Anxiety is not fun. Health anxiety is not fun. GAD, all the many, many symptoms that come from stress. None of it is fun.
I've always been determined to beat anxiety. I will not accept that people should just be forced to live with it. That doesn't make it easy to overcome, but it makes it doable, and doable is as much motivation and encouragement as anyone should need.
I suffered from 60+ symptoms ranging from dizziness to depersonalization. Some of my symptoms lasted only a day while others lasted 24/7, including depersonalization. If I didn't fear going nuts, I feared being sick or passing out. Fears I still go through.
This began a cycle of fear. I didn't go out much. I didn't want to go out. Now? Sometimes I still don't, but now, I'm going into stores and not rushing out. I haven't fled from a store in actually a substantial amount of time. I'm finding it easier to tell myself to breathe. I got my driving permit. I got my hair done. I've gone shopping for pleasure. My DP no longer scares me. My fear over health concerns has drastically reduced. I had anxiety attacks in stores but now? I'm going back to those stores without any problems. And if any problems arise? I'm not afraid of the thought.
I've reached this point after hours and hours of research, some doctor visits, homeopathic remedies, therapy of which I paid for out of my own pocket. And I spent a good deal on the spiritual aspect to.
The thing is, you can have all the tools at your disposal, but they are for you to utilize. They cannot solve the problem for you. And I think many of us expect them too.
Now, I actually want to leave the house. Though I am not in fully recovered (still a long way to go) I've found the road to it. It's bumpy and pot-holed, but it's there.
How to find it?
Get out.
Go out. Go into a place. I know your heart may start pounding and your vision may blur and your knees may feel shaky and weak. The first time, I was so anxious I thought for sure all my fears would happen and I had nowhere to go. I was as trapped as an anxious person could feel. But nothing bad happened, and every time after that got a little easier. That's not saying I didn't still have the freak-outs in the stores or mall (had that just the other day). But I stayed. And I did not leave that store mulling over how I'd just had a lot of anxiety. I clapped myself on the back and told myself good job. And after that, I went into another store and nothing happened at all.
We get so focused on what we haven't accomplished that it negates the victories we DO achieve. So go into a store. Congratulate yourself. Feel empowered. Then do it again and again, if only to prove to yourself that you can. If you feel like you've hit a wall, let God take the rest. He is the ONLY reason I'm where I'm at. No therapy, remedy, research, or drug can do what He can do.
Anxiety is not a cause, it is a result. And it CAN be overcome, because I refuse to believe otherwise. If you had a life before anxiety, you can have one after. It's hard-it could very well be one of the hardest things you ever do. But the harder it is, the more worthwhile it will be.
Nervous about getting on new anxiety medication....
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Anxiety Physical Symptoms
Can you help me with my Anxiety problems?
My anxiety is consuming my life:( 
