I am able to cope reasonably well with my anxiety when I stick to activities that are within my comfort zone. However I become very anxious as soon as I do something that is out of the ordinary. Yesterday I accompanied my wife to a pamper day at a health spa.
We started out by sitting around the indoor pool. It was very warm and I felt uncomfortable and my anxiety and panic started to rise. I went for a paddle in the pool which also seemed very warm. All of the time I felt very warm in the spa area and was troubled by anxiety and at times I became close to having a panic attack. Because this was my wife's treat I stuck it out. After visiting the spa area we had our treatments, massage and facial etc. We had in advance booked extra time. Our treatments lasted for 1 hour and 40 minutes, most of the time I felt anxious and trapped. I felt fearful that I would be overcome with a panic attack. This was the first time that I had visited the spa and felt somewhat claustrophobic in it. It was like a rabbit warren. By the time that we had finished I felt exhausted. I used various techniques when I was feeling particularly anxious which got me through. I have tears in my eyes as I wonder why simply spending a day at a health spa should be such a difficult experience.
Please could you give me your thoughts on how you cope in such situations.
Very best wishes
Mark