Motivation and help needed please.

[Anna C]

Hi

I am on leave from work this week and although sometimes I find it okay to go out at others I find it too hard to even leave the house.

I am having a bad time at work at the moment so my plan was to go to the gym quite a lot while I am off so that I am feeling happier and stronger when I go back. I have only been to this gym once before I should be going this morning but I know I won't go now.

I'm disappointed with myself I was only going to go to the gym this week to help with my mood then hopefully when I go back to work to start doing some of the classes as I can go straight from work. I wouldn't be able to do the classes this week as I would find it impossible to leave the house at 5.45 in the evening to get to the classes for 6pm-I know how stupid that sounds, (me and my stupid safety behaviours.)

I also need to sand and paint my back gate but I know I will panic because I am on show and I worrying about what the neighbours are thinking about me. When I do go out I find it such an ordeal and I come back either all hot, red and sweaty or I look like a ghost, I look a complete mess and I wonder why I even bothered in the first place. I have done cbt so I do know about doing exposure.

Anyway about the gym, I wondered if anyone could offer any advise and
help to make it easier for me to actually get out of the house and to the gym.

Thanks very much for your help.
Anna

[blueangel]

Don't forget that going to the gym is something that you can do entirely on your own - in fact, when I used to live near a gym (there isn't one for miles where I am now, unfortunately), I used to like the fact that I could go there and not have to interact with anyone if I didn't want to, as everyone else was in their own little world anyway.

Have you got an iPod? If so, take that along with you and listen to some of your favourite music whilst you're doing your workout. I got through most of a summer going to the gym by watching tennis on tv, which I found really absorbing.

Don't forget that nearly everybody else at the gym is only interested in what they're doing, whether it's counting the calories they're burning off, getting more speed on the treadmill, lifting more weights, or whatever. All you need to do is say hello to the girl on the desk when you go in and then do what you're going to do. If you don't fancy going in the changing rooms, go in your kit and then get showered and changed when you get back home.

And as for sorting out your back gate, I reckon the same thing applies. So many people just take any notice of what's going on around them, I bet that most of them wouldn't even notice you, so I wouldn't worry about them looking at you.

[JoeCallister]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I'm_OK,_You're_OK ( Transactional Analysis )

[Anna C]

Hi,

Thanks very much Blueangel for your help and advise, hopefully I should be able to go to the gym tomorrow without being too scared.

Thanks Joe for recommending the book.

Thanks again
Anna