I think I'm reversed !

[MrMannering]

people say ... keep your mind busy .. an idle mind is the devils playground etc etc etc...

ok for example ... I'm 70% anxious with all the trimmings.. 100% being a full blown panic attack.. I'm sat in my chair letting myself feel like this and allowing it to be there... doing well at it too!... "knock knock" on the door.... It's my Neighbour. "Have you got a sec to help me shift my wardrobe" My brains is thinking "For god sake" ..... My problem..... while I'm helping him I cant focus on keeping it at bay .... 80%.....90%.... Now it's not the going out that bothers me or talking or anything... I could be in a park or anywhere but so long as I am not being disturbed I can keep it at bay..... The biggest problem is I have to go to work or someone wants me for something ...again where I can't give it my attention. I know what your thinking .... the reason why I am thinking at all is the reason it is there.

[sunnyg]

Are you saying your anxiety spiked while you were helping the neighbor? Or, did it go down because you were busy?

[MrMannering in reply to sunnyg]

Well it was just an example.... but if I am anxious anything that gets in the way of it seems to make me worse... even sometimes a phone call... I think ...hurry up and get off the line so i can go and relax !!!

[Hidden]

Hello

I can relate to what you say , while I am left alone I am not bad at all but anything disturbing me well another story

Having said that we have to live in the world and things will come along and disturb us , so more work needed to be done on how we stay clam when life events keep disturbing our peaceful space

You are not alone though in how you feel

You never said , did you shift the wardrobe

Take Care x

[MrMannering in reply to Hidden]

hahah.... I got inside and went to my own quiet peaceful world.

[Beevee]

Hi

It seems to me that you are not fully accepting the symptoms of anxiety if you are rushing to finish a phone call or if someone disturbs your peace or having to go to work for fear that the symptoms will return or worsen. In other words, you still fear or have an intense dislike to the symptoms (same thing) or at best, avoiding (i.e. fear) will keep you stuck in the anxiety cycle. You are paying your anxiety symptoms too much respect when they don't deserve any.

Fear is root cause and recovery from anxiety will only happen when you totally accept, allow, give in to all the symptoms and carry on with your day which is the same as losing the fear. If someone calls, let yourself feel anxious, don't rush that phone call and go to work, no matter how you may feel. By getting it "over with" as quickly as possible or avoiding the thoughts and feelings, you are simply reinforcing the message being sent to your brain that there is a threat so your fear/flight response stays on high alert, your nerves remain sensitised which equates to more of the same suffering. The only way to de-sensitise is to willingly feel all of the symptoms and do nothing about them. If you do not run away from the symptoms or resist them in any way, the brain will eventually see that there is no threat, giving your nerves the chance to de-sensitise so that they don't react so swiftly or as intense to all and sundry. Over time, the body's natural defence mechanism will calm down and be in keeping with any perceived threat. Recovery is not about not feeling anxious, it is about not caring if you feel anxious in normal situations (e.g.public speaking) which is a natural reaction. If you lose the fear, the thoughts and feelings which scare you just won't bother you any more. if you recover the right way by facing and accepting your fears, you will lose your fear of it which it what is currently keeping it alive.

[LDS32 in reply to Beevee]

Agreed. When I i feel anxious say when I'm picking up sub I force myself to sit down and eat it there even if the plan was to just grab it and go home. Sometimes I calm down sometimes I don't but long term over time it makes everything easier.