18 and anxious

18 and anxious

QUESTION:

your avatar   Jenn, 18 year old woman

Well to start off, I smoke cigarettes and marijuana, and just had surgery done for hernia repair. I feel I might have depression and have had it for a long time now. I don't go out much mainly because there is nothing to do. My biggest problem is that I'm afraid of a lot of things. I'm afraid of getting or finding a full-time job, I'm afraid of growing up or afraid of the future...I'm scared of pretty much getting my future career started by either school or just heading in the right direction. I don't know if it might be depression because I'm unhappy most of the time but yet I am able to have relationships (I'm in one now). However, even when I am in a relationship I tend to move very quickly, like I want to be engaged or married so I know I will be with that person forever. I think most of the fears come from the marijuana but I'm no expert so I need some advice. Please Help!

ANSWER:

    Steven T. Griggs, Ph.D.

Sounds like you have more anxiety than depression, but you should know that major depression comes with anxiety about 75% of the time. You speculate that the marijuana might be causing your anxiety. Well, stop smoking and see if the anxiety goes away. Usually however, people smoke pot to decrease their anxiety, so unless you're having a bad reaction to something in the marijuana, it's probably not that. You may have agoraphobia. That's the fear of going out in public.

You also sound very insecure, personally. Wanting to jump right in to a relationship to alleviate your unhappiness is about anxiety, but usually also about a very low self-image. You can't fix that by just being in a relationship, having a good job, looking attractive or being bright. Self-image work involves going back to its genesis and understanding how it came about, then re-working the pieces and progressing back to the present. Then, you need some assertiveness training along the way to fortify your results.

The pot use, possible depression and self-image work all require the skills of a well-trained therapist.

This question was answered by Steven T. Griggs, Ph.D. Steven has been licensed in California since 1984 and has three separate degrees in Social, Counseling and Clinical Psychology. He is also the author of several articles and ebooks, available on his website, that instruct people on how to diagnose and treat several issues.For more information visit: http://www.psychologyproductsandservices.com

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