newbie...losing the plot!

[rachc1980]

Hi all

I am new to the site and I have read some posts and i finding it really useful. Was looking for some advice really!

I am suffering worsening symptoms and I dont know what to do for the best!

i have suffered from anxiety for about 5 years- relating to death alot, health anxiety etc...

my symptoms are aches and pains, thinking i am dying, dizziness, nausea, hand claminess, palpitations...the list goes on!

With all the government stuff going on we have just found i may be losing my public sector job and I thought i had accepted it but today has been my most anxios day ever with a new symptom of feeling like i cant breather!!

I am not on any medication at all and I am just trying to cope i suppose but the more i read on GAD i think it is what is happening. I wont go on motorways (driving or passenger)~ i wont go on a plane- i wont do lots of things and it is impinging on my families life too

can anyone recommend what i should i do next? any advice gratefully recieved!!

[elainey70]

Hi


Sorry to hear your having a rough time, i suffer from GAD and have been off work for 4 months. (i also work for public service and worry about my job). You need to go to see you GP and let them know how your feeling. You will also get plenty of support on here.

Take care

Elaine

[Bill]

This is what anxiety does to us. It attacks one area of our life and fills us with fear and before we know it, it begins to affect other areas of our life until suddenly we feel trapped in a small enclosed box unable to breathe and trembling, feeling incapable of doing all the things we use to do and all the things we feel we still Have to do to please others.

Anxiety (fear) then holds us under its grip making us feel we "can't" and "won't" do things because we feel too afraid to confront it but just like a bully, it only releases its grip when you shout back at it and tell it to get lost, and then you discover it really had no power at all because the danger we kept worrying about was just an illusion it was creating in our minds.

For example....

i have suffered from anxiety for about 5 years....

Probably triggered by alot of stress in your life.

Which would then trigger symptoms related to stress....

my symptoms are aches and pains,...dizziness, nausea, and claminess, palpitations...the list goes on!...

Which then cause "worry" creating "fear"......

thinking i am dying,

Which then creates a circle of fear affecting other areas of your life because you end up "constantly worrying about avoiding situations that you believe will create the same anxious symptoms" because you now feel a need to "keep safe" away from situations that make you feel vulnerable and stressed because they now represent your "enclosed box created by fear" causing you to feel "trapped" with no escape such as...I wont go on motorways (driving or passenger)~ i wont go on a plane, because, for example, you fear passing out.

On top of this, you now have something else to worry about which then causes the whole cycle to repeat - fear about your job because it affects your "security".

The last worry is probably the easiest to deal with though - it hasn't happened, it might not happen so there's no point worrying about it unless it does happen. Easier said than done when it's like a black cloud hanging over you but all you can do is focus on one day at a time, doing your job to the best of your abilities and then cross that bridge IF or when you have to by which time something better might have turned up anyway in which case there would have been no need to worry.

As for the other walls of fear around you, there is only one way of knocking them down by "gradually" targeting each brick at a time.

I feel if something is important to "US" or it's something "WE" really want to do, then we should go for it regardless of fear but if it's something just to please others or others expect it of us, then we should be entitled to say no, "we" don't want to.

However, the key to overcoming fear, is learning the right ways to confront it. For instance, if you say to yourself you're going to drive down the motorway but you're absolutely terrified before you start then you'll probably end up in a panic. Therefore, you need to learn how to keep relaxed Before and During your attempt.

Before you attempt a fear, a relaxation technique can be very handy. This means for example learning how to breathe "properly" as a habit or in times of need by taking slow deep breaths. You'll Never have a panic if you breathe properly because panics are caused b shallow breathing and That's when you pass out.

The next thing I'd suggest is learning how to keep all your muscles relaxed because fear makes them tense up and when we feel tense, our muscles restrict causing us to feel as if we can't breathe and then again, if we feel we can't breathe, we end up in a panic. Therefore, focus on each muscle at a time working up your body. Tense a muscle up tight then relax it...one at a time. It'll help to keep your body calm so you don't react to worrying thoughts.

Lastly, once you're out and confronting your fear, make Sure you focus your mind either on the techniques above and/or looking at things going on around you to keep your mind distracted away from worrying about feelings. If we focus on feelings, we're focusing on fear and fear feeds off attention. Fear melts away when we starve it by trying to "ignore" it or telling it "So what!".

Anxiety is a bit like a bad habit though. It can only be overcome if we really want to kick it, if we feel strong enough and we really want to enough. It takes Alot of willpower and determination to learn how not to let it rule our lives but the rewards can be immense once we learn to control our inner beast. However, having said that, in alot of cases I feel anxiety is triggered by something in our makeup because we seem to Enjoy worrying but we can learn to enjoy worrying without it enjoying worrying us and making us feel too ill to do the things we enjoy.:hugs:

[Vanilla Sky]

Hi and welcome to NMP :welcome: xx

Bill , its good to see you around again :) Paige xx

[Bill]

I'm normally around sweet Paige. Just quieter than before I guess.:hugs:

[Going home]

Welcome to nmp Rach :flowers: You're not alone here.

Hi Bill, so good to see you again xxx

[Bill]

You're not alone here.

It applies to me too. This is the only place I don't feel alone. Sometimes I think to myself I'll find a corner and read a book but then I often find it more interesting coming here and reading real life stories like it's a window to the real world. It's always nice to be missed.:hugs: