Any suggestions on how to battle fear?

[kama24]

Has anyone actually passed out from anxiety? The fear of that happening to me is over whelming. I am worse when I am alone in the house. Yes, I have meds, see a therapist, know all the usual suggestions .....but nothing helps. I feel like I'm at the end of my rope! I have read that magnesium is suggested for anxiety, so I started at 500mg per day and ended up in an awful mess of cramps & nausea. How does one find the courage to get through each new day? Thank you for listening.

[SurvivingEveryday]

I know how you feel, friend. It is understandable and you are NOT alone; even if you think you are. I have passed out from anxiety and had two panic attacks that made me feel like I was literally going to die. Not fun.

I try to do things outside of my comfort zone, in a controlled slow way. Walks with my headphones in and turned up FULL blast is good for me. Yoga is too, and stretching. I try to do things that challenge myself little by little, and force myself to get out of the house. Even though I know I might have another panic attack or I might have a feeling of dying- I got the point where I felt I had to make a change, so I did. Little by little. It was hard, and took a year to get to a good spot, but I did it. I bet you can too

[kama24 in reply to SurvivingEveryday]

Thank you for the encouragement. This has been going on so long with me I feel there is no hope. My physciatrist told me he has no other suggestions and will see me in Oct. to refill my prescriptions. I do try to force myself to do things, like walk the dog alone, or sit out in the back yard for a while. The fear in my stomach just pulsates. I hope I can find the courage you have, Take care

[Cat33 in reply to kama24]

Please look into Dr Claire Weeks books or her You Tube videos she is wonderful x

[kama24 in reply to Cat33]

I have the one book on anxiety and have read it a few times. I didn't know she was on youtube so I will look into it. Thank you for the suggestion

[kama24]

Thank you for sharing. I appreciate it.

[b1b1b1]

Have you ever thought of getting a wearable alarm. These are available in the US and in fairly wide usage. I am not sure if you are in the UK or the US. The device is a necklace with an alarm button. When you push the button emergency services are automatically summoned. There is, however a monthly charge for the device. My understanding is that they work well and provide a lot of peace of mind.

[kama24 in reply to b1b1b1]

Thank you for the suggestion. I am in Canada, but yes I do know what you are talking about. It certainly is something to think about.

[Dell12345]

Panic attacks are horrib, and make you feel like your world is ending, but they are not actually harmful. You will get through this, and find the right meds that take them away xx

[kama24 in reply to Dell12345]

Thank you for replying. It boggles my mind that at one time I never experienced anything like this. It makes you feel rather alone. If only there was a let up here and there. Thank you for understanding.

[OO8OO]

My discovery has been that our psyche works counter wise, the more we avoid what we fear, the more fear controls us, and I don't know of any better way than to gradually and incrementally expose oneself to feared situations. Think of it like a vaccine, which is the inactive form of the virus to which we expose ourselves deliberately. The passing out thoughts are common with anxiety, but never happen from my experience, and even if you did pass out, that's nothing scary, just black out for a while, again from personal experience, not because of anxiety.

[kama24 in reply to OO8OO]

Thank you for replying. Yes, I have read that you should face your fear head on. I do try, but admit I seem to be a failure at it. I guess all we can do is to keep trying.

[Blue_81]

Sorry the magnesium did not work. What I do is walk for long periods of time. Also, during my walks I See and Listen to people having a good laugh, that can be very up lifting. All of these help me.

[kama24]

I try to walk our dog at least once a day. It is very frustrating that I wake up with the over whelming feeling of "fear" each day. I find if someone comes to the house and I engage in talking to them, the anxiety lessens during that time only to return when they leave. I'm finding it more difficult to leave the house lately. My physciatrist has basically told me he doesn't have any other suggestions. I'm afraid I'm feeling like a lost cause. I hope you are doing well.

[Blue_81 in reply to kama24]

I wake up the same way 😞 with alot of fear. Just want to keep sleeping and stay in bed. I notice that when I talk to people it does get better. The effect lasts for a few hours. Unfortunately, it is hard to make friends since everyone is so busy and not all understands what we are going through. Wishing you well and better days.

[kama24 in reply to Blue_81]

Thank you for your kind words. My therapist has sent me some info on icing the vagus nerve for anxiety. You can also fill a sink with ice and put your face in it (not for me). The spots to hold the ice packs are your wrists and just below the rib cage. What do I have to lose??

[CaptainCrunch]

I have OCD which deals with debilitating Anxiety. The treatment for OCD is ERP. Exposure Response Prevention. I had to learn how to rate my anxiety from 1-10. 10 being getting light head and I have almost past out several times. The next step is to journal and also catch your self if you are ruminating on triggering subjects or negative thoughts. You journal that all out. Then and exposure of would be to write a script. Recorded it to your phone and listen back to it for 5-10-15 minutes 3 times a day. Till the brain habitualize to the thoughts that are causing the anxiety. Also you don’t want to do your most terrifying thoughts just thoughts that raising your anxiety to a 4. Over time you will be able to more scary thoughts. Not sure if this helps. But I understand the Fear and it is HORRIBLE!!!

[kama24 in reply to CaptainCrunch]

Thank you for your understanding. I have heard about keeping your episodes in a journal and think I will start You are so very right...FEAR is HORRIBLE!!

[CaptainCrunch in reply to kama24]

Journaling also has an add benefit of activating the left side or your brain. OCD suffer tend to get stuck on the right hemisphere which control creativity, imaginations, and emotions. Writing it out helps label these thoughts and emotions and hopeful brings a bit a bit of balance back to the cognitive thinking.

[kama24 in reply to CaptainCrunch]

Thank you for taking the time to explain. I'm going to get a note book out.

[CaptainCrunch in reply to kama24]

Well I hope it helps even gently. Please reach out if you need anything. It is rough to go through this alone.

[kama24 in reply to CaptainCrunch]

Thank you for your understanding.

[jimk_mb]

Anxiety can be a debilitating condition when as severe as yours. I've dealt with panic/anxiety since young childhood, but mine is now well under control. And I hope that yours will be too in the near future. OTC items like magnesium have never made any difference for me.

I needed an antidepressant to get some control over the condition. The thing is that it take the right one and this requires a good psychiatrist who is willing to work with you and try alternatives. My opinion is that benzos should not be used daily long term for control of anxiety. The meds won't solve all your anxiety problems, but will give you enough control to proceed and work with your therapist, do exposure, do meditation, get a good nights sleep, etc.

I know some folks are anti-meds, but they've saved my life.

I wish you the best in getting control of your anxiety and moving forward with your life.

[kama24 in reply to jimk_mb]

Thank you for taking the time to reply. I do take Luvox, and Remeron, also one 2mg of ativan a day I get very little relief if any from them. Unfortunately there is a shortage here of family doctors and we lost ours las year. My physciatrist doesn't want to take me off Luvox as it seems every new med makes me sick. I truly hope that I will one day wake up without the FEAR smothering me. Right now I am icing the vagus nerve in hopes of some help. I am a senior and I would really like to enjoy what years I have left. Take care

[jimk_mb]

I do wish you well and hope you find some relief. Sorry about losing your family doc. Just FYI, there is some good info on anxiety on the website adaa.org.

[kama24 in reply to jimk_mb]

Thank you. I will take a look at the website you mentioned.

[Capt_Tom_Bunn_LCSW]

See this area i host on Quora: panicandanxiety.quora.com/

[kama24 in reply to Capt_Tom_Bunn_LCSW]

Thank you. I have bookmarked it and will be doing some reading.

[lovetodance2018]

Thank you for sharing. I am sorry you struggle with anxiety and that it can overwhelm you. I know the feeling. I am glad you are in therapy. I really have to work on my thougths and capture them as soon as they enter my mind. I have had uncontrollable shaking with my anxiety. I haven't actually passed out. Recently I listened to this pocast that helped me realize that my anxiety has a lot to do with not being gentle to my inner child. We all have something that happened in the past that led to a lie about ourselves. Because of that we don't treat ourselves the way we should. We need mental health hygeiene, where daily we encourage, support, and give ourselves the positive mental health care our mind needs. I hope you find this podcast helpful (bit.ly/3y9WMlb). Following these things has helped my anxiety. I will be praying for you and if you need to reach out and chat with someone feel free to pm me. Hugs and God Bless

[kama24 in reply to lovetodance2018]

I too start to tremble and shake non stop. Thank you for your prayers. I will listen to the podcast. Growing up I was exposed to a lot of death and funerals at a very young age. Relatives back then were often laid out in their living room. I was told they "were asleep"....not good to tell a child. I would see them buried at the cemetery then the thoughts would come into my head What a "mess" I've turned out to be and I feel like such a burden to my husband and daughter

[lovetodance2018 in reply to kama24]

How are t hings going this week? I have been praying for you. Hugs