could it all be down to being lonely?

well I was dreading christmas thinking it would be too difficult. BUT my sister came down and my gran and i had a lovely time and didnt have a single panic attack for a week while they were here also my general level of anxiety was considerably less, when my sister left i just felt so awful and since then i have been back to my old self - panic , worry depression.

I live with my husband and kids and we have a good relationship but when my sister was here thigns were so different and for some reason these changes seemed to make my anxiety alot less. I have been trying to pinpoint what it was about the time that made it better but i just cant out my finger on it?

could it be loneliness? or could it be that my normal routine is making things bad for me? do i need to change how i am?

its all so confusing!

sophie

Hi Sophie,

Firstly, it's good to hear you had a great Christmas. That's important and i bet you felt so good to have some peace from your anxiety.

It's possible the reason for you 'forgetting' your anxiety is because you just had such a great time and had no time to think about your usual worrying thoughts. When all that went away, you went back to how things usually are - thinking about your anxiety, trying to cope with anxiety, trying to beat your anxiety. Even when you're trying not think about it, you're subconsciously telling yourself to think about nothing but anxiety. Annoying, but very true!

So, that's my guess as to what's happening with you now. You need to somehow change your thoughts - not change them into positive thoughts, but change how you think about things, how you see things (i'm not a trained psychotherapist, so i can't explain it properly!!).

I hope you feel better soon.

Gregor

I think been lonely, or feeling lonely, can bring on anxiety, as u have too much time to think....

Hi Sophie,

I'm sure having your sister and gran to stay lifted your mood and has been a great distraction from your anxiety. It would have been a weight off your back having the kids entertained for a little while by someone else.

Maybe it would be a good idea to think of other things that you might enjoy to do as a distraction and ease your anxiety. Even if you have some 'you' time each week to do what you want.

If you don't work it could be loneliness. My hubby works but I don't, so feel lonely quite often, which makes my anxiety a lot worse.

Take care