What do your families think?

[little_girl_lost]

My Mum found out last week that I have panic attcks from my sister:doh: and her general opinion is "You cant let yourself get sucked into it. You're just

going to have to get over it"

She also told me not to take my meds for Hyperventilation Syndrome and

Panic Disorder. Because they mean I cant go to work.

Does anyone else openly tell their family? If so what do they think? Supportive or not?

[gypsywomen]

yes my family know but dont understand ,, its difficult to see the person they knew change ,,but they love me thats all that counts

[Adam22]

yeh its hard...

my mum and dad tend to shout at me lol 'stop being so stupid'

theres nothing wrong with you... youre fine....

its horrible...but i think if they were really sympathtic i would feel worse if you know what i mean..(like there was something wrong with me)

[BritTutor]

.

[lizzi]

I dont have any family

[gypsywomen]

I dont have any familydo you have friends you can talk to:hugs::hugs::hugs::hugs:

[vrwhitewolf77]

MY mother and sister both suffer from different forms of anxiety. My mom has panic attacks and agorophobia and my sister has panic attacks. My dad gets depression as well. Even though they have these conditions they think I am nuts. I have panic attacks, and OCD health anxiety. My parents dont even want to talk to me when I am worried, i drive them crazy apparently. I do understand that an anxious person can make another person anxious, but just because my symptoms are different than theirs doesn't make them any less valid. My parents think that I just have to learn how to deal with it and stop obcessing about health. But on the flip side I never tell my mom she just has to get over it and go out , or something to that effect. I have tried explaining that but they do not think that the two are even alike, that i should be able to contol mine and that she can't. unfair dont ya think?

[calm]

hi guys...for me i try and be the smiley, jokey tracey they all know....but last tuesday i broke down in front of paul (hubby)....he does not understand and just says to stop worrying .....easier said than done when i come from a long line of worriers.
i havent said anything to my daughter who is 13....a close friend on here suggested that i should.....my mother in law is going to have a word with her they are very close and just say mum is going through a minor blip and we just need to help her abit more...but then i feel guilty as kerrylouise has a few health problems and i dont want her to think that she cannot come to me....dilemma!

LIZZIE....you do have family...thats wot i think we are on here xxxxx

i think that unless someone has been through this themselves that they will never understand what it is like - we i guess need to be patient with our families...as gypsywomen said....they see us change dont they and it is hard for them too.

[julieliverpool]

ive beenn really bad for 2 weeks now and my mum is really supportive but my partner does not understand an it makes it hard for me cos he thinks im over reacting and tells me to calm down and stop being stupid this is a illness and we will get better just wish my head would listen and i would be fine xx

[sharon35]

My family and close friends know about my panic because ive had it on and off for years, the time before this being 2 years ago. i told them because i didnt know what else to do or where to turn .
I'm worrying now because they worry about me. how stupid is that. lol
Maybe get your parents to look on NMP, people just dont understand because they cannot see our panic and they dont know what to do to help.

[margaret jones]

Hi

[baileys]

My family dont know of my problems.
Having an abusive childhood has kept me from wanting them to know.
I dont tell friends either, ive learnt over the years to hide it well.
BUT by coming on a place like this it is teaching me to open up more and realise that people are bothered and want to help.:blush:

[margaret jones]

Hi this is the problem with mental health problems we as a nation fail to regonise the awful time that sufferes have . About familys knowing your problems i think it is up to each of us to tell who we feel will understand and help us to return to good health I found that my hubby did try and understand but being the laid back person he his it was difficult for him .

NMP was my life line also my counseller who allowed me to off load big time threfore gaining the confidence to admit that yes I am me and I suffer from anxiety/panic /agrophobia and HA and i found that that helped along with some trusty and good friends .

So really like everyone says it is a personal choice depending on your circumstances .

Take Care Maggie xxxxxxxxxxxxx

[little_girl_lost]

:flowers: awww i didnt expect to get so many replies.

I think its lovely that alot of families try to be supportive. Without my husband I think I would be in a loony bin or dead, I seriously do.

Lizzie Im gonna Pm you, If you want to we can chat :hugs:

I wonder if maybe having a family that you cant be yourself around has something to to with anxiety?

x

[BigBear]

I have a plethora of things...varying from: "It's your fault", "Faking it", "Attention seeker", and more ignorant comments. I would like for them FOR ONE SECOND to walk in my shoes and see how fake it really is..

[Sookie]

My Mother makes me feel like crap and not lying here has made me end up in the hospital a couple of times getting the ativan shot because she makes me feel stupid. I was having bad chest pains today and trouble breathing and I wanted to go to the hospital but I did not because my husband is out of town and my oldest daughter was not home and I did not want to take my 11 year old or ask my Mom for help so I waited it out. My husband treats me either like I am two or stupid. My daughters are pretty good about it.

[BigBear]

My Mother makes me feel like crap and not lying here has made me end up in the hospital a couple of times getting the ativan shot because she makes me feel stupid. I was having bad chest pains today and trouble breathing and I wanted to go to the hospital but I did not because my husband is out of town and my oldest daughter was not home and I did not want to take my 11 year old or ask my Mom for help so I waited it out. My husband treats me either like I am two or stupid. My daughters are pretty good about it.

I feel for you..it's total frusteration...No one, and I mean no here understands or wants to understand it. It's like I am on an deserted island and even most medical professionals are ignorant about it as well.

[moomintroll]

my dad is supportive as he is a fellow sufferer, my mum not so much, she cares but finds it hard to understand and sometimes makes me feel worse, my other half and my sister think anxiety etc do not exist, my work are understanding to a point but gave me a disciplinary warning because i had been off work so much with my anxiety despite the fact i had been at work more than i was off sick

my doctor said to me that even though its recognized there is still a lot of taboo round it all because there is so much not understood about anxiety, panic attacks etc

i get from my other half, pathetic, attention seeker and bullshitter, yet he was there when i had an attack so bad i passed out and he thought i was faking it!! and seemingly kicked me to see if i was, he realised i was not and phoned an ambulance and then he sauntered off to his work and left me by myself with the paramedics, i had to phone my dad to come and get me as i was not be left by myself after they left

[little_girl_lost]

i get from my other half, pathetic, attention seeker and bullshitter, yet he was there when i had an attack so bad i passed out and he thought i was faking it!! and seemingly kicked me to see if i was, he realised i was not and phoned an ambulance and then he sauntered off to his work and left me by myself with the paramedics, i had to phone my dad to come and get me as i was not be left by myself after they left

Thats so sad! Its happened to me before though I had a panic attack in a resaurant, I went outside and collapsed on the pavement, one of my friends called an ambulance but then thier food came so they left me to go eat it! After a while a friend of a friend popped her head round the door to say how selfish I was to ruin someones birthday meal!
Then they went on to a pub and I had to wait for my bf to drive 30 miles to get me off the pavement. The paras did wait with me though.

What the hell is wrong with people?!

[chloerushton26]

My mum tells me that I'm pathetic and stupid in fact she just did and i so done with her telling me to get over my self she said to me earlier after i told her i had a panic attack today she said, over what? don't be stupid, if i had a panic attack every time something happened i would be dead then i heard her mutter, pathetic. I've been to the doctors and have tablets for them, i also have a councillor because i self harm and i have an eating disorder..pretty messed up, i know..and my mum says i can always talk to her but how am i supposed to when all she does is say I'm pathetic...? my mum used to know about my self harm a few months ago but she thinks I've stopped..she has no clue about my eating disorder but i highly doubt she would care even if i did tell her...i feel like i have no one to talk to..all my friends know about my panic attacks just incase it happens with them next to me but only 3 know about my self harm and eating disorder but I'm always their last choice, they all hate me and couldn't care less about me...i really don't know what to do with myself anymore..all this is controlling my life and I'm only 14.:weep:

[AnxietyDJ]

My family try to understand, but don't really 'get it'. They're quite old school and come from a tough, working class background where you just get on with things without complaining. Their advice is generally along the lines of "think positively" and "smile more"... I wish it was as simple as that, but unfortunately not!

I tend to keep my issues to myself now as otherwise I have the same circular conversations with them over and over again... I think that they believe that if you don't 'get over' anxiety/depression etc. it's your own fault, due to being lazy and 'not thinking positively enough".

To be fair, it isn't just them - most people i have encountered don't have the first clue about mental illness. Half of them are totally unsympathetic and seem to be of the opinion that you're making it up :(

[GingerFish]

My mum suffered from panic disorder when she was younger and when I was just a kid but only gets a few attacks here and there and my gran had full blown housebound panic disorder like me for years and has only just started getting totally over it in the last 1/2 yrs. Now my stepdad is on medication for panic attacks after he had his second mini stroke.

They are very supportive as they can all empathise. My partner is very supportive too even though he's never had a panic attack. I'm the only one who got over panic disorder in the family without medication or docs so I try and help them with the tips I used that helped me get over it.

---------- Post added at 12:55 ---------- Previous post was at 12:53 ----------

My gran did refuse to believe for a while that I had panic disorder because she thought I was 'too young for that kind of thing'. I found that annoying and patronising but I suppose that is just her generation's views.

[AnxietyDJ]

My mum tells me that I'm pathetic and stupid in fact she just did and i so done with her telling me to get over my self she said to me earlier after i told her i had a panic attack today she said, over what? don't be stupid, if i had a panic attack every time something happened i would be dead then i heard her mutter, pathetic. I've been to the doctors and have tablets for them, i also have a councillor because i self harm and i have an eating disorder..pretty messed up, i know..and my mum says i can always talk to her but how am i supposed to when all she does is say I'm pathetic...? my mum used to know about my self harm a few months ago but she thinks I've stopped..she has no clue about my eating disorder but i highly doubt she would care even if i did tell her...i feel like i have no one to talk to..all my friends know about my panic attacks just incase it happens with them next to me but only 3 know about my self harm and eating disorder but I'm always their last choice, they all hate me and couldn't care less about me...i really don't know what to do with myself anymore..all this is controlling my life and I'm only 14.:weep:

Hi Chloe, I only just noticed your post here... That's awful, so sorry to hear that you're going through all this alone, especially because your mum isn't being supportive.

We're all here to listen whenever you need someone to talk to and we certainly won't call you pathetic - far from it in fact... Just by facing up to your problems and fears you have done something amazing and you should never forget that fact.

Hope you've had a good weekend so far - please let us know how you're doing :)

[aprilmoon]

I'm very selective who I tell, whether its friends or family.
Not because I've got a problem with it,but I've learned from experience that I can tell who could deal with it and who couldn't.
There's nothing worse than opening up to someone,who gives you a generic answer of "I know how you feel" or "you'll feel better if you try and put it out of your mind" something like that.
You need to protect yourself to a certain extent.
That's how I feel about it anyway :)

[Sunflower2]

I'm the same, some people don't really know how to react to it and try to give advice and then feel like you're just ignoring it when their advice doesn't quite work! Like oh, just eat this, oh just do this. Just forget, stop being selfish, think of everyone dying, think how lucky you are, pull yourself together, can't you see what you're doing to us, why are you doing this, why can't you just stop, it's self inflicted, etc etc!

I find it easier to describe how you're feeling rather than tell them the diagnosis, that tends to make people understand it a little better.