Hi everyone:
A member called jeff1943 shared some wise words that help me every morning to reassure that I can beat my anxiety, and I thought it could be helpful for some of you
From Jeff1943
Anxiety takes many forms but it is always still anxiety. Let's recap.
Anxiety disorder occurs when our nervous system reaches anxiety overload. We all have a different threshold for this, some more prone than others.
The onset is caused by worry, overwork, loss, disappointment, grief, shame, money worries, concern for others we love, toxic relationships, over stressful work situations and health worries to name just some.
When our nervous system can take no more it becomes super sensitive and starts playing up like an overloaded electric circuit.
So anxiety disorder is a perfectly normal reaction to too much stress.
In their over sensitive state our nerves start inflicting all sorts of symptoms upon us. Health anxiety, social anxiety, agoraphobia, claustrophobia, derealisation, panic attacks, you name it.
It's important to get your anxiety properly diagnosed by a doctor for reassurance - and because a small number of people can experience anxiety because of thyroid problems which can be easily corrected by medication.
Once we enter the anxiety disorder stage, every problem and minor worry is magnified by a factor of 10.
Sensitive nerves are so good at mimicking real illness that even after diagnosis by healthcare professionals, and sophisticated tests, many still believe their doctor has "missed something".
Anxiety disorder can soon become a self perpetuating phenomenon. The symptoms we experience produce fear hormones that stimulate our over sensitised nerves even further. So more symptoms are produced causing more fear causing more symptoms causing more fear - and so the vicious cycle rolls on and on.
If the bad feeling becomes overwhelming and we have work and family responsibilities then a period of respite through medication is justified. Meds have an important part to play, people should cease to demonise them, but meds cannot bring recovery. Once we stop taking them the horrors return.
Everybody who has experienced high anxiety can recover no matter how long or how severely you have suffered. No matter if your anxiety is a temporary reaction to stress or whether your low threshold to anxiety overload is inherited.
Talking therapies can be effective and so can self-help books written by people who know what they're talking about. In my opinion the greatest of these, set out by Claire Weekes several decades ago relies for recovery on the four imperatives: Face - Accept - Float - And let time pass!
