Do you really believe it?

[Mugs]

Hi
I want to know if anybody can answer this question for me please.
If you don't really believe all the negative things your mind is telling you why do you listen?:shrug:
Thank you.
Mugs

[Mermaid16]

That is a very good question. For me, my fear is fainting or having a seizure while I'm driving alone in the car. In my rational mind, I don't believe this will happen, but once I get the physical symptoms of panic, heart racing, shortness of breath, constricting throat, shakey etc, then it seems very real that all of those symptoms could very well cause me to faint and when I am caught up in the moment of the panic attack, no matter how much I tell myself it isn't going to happen, it's like I believe it will, because I will come up with a 'what if'...like if I was saying to myself, 'you have done this before, you have had these symptoms before and nothing happened', then I will think 'but what if this time is different'. :lac: Tracy

[Mugs]

Thanks Tracey
I hope you can find some way to get over this, it must be very frightening.
I don't suffer from panic attacks, I suffer from health anxiety and I'm a nurse!:doh:
I know my thoughts are irrational but I listen to them and I dont know why.
I hope someone will have some thoughts or ideas on this.

[Carnation]

Because of the 'Buts'.............

But, I might pass out.......
But, I might have a HA...........
But, I might die.......
But, I might have something wrong with me...... :lac:

Change the 'Buts' or better still, get rid of them.

Ban the 'Buts'!!!!!!!

Also the brain works form memory, from past events and info that is fed in by what we experience, learn and see.

Fear is there to protect us, but if we fear too much, it becomes anxiety!

[Hopeyet]

It's weird, isn't it? I can't offer a solution, but I can empathise. For the first few years I had health anxiety I did 100% believe I was dying of whatever it was on that particular 'flare up'. Now it's more like 50/50 - one part of my brain is terrified that I'll never see my son grow up and things like that, while the more logical half is just incredibly frustrated that I'm putting myself through this again. I also fear all the stress from worrying will eventually turn into a self-fulfilling prophecy.

[Sparkling_Fairy]

Same for me. When I'm calm, I can totally rationalize it and say it's not going to hurt me, I'm not going to die from it. Stop being so stupid!
But my body doesn't always follow suit and when I get anxiety symptoms, I'm also with the buts.
For me the only one that I still fear will harm me, is heat. I can't seem to deal with heat. I always feel way too warm, and like I will either pass out or die. I feel very shaky and constricted in the chest. And while I can tell myself all day long nothing bad will happen, in that moment I don't truly believe it because it doesn't go away

[skymaid]

In my therapy I've learned that I should try and stop the internal argument that goes on. By not even engaging in the argument.

For example if I start getting the "I might.. what if... omg I could..!?!?" type thoughts.. Try NOT to answer them with "You'll be ok." "Try and get through this." "You will be ok".

Which seems kinda counter-intuitive but by answering we give the thoughts importance and the brain starts to get stuck in a loop of arguing with itself. That's sometimes the harder you try to convince yourself you're going to be ok the more catastrophic the "what ifs" become.

I'm mean to be recognising the "what if" and rather than internally arguing with it just observe the thought "oh that's an anxiety thought" and let it drift away and focus your attention back to what you were doing (or do something if you weren't). This works for strange symptoms too "oh that's anxiety symptom".

I've been doing this for just a week or so and it seems to have made a big difference so far.

[Sparkling_Fairy]

Interesting! I always thought I was reassuring myself, but I guess you are allowing the thoughts to come to the foreground then rather than stay in the back of your mind.
I'll try that

[skymaid]

yeah it sounds kinda weird and takes practice but strangely it makes your mind feel more peaceful when you do it successfully.

And I think that's why it works long term because your tired mind is allowed to rest.

(It's kinda explained in a very waffley book called Brain Lock which shows how our brains get stuck in loops and this is how to break out of them. It's pretty interesting that using this technique actually shows up on brainscans - It's technically used to break out of OCD but it works for any negative thinking)mo

[Fishmanpa]

Because of the 'Buts'.............

And some of those butts are big (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qr89yq2wC9o)....

Ohhh wait... "buts" one "t"... never mind :winks:


Back to the question.... and it's a good one.

One aspect I see on the boards is "validation". In other words, you know the thought is illogical and almost want there to be an issue to validate the fear. One caught in a spiral will argue against all logic and reassurance despite knowing it's right just to try and validate the fear and be able to say "Told ya so".

Positive thoughts

[.Poppy.]

A lot of it for me is that I feel I need to prepare for the worst-case scenario. If all is well and good, that's great, I can move along with my life as normal.

But if someone were to validate my fears, oh dear god, what would happen? How would I react? How would my family react? What if it's as bad as I think? What if I become one of those horror stories where you think everything's fine and then the doctor tells you everything is NOT fine and you're in fact very sick?

It can be very difficult to "step away from that ledge" as my psychiatrist says.

Sometimes I can acknowledge that it probably is anxiety, maybe I've had these fears before, other times it's not so easy to do that.

[Mugs]

Thanks everyone, I appreciate all the ideas.
Please keep them coming, it looks like it could help more than just me:)
Mugs

[dale12345]

I always go to the worse possible thing, its never my anxiety I am always dying or serious ill. I am always HYPER aware of every single thing my body feels. 99 percent of people wouldn't even notice these things but because I am so anxious and usually at the flight or fight response I notice everything. On the rare occasions I am relaxed I notice my body doesn't feel so strongly. Anxiety is a complex little monster.