How long will this last

Hi there I’m 21 and have been suffering from generalised anxiety disorder for nearly a year now throughout that time I’ve had panic attacks every day for a long period of time and thankfully in the last couple of months it’s stopped. However it’s been replaced by something new and even worse I no longer feel myself I’m completely lost and I’ve never ever been lost before even when I was panicking I would still feel myself I would say right know this is who I am. But now I’ve got no idea I want to be a comedian but my live for that and my urning to want to do that has completely gone and I don’t know why. I was a comedian that’s who I fully believed I was and it got me through everything now I have no idea any help?

[tinkerbel19]

Hi I'm 22 and I'm dealing with the same problem. I will go to my doctor today. I always get anxiety attacks and my palpitations or chest aches are bad. I hope will be okay soon and will find the cure to our problems.

[Jeff1943]

I think what you describe is called depersonalisation. It's a well known symptom of anxiety disorder: like derealisation it's an unhelpful attempt by the mind which senses your anxiety and tries to distance you from what it perceives to be a threat.

It's unsettling but cannot harm you physically in any way. Like all the symptoms of anxiety disorder it will resolve when your anxiety disorder resolves.

The first question to ask yourself is: what is it in your life that caused your nervous system to become over sensitive, what produced the stress and worry? If you can pinpoint that then your first task is to neutralise it even if you have to be ruthless in resolving it. Was it overwork, disappointment, loss, toxic relationships, grief, guilt: only you know the answer. It may be helpful to talk to your doctor about some counselling or talking therapy which may help you decide on a course of action to overcome the cause of your anxiety.

Anxiety is born of fear, something everyone with anxiety disorder feels a lot of. But we can desensitise our nervous system by simply accepting our symptoms for the time being. Refuse to respond to the flash of first fear with second fear. Do not fight your symptoms, that only causes more tension. By taking the pressure off your nervous system you give it a chance to recover.

Depersonalisation and other distressng symptoms may cause you discomfort but they will not harm you physically, you are in no danger and they will go in time. Begin your recovery by accepting your symptoms for the moment and let time pass.

[ChicagoGirl1961 in reply to Jeff1943]

It amazes me that to this day I do not know what triggered my anxiety. Up until I was in my late 20's, I could take on anything the world threw at me without worry, in fact I thrived in stressful situations, confrontational situations, just about anything. Now when presented with those situations I struggle to cope with them in the confident manner I was able to at one point in my life. I'm fortunate that I've never had the debilitating panic attacks that so many have described that they endure. My issue is that I simply feel ill at ease and uncomfortable during some situations when there is no justifiable reason for me to feel this way. I've come a long way and understand anxiety so much better than I did years ago which has enabled me to develop coping skills, primarily being able to recognize anxiety for what it is when it presents itself and just letting it go because I understand the anxiety is irrational. But when all is said and done I don't know why anxiety has manifested itself into my life because at one time it simply was not a problem I had ever experienced. Although I now know what some of those triggers are that cause me anxiety in the present day, I am at a complete loss as to why anxiety ever manifested itself into my life. I have concluded after all these years that anxiety issues will always be a part of my life, while at the same time becoming more and more capable of coping with it as time goes by. Anxiety may never leave me, but I will continue to deal with it more effectively with each passing year, however I wish I knew what brought it on to begin with as knowing this could be very valuable to gain the understanding how to overcome the anxiety more effectively.

[Jeff1943 in reply to ChicagoGirl1961]

When my anxiety disorder began way back in 1974 I couldn't really relate it to any major worries or stress. I think that some of us may biologically have a low threshold for anxiety overload and it sometimes takes some event we think we're dealing with to nudge us over the dividing line into anxiety disorder. Maybe.

[ChicagoGirl1961 in reply to Jeff1943]

My anxiety disorder began in 1987. Back then I didn't know what it was and it caused me to make a lot of poor decisions. Looking back now I can clearly see those poor decisions were a result of anxiety. Biologically predisposedd to anxiety? Quit possible I think. Anxiety and depression often go hand in hand and we know chemical imbalances can lead to depression, maybe anxiety as well.

[SirGrits]

Hey Bengdmmn I think Jeff's advice is dead on. Hang in there man.

While I've only been aware of my symptoms for about 7 years, my experience has been almost verbatim to ChicagoGirl's. My only real contribution here is that you should know that you are not alone.