Sparkle1984
27-09-15, 16:11
Since late August/early September, I'd been doing quite well with my anxiety - I frequently felt like I was at least 95% of my usual self. My current anxiety episode began in around April/May, and a few weeks ago I felt like the end of it was finally in sight!
However, I've had a few bad things happen in my life since then. A couple of weeks ago, my sister announced that she was splitting up with her husband as they'd had a big falling out (although it seems like the resentment had been building up for several months, it still came as quite a shock to the rest of the family). She moved out to live with my other sister, and my niece came to live with us. They were both very upset about what had happened. About a week later, they both moved back home, although the situation is still very tense and I can't see that my sister's relationship with her husband will survive.
Although I was concerned about my sister, I think I coped with the situation fairly well - my anxiety didn't spiral out of control whereas a few months ago it may have done.
Last weekend, I came down with a cold and cough. Several people at work have had it recently so I probably caught it from there. At first the cold seemed relatively mild, so I still went to work on Monday, thinking it would soon go. However, towards the end of the day I noticed I was coughing a lot more, and I hardly slept on Monday night due to the almost constant urge to cough, so I had Tuesday and Wednesday off work as I was feeling very run down. On the Tuesday, I spent most of the day in bed using my tablet computer, catching up with various online courses - this was a good distraction for me. On the Tuesday night, I went to bed very late and my sleep was interrupted due to coughing fits, so on the Wednesday I seemed to spend most of my time lying in bed doing nothing, drifting in and out of sleep. It was then that I noticed some of my old anxious/dark thoughts were starting to creep back in.
I went back to work on Thursday and Friday, and although my cold and cough were much better, I felt very drained of energy and tired. Then on Friday I had a disagreement with someone (not an argument as such, more of a difference of opinion). I know everyone has disagreements at some point in their lives, but it's something I've always struggled with - any form of confrontation makes me feel unsettled and uncomfortable, and also I'm the sort of person who craves approval from others. When I disagree with someone, I often worry that I'm hurting their feelings (just by disagreeing with them) and that it means they won't like me any more, or that I'll feel awkward around them from now on! I know that sounds like an irrational worry, but it still scares me! For most of my life, I've been aware that I have some unusual opinions about certain things (I have Asperger's and this means I see the world differently to a lot of other people), but I'd hate to think I've offended anyone. In fact, a lot of my "unusual" opinions/beliefs are driven by my desire for people to be as happy as possible. Sometimes if someone disagrees with me, I feel hurt, as if it was an attack on me personally, especially if it's about a deeply-held belief.
So on Friday night I felt anxious, even though I'd normally be happy it's the weekend. I felt anxious for most of yesterday too, and didn't feel like doing much apart from watching TV. Some of my gloomy thoughts about 2015 being a terrible year came back, and I kept worrying about whether the future is hopeless.
Today I don't feel quite so bad, although I still feel rather drained.
Has anyone else suffered a blip after having a cough/cold virus, and if so, how long did it take for your anxiety/depression levels to get back to normal?
However, I've had a few bad things happen in my life since then. A couple of weeks ago, my sister announced that she was splitting up with her husband as they'd had a big falling out (although it seems like the resentment had been building up for several months, it still came as quite a shock to the rest of the family). She moved out to live with my other sister, and my niece came to live with us. They were both very upset about what had happened. About a week later, they both moved back home, although the situation is still very tense and I can't see that my sister's relationship with her husband will survive.
Although I was concerned about my sister, I think I coped with the situation fairly well - my anxiety didn't spiral out of control whereas a few months ago it may have done.
Last weekend, I came down with a cold and cough. Several people at work have had it recently so I probably caught it from there. At first the cold seemed relatively mild, so I still went to work on Monday, thinking it would soon go. However, towards the end of the day I noticed I was coughing a lot more, and I hardly slept on Monday night due to the almost constant urge to cough, so I had Tuesday and Wednesday off work as I was feeling very run down. On the Tuesday, I spent most of the day in bed using my tablet computer, catching up with various online courses - this was a good distraction for me. On the Tuesday night, I went to bed very late and my sleep was interrupted due to coughing fits, so on the Wednesday I seemed to spend most of my time lying in bed doing nothing, drifting in and out of sleep. It was then that I noticed some of my old anxious/dark thoughts were starting to creep back in.
I went back to work on Thursday and Friday, and although my cold and cough were much better, I felt very drained of energy and tired. Then on Friday I had a disagreement with someone (not an argument as such, more of a difference of opinion). I know everyone has disagreements at some point in their lives, but it's something I've always struggled with - any form of confrontation makes me feel unsettled and uncomfortable, and also I'm the sort of person who craves approval from others. When I disagree with someone, I often worry that I'm hurting their feelings (just by disagreeing with them) and that it means they won't like me any more, or that I'll feel awkward around them from now on! I know that sounds like an irrational worry, but it still scares me! For most of my life, I've been aware that I have some unusual opinions about certain things (I have Asperger's and this means I see the world differently to a lot of other people), but I'd hate to think I've offended anyone. In fact, a lot of my "unusual" opinions/beliefs are driven by my desire for people to be as happy as possible. Sometimes if someone disagrees with me, I feel hurt, as if it was an attack on me personally, especially if it's about a deeply-held belief.
So on Friday night I felt anxious, even though I'd normally be happy it's the weekend. I felt anxious for most of yesterday too, and didn't feel like doing much apart from watching TV. Some of my gloomy thoughts about 2015 being a terrible year came back, and I kept worrying about whether the future is hopeless.
Today I don't feel quite so bad, although I still feel rather drained.
Has anyone else suffered a blip after having a cough/cold virus, and if so, how long did it take for your anxiety/depression levels to get back to normal?