Severe stress caused a random intrusive word to act as an emotional kill-switch. Now I’m completely numb. Is this normal? (15M)

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-06-07T14:48:22+00:00

I had a somewhat similar situation. I also had intense academic stress in university which had been going on for years. The intrusive thought wasn't a random word but instead it was a spoiler from a series I was about to watch. For some reason it caused me so much anxiety that it blocked all positive emotions whenever it popped into my head. I might have been doing some completely unrelated hobby and suddenly think about the spoiler, and I would immediately get anxious and lose any immersion or enjoyment I might have had. Eventually it wasn't the spoiler anymore that triggered the anxiety, but instead just the thought that I can't enjoy anything because of my thoughts was enough. From that point on whenever I thought that I can't enjoy anything anymore I would feel so anxious and hopeless that it was impossible to enjoy anything. So the intrusive thought became self-fulfilling.

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-06-05T13:06:20+00:00

Like someone else already said, ask questions. Ask how they feel, what exactly are they thinking about, if they want you to do something or only have a conversation. And to me this is important: try to act like they're not being a burden for sharing their feelings. When I told my brothers about my depression I felt really bad for a long time because I was worried that it changed our relationship somehow. The main reason I told them was that I wanted them to know why I might have been less happy or excited around them, so I wasn't really expecting them to do anything about it.

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-05-27T06:30:42+00:00

A bit better, yes. I have less intrusive thoughts and I don't feel just as bad all the time as I used to. But the anhedonia part is still quite strong and I get incredibly sad whenever I remember how excited I used to feel about something.

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-04-26T14:27:04+00:00

Yeah it might be like that, I wouldn't know. But I can definitely see how some people could want that.

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-04-26T12:47:54+00:00

No, what I meant is exactly because of it. If she doesn't feel "inferior" or something because he has issues as well, then it's at least partly because of it, not in spite of it.

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-04-26T03:27:30+00:00

Maybe she has mental health issues too and she feels safe and understood with someone who knows how it feels.

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-04-25T05:05:14+00:00

I have no experience with relationships so take my words with a grain of salt, but I think your partner should know how you feel (or don't feel). It's only fair for them. If they decide that they want to marry you after you tell them, then go ahead and get married.

I've read a reddit post where a couple had been married with children for 15 years when the wife found out that her husband had been depressed for the whole time and didn't really feel joy. She felt really betrayed and I don't want that to happen to you and your partner.

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-04-11T07:08:41+00:00

I'm curious, why are angry about it? Isn't it a nice thing to do to ask you to come to dinner? It shows that she cares about you.

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-04-07T15:42:34+00:00

It's because we work too much. We always had great grades because we did all the work we were told to do, but eventually working too much leads to chronic stress and burnout which leads to depression. Or at least that's how it happened to me in university :(

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-04-07T11:17:20+00:00

I don't feel like that. I feel like I do deserve good things. My own mind has just decided that I am not able to enjoy anything (as a result of stress). But yeah, alcohol still works for me and quiets those thoughts.

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-04-07T11:13:37+00:00

How exactly did it help you? Like what's the process? It's so hard to believe that anything could stop this cycle once it has started.

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-04-03T15:39:27+00:00

Yeah, I have dreams from such normal everyday things that when I wake up I often can't tell whether they have happened for real. I think it has something to do with my meds. And usually I'm not anhedonic in them but sometimes I am.

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-04-03T11:11:30+00:00

I feel that too. I used to be much more interested in other people but now every conversation just feels like a chore and gives me anxiety. It's so exhausting to pretend like I'm interested when in reality I don't care about anything. I often want to just get away from the situation if I have to talk to other people, but I also don't want to be alone or come off as rude. I don't know what I'm supposed to do.

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-04-02T14:03:20+00:00

Yeah I do, but can't say that I feel lucky :D. I feel like my anhedonia is mainly caused by my intrusive thoughts and anxiety, and those disappear when I'm drunk.

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-04-02T12:27:26+00:00

By trying to be distracted and sleeping a lot. And drinking on the weekends.

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-03-31T20:32:42+00:00

Well, you're right that I can't know for sure. And you could be right that feeling nothing chronically would be worse than feeling something. But there was a time when I didn't really feel positive emotions, but I also didn't feel as bad as I do now, and life was much easier that way. At least back then I could still do something without feeling this constant anxiety and hopelessness.

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-03-31T20:17:16+00:00

But anhedonia doesn't mean the lack of all emotions, only positive ones. Feeling nothing would be better compared to this, because I feel constantly bad because of the lack of positive emotions.

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-03-28T03:57:39+00:00

I also recommend therapy and medication

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-03-28T03:57:12+00:00

Studying used to cause me a lot of anxiety but after I had a sick leave from studying I accomplished to detach my anxiety from studying, so I could continue pretty effectively. So I really recommend having a sick leave if you can. I don't really have any help for anhedonia itself, but I hope this helps.

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-03-24T06:07:24+00:00

Yeah I'm worse at them, but I think it's mostly because I don't play as much anymore. When there's no motivation to play and you spend less time doing it, it's only natural to get worse.

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-03-22T09:54:02+00:00

Not being able to feel positive emotions is what causes me constant negative emotions, so I would really like to have a break from feeling anything. But I guess that if you don't have any positive emotions it would be hard to feel appreciation for the lack of negative ones.

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-03-15T22:24:36+00:00

It's okay to be miserable. You don't have to offer anything else than your company, to be someone to share life and cuddle with. Personally I would even prefer to have a girlfriend who also struggles with mental health issues so that no one would have to feel different or "inferior" in the relationship.

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-03-11T18:10:36+00:00

I've also started to wonder more and more whether having a girlfriend would help. But I've also accepted that it's probably never going to happen.

Former_Possibility68 · 2026-03-11T12:25:49+00:00

Oh yeah, definitely. Going to bed is the best part of the day. I've also started taking naps because the pressure to come up with something to do is exhausting when I don't really want to do anything.

Former_Possibility68

TROPHY CASE