I just joined this website as I was encouraged by my therapist to find a support group for my anxiety. This is my first post and I am hoping she was right in how beneficial this could be for me. I am currently suffering from general anxiety, panic attacks, depression, and agoraphobia. I am not completely homebound but have great difficulty leaving the house. I am on medication and see a talk therapist once a week. Although both are very helpful, I am still looking for more. Yesterday, I had a major push to take this action as I was not able to sleep and was on the edge of a panic attack for hours. I was home and have no additional stressors that could've caused the episode. This was terrifying for me as I use the causes of my anxiety attacks to stop them as I am able to apply logic. Not knowing the cause stopped me from being able to be logical. It scared me quite a bit because I do not know if it is just a blip in recovery or an overall new and lasting problem I will now have to deal with. Although I am doing better today I am still nervous about not being able to handle it further and having another issue caused by an unknown trigger. I am in contact with my therapist and my NP hoping for answers and reassurance. I would like to know, have any of you experienced this and how did you overcome it? Some positivity and support would really be appreciated.
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alxag
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Fear is what drives anxiety symptoms. And after a while fear of fear becomes added to this. We fear the fear that we will experience during our next panic attack or other symptom of anxiety disorder.And yet there is nothing to fear. Anxiety cannot make you disabled, it cannot make you lose your mind and it cannot kill you. It is a toothless tiger that can do you no real physical harm - only the awful feeling of total panic.
I am not belittling the horrible feelings that over sensitised nerves send our way but anxiety and fear are bullies. If we can somehow stand up to them and little by little lose our fear of them then we have started along the road to recovery. And believe me, you can recover, you will not feel like this for ever.
Your natural instinct is to fight your feelings. But fighting only causes more stress and strain which makes your nervous system even more sensitised. What if you stopped fighting and relaxed every muscle in your body when the next panic attack comes? What if you agreed to accept the bad feelings, agreed to co-exist with them without adding second fear to first fear - not for ever but for a while?
Do that (instead of fighting it) and you cease bombarding your sensitised nervous system with anxiety hormones like cortisol and adrenaline. Gradually your nerves respond by losing their sensitivity and you recover your quiet mind. Not by this afternoon or tomorrow but sometime down the line.
Through understanding, reassurance and reordering your attitude to the symptoms of anxiety you can recover. I wish you God's speed on your journey.
I have some of the same issues, been dealing with them since childhood. I'm also now seeing a therapist and NP. If you are on meds, have you recently started them or been on them a long time? That can matter. When you start a new one. It can take weeks or months to feel better. If you've been on the same medication for a long time, sometimes they stop working. Sometimes another medication can be added. Sometimes I can distract myself from anxiety, sometimes not. Keep going, advocate for yourself. Sometimes the first medication doesn't work. Don't give up. Good luck. I know it's a struggle. You're not alone. There are a lot of us.
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