Really unusual symptoms?

Hi,

Hope you're all doing ok. I'm a rare visitor, but I just wanted to ask whether anyone else has symptoms like mine:

In (usually) October I suddenly get hit with an out-of-the blue bout of severe anxiety (it's come on like a switch before). This causes insomnia and subsequent depression. I have taken diazepam in the short term and escitalpram over the winter which makes life manageable.

(Autum last year though it came on as normal, then disappeared after 3 days! This is unusal. I still don't know whether it was prayer/luck/random/diet/exercise/something else. I've not had to be on SSRIs this winter though which I'm thankful for.)

But the other symptom I get is waking early particularly at weekends. Both Friday and Saturday nights this weekend (and often) I'll wake at 5. Last night I went to sleep at 1 so have had 4 hours sleep in the night. This means I'm either exhausted or catching up on sleep thoughout my weekend and I feel like I'm getting no weekends. It seems to be able to happen throughout the year (maybe not when I'm on SSRIs).

Having read Norman's book it seems like sleeping too much is the usual problem (although he does discuss insomnia).

Does anyone else have a pattern like this, or more gradual onset of depression and sleeping more - which seems more common?

Thanks,
Tom

No, I've never had it come on that quickly before. I slowly start to fall into SAD over the course of October, November, and December. I'm not at my worst until January, and I hover around there until March, when I feel either fine and normal or very depressed.

This continues until mid- to late-April, when I suddenly snap into hypomania. And I mean snap. As in last year it happened at around 9:30 P.M. on April 14. It was sudden and profound enough that I remember exactly when and where it happened.

Has anyone had a remission year ? I have had one year where I was still able to work and enjoy xmas etc.. it was fab ! then the next year all back to square 1 :0(

I don't remember that far back as I wasn't properly aware or diagnosed then. Last year was really bad and also 2 years ago. The inbetween one I managed to keep going to work. the others I had time off,

Think that was the first year of using my light box