Health Anxiety disorder

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TheKanga

TheKanga

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May 31, 2011
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Well i just wanted to make this thread to see if there was any like-minded people who have had anxiety problems and how you got through it? As i understand it's probably one of the most common mental health issues along with depression.

Just to give a bit of background, i have always tended to be a worrisome person even as a child.
Only i hit my late teens and especially my early 20's it become a problem though and more intrusive to my life.

Over the last two years it seems to stem from certain triggers whether it's

My health/my own mortality or mortality of loved ones
I almost felt like a hypochondriac at times...as I'm quite healthy.
- My grandfather (at 87) died last August, never had to deal with death much before.
Crime/fearing of me or my family becoming victims to crime
- It's normal to be cautious, but i was taking this to far
Other reasons
Eg. (Stuck in heavy traffic, getting on a plane, performing general daily activities.)

I have become better at coping with this and finding techniques to distract myself & live in the moment and get out of my head for awhile. I stopped smoking weed and made other lifestyle changes to help with it.

Every now and then though a panic attack will come out of nowhere and i hate it.
Anyone else been through this?

 
Plenty of times. Particularly during exams. I wouldn't say I know how to deal with it, far from it.

But a tip of mine, would be if you know something is going to make you anxious, first write down why you are doing it. Because, I've found that you can be as confident as you want, it means very little once you go through an episode, this applies to depression as well. And once you're in that state, it's very hard to remember the reason why you need to do so and so. So, I think writing it down on a piece of paper, just something that helps you remember why you are doing this, should help.

If you know you are anxious about something, the worst thing to do is to avoid it. Because the anxiety will just eventually feed off the avoidance and become something too big to handle.

Don't drink coffee if you know you are going to be anxious! I've had the mistake of doing this. Terrible.

Personally, because I know anxiety can be a bit of a problem for myself and particularly it can come out in the most random of times, I've started consciously developing a "DGAF" attitude and more of a "just do it" attitude as well. I think we can control our subconscious, and thus personality, if we try hard enough. Tbh, I think this actually has helped, but still early days.
 
Prick of an ailment, cost me at least 50 quality roots with hot women.

It aint a mental illness, its biological and neurological as well side effect of trauma, somewhere in your life. It has its benefits, you take in alot of info when the adrenaline is running, you do have a hard time processing it immediately, but you do become a more insightful, wiser human.
 

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little graham said:
Prick of an ailment, cost me at least 50 quality roots with hot women.

It aint a mental illness, its biological and neurological as well side effect of trauma, somewhere in your life. It has its benefits, you take in alot of info when the adrenaline is running, you do have a hard time processing it immediately, but you do become a more insightful, wiser human.
Click to expand...
Anxiety disorders are a mental illness. Extremely common and nothing to beat yourself up about. Learn what works for you (as long as it isn't something overly destructive like loads of alcohol/prescription meds not taken as directed) and management is often very successful. If your symptoms start going through the roof time to change up how you're dealing with it, which often means a trip to the psychiatrist and a chat about what you're experiencing and what you'd like to change.
 
I have had social anxiety for 15 years which used to lead to panic attacks
Have grown out of it a bit but still tend to isolate myself and not want to have anything to do with anyone except my partner.
Friends and family get frustrated when I avoid them for long periods of time.
Panic attacks stopped for me when I realised how awesome I felt after them.... it was like my brain threw everything it could at me and had nothing left afterwards so I was in a neutral bliss
 
benchwarmer5 said:
I have had social anxiety for 15 years which used to lead to panic attacks
Have grown out of it a bit but still tend to isolate myself and not want to have anything to do with anyone except my partner.
Friends and family get frustrated when I avoid them for long periods of time.
Panic attacks stopped for me when I realised how awesome I felt after them.... it was like my brain threw everything it could at me and had nothing left afterwards so I was in a neutral bliss
Click to expand...

I'm very similar. I'm generally a loner and find that if I'm in a social situation I need an 'escape' after a couple of hours. People find it a little strange (and probably rude) when I'm discovered sitting by myself, but I find I need space to process my thoughts.
I find that it helps to think things out logically when I get a bit anxious and start think the worst eg. What are the odds of my fears actually happening and also learning to back myself in to get out of tricky situations if they do arise.
 
woopedazz said:
Anxiety disorders are a mental illness. Extremely common and nothing to beat yourself up about. Learn what works for you (as long as it isn't something overly destructive like loads of alcohol/prescription meds not taken as directed) and management is often very successful. If your symptoms start going through the roof time to change up how you're dealing with it, which often means a trip to the psychiatrist and a chat about what you're experiencing and what you'd like to change.
Click to expand...
Take your bullshit condescending patronizing crap somewhere else.
 
little graham said:
Some posters here, know I know what i'm talking about. this is a thread for the people , not for some quak or health worker to come in here preaching drug company properganda.
Click to expand...

Part of dealing with anxiety/depression is learning to not read into everything everybody says as if they have a hidden agenda. I thought his advice was quite logical and fair. I have never taken prescription medication, but for some people that may be the only way they can experience some 'normality'. Who am I to say what does or doesn't work for an individual.
 
little graham said:
Some posters here, know I know what i'm talking about. this is a thread for the people , not for some quak or health worker to come in here preaching drug company properganda.
Click to expand...

woopedazz said:
Anxiety disorders are a mental illness. Extremely common and nothing to beat yourself up about. Learn what works for you (as long as it isn't something overly destructive like loads of alcohol/prescription meds not taken as directed) and management is often very successful. If your symptoms start going through the roof time to change up how you're dealing with it, which often means a trip to the psychiatrist and a chat about what you're experiencing and what you'd like to change.
Click to expand...

Yep, drug company propaganda indeed
 

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Has anyone had any success with prescription meds for anxiety?

The last 3 exams I've had were hell, and no matter what I did, were pretty unsuccessful from my part due to anxiety. I'm think prescription meds may be the only way I can deal with it next time.
 
little graham said:
Some posters here, know I know what i'm talking about. this is a thread for the people , not for some quak or health worker to come in here preaching drug company properganda.
Click to expand...

Power, comrade!

Wolfie.jpg
 
TheFreshBanana said:
Has anyone had any success with prescription meds for anxiety?

The last 3 exams I've had were hell, and no matter what I did, were pretty unsuccessful from my part due to anxiety. I'm think prescription meds may be the only way I can deal with it next time.
Click to expand...
There's a lot of pretty solid ones, especially if it's only for a short time. Lots of off-label choices as well like the ever present "seroquel" that has a hefty anti-anxiety component despite being considered an anti-psychotic. You will most likely feel sedated if you take any of these drugs. The first few days might feel like a drowsy haze or like nothing at all, but the side effects settle if you end up feeling a huge improvement and want prolonged use.

Your GP may be the best bet as a first stop. They might refer you on or give you their support for supplementary exams in the future if you have an attack. Might help you calm the nerves a tad just knowing there is a back-up option if things go pear-shaped.
 
My older brother is on meds for his anxiety and says it helps, he seems like a pill popper to me....
I would rather get through it drug-free if possible.
 
Best for anxiety is benzos but they have issues with tolerance and dependence and doctors don't like to give them out anymore...
SSRI/SNRI is most likely what your GP will give you and I found them utterly useless but they do help people.
If you struggle with physical anxiety symptoms a lot then Beta blockers are your thing
It's important to figure out if possible what the origin of your anxiety is and maybe other options then medication would be best....meditation, CBT, exposure therapy, counselling.

Alternative options that you can buy off the net are phenibut, Kava, modalert, racetams.

I tried it all including every medication class all the way down the line to MAOI's.
Nardil is considerd the gold standard for anxiety/depression but good luck trying to get it prescribed here.
 
Been through it years ago and it is ******* awful.
I've been reduced to a blubbering wreck in public settings for no explicable reason.
Just a severe sense of dread, foreboding, death etc that you can't shake with hightened heart rate, cold sweats, dizziness, nausea all at once.

But, to my knowledge at least, there is always an underlying reason.

Contact a doctor to set the ball rolling to recover.:thumbsu:

Oh, and personally, weed, (especially hydro), appeared to be a huge factor in triggering my episodes.
 
Well i just wanted to make this thread to see if there was any like-minded people who have had anxiety problems and how you got through it? As i understand it's probably one of the most common mental health issues along with depression.

Just to give a bit of background, i have always tended to be a worrisome person even as a child.
Only i hit my late teens and especially my early 20's it become a problem though and more intrusive to my life.

Over the last two years it seems to stem from certain triggers whether it's

My health/my own mortality or mortality of loved ones
I almost felt like a hypochondriac at times...as I'm quite healthy.
- My grandfather (at 87) died last August, never had to deal with death much before.
Crime/fearing of me or my family becoming victims to crime
- It's normal to be cautious, but i was taking this to far
Other reasons
Eg. (Stuck in heavy traffic, getting on a plane, performing general daily activities.)

I have become better at coping with this and finding techniques to distract myself & live in the moment and get out of my head for awhile. I stopped smoking weed and made other lifestyle changes to help with it.

Every now and then though a panic attack will come out of nowhere and i hate it.
Anyone else been through this?
Click to expand...

I've suffered it for years, since before I really knew I had it.

I've always been that way inclined in some degree. Probably more introverted then anxious. I managed to get myself into a comfortable position, I was happy with my lot in life. But over the past few years anxiety has come to dominate much of my life.

If I could give you any advice, get on top of your issue. I've wasted some of the best years of my life, years that I can't get back.
 
I am prone to worrying which i've tried to be mindful of. I first became aware of my worrying state of mind about 7 years ago and at this realisation i began worrying about worrying too much. It's an addictive way to think. I read somewhere that some people worry because they're looking for the feeling they get when a problem is solved but instead of enjoying that feeling of resolving a problem they immediately begin worrying about something else in order to get that "high" again. Anyway i've done alot of mindfulness work and meditation but, 7 years later, i certainly haven't cracked the code or anything. However am alot better.

I also suffer from mild social anxiety in alot of situations, but that is totally handled through either, being very quiet and making a quick exit, or alcohol. :) If im around really good friends that i know well then it's all good, i don't feel any anxiety.

I suffer from major anxiety with public speaking and basically holding the fort in situations. Job interviews and public speaking can pretty much bring on a panic attack and i really need to do alot of breathing exercises and take xanax in order to counter them.
 
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I've had a few hypochondriac episodes before and am definitely an anxious person. I remember reading a great article about dealing with anxiety four or five years ago which I found when searching for information about anxiety and panic attacks. The article basically said that one of the keys to overcoming anxiety is acceptance. You've just got to accept the symptoms and outcomes that come with being anxious. If you bomb out of an exam because of a panic attack, so be it, life goes on. If you're constantly worrying about things, accept that that is the way your mind works. Much easier said than done I know. I'll see if I can find the article.
 
crazyman27 said:
I've had a few hypochondriac episodes before and am definitely an anxious person. I remember reading a great article about dealing with anxiety four or five years ago which I found when searching for information about anxiety and panic attacks. The article basically said that one of the keys to overcoming anxiety is acceptance. You've just got to accept the symptoms and outcomes that come with being anxious. If you bomb out of an exam because of a panic attack, so be it, life goes on. If you're constantly worrying about things, accept that that is the way your mind works. Much easier said than done I know. I'll see if I can find the article.
Click to expand...
But how would that help with "facing your fears"?
 
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