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Double_Rainbow
16-12-18, 13:59
Hey Lovely People,

I am one of those HA old timers, I guess. A dubious privilege I'd rather not have, but here I am lol :) I was active on AZ for about a year just before it shut down. My nickname was fleurdelis82, I think. I remember Leroy scandal, and that other guy's scandal who always worried to have ALS and pretended to be a veteran to elicit sympathy. Yikes. Anyone remembers those old days?

Anyway, I was doing sorta OK for awhile, until a trigger happened. Unrelated to health, I was threatened with a lawsuit, which was a bluff but it did shook me deep to the core. Now the last 2 months or so I am deep in the hole again. Back to my darkest HA days 3 years ago. It got so bad, I just don't see how to handle it anymore. So, today I got back on zoloft. But zoloft doesn't work immediately and I do need some help ASAP, so here goes.

3 days ago I got bit by a domestic bunny at my kids daycare. Apparently that bunny bit people before but I wasn't aware until after the fact. It is a lite scratch but the skin was broken. The owner told me that bunny is isolated and can't have rabies, but I am besides myself with worry. I am aware that there are no documented cases of transmission from rabbits to humans in the US. With that being said here are my *anxiety driven* arguments:

1. They sometimes let parents take that bunny for the weekends. What IF the parents let it out and it got in contact with a rabid raccoon's saliva, or bit by a bat? We have those in FL. Owners may not even know.
2. I am terrified that if that bunny gets sick, they will just toss it out and replace with a healthy one to avoid problems. And I will never find out and die of rabies.

Please let me know what you think. Do I need to see a doc? Thanks a lot!

---------- Post added at 07:59 ---------- Previous post was at 07:56 ----------

P.S. I am also aware that rabbits, especially domestic ones, are not considered at risk for rabies. If I go to a doc, what will they do? Highly doubt they will initiate the shots. And I don't want to bring problems to daycare or even worse, had that bunny put down. I just want to make sure I don't get rabies...

nomorepanic
16-12-18, 14:45
Hi

This is just a courtesy reply to let you know that your post was moved from its original place to a sub-forum that is more relevant to your issue.

This is nothing personal - it just enables us to keep posts about the same problems in the relevant forums so other members with any experience with the issues can find them more easily.

Please also read this post:

http://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=213239

Double_Rainbow
16-12-18, 17:02
Hi

This is just a courtesy reply to let you know that your post was moved from its original place to a sub-forum that is more relevant to your issue.

This is nothing personal - it just enables us to keep posts about the same problems in the relevant forums so other members with any experience with the issues can find them more easily.

Please also read this post:

http://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=213239

Thanks Nicola, I wasn't aware there was a rabies fears subforum.

---------- Post added at 11:02 ---------- Previous post was at 10:18 ----------

Anyone? Thoughts? Shall I see a doc and ask about rabies shots?

Fishmanpa
16-12-18, 17:04
I am one of those HA old timers, I guess. A dubious privilege I'd rather not have, but here I am lol :) I was active on AZ for about a year just before it shut down. My nickname was fleurdelis82, I think. I remember Leroy scandal, and that other guy's scandal who always worried to have ALS and pretended to be a veteran to elicit sympathy. Yikes. Anyone remembers those old days?

I remember you! :winks: There are many AZ refugees here since AZ shut down. There are also a lot of good folks here and as you're reading, much of the same as was on AZ. There are also some great articles and self help resources (https://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/articles) here as well.

Positive thoughts

Double_Rainbow
16-12-18, 17:33
Man I forgot how hard and taxing on the body can acute anxiety be. I looked up the rabies shots and apparently Walgreens near me has it they say. I will walk in and at least try for the shot. My life is worth it.

Fishmanpa
16-12-18, 18:23
Man I forgot how hard and taxing on the body can acute anxiety be. I looked up the rabies shots and apparently Walgreens near me has it they say. I will walk in and at least try for the shot. My life is worth it.

I've learned that no words on a forum can extract someone from the rabies rabbit hole (unintentional pun intended). A pet rabbit will not have rabies. It's literally impossible but if you want to spend the money for a needless series of shots, ultimately, you'll do what your anxiety tells you to do.

Positive thoughts

NervUs
16-12-18, 18:57
Can't you just check up and see if the rabbit is alive 10 days from the day of the bite. It hasn't been studied in rabbits, but that is the length of time they tell dog and cat bite victims it is safe to observe. I can't imagine rabbits could live longer than dogs.

That is what I would do before talking shots over with a doctor (not Walgreens).

Fishmanpa
16-12-18, 19:07
Can't you just check up and see if the rabbit is alive 10 days from the day of the bite.

Worrying for ten additional days over an impossible scenario is just feeding the dragon. The fact is, a pet rabbit is not going to pose a threat at all. The fantastical scenarios presented by the OP are just totally out of the realm of reality (Sorry D Rainbow, they are). That's just fact! No amount of "what ifs" or "yeah buts" are going to change that. :shrug:

Positive thoughts

NancyW
16-12-18, 19:14
Man I forgot how hard and taxing on the body can acute anxiety be. I looked up the rabies shots and apparently Walgreens near me has it they say. I will walk in and at least try for the shot. My life is worth it.

Walgreen's has rabies shots ??

(I really think you are fine, there's no reason to think the bunny has rabies extremely, highly unlikely)

Double_Rainbow
16-12-18, 20:39
NancyW, as I got to find out, Walgreens has rabies shots in my area, but they are for prevention, not treatment. Treatment involves evaluation by a physician to determine the risk of exposure, and potential animal testing. She sent me to the ER. I didn't go, because I can't stand a thought of putting that rabbit down for nothing. This will make things worse for me, not better.

NervUS, I haven't seen that bunny since the bite on Thursday. I can't wait until tomorrow when I can hopefully see it in person (it is usually at daycare except on the weekends) and make sure it is alright. The ladies at daycare laughed at me when I mentioned rabies, not in a bad way, but just because it seemed impossible to them. I guess I will HAVE to wait another week and observe it (hopefully I can). Even one day is a total torture, I can't imagine another week. But more than likely, that is what the ER will instruct me to do if I go (shy of killing that rabbit for testing).

Fishmanpa, that is what my bf is saying too. He says there is zero risk and there is no need to watch anything. I do get it 100% in general, but my situation seems exceptional (isn't it always the case for anxiety sufferers?) A bunch of impossible "what ifs" are drowning my brain. I am back to where I was 3 years ago with melanoma fears. And my brain is stuck and I can't snap out of it :-(

---------- Post added at 14:39 ---------- Previous post was at 13:42 ----------

Can somebody PLEASE explain to me, WHY the following scenarios aren't possible - given that bunnies are not vaccinated against rabies in the US. I am in Florida, we have quite a bit of rabid animal reports lately.

1. Bunny being outside (in a playpen or whatnot) being bit by a rabid bat.
2. Bunny being outside (maybe in the fenced backyard) being attacked or licked by a rabid wild animal such as raccoon.
3. Bunny being bit by a rabid pet dog or cat.... this isn't likely, given the mandatory rabid vaccinations for cats/dogs. Still, many people don't vaccinate their pets so this isn't impossible.

PLEASE! and Thanks a lot!

Fishmanpa
16-12-18, 20:54
Can somebody PLEASE explain to me, WHY the following scenarios aren't possible - given that bunnies are not vaccinated against rabies in the US. I am in Florida, we have quite a bit of rabid animal reports lately.

1. Bunny being outside (in a playpen or whatnot) being bit by a rabid bat.
2. Bunny being outside (maybe in the fenced backyard) being attacked or licked by a rabid wild animal such as raccoon.
3. Bunny being bit by a rabid pet dog or cat.... this isn't likely, given the mandatory rabid vaccinations for cats/dogs. Still, many people don't vaccinate their pets so this isn't impossible.

Respectfully, it's because they're simply figments of an anxious mind and very vivid imagination :shrug: It really is as simple as that. There was one here where someone felt a drop of liquid hit them and was convinced it was from a rabid bat in a tree. This is a kin to that as well as the invisible bats, dog licks, cat scratches etc.

Go read some of the other rabies threads and your response to others and ask yourself if your scenario is any more realistic.

Hope you feel better soon!

Positive thoughts

NancyW
16-12-18, 21:00
[/QUOTE]---------- Post added at 14:39 ---------- Previous post was at 13:42 ----------

[/COLOR]Can somebody PLEASE explain to me, WHY the following scenarios aren't possible - given that bunnies are not vaccinated against rabies in the US. I am in Florida, we have quite a bit of rabid animal reports lately.

1. Bunny being outside (in a playpen or whatnot) being bit by a rabid bat.
2. Bunny being outside (maybe in the fenced backyard) being attacked or licked by a rabid wild animal such as raccoon.
3. Bunny being bit by a rabid pet dog or cat.... this isn't likely, given the mandatory rabid vaccinations for cats/dogs. Still, many people don't vaccinate their pets so this isn't impossible.

PLEASE! and Thanks a lot![/QUOTE]

Now that's kind of silly don't you think? ANYTHING is possible, is it likely?

No.

There's nothing we can say to turn your HA off. If you're convinced you may have rabies, go to your dr.

Double_Rainbow
16-12-18, 21:41
Respectfully, it's because they're simply figments of an anxious mind and very vivid imagination :shrug: It really is as simple as that. There was one here where someone felt a drop of liquid hit them and was convinced it was from a rabid bat in a tree. This is a kin to that as well as the invisible bats, dog licks, cat scratches etc.

Go read some of the other rabies threads and your response to others and ask yourself if your scenario is any more realistic.

Hope you feel better soon!

Positive thoughts
I read other rabid threads, and yes most of them seem fictitious. However, mine involves a real bite, not an imaginary one. Although taken one step further, a rabbit bit by a fictitious bat or a raccoon is the same thing.

I just found a paper from 2016 by CDC. According to it, only one small animal - a squirrel - (of many squirrels, mice and rabbits tested) has ever tested positive for rabies in Florida. It was a wild flying squirrel. Not a pet bunny.

Thanks for your support Fishmanpa! I just need to survive until tomorrow and have a more detailed chat with the daycare owners about the bunny's history of being outside, and see it too. Despite all the rational reasoning, I am still terrified. :weep:

NancyW, I went to a doc and without success. I am afraid the truth is that I am not getting a vaccine unless the bunny is either killed and tested positive, or dies/gets sick in 10 days of observation. None of that sits well with me but it is what it is.

---------- Post added at 15:41 ---------- Previous post was at 15:24 ----------

The uncomfortable truth is that my exposure is considered very low risk for rabies, but my anxiety disagrees. So my mind is trying to tie all sorts of impossible stories to make it appear more scary. And that disagreement is what's causing me so much emotional suffering.

Double_Rainbow
17-12-18, 01:50
My Goodness, it is so damn hard! I concentrate on it and my head is exploding with 1001 negative scenarios, I am going NUTS! I didn't sleep much but three hours last night, I am hoping that my body would be kinder on me this night as I need to work tomorrow and take care of 3 kids!!! I am exhausted but on edge so IDK what gives. I just wish there was someone to talk to, my bf doesn't say much, just repeats, I already told you - there is no way you have rabies.

This is a real bummer. :weep:

MyNameIsTerry
17-12-18, 03:05
Well, one way you think is - how many bunnies are dying from rabies AND how many people have been reported as contracting rabies from a bunny that has been infected by another animal? Can you think of anything about it? It sounds pretty rare to me.

On the waiting recommendation, I think that NervUS means is to apply a waiting period. Running for a shot is a compulsion therefore feeding the cycle. Applying a waiting period could be seen as an Adaptive Strategy, something taught in CBT. It is still challenging the thoughts and it is teaching you to tolerate the anxiety you feel over it. So, some exposure therapy in there too. The idea should also be to get to that deadline and decide you don't need to check because the fear has subsided enough for you to accept it.

It would be great not to worry for 2 weeks but lets face it, you wouldn't be on here with anxiety if you could dismiss it so easily. Therefore training yourself to tackle situations better so that in the future you can dismiss them is a way forward. Checking is often a compulsion but it's about reasonable levels of checking rather than trying to provoke the fear cycle with checks, feeling you have no choice but to check or doing them too much.

Double_Rainbow
17-12-18, 14:16
Update. This morning, I saw the bunny sitting there as usual, healthy and happy. The owners were understanding, they said that they will monitor it and I can monitor it too, and if they see it getting sick they will let me know immediately. She says to their knowledge she has never been outside or been bit by anything. I feel better now. Only a week more to go and I can hopefully put this behind me.

MyNameIsTerry, you are absolutely right, my friend. That is why waiting is so HARD for someone battling HA (or any A for that matter), because the prize is not to let the rational thinking rule, but to give into a compulsion immediately. Waiting period breaks that cycle. I agree about checking too, I am into compulsive checking [of course] and my goals are not to NOT check at all, but to keep it to a reasonable level. In this case, perhaps taking a brief look at that bunny once a day, as opposite to running there every hour as my mind wants. Checking can be a real nightmare too; at my worst, I can spend several hours a day (yes, several hours a day, meaning at least 2) checking a bump on skin, or a scab, or a mole. Sometimes checking itself creates health problems, ie now I have a self-created sore in my nose from checking for nasopharyngeal cancer, which further feeds anxiety (now I think that sore is cancer). At that level, not checking at all is not an immediate realistic goal. But reducing the checking is. Thanks for your reply!

---------- Post added at 08:16 ---------- Previous post was at 07:59 ----------

During my life, I have been bit and scratched by countless cats, domestic and feral (in the third world country mind you, not in the US), bit by several squirrels (in the US), licked and scratched by countless dogs. I have been feeding raccoons and other wildlife all the time. Not a single time a thought about rabies crossed my mind, and somehow, I managed to survive. And now that little confined bunny that has zero odds of having rabies nipped on me, and I am nearly disabled with panic. I already lost 4 days of my life that I will never get back. I was ready to subject myself to a gruesome series of shots, for nothing. When I see an animal all I can think of is rabies. Even with my dog, who I know is 100% vaccinated and had no exposures whatsoever, I am more cautious now. If HA had its way, I would have confined myself to a sterile room doing nothing else but having medical tests and cancer scans every week. What a life this is. I hate HA.

Fishmanpa
17-12-18, 16:43
If HA had its way, I would have confined myself to a sterile room doing nothing else but having medical tests and cancer scans every week. What a life this is. I hate HA.

What are you doing to treat it?

Positive thoughts

Double_Rainbow
17-12-18, 17:21
What are you doing to treat it?

Positive thoughts

Yesterday I have restarted zoloft, after more than a year of break. I know that 150mg works well for me so the goal is to work up to that. Even 50mg is already enough to take the edge off.

I also used to do CBT for more than a year, until we moved. It helped a lot as well. We will be moving back in a few weeks, so I will call the therapist in the New Year to restart the sessions.

Meanwhile, I just need to survive the next few weeks until zoloft kicks in and I can get back into therapy. My problem is I tend to delay treatment until crisis happens, like this one with rabies, or the one with melanoma 3 years ago. At that point, the train is going full speed and it's impossible to stop. I don't use benzos or any of that stuff, so just have to sit tight and hope that this too shall pass...

Fishmanpa
17-12-18, 17:30
Yesterday I have restarted zoloft, after more than a year of break. I know that 150mg works well for me so the goal is to work up to that. Even 50mg is already enough to take the edge off.

I also used to do CBT for more than a year, until we moved. It helped a lot as well. We will be moving back in a few weeks, so I will call the therapist in the New Year to restart the sessions.

Meanwhile, I just need to survive the next few weeks until zoloft kicks in and I can get back into therapy. My problem is I tend to delay treatment until crisis happens, like this one with rabies, or the one with melanoma 3 years ago. At that point, the train is going full speed and it's impossible to stop. I don't use benzos or any of that stuff, so just have to sit tight and hope that this too shall pass...

Good going on taking action. I often say these are just words on a screen and it's up to the individual to act on them. Glad to see you did! If the Zoloft is already helping, it will only improve from here. Keep up the good work and check out the free CBT workbooks here (http://cbt4panic.org/).

Positive thoughts

Double_Rainbow
17-12-18, 17:34
Good going on taking action. I often say these are just words on a screen and it's up to the individual to act on them. Glad to see you did! If the Zoloft is already helping, it will only improve from here. Keep up the good work and check out the free CBT workbooks here (http://cbt4panic.org/).

Positive thoughts

Thanks for your support Fishmanpa! I appreciate it. I have to get treated because otherwise I will probably end at the mental hospital one day with the mental breakdown. Forum helps too, it helps a lot to read and vent and feel better!

Fishmanpa
17-12-18, 17:43
Thanks for your support Fishmanpa! I appreciate it. I have to get treated because otherwise I will probably end at the mental hospital one day with the mental breakdown. Forum helps too, it helps a lot to read and vent and feel better!

No worries :D I agree that knowing others have felt the same way and being able to write things out can be cathartic but just don't make it a habit and diary for every niggle and thought. That's counter productive. You've been around and remember some of those posters on AZ. There are a few here too and you can see how it just keeps them in a negative cycle of reassurance seeking and focusing on their thoughts and symptoms.

Positive thoughts

Double_Rainbow
18-12-18, 03:20
I Google rabies while I know I shouldn't have. I'm now anxious again. How come my anxiety can circumvent any logical conclusion with a stupid irrational "what if" and I awalys believe it???

Fishmanpa
18-12-18, 03:33
I Google rabies while I know I shouldn't have. I'm now anxious again.

It's interesting. Googling is essentially shooting yourself in the foot. HA almost seems to have masochistic tendencies doesn't it? You know it's bad for you yet you do it anyway. Is there some kind of mental rush doing it? It's like some of the fail videos on Youtube where the person says... "hold my beer!" and jumps off a roof trying to make it to the pool but fails miserably.

Positive thoughts

MyNameIsTerry
18-12-18, 04:26
Update. This morning, I saw the bunny sitting there as usual, healthy and happy. The owners were understanding, they said that they will monitor it and I can monitor it too, and if they see it getting sick they will let me know immediately. She says to their knowledge she has never been outside or been bit by anything. I feel better now. Only a week more to go and I can hopefully put this behind me.

MyNameIsTerry, you are absolutely right, my friend. That is why waiting is so HARD for someone battling HA (or any A for that matter), because the prize is not to let the rational thinking rule, but to give into a compulsion immediately. Waiting period breaks that cycle. I agree about checking too, I am into compulsive checking [of course] and my goals are not to NOT check at all, but to keep it to a reasonable level. In this case, perhaps taking a brief look at that bunny once a day, as opposite to running there every hour as my mind wants. Checking can be a real nightmare too; at my worst, I can spend several hours a day (yes, several hours a day, meaning at least 2) checking a bump on skin, or a scab, or a mole. Sometimes checking itself creates health problems, ie now I have a self-created sore in my nose from checking for nasopharyngeal cancer, which further feeds anxiety (now I think that sore is cancer). At that level, not checking at all is not an immediate realistic goal. But reducing the checking is. Thanks for your reply!

---------- Post added at 08:16 ---------- Previous post was at 07:59 ----------

During my life, I have been bit and scratched by countless cats, domestic and feral (in the third world country mind you, not in the US), bit by several squirrels (in the US), licked and scratched by countless dogs. I have been feeding raccoons and other wildlife all the time. Not a single time a thought about rabies crossed my mind, and somehow, I managed to survive. And now that little confined bunny that has zero odds of having rabies nipped on me, and I am nearly disabled with panic. I already lost 4 days of my life that I will never get back. I was ready to subject myself to a gruesome series of shots, for nothing. When I see an animal all I can think of is rabies. Even with my dog, who I know is 100% vaccinated and had no exposures whatsoever, I am more cautious now. If HA had its way, I would have confined myself to a sterile room doing nothing else but having medical tests and cancer scans every week. What a life this is. I hate HA.

I think you have a good understanding of anxiety and know, despite how you may ask for support, that ultimately that's all this is.

You can see how the only difference between the you who actively handled animals & situations that are rabies triggers and the HA you now is the thoughts themselves and nothing external that could be happening to you.

This good because one of the battles of many with HA is just getting to that stage, being past the denial and overwhelming reassurance seeking.

You're absolutely right, the fear cycle is only doing what it has been programmed to do by evolution. It's just in this case it has picked on the wrong target. It would be fine to react with the fear cycle to a rampaging big scary bear. We wouldn't seek to change that response from fight of flight. But in this case a cute, fluffy bunny has become the rampaging bear. The fear cycle doesn't know the difference, it just sees a relevant fear has been built and seeks to reinforce it.

To protect us it's not easy to change that fear cycle and it's fears. We have to work on pulling the rug from under it. Dismissing irrational fears, accepting thoughts are allowed to just be thoughts without meaning. But we forget this is not what that cycle is built to receive therefore our effort it greeted with a :shrug: from the subconscious. It wants :scared15: as it's conformation it has done something valid (note use of "valid" not "correct" :winks:). And because it doesn't know how to process positive/negative reactions as opposed to negatives, since a big scary bear should remain one, it is fighting us.

Is it so different to how people in dangerous occupations have to learn to control their adrenaline? It's just we have too much of it circulating and all the other mental nastiness it is causing for us.

Double_Rainbow
18-12-18, 14:17
It's interesting. Googling is essentially shooting yourself in the foot. HA almost seems to have masochistic tendencies doesn't it? You know it's bad for you yet you do it anyway. Is there some kind of mental rush doing it? It's like some of the fail videos on Youtube where the person says... "hold my beer!" and jumps off a roof trying to make it to the pool but fails miserably.

Positive thoughts
Yes, it does. I know I tend to google because I have anxiety building up inside me and by looking, let's say, human rabid cases, or cases of rabies in rabbits, I am seeking to reassure myself that my particular case is nothing like what's reported and is not dangerous. But in the end, this still doesn't help because you always think "yeah, but I may be the first one", or "I might be an exception". And if I do find something that seems to support my anxiety agenda, God help me. There will be disabling panic. I had the same pattern 3 years ago when I was fixated on melanoma; I couldn't snap out of it until I got on zoloft and in therapy. By then, I already had 13 mole biopsies and 1 wide excision for an abnormal mole. In about 4 months. Yeah...

---------- Post added at 08:17 ---------- Previous post was at 08:03 ----------


I think you have a good understanding of anxiety and know, despite how you may ask for support, that ultimately that's all this is.

You can see how the only difference between the you who actively handled animals & situations that are rabies triggers and the HA you now is the thoughts themselves and nothing external that could be happening to you.

This good because one of the battles of many with HA is just getting to that stage, being past the denial and overwhelming reassurance seeking.

You're absolutely right, the fear cycle is only doing what it has been programmed to do by evolution. It's just in this case it has picked on the wrong target. It would be fine to react with the fear cycle to a rampaging big scary bear. We wouldn't seek to change that response from fight of flight. But in this case a cute, fluffy bunny has become the rampaging bear. The fear cycle doesn't know the difference, it just sees a relevant fear has been built and seeks to reinforce it.

To protect us it's not easy to change that fear cycle and it's fears. We have to work on pulling the rug from under it. Dismissing irrational fears, accepting thoughts are allowed to just be thoughts without meaning. But we forget this is not what that cycle is built to receive therefore our effort it greeted with a :shrug: from the subconscious. It wants :scared15: as it's conformation it has done something valid (note use of "valid" not "correct" :winks:). And because it doesn't know how to process positive/negative reactions as opposed to negatives, since a big scary bear should remain one, it is fighting us.

Is it so different to how people in dangerous occupations have to learn to control their adrenaline? It's just we have too much of it circulating and all the other mental nastiness it is causing for us.
Yes, I agree completely, it is a fight or flight response gone wrong. When I try to convince myself that my HA thoughts are detached from reality, my brain resists saying that "you know it, there is no smoke without fire". This smoke without fire argument is very hard to overcome for me, because I can always make up a scenario that supports my agenda (ie, rabbit was left in the cage outside and the rabid raccoon bit or licked it though the cage). Yes it is fantastical but not 100% impossible, there is always that 0.001% of residual uncertainty that is driving me nuts.

Do you think that anxiety may follow sort of the same genetic scenario as seen with the sickle cell anemia? Because heterozygotes received evolutionary advantage since they can't have malaria, the recessive sickle cell gene got accumulated in the population. For those heterozygous it is beneficial, but recessive homozygous individuals get sick with sickle cell anemia. So I wonder, if there is some anxiety gene that got selected for in the heterozygotes, but as a result recessive homozygotes like us suffer from the unwarranted anxiety.

MyNameIsTerry
18-12-18, 15:16
Yes, I agree completely, it is a fight or flight response gone wrong. When I try to convince myself that my HA thoughts are detached from reality, my brain resists saying that "you know it, there is no smoke without fire". This smoke without fire argument is very hard to overcome for me, because I can always make up a scenario that supports my agenda (ie, rabbit was left in the cage outside and the rabid raccoon bit or licked it though the cage). Yes it is fantastical but not 100% impossible, there is always that 0.001% of residual uncertainty that is driving me nuts.

Do you think that anxiety may follow sort of the same genetic scenario as seen with the sickle cell anemia? Because heterozygotes received evolutionary advantage since they can't have malaria, the recessive sickle cell gene got accumulated in the population. For those heterozygous it is beneficial, but recessive homozygous individuals get sick with sickle cell anemia. So I wonder, if there is some anxiety gene that got selected for in the heterozygotes, but as a result recessive homozygotes like us suffer from the unwarranted anxiety.

I remember some reading about genes being passed on by anxiety sufferers. The interesting found I found was that whilst a gene may be passed it still has to be set to "on" (by methylation) and equally how that gene can be reset to "off" as well as genes can be changed. This was arguing that even if it is passed on something has to cause an environment to see it as appropriate for switch on. There was also a study of methylation in children in how to switch it off.

This was all in the epigenetics research that has been important to cancer research. They have even developed anti cancer meds to exploit the methylation process.

Fishmanpa
19-12-18, 00:13
I have crippling HA.

It's been awhile since AZ shut down but there's still plenty of saved info on the web. A little digging and up comes several old threads from AZ. I remember clearly now... No doubt you're back in the rabbit hole here D Rainbow.

What did you do all this time in-between AZ and here to control your HA?

Positive thoughts

Double_Rainbow
19-12-18, 14:42
It's been awhile since AZ shut down but there's still plenty of saved info on the web. A little digging and up comes several old threads from AZ. I remember clearly now... No doubt you're back in the rabbit hole here D Rainbow.

What did you do all this time in-between AZ and here to control your HA?

Positive thoughts
I am 100% back into the hole Fishmanpa. I admit it. Back then I had a crisis with melanoma anxiety in the late 2015, and then I went on zoloft 50mg and in therapy. Slowly over the next few months it tapered off to manageable levels, then I had a baby and increased zoloft to 150mg, kept going into therapy and I felt very much better. That "much better" point was somewhere in the late 2016. I was on zoloft for another year after that (until late 2017) when I got off. I decided to see if I would be fine without it. And initially I was. But the turning point came in August when I was threatened with a [frivolous] lawsuit from my past employer. I totally lost it then. The lawsuit fear went away by mid-October but the anxiety train has already left the station. And I relapsed with oral cancer panic, then sarcoma, then this rabies stuff has pushed me over the edge. So now I got on zoloft again, and will go into therapy as soon as we move.

Bottom line, I know now this isn't something that's just going to go away. I need to learn to manage it long-term. Having a plan is important. I need to be working on that as soon as I feel better again.

Fishmanpa
19-12-18, 15:43
Bottom line, I know now this isn't something that's just going to go away. I need to learn to manage it long-term. Having a plan is important. I need to be working on that as soon as I feel better again.

True... the positive is you recognize it and are taking pro-active measures to address it. Just be careful as the forum, while great for knowing you're not alone and cathartic being able to write out your feelings, is also a double edged sword as reassurance is addictive.

Positive thoughts

Double_Rainbow
19-12-18, 16:10
True... the positive is you recognize it and are taking pro-active measures to address it. Just be careful as the forum, while great for knowing you're not alone and cathartic being able to write out your feelings, is also a double edged sword as reassurance is addictive.

Positive thoughts
Yes, I know that too much reassurance is harmful. It does, however, help to survive the crisis days like I had this past weekend. It is like mental benzos, if you will. I don't take them but if I had some on hand during the weekend, I would have taken it - yes, it got that bad. Instead, I turned to reassurance to help me through.

The forum also may instill some new fears that one didn't have before. Reading about rabies and cancers and ALS eventually gets to your brain. I didn't really think about rabies at all until I read about it on AZ, and it got into my head and never left. Until years later it got out as this crisis I am dealing with now.

Double_Rainbow
20-12-18, 14:03
UPDATE. Today is a week since I got bit and as of this morning, the rabbit still looks healthy. I guess most likely is that I will be okay. I will keep an eye on it for another week but after that, I made a promise to myself to put this behind me for good.

Double_Rainbow
21-12-18, 14:14
8 days post bite - rabbit is still healthy. I will be able to check on it tonight and then not until after Christmas which will make it day #13. I am very slightly worried, but I remind myself that it has been 8 days and it is not even sick so the odds that it will get sick are minuscle. I don't really expect that it will get sick, but there is my OCD insists on the checking. As per usual protocol.

Fishmanpa
21-12-18, 14:26
been 8 days and it is not even sick so the odds that it will get sick are minuscle.

The odds are 0%!

Positive thoughts

Double_Rainbow
21-12-18, 14:37
The odds are 0%!

Positive thoughts
Haha! Yeah that's what I am telling myself. On the day that I got bit it might have been 0.0001% but after 8 days it got down to 0%. I am working on accepting that.

Double_Rainbow
21-12-18, 19:39
The beast is out again. I am freaking out that the bunny will get sick during the next 4 days and they will not tell me and I will lose my last chance to get the shots!!! Geez, when will this end??? I can't stand it anymore! :weep:

Double_Rainbow
28-12-18, 00:36
Two weeks since the bite and the bunny is still alive and doing well. Time to stick to my plan and put this behind me for good.

nomorepanic
28-12-18, 01:25
Yeah JFDI :yesyes: