I've been on this forum for quite a while (crossover from AZ). I've had health anxiety for the better part of 30+ years. I was diagnosed as OCD with hypochondria many years ago. Though it doesn't fit the exact profile of the classic hypochondriac, it really is just that my fears and obsessions are focused around health/illness. It has waxed and waned and I've had some long stretches of good times. I've been through therapy over the years (different types with different modalities), and have been on medication for quite a while.
I've come a long way since my early 20's when I essentially had a deep nervous breakdown with my HA. That was when I first (and finally) sought treatment. At that time I was not sleeping, barely eating, my already tiny frame had whittled down to a mere 99 lbs and I looked like a shell of a human being. Singularly the very worst time of my life.
Fast forward to the present. Despite medication and therapy, I still suffer HA bouts. They can - and often do - devolve into a depression. Anxiety and depression are familiar bedfellows as many of you likely know. Thankfully the eipisodes are fewer and further in-between, and with learned coping skills I handle them more effectively. However I recently have been beset by one that has really taken hold. I haven't had one this bad in a number of years.
The morning anxiety is the worst. I wake with heart racing and immediately on high alert. I know this pattern, it's familiar and a well worn groove. The knot in the stomach, racing heart, and sense of immediate anxiety, right upon wakening. I try to get up, make my cup of tea, watch the news (weather) and just get going with the day. I have a job and I have to get there no matter what, so I don't have a choice.
How do you all deal with the dreaded morning anxiety? Any tips or ideas? I try to slow my breathing, if I have time I'll put on a meditation tape (I particularly like the audio tapes from Health Journeys with Bellaruth Naperstak. Excellent resource for guided imagery and affirmations for various issues.)
Do others have this morning anxiety as a feature manifestation? What is odd is by the end of the day I am generally in much better spirits. No, my anxiety is not resolved, but for whatever reason, my ability to think more rationally seems improved toward the end of the day. Morning are, by far, the very worst.
Thanks for listening/reading. I'd love to hear of others experiences.
Reply With Quote
I have this morning anxiety too, I think it's because you've got the whole day ahead and are unsure of what it will bring. As soon as I wake up I have a churning stomach, feel sick, fast heart rate, it's horrible. The only thing that helps for me is getting up and getting into the day, once I get going it starts to ease. Also don't lay in bed for ages once you wake up, get up immediately even though it's hard!
