Work

[Abby1]

Hi,i have been signed off work since the end of November and i am worried about going back into work. I feel worse everyday and am constantly anxious and worried about everything and anything. I am on Mirazapine and am doing CBT but it doesnt seem to be doing much. My sleeping isnt great,which was one of the reasons i went on the sick as i was awake all night. I wish i could get back to normal,my partner is fed up of me being like this,i dont blame him to be honest.:shrug: Everyone thinks i am getting better but nothing could be further from the truth.

[smb25]

Hi Abby

If you have been on the Mirt since November and are still feeling very anxious, I would go back to your docs hun. Maybe it isn't the right one for you.

I was on Mirt for about 8 months and although it helped me sleep it didn't really help with the anxiety, I am now on Cipralex which seems to be working much better at the moment.

Give ur docs a ring and see if you can get to see him/her today before the weekend.

Best wishes
x

[blueangel]

Agree absolutely with smh25 - if you're really not feeling any better, then you need to go back to your GP and see if there is another medication that you can try, as unfortunately it can take a while sometimes to find the right one.

Work can be a tricky issue, as unfortunately the longer you stay off, the worse it is to go back, and it bcomes an avoidance situation.

[Abby1]

Thank you for the replies,i am terrified about going back into work to be honest and it is always in my thoughts. Ive only been on Mirtazapine since about the start of January,ive tried a couple of other anti-depressants and they gave me bad side effects such as getting no sleep at all,which is the last thing i need.:shrug:Im getting more and more panicky every day. Everyone is fed up of me and i dont blame them to be honest,i am fed up of this constant anxiety.

[KK77]

I'd be inclined to say give the mirtazapine a while longer to work. It's helped a lot of people when other SSRI meds have failed. I would go back to your GP however to have your dose assessed and discuss how you feel.

Thing is Abby, it's quite natural under the circumstances to feel afraid of going back to work. I did myself. Yes, it'll be hard initially but you'll soon acclimatise and adjust. Getting back into the swing of things is arduous even for non-anxiety sufferers so don't fight the fear. The mind interprets it as a real danger but it's not the same sort of fear that protects us, eg walking in front of a bus or jumping off a cliff!

I'm on sertraline and it took a good few months before I felt any positive results, so hang in there and you should find life begins to get easier.

[Abby1]

Thanks for the advice MM

[Joannaglassheart]

Hey Abby!

Yes I know exactly what you mean!

I have been off work since October too and I left my last job so when I do return to work I will be starting from complete scratch. Doing an interview, coping with the first day nerves, all those sorts of things!!! I am absolutely petrified of doing it so I think that just yet I am not ready for such a big step.

I talked it over with my therapist and I am thinking that my previous profession as a sales executive was quite possibly the worst type of job for my anxiety. As much as liked being in sales I know she is quite right. So it looks like I will need to have a rethink about my career. What do you do for a living? Is it quite stressful?

The way I am going to try and get back to work is through doing some volunteering for either a local charity shop or doing some voluntary care work for a local organisation.

I like to think that I am getting a bit better and have passed the worst stage of my panic phobia but then again I am still touching wood as I still fear the setbacks.

Try not to worry about work for now and just focus on getting better and being able to do small things first. :)

[JOHN55]

Hi
A few tips that worked for me - with work either pop in for ten minutes unannounced if this is possible where you work or arrange to meet a friend from work for a coffee and try and get back into the work banter/gossip,
Sleep wise a great technique to switch your mind to your way of thinking is to think of your favourite soap or programme and then alphabetically go through a list of characters starting at A that appear in the programme or a list of street names in the town where you live or shops in your town centre staart with A and eventually you will be asleep by H .... !!!! There are many variations on this but it will work.
Hope this helps.
John

[JT69]

Hi Abby,

I was in a similiar boat to you this time last year....I had been off since October the year before and in that year tried to go back twice and ended up off again as it was too soon. I went back in March last year on a phased back return, started on 3 hours a day and built it up by adding an hour on each week until I returned full-time. I did keep in touch with work and knew what was happening etc and I did go in and see my manager beforehand, this all helped.

I too am taking mirtazipine, it helped me sleep and got me back to work, I had previously taken citalopram on and off for around 9 years (have suffered for a while) but it didnt do the trick the last time. Give it more time as January is not long to have been taking it. What dose do you take?? I took 15mg to start with but found when I went up to 30mg I felt much more of an improvement.

As far as your partner being fed up of you that must be hard to take and probably not helping you really, can he not read about how you are suffering?? Am sure if he really knew what it was like he wouldn't feel that way, you have enough to be going on with without the added feeling of people being fed up of you.

Take care hun and I hope you feel better soon.

Jo.xx

[Abby1]

Thank you for the replies and thoughful comments