The way I've been addressing my depression and anxiety issues has been to constantly look for a cure....either in therapists, psychiatrists, drugs, supplements etc.
I'm tired of my life revolving around finding a cure and want to just accept the condition....learn to live with it / them and move on.
yeah accepting it and living with it does help.the time we spend worrying about it causes us more harm.in time you will notice a difference in yourself then you will feel free.
Thanks kenster1 it's good to know I'm not rowing solo.
souptype, there is more truth in what you have written than you perhaps realise. Accepting our symptoms can bring more than relief, it can bring complete recovery.
I'm not talking about accepting anxiety, and the depression that comes from anxiety, forever. God forbid. I mean accepting the symptoms for the time being and through understanding and reassurance losing our fear of them. This way lies the road to recovery.
First comes understanding. We acquire anxiety disorder after going through a deeply worrying and stressful period. If it lasts long enough our nervous system can take no more and becomes sensitised. The symptoms of over sensitive nerves are many. Our nerves can mimic genuine illness in a way you couldn't tell them from the real thing. Every small worry becomes exaggerated ten fold. We experience panic attacks and imagine that death is near. But it's all trickery courtesy of our over sensitive nerves which extend throughout our body.
Next comes reassurance. Anxiety's bark is worse than it's bite. No matter how bad its symptoms, anxiety cannot kill you. It can't permanently disable you. It can't make you lose your mind. Anxiety is a neurosis not a psychosis. The power of anxiety is limited.
Next comes recovery. This may be in conjunction with medications and talking cures or without them. To recover you must stop fighting anxiety as fighting creates MORE stress and strain and overwrought nerves need LESS. Instead frame your mind to accept all the symptoms for the time being. Not forever note, just for the moment. Agree to co-exist with them no matter how unpleasant they are and they don't come more unpleasant than a panic attack or stabbing pains in the chest. But accept even these. Keep off the couch or bed in daytime, do you very best to carry on as normal. As a result of accepting rather than fighting you stop pumping out the fear hormones that maintain the over sensitive state of your entire nervous system. No more fear gives your nerves a chance to rest, lose their sensitivity and recover. At that point all your fake symptoms disperse and you recover your quiet mind. All this takes time: we're talking weeks not days, certainly not hours, no instant fix this.
The acceptance method for recovery from anxiety disorder was first set out many years ago by Claire Weekes, a psychiatrist, in her first book titled 'Self help for your nerves' obtainable from Amazon and Ebay. There's a lot more to her teachings than what I've outlined here. If this strikes a chord with you why not give it a try.
Thanks Jeff1943...I haven't read any of Dr. Weekes' work...just a snip or 2 on the web...I'll look into it.
Read her. She is a life saver!
Jeff1943. I hope you don’t mind me asking something here. There’s a place in Dr Weekes book where she says,”when you lose interest in the fear the anxiety will go away”, or something along that statement. I’ve been trying to understand it. Why are we interested in fear?
Well, Glendajean, I think what Claire Weekes is saying is when we stop being frightened the anxiety goes away. I guess the reason we're interested in fear is the same reason we're interested in pain, it's something we don't like but we're all subject to it so we become interested in it so as to learn how to avoid it.
Thank you Jeff1943. Makes a lot of sense Exactly. We get interested in trying to avoid it. Thank you!!
I am going for CBT but currently on a waiting list, a bit nervous but have been trying to read up about it and that is one of the main reasons I joined this. My anxiety has got worse the last few weeks and I think the first step is admitting to the problem and knowing there is help out there. It has been helpful just reading other posts about CBT.
Yep...admitting there's an issue is needed...for the longest time I'd say "they have emotional issues and they need behavioral modifications but not me....my problem can be solved with a pill...that's my problem...I don't need to change my behavior..."
Wrong....I need to own up to it....that's where it starts.....good for you for realizing that....cbt will help....try not to make too big a deal of it....it'll only help.
souptype
Might look into that book I was told medication is not the best way even though I asked for some tablets to help calm me down for the time being.
Extremely frustrated.
Constantly thinking about something
Stomach in constant knots
