It happens in life that a person is consumed by a feeling of loneliness and apathy towards everything and everyone. Such spiritual emptiness may arise once or twice, and quite often it can prevent you from living life to the fullest. Without a timely response, this condition can even develop into depression, which is considered a serious psychological illness. The information presented below will help you recognize the characteristic symptoms of this phenomenon in time or avoid their occurrence.
What is apathy syndrome?
What is apathy, what to do if you don’t want anything? In recent years, these questions have been asked not only by patients, but also by doctors. This problem is very common all over the world. A state of apathy can occur at any age. However, the syndrome is increasingly common among young people, children and adolescents. Apathy is expressed as a lack of interest in activities, events and everything around you. Previously, it was believed that a similar condition occurs after emotional breakdowns provoked by serious problems. Currently, this syndrome appears at first glance for no apparent reason. Nevertheless, it is necessary to fight apathy. Otherwise, it will lead to depression.
Warning signs are:
- Violation of the emotional background. It is expressed in an inadequate reaction or its absence to any events.
- Decreased appetite.
- Slowing of thought processes, memory lapses.
- Inhibition of physical reactions. Patients begin to perform more and more slowly.
Disease “apathy” - what to do if you don’t want to do anything: causes
Even though there are no obvious reasons for apathy, this syndrome does not arise without reason. There are always some factors that contribute to this. Therefore, before you complain that a loved one has apathy, laziness, or doesn’t want to do anything, you need to talk to him. In most cases, the cause of this condition lies in unspoken experiences that constantly bother the patient. Psychological factors include:
- Problems at work. Often, apathy occurs if a person is not interested in his activity, and he engages in it only out of necessity.
- Love experiences. Often the cause of apathy is unrequited feelings or concern for loved ones.
- A serious illness due to which a person suffers not only physically, but also psychologically.
- Transitional age. This category includes teenagers and older people.
- Loss of a loved one.
- Inability to realize your plans.
- Changes in life: change of sphere of activity, team, place of residence.
- Premenstrual syndrome.
It happens that all these reasons are absent, but the problem still exists. In these cases, patients ask: why is there apathy and don’t want to do anything? If such a problem arises, you need to find out what else can lead to it.
Possible reasons
Many of us have encountered a situation where “everyone is lazy”, you don’t want to do anything, there is only one desire - to lie down on the sofa and lie down. But some people allow themselves momentary weakness, while others make it their lifestyle. At the same time, they degrade as individuals.
I bring to your attention the most common answers to the question of why you don’t want to do anything, the most common causes of apathy.
- Serious problems with well-being, the presence of chronic illnesses. It is extremely difficult for a person whose blood pressure fluctuates, very high or, on the contrary, low, whose body temperature rises or falls, to concentrate on any task. Naturally, he does not have the strength to complete any tasks. Therefore, it is extremely important to monitor your health, diagnose diseases in time, and treat them. If you have chronic illnesses, be under the supervision of a specialist and receive the necessary medications in a timely manner.
- Emotional or physical burnout is the result of prolonged overexertion. When a person overloads himself, the body does not have enough time to fully recover, stress accumulates, as a result of which the person does not want to do anything. You can get rid of exhaustion through good rest and a change in activity. Often, having a hobby or practicing meditation helps with this.
- Lack of motivation. A person becomes depressed when he does not see a purpose in his life. The older we get, the harder it is to motivate ourselves.
- The monotony of everyday days, the absence of bright events in life, any changes. In such a situation, it is extremely important for a person to expand his social circle, meet other people more often and spend time with them, not refuse invitations to all kinds of events, go to the theater, concert, or cinema. We have the power to diversify our lives ourselves.
- Problems at work or in your personal life. It is especially difficult when they arrive at the same time. For example, a situation when a man loses his job, and in addition to this, his wife leaves home. Here, not only will the desire to do something disappear, the person may become depressed and even begin to think about suicide. In such cases, it is important to pull yourself together, analyze the last years of your life, reassess your priorities, and realize where you need to move next.
- Often the cause of apathy lies in low self-esteem and lack of self-confidence. Perhaps you don't want to do something because you're afraid of failure and people's ridicule and criticism. If you remain inactive, nothing will change in life. Sometimes it's worth taking a risk and trying to achieve something. Surely, there is something in which you can succeed, and this is what you need to focus on.
- Poor nutrition or lack of adequate sleep leads to complete loss of strength. In such a situation, it is extremely important to analyze your daily routine and make sure that you have a balanced diet, full of all the necessary biologically active substances.
Like any person, from time to time I am overcome by a reluctance to do anything. This mainly happens when I am in a state of nervous overstrain. My husband's support helps me fight apathy. He finds the right words, motivates me to take action, and I get back on track.
Relationship between apathy syndrome and physical condition
In some cases, the patient is not really bothered by psychological problems. Then you need to find out: what kind of lifestyle does he have, are there any diseases of the endocrine system? Apathy also often develops in people taking certain medications. Among the causes causing this syndrome are the following conditions:
- Chronic diseases of the cardiovascular system. Due to the fact that a person is constantly tormented by discomfort in the chest or high blood pressure, apathy often occurs. After all, almost everyone knows about the complications of these pathologies (heart attack, stroke). In addition to worries about your health, apathy syndrome manifests itself as a result of lifestyle changes (quitting smoking, mental stress, playing sports).
- Past serious illnesses. In this case, the loss of interest in life is explained by the constant fear of a “new blow.”
- Oncological pathologies. A state of apathy occurs in almost every person faced with cancer. After all, according to the majority, cancer leads to inevitable death. To dispel this stereotype, coordinated work of doctors of several specialties is required.
- Diseases of the endocrine system. Often apathy is caused by hormonal dysfunction that occurs with pathologies of the adrenal glands, diabetes mellitus, and pituitary adenoma.
- Chronic alcoholism and drug addiction.
- Taking hormonal medications. Among them are glucocorticosteroids (medicines Prednisolone, Dexamethasone), oral contraceptives.
- Use of antihypertensive drugs. These include drugs “Enalapril”, “Clonidine”, etc.
- Avitaminosis.
What to do when you don't feel like doing anything
You need to find out the reasons for your reluctance to do something. Fatigue, a huge number of accumulated urgent matters, lack of clear goals, loss of interest in work, profession, leads to only one result. Tasks are piling up, desire and strength are running out.
The reason may be hidden in simple laziness.
If you are tired, take a rest, go on vacation or a weekend tour. A change of scenery, new acquaintances, and physical activity will bring you to your senses.
In addition to laziness, there are other serious reasons: procrastination, depression, chronic fatigue syndrome. They appear against the backdrop of rush jobs at work, loss of interest in the profession, and wrong goals in life. In such situations, a banal rest will not help.
Chaos at work?
Start small. Don't rush to start the first task you come across. Tidy up your desk. Wipe off the dust, sort out the papers on the table, remove unnecessary files from the computer.
Engage in monotonous work that does not require attention and knowledge. The main thing is to start doing something.
Make a list of urgent tasks on your calendar to clear up the mess. Thus, you will see that everything can really be taken apart. Remember, there will always be urgent matters!
Don't have the strength to get started?
Maybe it’s worth changing your profession, introducing new cases and tasks into the service? A change in activity has a positive effect on your mood.
Remember, when you come to a new workplace there is no time to be bored and sad. You need to delve into the work and get to know the team. And after six months, a year, everything returns to normal, interest is lost, the passion for work disappears. Change job responsibilities regularly, do not allow stagnation.
Target doesn't light?
Is this your goal? Sincere or imposed by society?
Prestigious profession, apartment, house, car. Maybe in your heart you want to give up everything, take a photography course and travel? Stay alone with yourself, throw away your thoughts and honestly admit what you want to achieve in life?
Social aspects of apathy
Psychologists all over the world are trying to figure out: where does apathy come from, what to do if you don’t want anything? After all, this problem has acquired enormous proportions today. Because of the apathy syndrome, not only the patient himself suffers, but also the entire society. Indifference to work, study and social progress leads to the loss of qualified personnel, improper education of the future generation, etc. In severe cases, this condition can even lead to suicide. Therefore, you need to know how to behave towards someone who has apathy, what to do if someone close to you doesn’t want anything. The interest of society in such cases is of great importance. Apathy often occurs when a person believes that no one understands him. Also, the appearance of this syndrome is associated with non-recognition of the patient as a valuable employee or a superficial attitude on the part of others.
Why is there emptiness in my soul?
If you suddenly become aware of a nagging feeling of dissatisfaction and wonder: why do I feel empty inside me, try to sort out your life. To understand how to deal with a problem, you need to understand where it came from. Sometimes this is how hidden depression or accumulated fatigue manifests itself.
An example would be two childless couples who experience their life circumstances differently. One couple understands that they are not destined to experience the joy of parenthood, they have come to terms with this fact and began to live only for themselves. They don't feel empty inside. At least on this matter. Another couple still hasn't given up hope of becoming parents, and they can't stop thinking about it.
A potential mother looks longingly at other children, dreams of her own child, and this continues for years. The husband, looking at his beloved wife, feels guilty that things didn’t work out. As a result, grief, regret, guilt, bitterness, disappointment accumulate for years, and all this results in a feeling of emptiness inside, which only a child can fill. They think so, but in reality they are driving themselves into a corner.
For example, the emptiness inside me arose in my youth, when I really wanted to find my love, but there was not a single suitable candidate for a relationship around. Many teenagers tend to feel like outcasts because of their way of thinking, behavior, interests, and inability to communicate. And all this can cause deep inner loneliness.
Why does apathy occur in childhood?
Unfortunately, apathy syndrome has become widespread in children. In this case, parents should definitely consult with a psychologist about what may cause apathy, what to do if the child does not want anything? As you know, children spend most of their time at home or at school. Therefore, the cause of the problem must be looked for there. Indifference to the environment can be caused by upbringing. In most cases, those children who rarely spend time with their parents suffer from apathy. Indifference can also be caused by an incorrect approach to the child on the part of teachers. In both cases, it is necessary to have conversations with the child as often as possible, perform some tasks together, interest him in games, etc. Another reason for apathy in childhood is the child’s inability to find a common language with peers. At the same time, you should try to organize joint events more often. This will help children communicate with each other outside of school hours and find common interests.
Examples from animal life
The German scientist gave many examples from the life of the animal world. I will only mention a few of them. The king of beasts, the lion, lives in the wild for no more than 10 years. Every day he has to run tens of kilometers in search of food. The lion's body consists of a well-developed muscular system, like that of a track and field runner. If we draw a parallel with the lifestyle of a lion and a person, then, undoubtedly, the animal can be classified as a representative of a healthy lifestyle.
Finding himself in an artificial environment - a zoo, a lion miraculously lives up to 20 years. At the same time, the animal leads a less active lifestyle - it lies down more and moves slowly around the enclosure. And, really, why should an animal strain if there are no enemies and food is served on schedule. The lazy lion turned out to be a long-liver.
The same can be said about the polar bear. Under natural conditions, a clubfoot lives no more than 20 years, but in a zoo, life expectancy can reach 40-45 years. The reasons for this incident are the same as those for the king of beasts. Progress in terms of longevity is evident. Laziness is the engine of progress, who said? Still the same eccentric scientist Peter Akst.
Methods to combat apathy
Before deciding what to do if you are indifferent to everything, you need to find out exactly why apathy arose, what to do if you don’t want anything. The solution to the problem depends not only on the work of a specialist. To get rid of this condition, you also need the desire of the patient himself. Treatment depends on what caused the apathy. In case of influence of psychological factors, it is necessary to seek medical help. Sometimes you can get rid of apathy on your own, but to do this you need to recognize the problem and make an effort to solve it. Similar methods include: changing the scope of activity, relaxation, conversations with loved ones. If the problem is caused by physical factors, then it is worth eliminating them.
“Apathy” syndrome - what to do if you don’t want to do anything: treatment
A psychologist treats apathy. Initial sessions are devoted to finding out the reason for indifference. If apathy occurs as a result of stressful situations, not only psychological but also drug treatment is necessary. Most often this applies to cases where the patient has lost someone close to him or his job. Drugs that calm the nervous system and antidepressants are prescribed. Among them are medications: Magnesium B6, Prozac, Persen. It is worth remembering that these drugs are not indicated in all cases. The main method of treatment is psychotherapy. In case of drug-induced apathy, it is recommended to replace medications that provoke indifference. In case of hormonal dysfunction, consultation with an endocrinologist is necessary.
How to get rid of apathy: expert advice
How to behave if apathy appears, what to do if you don’t want anything? Advice from a psychologist will help you regain interest in life. These include the following instructions:
- Identify the cause of dissatisfaction with life.
- Relax in an unusual environment (go to the sea, spend a weekend with friends).
- Change your field of activity if the cause of apathy lies in work.
- Make time to do what you love.
- Change your usual lifestyle.
