Zoloft, Prozac, and Wellbutrin seem to be the most easily tolerated drugs. I had a double the FDA recommended dose. Took forever to find that Dr. ti know that I could even go higher. Although my life was significantly different/better back then as far as circumstances go. I couldn't imagine, at the time, it getting any worse, but it did. I was against drugs until I was like 19. Lithium is said to help with suicidal thoughts. Was on that too. Besides the weight gain I think it helped during that period, if only briefly. Getting myself to feel like I could breathe through my anxiety was another key, tried valium for the first time after failed quasi-anxiety drugs. Was on a decent amount of that while I increased the Zoloft. That was the period where I finally started dating.
After many more drugs failing to produce anything I dug for more deeper results in esketamine and DXM which are new to the depression genre, to build new pathways. Haven't been helpful but I'm really a hopeless case; and therefore not a good test subject.
I'd say try any of these combos. Took me years to get a "boost" from my chronic oversleeping (hypersomnia) and fatigue. I'm an advocate for using nootropics/stimulants for these symptoms, among others, on the clinically depressed like myself since the reward, pleasure, and motivation centers are greatly skewed. Since stimulants look to increase dopamine and target this region this increases the odds.
Still working on that currently.
I'd also advise anyone to look up "avolition" and types of "abulia" as these follow my anhedonia.
As far as behaviorally, I hate when people go overboard in preaching about sleep hygiene and eating decently/hydration but that's something else that can leave you depleted. I'd say isolation can be a killer too even though we think isolating at the time is best. We're social creatures and truly not meant to be this lonely. It leaves us to curl up with our negative crap that we can't escape and rot with it. Searching for answers that only we'd be able to find was another. Can't keep doing the same things and hoping something will change, because that day will never come. It's extremely difficult to push yourself when you're running on nothing but guilt/shame, despair, grief, and empty hopes and dreams, etc.
Therapy was always a waste for me. The only lasting thing that I ever took away from it was from a woman I liked, who simply said, "This will be the hardest thing you will ever do." Just living, as myself, in my own mind, fighting against it. A lifelong thing. It's excruciatingly painful to know you're standing in your own way, with self-destructive ways and self-sabotaging behavior, especially when you feel that you can't do anything any other way. It's literally hanging on, minute by minute. It's barbaric and brutual. I love horror movies, and also say I would Saw off my own foot at any time, just to break these chains.
