endless days

[Clint1985]

Hi my name is Clint. I am 23 and have suffered with anxiety for 3 yrs. My symptoms started out as mild and have gotten to the extreme and seems nearly impossible to live and do every day activities. Here are some of my symptoms.

*fear of dying and constant worrying about the afterlife(even though I am a christian)
*fear of going insane or doing something psychotic
*extreme fear of anurysms and having them(i usually relate most of my physical symptoms to this)
*spacy and unreal feelings
*strange aches and unexplainable pains all over my body
*never ending dizziness and blurred vision
*feeling like my balance is off most of the time
*horrified of being alone and not succeding in life
*stomache pains in different places at different times
*numbness or tingling in left leg, face, limbs and hands
*feeling like im ging to pass out or die at any minute
*much trouble breathing
*trouble going to sleep and when i do i wake up shortly after feeling very very anxious
*loss of energy
*not much desire to do the things i used to love doing( unless i have been drinking
*trouble concentrating
*over anylizing and worring about everything
*pains in neck and chest
*migraine headaches
*chest flutters and heart palpitations
*overwhelming feeling of doom

This may seem like alot but i could spend all day explaing symtoms. I like to think that all this is anxiety, but like most everyone else who has this it is hard to convince yourself that there is nothing physically or mentally wrong. i feel like my life is spiraling downward and that there is no hope for me. I have gotten to the point where i feel like i wont live another day. i would not wish the way i feel on my worst enemy. Yes, i am depressed but feel its only due to the anxiey and otherwise would be a normally happy person. i used to have good days but now i feel like every day there is a black cloud over my head and that nothing seems real. But like any anxious sufferer, i know that there is no giving up.

[marie1974]

hiya clint and welcome to nmp, i am sure u will find load of great info and advice here and meet friends too. hugs xxxx

[Veronica H]

Hi Clint These all sound like classic anxiety/panic symptoms. I know this is hard to accept as the symptoms are so powerful, but presuming you have had this confirmed by your Doctor, I would suggest you read Dr Claire Weekes book 'Self-Help for your nerves' published by Thorsons ISBN No 978-0-7225-3155-6.( Available from NMP shop). It is a quick easy read and really explains what is happening to us and why. As I am on the waiting list for CBT. I wanted to know how to help myself in the mean time. I cannot recommend this enough. I am sure you will find comfort and support on this site.

Veronica

[Cathy V]

Clint, believe it or not, ALL of that symptom list is a result of anxiety...thats to say anxiety symptoms brought on by anxious thoughts. Like alot of us you have become very 'introspective' nothing else exists except how you are feeling at any given moment...every twitch, every ache, lump and bump etc has become your world and you've slowly but surely over the last 3 years become programed. In other words your anxiety has brainwashed you (we humans are very susceptible creatures dont ya know...how else would the hypnotist Paul McKenna make a living!)

Ok, i know the symptoms arent funny and they do exist and cause extreme discomfort...i get them too but not all at the same time. Thing is, im now in my 50s and have been letting this rule me for 33 years. Im still here. My heart still misses beats and flutters just as it did 33 years ago, but its a good heart and has kept me alive for all this time. I still feel i cant get enough air in my lungs sometimes, but i dont have asthma, i dont smoke and i still breathe when im asleep. Dont try too hard to control your lungs...you'll never do it as well as they do it on their own without anxious help from you!

Ive always been an anxious person and the anxiety plays tricks on my body sometimes..course it does, why wouldnt it? its behaving as it should when i have adrenaline to spare.

Sometimes i drink too much in the evenings too and then feel like crap when i wake up...but thats my own fault so i have to live with the extra adrenaline it produces, and dont try to tell myself the hangover is worse because of the anxiety....its because i had too much to drink.

But its easy for me to talk about it in this way coz ive learned as ive gone along and never more so than on this forum. Clint try not to let these feelings overwhelm you too much...keep talking to us, and you'll find that the more you realise how common your symptoms are, and the more you chat to others and make others feel better about their symptoms...gradually you'll feel better too.

Take care and welcome
Cathy xxx

[milly jones]

welcome to nmp




its super place to gain support

love

milly xxx

[pooh]

HI there and welcome along to nmp

the menu to your left is a good starting point to learn about this stuff before heading into the forum

Pooh x