Overwhelming anxiety

[softwareprogrammer]

I suffer from excessive worry and fear from last few months due to some incidents. Don’t have any ideas how to avoid thoughts that worries me about my health.

Would be glad if anyone can help me to overcomes such condition.

Thanks!

[CaptainCrunch]

Sorry you are struggling. Anxiety, ruminating, excessive worry can feel like an endless loop. I have found some good info on youtube from therapist that have posted about calming techniques. One Lady I enjoy watching has several videos called Therapy in a Nutshell.

I hope this helps but always keep reaching out.

[TrustYourSoul]

Without knowing the general nature of the "incidents" you referenced, it's hard to help.

[cherryhillguy]

Sounds like what I go through. Medicine can help. CBT therapy can help restructure your thoughts. Journaling.

[Existing]

Avoidance: not a great approach. Its like telling you not to think about a painful memory or a pink elephant, thats all you can think of. What you are avoiding may be trying to tell you something. Maybe its your feelings or your thoughts about what happened, but let those be your teachers. What are your feelings? Is it sadness, loss, guilt, shame, fear, anger? Try to connect with your feelings first before any thoughts about those feelings. Your thoughts can often be distorted, especially if there are a lot of thoughts like:I'm so stupid, or such a loser

I shouldn't be feeling this way

I have no right to feel hurt

I'm a bad person because of what I did or said

I deserved what someone did to me

I'm not worthy of respect

Those can really get in the way of how you really feel. Some feelings can also protect us from feeling others.

Example: anger often masks hurt.

Why? Anger can make us feel more in control, while hurt can make us feel vulnerable, which our thoughts might interpret as weak.

These are tools of cognitive behavioral therapy. Learning how your thoughts can affect your feelings, and how distorted things can get if you're not aware of them. There are worksheets that can be downloaded for free, but a good therapist or counselor should also be able to help you find resources.

Keywords: Automatic thoughts, thought distortions, CBT strategies/worksheets

Good luck.