On the first page she wrote: "If you are reading this book because you are having a nervous breakdown or because your nerves are in a bad way, you are the very person for whom it has been written and I shall therefore talk directly to you as if you were sitting beside me.
"I shall show clearly and simply, and yet with all necessary detail, just how a breakdown begins and how it can be cured. THE ADVICE GIVEN HERE WILL DEFINITELY CURE YOU IF YOU FOLLOW IT. This will take perseverance and some courage. You may notice I have not asked for patience...
"It will not be difficult for you to read this book: it is about you and your nerves and for this reason you will read it with interest...
"I used the word 'cure' and this may surprise you because it implies an illness and you may think of yourself as more bewildered than ill - lost in a maze trying to find your way back to the person you used to be...more than anything else you want to be yourself again...What is this 'terrible thing' that has happened to you?
"Such feelings may have possessed you for a long time, even for years...And yet however deeply involved you may be in nervous breakdown it is possible to recover and enjoy life again. I emphasise HOWEVER DEEPLY INVOLVED.
"The guidance you need is in this small book...The strength to recover is within you once you are shown the way. I assure you of this. Each of us has unsuspected power to accomplish what we demand of ourselves...You are no exception.
"I have no illusions about you: I am not writing this book for the rare brave people but for you, probably a sick, suffering, ordinary human being with no more courage than the rest of us but with the same unplumbed, unsuspected power in reserve as the rest of us...This book will help you find this power and show you how to use it."
-Claire Weekes, M.B., D.Sc., F.R.A.C.P., "Self help for your nerves" (U.K. version) "Hope and help for your nerves" (U.S. version). In recent years over half a century later this and Doctor Weekes' other books have been reviewed on amazon.com and amazon.co.uk combined by almost 1,750 readers 90% of whom rated it either Very Good or Excellent.
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Jeff1943
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The one stop shop to overcoming inappropriate anxiety. Her books, and any others which advocate an attitude of acceptance towards the symptoms of anxiety (allowing yourself to be anxious and not doing anything to rid yourself of the thoughts and feelings) because that is all that is required for normal thoughts and feelings to return i.e. peace of mind and body.
Just reading the books may provide temporary relief. Understanding the content and practising her teachings will lead to permanent relief.
You are right, Beevee, reading alone cannot set you free from the shackles of high anxiety but you must follow through and put into practice all things that have been learnt.
We win not by the punches that we give but by the punches that we take.
Thank you Jeff1943 and Beevee for reinforcing the fact that nothing is a magic solution unless it is practiced and worked on. Too many of us on the forum want that "magic pill" or in this case "magic book" that once they read it, sit back and wait for the results.
Anything worth while takes time and work. Wishing you both well.
Meds mask the symptoms which is absolutely fine so long as the patient practices acceptance alongside. Those expecting the meds to cure will be disappointed because they will still fear the symptoms if and when they return. So long as they still fear anxiety and the symptoms (scary thoughts and feelings), that leaves the door open to its return because fear is the root cause of all anxiety related disorders. Meds don’t change a person’s attitude towards the symptoms....to lose their fear , which is what it takes to recover. If you lose your fear, the problem solves itself.
I didn’t want to use meds as a crutch. To pop a pill just in case something happened or didn’t happen. Never did it before anxiety so why now? I got myself into the pickle so I figured I could get myself out. It was just a case of knowing how to do it which is when Dr Claire Weekes entered from stage left. The rest is history and well documented on this website.
Hi jeff1943 I have come along way over past few years ,was dealing with my Anxiety's and learning to accept the symptoms and started to enjoy life again.BUT last week or so I have really been struggling with headaches feeling like I'm walking on a boat ,Blood pressure shot up 183/88 ended up down walk in centre.they said get doctor to monitor my blood pressure.couldn't get to see my normal doctor saw a locum who did BP and said it was OK.as a last resort I took diazepam to help with headaches/off balance feeling.as I needed to go to work and Dr said I couldn't drive until I had results of blood test .went on Friday 13 April to see Dr but earliest blood test was today 6 days later.was originally booked for 23 April.but I now one of receptionist who also does blood tests so she got me in today .having thyroid ,bone.ERS blood tests .but today I have been supper anxious and headache from hell.took half 2 mg diazepam this morning and another half at 10.30 am headache eased a little bit.just took another half tablet at 5 pm as I need to relax to eat something.can you advise me ? Should I take diazepam for few days to calm my anxiety to a reasonable level.thank you
Hi Jessie, only just read your message as I only check my emails 2 or 3 times a day.
Recovery from anxiety disorder is often three steps forward and one back, setbacks happen, but as Claire Weekes wrote 'if you have cured yourself once then you know how to do it again.'
The problem seems to be the headaches and the unsteady feeling that accompanies them. You did the right thing to seek medical reassurance but I wiould be surprised if the blood tests show any major problem.
The headaches started and I think you may have panicked a bit - have you done the obvious and tried otc painkillers like paracetamol or ibuprofen, you don't mention them in your message. That's what I would try first.
If you feel overwhelmed with anxiety about the headaches and have responsibilities which can't be ignored then there is nothing wrong with a short course of Diazepam. But if you're going to take it I think you should take an effective dose and I doubt whether 1mg would make a difference to anybody. It needs at least 2mg to feel any benefit in my experience and side effects are non existent.
So what would I do? What I should do is do nothing except to continue to apply acceptance and reread Claire Weekes' first book cover to cover and rededicate myself to practicing her method. I would certainly explore the painkiller route and discuss this whole issue with my doctor in conjunction with blood test results.
What I might do if I was feeling really low and vulnerable is to take a 2mg diazepam twice a day for 4 or 5 days and see how helpful that is. But at the same time go back to the Claire Weekes' book for a refresher course.
I find diazepam highly effective at giving instant relief from anxiety and I am unaware of any side effects (and I've taken a few in my time) and have no problem driving or consuming a moderate amount of alcohol. But diazepam are of course not a cure for anything, they just bring respite.
So whichever course you decide on I think a Claire Weekes refresher course is called for.
I can only tell you what I would do, I can't tell you what you should do as I am not medically qualified to give that degree of advice.
So see what your blood tests come up with (which I suspect will be nothing sinister) and have a good talk with your regular doctor and I am sure you will soon resume your progress in recovering from anxiety disorder in which you have clearly achieved much in recent years.
And importantly do read Beevee's second post in this thread which is very relevant to your present situation and is excellent advice from someone who knows his stuff.
I hope that your headaches soon pass and you resume your forward prigress.
Hi jeff1943 thank you so much for your reply ,you always give such excellent advise and I really am grateful ,as when anxiety grips you its difficult to think rationally as you probably know only to well.As I know you have suffered many years of anxiety yourself.I have taken paracetamol one or two a day perhaps I should up the dose .will start on 2 mg diazepam for 4 or 5 days as you said because to be honest the 1 mg hasn't really cut through the anxiety,couldn't even eat my tea tonight ....just to uptight to enjoy it.will defiantly been getting my Dr Claire weeks book out again I keep it in bedside draw.Hope you are keeping well ?
I think you can take two paracetamol three times a day, it's only people who take them daily for years that can have side effects, taking just one or two a day once again is not an effective dose for a bad headache.
Yes I think you are right 1 paracetamol twice a day not even touching the headache.I don't usually get headaches ,but anxiety causes all sorts of new things.
Forgot to say they did ECG and did bloods at walk in centre and they were fine.they said just blood pressure was high.but when I get anxious my BP shoots up.
That's very reassuring about the ecg and the blood rests. Yes blood pressure can rise a long way if we're frightening ourselves half to death as we do from time to time. But in your case it seems temporary.
Thanks I'm going to take 2 xparacetmol and 2 mg of diazepam when I go to bed hopefully have a painless and relaxing sleep going to read my Dr weeks book until the diazepam kicks in.thank you so much for your help.that's the only drawback of living on your own when anxiety flairs up.
Hi Jeff1943. Thank you! I have taken your advice and ordered this very insightful book. I have finished reading it today. I feel some what relieved but scared at the same time. Guess it was a reality check reading it and its time to move forward with recovery and take care of my mental health. Doing it on my own hasn't worked very well. So thank you again for recommending this great book!!
Hi Worrier35, I'm glad your first impression of Claire Weekes' book is favourable. I find I need to reread it from time to time to make sure everything sinks in.
Reading the book brings understanding and reassurance I think but the ultimate goal has to be practicing her four imperatives of Face, Accept, Float and Let time pass in order for our nervous systems to recover.
This takes time and you can't just switch Acceptance on like a light bulb, sometimes at the beginning you can maybe only 'glimpse' acceptance for a few minutes but that's fine as you can build on that.
Hello Jeff1943. Thanks again for responding. I really liked the part where she talked about floating. Yes acceptance is the most difficult. In time I know I can implement her four imperatives. It's not easy but nothing is I suppose. I have faith that I can do this!
Take care
I bought it two months ago Jeff and also paul David’s books I found very helpful and his site. At Last a life. And at last a life and beyond
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From Claire Weekes Hope and Help for Your Nerves
