I’m pretty sure by now that I’ve been depressed since my early teens. I’ve always been chronically lazy and don’t get much joy out of life. I’m very introverted. I have occasional short bursts of extreme motivation, which leads me to do something to improve my life for a day, before quickly regressing to my norm.

To make matters worse, modern life has introduced me to binge watching, doom scrolling, and WFH. Whereas I’d get incidental exercise from my daily public transport commute (e.g. running to the bus stop because I’m always late), that’s all gone now. I’m a chronic procrastinator as well.

I don’t have any profound sadness as such. Just a general lack of motivation and routine and always feeling lethargic.

Is this depression? Can I realistically expect to pull myself out of it without seeking professional help and medicating, given it’s been an almost lifelong condition? Can I make these bursts of motivation stick somehow?