann auch versuchen, sich an positive Aspekte der Aktivitäten zu erinnern und sich auf die Möglichkeit zu konzentrieren, dass man sich in Zukunft freut, dass man sie überstanden hat.

Was ist der Hauptzweck des Erzählers in diesem Skript?

Der Hauptzweck des Erzählers ist es, anderen zu helfen, indem er sein eigenes Erlebnis teilt und die Idee vermittelt, dass man auch in schwierigen Zeiten an Aktivitäten teilnehmen sollte, um positive Erinnerungen für die Zukunft zu schaffen.

Outlines

00:00

🧠 Anhedonia und die Belohnungspfade im Gehirn

Der erste Absatz behandelt das Konzept der Anhedonia, einer Symptom von Depression, die durch Störungen im Belohnungspfad im Gehirn verursacht wird. Dieser Pfade ermöglichen es dem Gehirn, Emotionen wie Freude oder Begeisterung zu empfinden. Anhedonia manifestiert sich, wenn diese neuronalen Übertragungen gestört werden, was dazu führt, dass normale Freuden empfunden werden, was zu einer Reihe von negativen Folgen wie dem Verlust des Interesses an Aktivitäten und dem Rückzug aus dem sozialen Leben führen kann.

05:02

🕰 Die Zeiträume der Erfahrungsfreude

Der zweite Absatz konzentriert sich auf die verschiedenen Zeiträume, in denen eine Erfahrung Freude bringen kann: während der Erfahrung, in der Vorstellung darauf oder nach der Erfahrung selbst. Es wird erklärt, dass wir oft nur auf die aktuelle Erfahrung achten, während die anderen beiden Zeiträume, die Vorfreude und die Rückblende, ebenso wichtig sind. Der Sprecher verwendet das Beispiel eines.echoischen Raumes, der von Microsoft gebaut wurde, um die Stille und die Unannehmlichkeiten, die daraus resultieren können, zu veranschaulichen.

10:02

🚗 Stress und die Vorfreude auf positive Ereignisse

In diesem Absatz wird beschrieben, wie Angst und Stress die Vorfreude auf positive Ereignisse untergraben können. Der Sprecher gibt ein persönliches Beispiel seiner eigenen Erfahrung, als er mit seiner Familie nach Chicago fuhr, um sein Kind zum Aquarium zu bringen. Obwohl er wusste, dass es eine positive Erfahrung sein würde, war er von der Vorfreude auf die Reise durch die Stadt芝加哥 gestresst, was die Freude der Vorbereitung auf die Reise beeinträchtigte.

15:03

🌊 Anhedonia und das Erlebnis des heutigen Moments

Der vierte Absatz besagt, dass manchmal die Erwartung auf eine positive Erfahrung durch Depression und Anhedonia beeinträchtigt wird, was dazu führt, dass man das Erlebnis im Moment nicht so genießt, wie es eigentlich sein sollte. Der Sprecher erzählt von einer Tauchreise, die er mit seinem Vater in seiner Adoleszenz machte, und wie er trotz der atemberaubenden Umgebung und der Tatsache, dass es ein Traum war, keine emotionale Verbindung zu den Ereignissen auf der Reise empfand.

20:03

🌟 Investition in die Zukunft durch heutige Erfahrungen

Der fünfte Absatz betont die Bedeutung, auch in Zeiten von Depression und Angst an Erfahrungen teilzunehmen, da diese später in der Zukunft positive Emotionen hervorrufen können, auch wenn man sie im Moment nicht empfindet. Der Sprecher teilt seine persönlichen Erlebnisse während einer Tauchreise und wie er, obwohl er sie zu der Zeit nicht als emotional belohnend empfand, heute Freude und Zufriedenheit durch die Erinnerung an diese Erfahrungen empfindet.

25:07

💭 Lebendige Erinnerungen als Investition in das emotionale Wohlergehen

Der letzte Absatz unterstreicht die Notwendigkeit, auch während schwerer Zeiten an Erfahrungen teilzunehmen, da diese zukünftig positive Emotionen hervorrufen können. Der Sprecher reflektiert über seine eigene Adoleszenz und wie die Tatsache, dass er damals nicht viel tat, zu einem Leben ohne nennenswerte Erinnerungen führte. Er ermutigt die Zuhörer, sich dennoch an positiven Erfahrungen zu beteiligen, um zukünftige emotionale Belohnungen zu sichern.

Keywords

💡Anhedonia

Anhedonia ist ein Symptom, das häufig mit Depressionen einhergeht und beschreibt die Fähigkeit, Freude oder positive Emotionen nicht mehr zu empfinden. Im Video wird anhedonia als eine Störung des Belohnungssystems im Gehirn beschrieben, was dazu führt, dass Aktivitäten und Ereignisse, die normalerweise Freude bereiten, keine positiven Reaktionen mehr hervorrufen. Das Beispiel des Videos, dass man in einer Phase der Anhedonia möglicherweise keine Freude an Aktivitäten wie einem Ausflug mit Freunden oder einem Kinobesuch empfinden kann, veranschaulicht, wie diese Symptomatik das Leben des Betroffenen beeinträchtigen kann.

💡Belohnungsweg

Der Begriff 'Belohnungsweg' bezieht sich auf eine Reihe neuronaler Übertragungen oder chemischer Signale im Gehirn, die für das Empfinden von Emotionen wie Freude, Begeisterung oder Errungenschaft zuständig sind. Im Kontext des Videos wird der Belohnungsweg als zentraler Mechanismus für positive Emotionen dargestellt, der bei Anhedonia gestört wird und somit die Fähigkeit, Freude an Aktivitäten zu empfinden, untergräbt.

💡Anticipation

Die 'Anticipation' bezieht sich auf die Freude oder das Erleben von positiven Emotionen in der Vorstellung oder dem Ausblick auf eine zukünftige Aktivität. Im Video wird darauf hingewiesen, dass manche Menschen Freude empfinden können, bevor sie eine Aktivität tatsächlich ausführen, was als eine Art Belohnung angesehen wird. Allerdings kann bei psychischen Störungen wie Angst oder Depression diese Vorfreude vermindert oder ganz verschwinden.

💡Post-Erlebnis

Das 'Post-Erlebnis' beschreibt die Emotionen oder das Empfinden, das man nach einer Aktivität oder einem Ereignis empfindet. Im Video wird betont, dass manche Menschen möglicherweise nach der Tat keine positiven Emotionen empfinden, aber im Nachhinein, wenn sie sich die Erfahrung wiederholen, positive Gefühle wie Stolz oder Zufriedenheit empfinden können. Dies wird als ein wichtiger Aspekt der emotionalen Belohnung betrachtet, der bei der Überwindung von Anhedonia berücksichtigt werden sollte.

💡Depression

Depression ist eine psychische Störung, die durch eine Vielzahl von Symptomen gekennzeichnet ist, einschließlich der verminderten Fähigkeit, Freude oder positive Emotionen zu empfinden. Im Video wird Depression als ein Zustand beschrieben, der Anhedonia begünstigt und somit die Fähigkeit, positive Emotionen während oder nach Aktivitäten zu empfinden, untergräbt.

💡Angst

Angst ist eine emotionale Reaktion, die durch wahrgenommene oder vorausgesetzte Bedrohungen ausgelöst werden kann. Im Video wird darauf hingewiesen, dass Angst die Vorfreude auf positive Ereignisse untergraben kann, indem sie den Fokus auf potenzielle Probleme oder negative Aspekte lenkt, anstatt auf die Freude oder das Vergnügen, das aus der Aktivität erwarten lassen könnte.

💡Emotionale Belohnung

Die 'emotionale Belohnung' bezieht sich auf die positiven Emotionen oder das Gefühl der Zufriedenheit, das man aus der Teilnahme an Aktivitäten oder dem Erreichen von Zielen empfindet. Im Video wird betont, dass emotionale Belohnungen ein zentrales Element für das Motivationssystem des Menschen sind und bei Störungen wie Anhedonia beeinträchtigt werden können.

💡Zukünftige Erinnerungen

Die 'zukünftigen Erinnerungen' beziehen sich auf die Möglichkeit, dass man im Nachhinein, wenn man sich in einem anderen emotionalen Zustand befindet, positive Emotionen oder Freude an Erfahrungen empfinden kann, die zuvor keine positiven Gefühle hervorgebracht haben. Im Video wird dies als eine Strategie vorgeschlagen, um mit Anhedonia umzugehen, indem man sich auf die potenziellen positiven Emotionen konzentriert, die man in der Zukunft empfinden könnte, auch wenn man sie im Moment nicht spürt.

💡Investition in die Zukunft

Die 'Investition in die Zukunft' ist ein Konzept, das im Video verwendet wird, um die Idee zu veranschaulichen, dass man Aktivitäten und Erfahrungen in der Gegenwart nutzen kann, um positive Emotionen in der Zukunft zu erlangen, selbst wenn man sie im Moment nicht spürt. Es wird als eine Art emotionale Vorsorge oder ein Investitionsmodell beschrieben, bei dem man auf die Hoffnung setzt, dass man später von den positiven Auswirkungen dieser Erfahrungen profitieren wird.

💡Lebensqualität

Die 'Lebensqualität' bezieht sich auf die allgemeine Zufriedenheit und das Wohlbefinden eines Menschen mit seinem Leben. Im Video wird betont, wie wichtig es ist, für die Lebensqualität zu investieren, auch wenn man im Moment aufgrund von Störungen wie Anhedonia oder Depression keine positiven Emotionen empfinden kann. Es wird argumentiert, dass man durch die Teilnahme an Aktivitäten und die Schaffung von Erinnerungen, die man später mit positiven Emotionen erleben kann, die Lebensqualität langfristig verbessern kann.

Highlights

Anhedonia is a symptom of depression that disrupts the brain's reward pathway.

The reward pathway involves neuronal transmissions that allow us to feel emotions like joy and excitement.

Anhedonia can lead to a downward spiral where one stops engaging in activities due to lack of emotional reward.

The concept of an 'echoic chamber' is introduced as a metaphor for the isolation of anhedonia.

The echoic chamber is a quiet, soundproofed environment that amplifies internal bodily sounds, causing discomfort.

Anhedonia can be compared to the silence of the echoic chamber, where external stimuli fail to produce emotional responses.

The importance of considering multiple time frames for experiencing joy is discussed.

Anticipation of an event can bring joy, even if the event itself is currently causing anxiety.

Depression can disrupt the ability to enjoy the present moment, even if the event is objectively enjoyable.

The future emotional state can be different from the present, allowing for retrospective enjoyment of past events.

The speaker shares a personal story of planning a scuba diving trip during a period of depression.

Despite not feeling joy during the trip, the speaker later experiences happiness when looking back on the memories.

The concept of investing in experiences during periods of low mood is introduced as a strategy for combating anhedonia.

Engaging in activities with potential for reward can create positive memories for the future, even if they're not enjoyed at the time.

The speaker emphasizes the importance of creating memorable experiences to avoid a 'black hole' in one's life.

The talk concludes with a call to action for listeners to engage in life despite periods of depression and anxiety.

Transcripts

the most uncomfortable place to be in

the entire world is your own mind when

your feelings are not working properly

if you've been here before you might

know that I'm talking about something

called anhedonia which most commonly is

a symptom of depression anhedonia occurs

when what's called a reward pathway in

our brain gets disrupted your reward

pathway is a series of neuronal

transmissions in other words chemical

signals that pass through your brain

cells that allows you to feel emotions

like Joy when you're doing something fun

or excitement when you have something

fun coming up or achievement or

accomplishment after you've completed a

task or a goal or or a to-do list item

of some kind we aren't always able to

feel these things and when the feelings

that are normally present in our mind

fade or even disappear entirely for a

period of time all that is left is our

thoughts I found myself thinking about

this the other day after I saw a Tik Tok

video about something called the I don't

know if I'm saying this correctly an

echoic chamber you guys might know what

I'm talking about it's this like

basically giant underground bunker that

apparently was built by Microsoft for

some type of Sound Engineering or sound

testing purposes and it's it's literally

the quietest place in the world it's

like this giant

underground Studio I guess you would say

it's this huge room deep underground

with just an insane amount of of noise

cancelling or sound deadening treatments

and Equipment inside of it and

apparently it is so quiet in there that

you can scream and not hear yourself so

apparently this place is so quiet that

you can hear it's kind of gross but

apparently you can hear your own bodily

functions like you can hear your heart

beating you can hear your food digesting

you can hear all the stuff that happens

inside of you because there's no other

sound to drown that out those are

literally the because they're internal

so they're the only things that are not

affected by this like Echo prooof

environment that you're in and

apparently people cannot stand being in

this this chamber for like more than a

few seconds I guess in most cases

because it's just so eerie and

uncomfortable and unpleasant to not hear

anything except for what happens inside

of you

so of course the first thing I thought

when I heard that is that's that's just

the physiological version of severe

complete in hedonia that's what that is

it it's when essentially you become

closed off to all output from the world

like it doesn't do anything anymore and

that made me think it was probably time

to do some more content on

anhedonia so if that little metaphor

makes sense to you you probably are

going to understand what I'm about to

say here but ANH hadon can literally

steal your life from you because it

creates this Chain Reaction which I've

talked about on here before where once

things if you're in a period where

nothing is feeling good to you where you

don't look forward to anything or don't

enjoy anything a very natural

consequence of that is going to be that

you stop doing those things because

essentially at that point you feel like

you're working for free I'm doing these

things I'm getting no emotional reward

from doing these things therefore I do

not wish to continue doing these things

and and that's often where our lives

when we're dealing with and I'm I'm just

going to say depression I know there's

other reasons people experience in honia

but I'm going to assume you know if

you're following this content at this

point it's probably because you you

understand the experience of depression

so when you're in a depressive episode

and you stop doing these things you stop

in some cases doing anything right

sometimes we stop interacting with

people taking care of ourselves

sometimes we stop eating I mean it can

get that bad it it just starts to ruin

your life you're in this downward spiral

that that seems like there's no way out

we've explored a couple other loopholes

to that before but there's a brand new

one I want to talk to you today and it

relates to time frames there's a way

that even in the midst of that complete

void of reward that complete absence of

positive feeling that you can still keep

your life going and that it will

eventually pay off for you so let me

introduce the concept first then I'm

going to give you a couple examples and

then at the end we will really like

solidify strategy that I want you guys

to try here the concept is when we think

about doing something like you think

about going out with your friends or

watching a movie or taking a vacation or

something like that the time frame that

we're thinking about when we try to

determine will I enjoy that thing or not

will that expenditure of time and energy

and attention be worth it will I get as

much or more from doing that thing as

what I put into it we typically only

think about the moment when we're doing

it we think about it's technically the

future when you're thinking about it but

it's what will be the present when

you're engaging in the behavior

hopefully that made sense so again

you're thinking about going out with

friends the question you ask yourself is

will I enjoy the period of time that I

am with those people I know you may not

actually be narratively asking that

question in your head but when you try

to decide should I go or not that's

essenti that's the underlying question

that you're actually trying to answer

right is it worth it that question is a

mistake because it is only considering

one of the three time frames in which an

experience can bring you Joy any

experience that you may do in the future

can bring you Joy while you're doing it

that's the obvious one I don't really

think I need to explain that anymore do

you does it feel good while you're doing

it that that's the question there some

things bring us joy or excitement or

other forms of reward before we actually

do them and I'm sure you've experienced

that right you've been excited to do

things that haven't happened yet because

you thought they were probably going to

feel good or you thought they'd probably

be a good experience or sometimes when

we're really deep in the depths of a

depression sometimes one of the things

that keeps us going is like I got that

concert in a month or I'm going to that

convention in two months and I really

don't want to miss these things and so

even though I'm not enjoying my life

right now I'm going to stick around a

bit longer because I want to make sure I

get this experience I think this

experience even in the midst of this

Darkness I'm in I think that day that

week that moment whatever is going to be

a good one so you can get reward from

just anticipating an experience right

the third one that I think this this is

the real takeaway message from this

episode the third time frame is after

and you can enjoy an experience after it

has happened

even if you did not enjoy the

anticipation of experience or the

experience itself so even if in other

words leading up to it you weren't that

excited about it and you went and did it

it still didn't feel good you may still

experience an emotional reward from

having done that thing later on in your

life it might be the next day it might

be the next week it might be months or

years later but it can happen and we

typically fake

to consider that third time frame we

usually only focus on the present

sometimes present and the anticipation

and if we don't see much possibility for

reward we usually turn down the

opportunity I'm not going to look

forward to it I'm not going to like

doing it therefore I'm not going to do

it this is how we end up in those

Vicious Cycles where we basically just

don't do anything because our brains

trick us into thinking nothing is

worthwhile and we don't consider the

third time frame I know that this is a

little little bit of an abstract idea so

I'm going to give you two examples here

of how this can get disrupted and how

you can overcome it so anxiety tends to

disrupt anticipation of reward the most

this they all flow together to some

degree but if you have a chronic anxiety

disorder what you probably know is when

you make plans the P even even if it's

something you really want to do

something you're really excited about

something you're passionate about the

period of time between having made the

plan and actually doing the thing is

often an unpleasant period of time right

because you start to stress you start to

think about all the things that could go

wrong or you know all the ways you might

make a fool out of yourself or what's

going to be difficult about it and often

with anxiety we don't enjoy the buildup

to even positive or Pleasant events even

if we believe we are likely to enjoy the

event itself give you an example of this

a few weeks back we planned to trip to

Chicago for my daughter's birthday our

daughter's birthday I should say she

doesn't belong only to me because she

really loves aquariums and the Shed

Aquarium of course is one of the

greatest aquariums in the world and

she'd never seen it so it seemed like a

no-brainer I currently live in a city of

about 125,000 people and that's honestly

about my limit I'm not a city guy um I

don't like driving in cities I don't

like parking in cities I don't like

walking in cities I like big open spaces

and acreages and forests and lakes and

long roads with few cars on them I'm a

country guy that's that's my comfort

zone right and so even though I knew

that this was going to be a good

experience not just for her but for all

of us I knew we were going to enjoy it I

did not experience a lot of excitement

or joy in the period of time between

scheduling this Chicago trip and

actually getting there mostly I

experienced stress about the Logistics

of the trip itself you know are we what

kind of count what kind of traffic are

we going to encounter did we pack

everything honestly that's more my

wife's job but um these are all things

you know these are all things that can

get messed up right these are all the

things we worry about when we've got

something big coming up so I don't even

necessarily have a lot of anxiety in

most situations these days once upon a

time I did but my average anxiety level

is pretty low on a normal day but

driving through downtown Chicago at

night is not a normal day for me you

know some people live there I don't and

so I had a lot of anxiety thinking about

doing it and then even more when we were

actually doing it so we got there Friday

night did the aquarium stuff on Saturday

the actual experience of it was mostly

enjoyable it was a really good time and

I knew it was going to be I wasn't

doubting that but I had to like overcome

I to climb this mountain first basically

this mountain of my own stress about the

traveling there about dealing with the

toll roads and and you know where did we

stop for gas how often all the kids need

to pee all this all this stuff you got

to plan right and so I only really

enjoyed it in the moment I didn't I

didn't get to enjoy that excitement my

kids did because they didn't have to

drive right so you know every day that

got closer to the trip they are getting

more and more excited I'm not but the

actual day was good so anxiety tends to

Rob us of the joy that comes from that

time frame that first third of it and

because of that we often end up not

doing things right even if we know the

event itself will be good we think about

all the leadup all the build up all the

stress we're going to feel between now

and then and sometimes we decide it is

not worth climbing that mountain I know

the view at the top would be beautiful

but the climb is just too much and I'm

just not up for it sometimes when we are

able to focus on how much we know we

will enjoy it when we do it when we get

to the top of that mountain when we

finally see the summit and look around

and say man look what I just did that

that's going to be worth it so sometimes

you can use that knowledge to push

yourself past it sometimes you can't now

sometimes the opposite happens and this

tends to be more related to depression

right sometimes we are looking forward

to something and we do think or we do

hope that it's going to be a good

experience we are counting on that we

are trusting that and when you get there

when it starts and you finally start to

you know finally in the moment that

you've been waiting for for who knows

how long and you

realize I'm not feeling it and it's not

because there's anything wrong with the

experience like this looks the way I

thought it was going to look the things

that I thought was going were going to

happen are happening but I'm just

noticing nothing is really connecting

inside of me right now I'm I'm looking

at what's unfolding around me and I'm

logically understanding that I should

feel really good right now but it's just

not there maybe it's only a fraction of

what you thought it was supposed to be

maybe it's not there at all that's the

anhedonia kicking in and that's the

depression disrupting your ability to

enjoy the present moment

now I suspect many people watching or

listening to this experience both

depression and anxiety and if that's the

case then you get that really nasty

overlap of I'm probably not going to

enjoy the buildup to it because of my

anxiety and I'm probably not going to

enjoy it even once I get past my anxiety

what's waiting for me on the other side

of that anxiety is depression and anonia

so even if I push myself through all the

stress and all this burden to do this

thing I'm still not going to get much

out of it but you probably noticed that

the time frame that's not factored in to

either of those equations is that third

time frame that I was discussing with

you earlier the future the emotions you

experience in the future when you look

back on things you have done in the past

are not the same emotions that you

experienced when that thing was

happening you need to understand this if

you want to have any chance of dealing

with depression and anxiety and anadon

you can have emotions in the future

about things happening right now that

will be different than what you're

feeling right now and it can go either

way it's probably easier to think of

examples when you have less Pleasant

emotions in the future about something

so for example you might have really

good memories with somebody that now

make you really sad to think about

because that person is gone maybe it's a

friend who you lost touch with maybe

it's a family member who's passed on

maybe it's a partner who you're not with

anymore and these were good memories

like they're not Memories when they're

happening but you know what I mean these

were good moments when they were

happening you enjoyed them they brought

you pleasure they brought you Joy and

now because that person is gone or your

circumstances have changed when you look

back on this experience you feel grief

you feel sorrow you feel loss you feel

sadness you don't feel the happiness

that you felt then

but it can go the other way too you can

experience happiness or Joy or

achievement or accomplishment in the

future about things that didn't feel

good when you did them you need to

factor this in if you don't want

anhedonia to be able to destroy your

life so let me give you an example of

this one too and then we'll wrap up with

some practical

applications when I was 17 years old my

father and I spent about nine months

planning a scuba diving trip and

something you should know about me a

couple things you should know about me I

love water I love fish and mid to late

adolescence was the absolute worst time

of my life and so essentially the

circumstances here were this was a dream

come true vacation being planned for me

in the midst of one of my darkest

periods of life so it was this there's

this interesting overlap of this amazing

thing happening at a time when I felt

awful in my life felt awful and we we

had to do all this buildup right so we

had to we had to take lessons and get

certified and um figure out where we're

were going to go and like what kind of

dive we wanted to do what kind of stuff

did we want to see my dad took care of

most of that but I did have a I did have

a hand in that process and I

remember not feeling that excited about

it not because I didn't think it was

going to be fun but just because I was

thinking about you know the plane ride

there and I was I was literally

nocturnal at this point in my life so I

was like what I'm going to be asleep

during the day well he's going to want

to do stuff and then I'm going to be

awake at night just in a hotel room by

myself with nothing to do while he's

sleeping like how how is this even going

to work so leading up to it I I I had

more stress than excitement or joy and

then you know we we did it so we fly

there we get there and there's a moment

I remember so distinctly which was the

first day so we get on this charter boat

we go like three four miles out in the

ocean in the Florida Keys to some coral

reef we get in the water and I'm not

even we're not even under the water yet

we're just floating on the surface right

I got all my gear on we're just getting

ready to get started and I remember just

looking down in the ocean as I'm bobbing

there in the waves and just seeing

hundreds of fish of every color you

could imagine just this unbeliev

unbelievable natural beauty like I had

never seen anything like that

before and my logical brain was in awe

and was like oh my gosh that is an Inc

inredible site that is so cool and I

actually this is a little weird but you

might you might get it I felt that

thought get to like like start in my

brain and get to like where my emotions

would happen and I anticipated this

feeling of like awe like or Joy or

reward like like wow what an amazing

thing this is and it just stopped like

it hit a brick wall and I I remember in

that moment thinking like oh

man Even This can't get through to me

right now this is a dream come true and

I'm aware of it even this can't break

through that wall what am I going to do

there's a few pictures of me on that

trip um I might try to add them to the

YouTube video just put them on the

bottom here because they're it's a

little bit funny to me now like it's

it's not funny because we're literally

in this paradise looking place right

this wonderful tropical environment and

then there's me my long black wet hair I

was in kind of this goth phase my hair

was wet because we were in the water

obviously just pale as can be looking as

depressed as a person can be like in

paradise and it's just this crazy

juxtaposition but it matched perfectly

what I felt inside that the discrepancy

between my surroundings and what I

looked like was the same discrepancy

occurring inside of me between my

logical mind and my emotional World

basically and it wasn't this is crucial

other people in your life won't always

understand this but you need to

understand this about yourself it wasn't

because I didn't appreciate it it wasn't

because I didn't appreciate all the hard

work that my dad put into planning this

trip or or the expenses that went into

it I'm sure it wasn't cheap it wasn't

because I didn't appreciate the

incredible natural beauty that

surrounded me I appreciated and was very

consciously aware of all of those things

throughout the trip in fact I kept

reminding myself of those things over

and over and over again in an attempt to

break through to my heart and to make

this incredible experience feel like

what I knew it was supposed to feel like

and it just didn't work I don't actually

remember exactly how long we were there

for I want to say it was maybe three or

four days it was a fairly brief trip and

there really weren't a lot of cool stuff

happened like that that thing I

described just now that was just the

first day I mean I remember we did we

did a charter fishing trip we caught

some really big grouper um a Mor eel

swam between my legs that one actually

scared me a little bit too but it was

also kind of cool like there were a lot

of amazing things that happened there

were a lot of highlights it was a great

trip but at no point did it reach my

emotional world at no point during that

trip did I feel this explosion of joy

that I knew should be there so stressed

leading up to the trip didn't really get

much out of it when I did it waste of

time right waste of money wasn't worth

it no not true not true at all because

when I look back on that trip now I feel

incredible Joy because I I remember it

it was such a memorable experience that

even though I wasn't feeling the

feelings I should have been those images

there's certain just flashes of things

that happened in that trip that were so

memorable so

memorable that they just stuck in my

brain there they're core memories that I

will carry with me for the rest of my

life and now that I am in a different

place emotionally than I was then my

life is a lot different at 40 than it

was at 17 I still have access to those

memories they are still in my mind and I

am now in a place where I can pull up

those memories and replay them in my

brain and experience the feelings to

access the emotions that I should have

had then it's a lot

like when you're a kid maybe you

remember listening to a song or watching

a movie or reading a book that was a

little too advanced for you and and you

didn't really you didn't follow the plot

or you didn't really understand what it

was about and maybe you re-experienced

that thing as an adult and you're like

oh that's what this was about I get it

now it's a lot like that feeling if you

know what I'm talking about you can have

an appropriate emotional reaction to

things from your past even if you didn't

have it happen even if you didn't

experience that emotion During the

period of time when you were

experiencing that event I really hope

that made sense I know it's kind of out

there if it did if if it didn't make

sense leave a comment and let me know

and I'll try to use my text words to

explain it better um if it did make

sense then here's what I want you to try

to do with that

information when you're when you have

opportunities to do things during a

period of high depression or high

anxiety or both I want you to keep that

third time frame in mind I want you to

try and okay this is asking a lot big

leap of faith here okay but use me as if

you relate to me use my story as an

example because that means you and I we

have some things in common right I want

you to try to believe maybe even trust

oh let's say be open to the possibility

worst case

scenario that at some point in the

future you will be in a healthier place

and when you are in a healthier place

you will be able to go back and

experience some of the emot tions that

should have been present during the

experiences you had in periods of

heightened depression and anxiety if you

can keep that in your mind and if you

can believe in that and if you can still

get yourself to do things during this

phase of your life knowing I may not

feel it right now but I hope that I will

be able to later then you are basically

investing in the future you're you're

creating these emotional opportunities

that you are going to cash in on later

it's like putting money in a mutual fund

you're probably not going to touch that

money for a while it's not it's not

going to help you pay the bills you're

not it's not gonna really bring you a

lot of Joy or excitement you know it

goes they move

slowly but you're trusting that at some

point in the future you're going to be

able to cash in on that investment you

made that's what you're doing when you

still engage in in experiences that have

high potential for reward during periods

of time when you cannot feel that reward

if you don't do that what you're going

to end up with you're you're you're G to

end up with a period of time in your

life that looks like my life from ages

14 to 18 which is you end up with a

black hole you end up with just kind of

this blank space in your life where

there should be

experiences but there's just not much

because you hardly did anything

memorable for that 4-year period of my

life I remember almost nothing almost

nothing now there are probably many

reasons for that too like I also wasn't

taking good care of myself I wasn't

sleeping well I wasn't eating right I

was very sedentary um I wasn't managing

substances as well as I should have so

my my brain wasn't very healthy so some

of it I'm sure is that my brain wasn't

able to encode Memories the way it

probably should have but that's not the

only reason the other reason is I didn't

do anything thing I I had very few

experiences worth

remembering and so it's all just a big

blur of nothingness and I just have this

Gap in my life where good stuff should

be and I know now that although I

wouldn't have felt much differently

about my life then even if I had been

doing a lot of things that could

potentially feel good I would feel

differently about my life right now I

would have more happy memories to look

back on I would have more of a sense of

having lived in adolescence I I barely

feel like I lived it like there's just

nothing there so I hope that this makes

sense to you like I said if it doesn't

let me know and I'll do my best to

follow up on it um this is a newer idea

that I've been I've been kind of running

through my head for about a week so

anytime I have a new idea I always have

to kind of like Let It Bake for a while

first and I'm always a little wary that

I might have taken it out of the oven

too quickly so if you feel like I did

today you can tell me and and I'll work

on improving this idea but as always I

hope you got good value out of this and

if you did please take the time to share

like leave a comment you know do

whatever you can do to uh to help me get

this message out to more people because

that's all I'm trying to do you may

notice I'm I'm not selling a course or

or a product or anything like that I'm

I'm literally just trying to help that's

my only goal and you can help me by just

putting my word out there to more people

that's all I'll ever ask okay best of

luck to you take care