not sure if these symtoms

[tricia56]

Fierstly Sorry I haven't replied to some of you from my last post but since saterday I've been getting these symtoms and I'm not sure if its just anxiety or something physicaly wrong so my anxiety is thro the roof worring about them . I know ur not doctors but I jsust thought id ask on here befor I rush to doc like normaly do .so on saterday morning I felt anxiose as normal but I decided to tiedy up but all of sudden my arms and legs went really weak and since then they keep going like it and my right upper arm keeps going tight and I keep feeeling as if I can't breathe properly ,I've also got abit of back ache so my mind is going into overdrive and thinking the worse .

[Beckybecks]

My arms and legs go weak when I'm anxious. And I battle with my breathing too. its probably anxiety that's causing your physical symptoms. Try to relax for a bit and when you feel calmer see how your arms and legs are. Probably the symptom will disappear when the anxiety does. Don't rush to the Doctor yet. Do some research on what you can do to relax, like herbal tea, a walk outside, breathing exercises, yoga, or anything that makes you happy. Hope you feel better soon.

[Pepperpot]

I aint no doctor either, but I get this. I try and think that if these symptoms come and go then Anxiety causes them x

[MyNameIsTerry]

How do you feel now, Tricia?

Weakness and fatigue are very common with anxiety/depression so it's certainly a possibility. Sometimes doing something more energetic or heavier can leave you feeling a bit weak and you wonder why you can't do what you could before. It's just how it takers it out of your body sometimes.

[tricia56]

Hi terry thks for asking I ended up going to see gp Monday night as I couldn't stop worring they said its probly anxiety but I'm still worring as I've been like it since saterday and its not getting any better ive even geting pain in my right foot and my legs really aches especialy today as my arms keep feeling weak and the muscles even hurt , as even when I just do something simple like I peeled some potatoes afterwards it made my arms worse and been like it ever since. I know I've been feeling really anxiose since staterday which is probly why my arms and legs are like it but I can't help thinking its not anxiety its ms for some reason and that makes me panic more , just wish I didn't react the way I do everytime I get new symtoms instead of just execepting they are just symtoms of anxiety.

[MyNameIsTerry]

Hi Tricia,

Sometimes you can get weakness with nerve issues. I don't mean anything sinister, just that you feel weak and like you don't have much strength to do the basics and I often think anxiety has connections with general nerve issues e.g. I've had issues with the nerves in my face when I've been really stressed at work (even before my GAD started once) and I've had sciatica now for about 18 months.

Try to relax your muscles, like in a nice bath. Maybe even nutrition could play a part e.g. lack of certain things which are essential for nerve or muscles?

I know what you mean. It's part acceptance of anxiety and part toughening yourself up too. At my worst I am jumping a mile at noises and if my arm touched a cupboard I would be pulling it in quickly or even thinking of the physical sensations as a problem despite having many knocks over the years that would say the opposite! I'm probably lucky in not having HA but my GAD has been largely symptom focussed so whilst I knew it was anxiety, it still scared me and I hated the physical symptoms the most. This is where I think you have to change your mental attitude towards it by hardening yourself to the physical so it bothers you less because "so what, it's just X".

[tricia56]

Thk you terry , think u are right I need to be abit tuffer with myself and start saying saying So what instead .

[pulisa]

I don't think that you truly believe that your symptoms are due to anxiety, Tricia? I know it's hard to accept that they are when no one will be able to tell you that 100% they are but in order to move forward you must try to accept your symptoms as anxiety based.

[tricia56]

Thks pulsa you are so right about me not truly exepting as I know if I could do thatthen I know I can move on but I don't know I just can't seem to do it as to be honest I don't know how to, I do tell myself so what I feel anxiouse and they are symtoms of anxiety and try to let just wash over me but because it don't go down or symtoms don't go strait away I just sit there all day worring about how i feel and wishing and hoping it will pass I even get abit scared to even just try and do something because I let myself get so over whemed and end up either posting on here or fone up helpline or run to gp for resurrance even tho I know its just anxiety and it can't harm me but for some reason I can't reassure myself and let it just be there. So I think that's why ware I'm going wrong and not being able to move forward ,.

[MyNameIsTerry]

Anxiety thrives on doubt, especially the obsessive forms like HA & OCD. Its a matter of learning to accept that doubt is fine and stopping the "all our nothing thinking". We may often get to being 99.9% convinced but it is never enough as we are looking for the absolutes, the 100%, perfection. Fight or flight mode is looking for absolutes to plan it's reactions but these are often unachievable so we learn to live with the fact that we can't always have an answer to the question.

Acceptance can be one of the hardest things to learn. Fight or flight is not interested in it so it takes a lot of effort and time to retrain your subconscious. I think part of it is self confidence, self worth, self esteem, etc too because we need to rebuild these areas so that we are more accepting of ourselves in being able to do self talk as opposed to seek outside opinion for reassurance. It takes time so don't be too hard on yourself about not being able to do it.

[tricia56]

Thk u terryyou are a great help to me with your kind help and advice , hope you are doing ok yourself as I never seem to ask about how ur doing.

[MyNameIsTerry]

Thanks Tricia, I'm ok just working through all the usual stuff really with the ongoing blips.

People are here for you if you need them and in time you can build the strength to be self assured. Keep working on using all the feedback from people like your GP from the past visits as your evidence and try not to allow to much time to be thinking at these times until you find yourself getting more confident in letting it pass.

[pulisa]

Anxiety symptoms can be widespread, unpredictable and extremely unnerving but the fact that you've had all these symptoms and are still here to tell the tale after being reassured by your GP is proof that you have physical symptoms of anxiety and nothing more sinister. But you have to believe that and until you do the doubts will creep in and symptoms will taunt you.

It's really not easy to believe and take this on board and every day can be a challenge because none of us are 100% sure that we are "ok" but we have to try to challenge our doubting thoughts as otherwise we are just left in the vicious circle of anxiety which affects us so negatively.

[tricia56]

Thk you terry and pulsa ,I have to start to believing and challenging my thoughts, its hard tho when every day I seem to feel some kind of pain or acheso I think that's whyi self doubt and can't believe that its just anxiety even tho I know anxiety can cause so many symtoms, I always seem to question and analize every thought and feeling for example this morning I woke up and for some reason I started to feel as if I want cry and I don't know why and strat away I started to think why do i feel like this what if i am getting deppression so that's playing on my mind and making me feel more anxiouse and scared for some reason . I hope you both don't mind me talking to you both about myself how I think and feel , as just want to explain a better understanding of how I am and maybe u and other members could possibly give me advice and tips to help me manage the anxiety a lot better.

[MyNameIsTerry]

Of course not, Tricia, thats what these place are for and people reply because they care and want to help.

I can remember waking up wanting to cry because the anxiety was at it's worse in the first half of the day and it was just yet another day slogging it out and hating my existence. I can remember getting so sick of having no point and just feeling bad at all time and being out on my walks in tears.

Anxiety brings periods of low mood with it but that mean real depression. It comes & goes, it's more like mood swings. Besides, what happens when someone who doesn't get bombarded with all these problems when they feel things have got on top of them? Don't they cry too? So, why do we look on it negatively, we can only take so much before we become emotionally overwhelmed.

As you recover these things happen less & less and the crying goes away as you have become stronger in yourself. So, in a way you just keep moving towards a better place in your recovery and some things just come along and don't always need working on.

Talk all you want to, Tricia. Whenever I see you, you are always apologising for things like this and you really don't need to. You don't post that much compared to some of here anyway, not that it even matters as Nic has said to you when you've mentioned it in the past. I think you are lovely respectful person and thats why you worry about how we may feel reading your threads but you really don't have to. :hugs:

[tricia56]

Thk you terryi, Im terrible for always saying sorry to people. Going back to the self doubt of anxiety often think that it mustbe something else mentaly wrong with not anxiety and loosing my mind because of the way and think all the time and feel like I'm the only one who is like it as I always compare myself to other fellow sufferers as l think to myself when I come on here or I talk to other people who suffers with it i get the impression ithat they all seem to be getting on with their lives have jobs etc even tho they suffer with anxiety so why cant I be like them yet I know that's it not true its my irrational thoughts that makes me think this way and that's when I start doubting and thinking no one thinks like me so it can't be anxiety , gosh I sound like right looney don't i:D

[sial72]

Thk you terryi, Im terrible for always saying sorry to people. Going back to the self doubt of anxiety often think that it mustbe something else mentaly wrong with not anxiety and loosing my mind because of the way and think all the time and feel like I'm the only one who is like it as I always compare myself to other fellow sufferers as l think to myself when I come on here or I talk to other people who suffers with it i get the impression ithat they all seem to be getting on with their lives have jobs etc even tho they suffer with anxiety so why cant I be like them yet I know that's it not true its my irrational thoughts that makes me think this way and that's when I start doubting and thinking no one thinks like me so it can't be anxiety , gosh I sound like right looney don't i:D
You don't sound like a looney at all (well, not any more than all the rest of us lol).
This is what extreme anxiety does to us. It is exhausting. I always wish I could take my brain out for a while so that my body could rest. Even when I am offered the option of which ham I would prefer at the butchers I go into a spiral of doubt, just exhausting!!!

[pulisa]

I'm the same...too many decisions to make and decision-making is such a pain, isn't it?!:D

Tricia, I think you are over-analysing yourself and looking out for any niggle, ache or pain in order to confirm your worst suspicions...? It's challenging to get out of this mindset and when you've got a lot of time on your hands it's even harder. Is there any way that you could structure your day to give you less time to ruminate and more time to feel useful and productive?