Anxiety Spikes.

[SoSo23]

I suffer from GAD. I just started medication about 10 days ago, and i know it has to have time to work, but sadly one of my biggest triggers is thinking about dying and my brain just won't stop going to it. I'm only 27 going on 28 and i have constant anxiety about i, but also periods of when my brain is ok. I hope the medication helps but i don't know how to keep myself from going insane in the mean time. Seriously any tips or advice or anything is welcomed.

[gogogirl]

Well, eventually we are all going to die, so what is exceptional here?

[TheEraOfSarah in reply to gogogirl]

I think obsessing about one’s own demise to the point of it creating crippling anxiety is what is being talked about here.

[Lakewolf]

Exactly what is it about death that causes you such anxiety?

If you figure out what it is about dying that makes you so anxious, it’ll be easier to work with.

[Kaez]

Hi, I also struggled with anxiety over dying, causing panic attacks. I guess my mind was just taking me to the darkest worst case scenario possible. Then those thoughts would spiral out of control. I started medication and it did help. But now that phobia transformed into agoraphobia, trouble leaving my house. I think may need to commit to therapy to hopefully rid myself of this. Give your meds more time to work and in the mean time do just about anything that relaxes and calms you.

[bonkers65]

I think ALMOST everyone is afraid of dying. I think it's the fear of the unknown. I don't know what to tell you except try to think about something else when you have those thoughts. Yeah I know. Easier said than done.

[faulhallen]

I suffer from GAD and I used to do what I referred to as "counting ways to die." My mind would enter this state and I would begin to identify every possible way that I could die in a given location no matter how inconceivable it might seem to a rational mind. Ranging from everything I could trip over or fall onto, things that could collapse, get knocked over, catch fire, short circuit, etc.. I would even find myself adding in human factors if I didn't distract myself. For me it was most common in places I had never been before.

I'm not sure if this is what you are meaning or not. I've only ever met one other person who has admitted that they did this. I never took medication specifically for it but I can say that as I got older and my responsibilities changed I noticed I stopped doing this as often. My biggest triggers now are things that could in theory lead to the harm of loved ones, specifically my children.

But the thing that helped me the most when I was younger was developing ways to break the pattern. Little things to distract myself or help me focus on why I had gone to that location so that my mind didn't revolve entirely around my worries. Something to keep me in the moment like singing along with the radio even if it's silently, clicking a pen over and over again, or just otherwise just keeping my mind busy the moment I feel myself starting. I hope you find a way to at least keep your anxiety from getting too out of control and that the medication help!

[Hidden]

GAD is no fun, so sorry. thoughts about dying i know can seem to sometimes come out of nowhere which can be frustrating. meds do help but thoughts are our own so it's important to try change our thoughts. I try tell myself why I dnt want to die, I have some written down for those times when I cnt think of anything positive. stay strong my dear. keep with the meds they will start working it can be up to 8 weeks 🌸.