Newbie here - Please tell me it's not just me.

[wendy35107]

Hi everyone, this is my first post, so a big :hugs: to everyone.

I've been suffering with anxiety for about a year now, I am an only child and I live in a different country to my parents now and this time last year I found out my mum had cancer, that was my trigger.

I'm on 10mg of citrilopram a day and I really do think they are helping me out with regards to the actual attacks, but I am constantly on edge.

I spend so much time every single day worrying about how I feel, that I make myself feel worse, I have an app on my iphone that can test your heart rate and I've become utterly obsessed with it, if my heart rate is what I deem too slow or too fast, the anxiety just takes over.

I worry about how I'm breathing, what I'm eating, what I'm doing every day - My worst time is by far bed time, when I'm lying with nothing but silence and my own thoughts, my brain goes into overdrive.

I've recently been feeling "fuzzy" headed and a little tight chested most days, but again it comes and goes, the more I think about it, the more it's obvious, I try not to think about it, but you know what it's like, a foreign pain or feeling of any kind (even trapped wind for me!!) sends me into a downward spiral.

I just wanted some reasuurance I guess that it can and will get better.

Take care all xxx

[lg123]

I've been there and I know how unpleasant it is! I've had the 'fuzzy' head feeling, I've obsessed about my breathing, I've felt sick, I've had problems sleeping and like you I worried about every little thing that went on in my body. I used to think I had any number of physical problems and spent hours researching my symptoms. My breakthrough with the physical symptoms came when I realised they are just anxiety and nothing else so I let them come and when I relaxed and took my mind off things they lessened or went away. I think it's important not to fear these things and be scared of feeling them as that makes things worse. When I was relaxed I would think, oh I hope my obsession about breathing doesn't come back and it did because I was scared of it. Relaxation exercises help and the citalopram really took the edge off the general panic and anxiety for me. I made the mistake of avoiding doing things because I was worried about being anxious but I've now realised that you have to feel the fear and do it anyway. This way you're telling your body that there isn't anything to be scared of. It's so hard to start with but it does get easier. Also don't put any pressure on yourself to feel better immediately or by a certain time. Just let it happend gradually. And make sure you give yourself lots of things to look forward to (even little things like reading a book or having a bath) and plan ahead for your future. Don't wait until you feel better to do things. Most importantly, be kind to yourself.

Hope that helps!