Yeah, I know. "Labels," and touchy-feely shit!
So, in my mid-30's I suddenly became debilitatingly shy and believed everything and everyone was out to get me, persecute me and hurt me, including the sky above, so I curled up in the fetal position for four months and refused to have anything to do with anyone, anything or anyplace. No drugs, alcohol, other substances or sudden trauma involved. That's the plain language version.
In retrospect, I'm glad I didn't do the pro golf thing. I enjoyed the game... and that would probably have ended once it became work. I wanted to keep that enthusiasm you mention!
That's an interesting one...(no triggger that you can think of..Not even a break up, or having some money stolen - or anything?)
We could use the term "breaking point," and say that I found mine.
A friend who works with PTSD (another "label") and deprogramming people who've been in cults has pointed out that we tend to be very open to look at "Big Tragedies" and give people a hall pass for suffering a breakdown... but we overlook/dismiss the cumulative effect of a very long string of minor negative events.
There's a mathematical precept called "The Law of Truly Large Numbers" which holds that something truly unlikely in fact WILL happen to someone, somewhere.
When I revisit that time in my life — with the wisdom of 20+ years of hindsight — I can see how I played a seemingly endless series of "losing hands" over a 5-6 year period; even the hands that looked good would somehow fall apart due to something completely random outside my control.
That's my most objective explanation.
That makes sense.
I went (more) nuts when my dad was dying, after looking after him for four years.
As soon as the responsibility was taken out of my hands (looked after in a nursing home), and with no one to talk too - I 'went recluse'.
Bought myself a camper and wandered around lost for 6 months ,busy driving everywhere - with nowhere to go.
Then I pulled my shit together - and became a professional semi-hermit!lol