Forgetmenot
05-03-08, 17:08
I'm new to this website (and only wish I had found it sooner).
I came down with anxiety and panic disorder suddenly last October and was off work for 3 months feeling severly ill. It was only around the New Year that I realised all the terrible sensations were 'only' anxiety and that I didnt have some horrible disease. At the worse point I was housebound, but never felt well even in my safezone.
Upon realising I had anxiety (and reading that something could be done about it) I felt a real boost and thought it wouldn't take long to 'cure myself'. Well - I am improvng but I never thought that the path to recovery would be so long or so difficult....but I'm fighting every day. To make things more complicated I get married in the summer so that feels like a real deadline for recovery.
With the help of accupuncture, CBT/hypnosis and lots of fresh air & exercise, my safe zone has expanded over time and I even travelled to stay 200 miles away with family recently. There are good days and bad, I dont think there has been one day when I have felt 'normal' and I am severely fatigued all the time. I'd assumed that the more I did, the better I would feel doing it...but as you do more stuff again, those nasty feelings keep right up there with you. The hardest thing is managing a demanding full time job around this. Colleagues are patient and helpful but don't seem to understand that I'm not physically ill - rather I just need to pace myself at my own rate now.
Still - I'd describe myself as 50% better since the start of the year and that's not bad. Fingers crossed I'll be back on here before too long feeling 100%. The things I have found most useful are: self hypnosis (using CDs), walking, having pets, accupunture for undoing tense muscles, telling people that I have anxiety, distracting myslef, not watching TV unless it's a truly interesting or funny programme, not avidly following the news, and learning to live in the moment.
Keep fighting.....
I came down with anxiety and panic disorder suddenly last October and was off work for 3 months feeling severly ill. It was only around the New Year that I realised all the terrible sensations were 'only' anxiety and that I didnt have some horrible disease. At the worse point I was housebound, but never felt well even in my safezone.
Upon realising I had anxiety (and reading that something could be done about it) I felt a real boost and thought it wouldn't take long to 'cure myself'. Well - I am improvng but I never thought that the path to recovery would be so long or so difficult....but I'm fighting every day. To make things more complicated I get married in the summer so that feels like a real deadline for recovery.
With the help of accupuncture, CBT/hypnosis and lots of fresh air & exercise, my safe zone has expanded over time and I even travelled to stay 200 miles away with family recently. There are good days and bad, I dont think there has been one day when I have felt 'normal' and I am severely fatigued all the time. I'd assumed that the more I did, the better I would feel doing it...but as you do more stuff again, those nasty feelings keep right up there with you. The hardest thing is managing a demanding full time job around this. Colleagues are patient and helpful but don't seem to understand that I'm not physically ill - rather I just need to pace myself at my own rate now.
Still - I'd describe myself as 50% better since the start of the year and that's not bad. Fingers crossed I'll be back on here before too long feeling 100%. The things I have found most useful are: self hypnosis (using CDs), walking, having pets, accupunture for undoing tense muscles, telling people that I have anxiety, distracting myslef, not watching TV unless it's a truly interesting or funny programme, not avidly following the news, and learning to live in the moment.
Keep fighting.....