I have had better days lately but today was a tougher one. I know we all have different physial symptoms that we beome anxious over and focus on and i am no different. What i am noticing i that my anxiety lives in my chest and i am overly sensitized to any sensations in that region.
I dont want to allow my anxiety to feel at home there anymore and for me to stop being such a generous host to anxiety and paying it attention.
Somedays i do this better than others. I am not working outside of the home and thinking i may just have too much time to be focusing on these sensations. Maybe i should go back to work...
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Cjonesabq
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You are making a lot of sense. You're aware of too much anxiety and how your mind is playing a part in this. Distracting your train of thought away from every detail about your chest is a good way to deal with your anxiety since you've isolated your thinking to your chest area. You don't have to go back to work so much as you must retrain your focus away from your chest and on to other things like friends, hobbies, volunteering and just about anything that will hold your interest.
I'm going to give you a list of resources that will help you further in your understanding of how to deal with your anxiety and resolve your problem of letting it go and not focusing on it. Some ways to encourage relaxation and focus are: learning tai chi, yoga and meditation and mindfulness.
Some natural remedies and non-drug sources of information are books, videos, and workbooks suggested by other people on this site:
1---"I've found David D. Burns' "Feeling Good" and "When Panic Attacks" to be very helpful."
2---"I am working through the anxiety workbook by Dr David Carbonell and it has helped immensely!!! "
3---Mindfulness has helped many people and is now recommended by doctors in the UK. Here’s just 1 link that explains it’s usefulness: heartwoodrefuge.org/benefit.... Another option of many is called MINDSHIFT. You can download it to your phone from Google Playstore.
4---TRE (Trauma releasing exercises) is something you can learn in a class but you don't have to talk about your problems and once you have learned the technique you can use it at home.
5---"A good book that I came across recently is "The Anxiety and Phobia Workbook, 6th Edition" by Edmund J. Bourne, PhD. You might find this book to be of some help to you, although communicating your thoughts and feelings in a group setting is enormously helpful as well. "
6---“The book DARE, which is about anxiety. It’s a very good book about accepting anxiety and letting go of the fear. The author is Barry Mcdonagh and he also has a YouTube channel and a Facebook support group.”
7---For anxiety: Claire Weekes audio books on iTunes. “Self Held for Your Nerves” is one title that is good. You can see her on YouTube. “The Dr. Claire Weekes book is easy to understand and will help you on your way to recovery through acceptance.”
8---Another really good CD and book is the Linden method.
9---How to be good with yourself: self-compassion.org/the-thr...10---Try the meditation app called Headspace. It's done in 10 mins slots once a day.
10---Videos on YouTube by THAT ANXIETY GUY helps with anxiety re: depersonalization/ de-realization states.
11—For UK residents: Have you ever been in touch with the organisation called MIND? They offer one to one sessions with a Project Worker free. They also run courses that you can attend free of charge. One of the courses is about Anxiety. Their website is mind.org.uk
12---"Go on the psychology today site and look for a therapist that specializes in anxiety."
13---Instead of mercilessly judging and criticizing yourself for various inadequacies or shortcomings, self-compassion means you are kind and understanding when confronted with personal failings – after all, who ever said you were supposed to be perfect? self-compassion.org/the-thr...
14---“Have you ever listened to Louise Hay on YouTube? Some of the talks help motivate you and hopefully you will feel a positive energy.”
15---“I called one of these online therapist sites. The therapist was really good. It was prestoexperts dot com. Her name was Lori Burke. Definitely a professional and she got me through this awful depression/anxiety morning.” (There is a charge for this service)
16---For meditation look at:
Tara Brach and Chopra Center
17---theworrygames.com/anxiety-f...
18---“AnxietyNoMore” by Paul Bywater. A phone app.
Practical DBT Exercises for Learning Mindfulness, Interpersonal Effectiveness, Emotion Regulation, and Distress Tolerance
By: Matthew McKay PhD, Jeffrey Wood PsyD, Jeffrey Brantley MD
A Clear and Effective Approach to Learning DBT Skills
First developed for treating borderline personality disorder, dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) has proven effective as treatment for a range of other mental health problems, especially for those characterized by overwhelming emotions. Research shows that DBT can improve your ability to handle distress without losing control and acting destructively. In order to make use of these techniques, you need to build skills in four key areas-distress tolerance, mindfulness, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness.
Source: NewHarbingerPublications
Caution for non-Buddhists: Zen Buddhism inspired aspects of DBT, along with behavioral science and dialectical philosophy. Source: GoodTherapy.com.
Thank you for such an excellent list of options. I have heard of some of these titles and authors and am especially interested that you have used an online therapist. I am also interested in DBT.
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