Graves, anxiety and lockdown : I thought I was ok... - Thyroid UK

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Graves, anxiety and lockdown

purple64 profile image
12 Replies

I thought I was ok being at home ordering shopping online etc. But I had to go for an eye test. Being in the opticians with quite a few people made me anxious and again 2 weeks later when I collected my glasses I couldn’t wait to get out and get home.

Am I being daft or has anyone else had this happen. I still feel a bit anxious today as well.

Bloods are ok and antibodies are lower than they’ve been for a long time so it must be me 😊🙄

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purple64 profile image
purple64
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12 Replies
Valarian profile image
Valarian

i don't think you are alone in this. Lots of us have barely been out of the house in months, and finding ourselves in the fairly cramped conditions of a typical optician's with lots of strangers in closer proximity that we are used to must seem very strange. Your anxiety sounds quite natural.

purple64 profile image
purple64 in reply to Valarian

Thank you. I’m usually quite happy to browse and get a coffee but now it’s a different story. It really made me stop and think and not realising how much it had affected me 🙄.

Valarian profile image
Valarian in reply to purple64

I know how you feel. I’m not normally an anxious person, and when my thyroid levels were elevated, it was quite weird seeing myself being anxious about something, yet rationally understanding there was nothing to be anxious about.

Then you understand that anxiety is itself a symptom of Graves’, so begin feeling anxious about being anxious in case it signals a relapse...

The joys of Graves’ !

purple64 profile image
purple64 in reply to Valarian

Absolutely. Two days are never the same. That’s exactly it you feel anxious then start to get anxious about being anxious 🙄🤪 crazy 😂

NWA6 profile image
NWA6

I think this is very normal, Hashi’s or no Hashi’s. For me the anxiety of being in normal situations/environments again after so long is more about the social interactions rather than the virus. I feel like everyone, staff and customers, are a hair trigger away from being totally and utterly righteous. It’s like they whole of society is ready to pounce! Everyone thinking their opinion is the ‘one’ This virus has exacerbated my notion that we are slowly but quickly evolving as a nation that won’t be too dissimilar to that of Nazi Germany. Neighbours quick to dob you in, police called for the slightest infraction. Our rights are slowly being taken away. The virus and how it’s being handled is just another catalyst for control. We live in an illusion of freedom.

Lora7again profile image
Lora7again

I am just the same ... I had to have a filling after chipping my tooth on a nut (trying to cut down on eating chocolate because of lockdown boredom) After 4 weeks of waiting I was up at 4am walking about because of the worry of catching covid from the dentist. Arrived in a sweat was given an injection then left for 15 minutes while they got gowned up. When they came in wearing scrubs, masks and visors like they were going to do major surgery there I was shaking in the chair. The dentist says in a muffled voice "Actually we only have to do small white filling I didn't need to give you an injection after all" Me "Well thanks a lot for freezing half my face for several hours when you didn't need to!" Him "Sorry Mrs Lora I didn't realise until now" It then took 5 minutes and cost me £39.00 so quite cheaper than I expected. All that worry for nothing but the slightest stress has me like this and I know I am not alone.

Ellie-Louise profile image
Ellie-Louise in reply to Lora7again

I’ve seen 2 dentists and a canal root filling specialist, all in the last month because while eating an apple I cracked my root filling when the post of my crown put pressure down on it.

I think the dentists are more worried about catching anything from us rather than the other way round. Dentists are all I’ve been out for over the last 6 months. I’m in danger of getting institutionalised I think. Thank heavens I can find things to do...and I don’t mean housework. 😆

purple64 profile image
purple64

So sorry to hear that. I know where you are coming from. By the time I got home from collecting my glasses I was a quivering wreck on the inside. It’s a horrible feeling and there’s not a lot you can do apart from trying really hard to stay calm, deep breaths etc. It was almost like a panic attack. It was exhausting.

I need a haircut so that will be the next thing. Have been putting off making the appointment but I need to do it in case we go into a total lockdown again.

So far I have only been to our local Co-Op for bits of shopping and having the rest delivered.

Take care

Lora7again profile image
Lora7again in reply to purple64

Was that to me?

purple64 profile image
purple64 in reply to Lora7again

Yeah sorry should have said 😊🙄

Localhero profile image
Localhero

I totally get it. I had a similar experience getting on a train the other day for the first time since March to go to get my hair cut. I felt completely paranoid the entire time.

But it turns out post-lockdown anxiety is a real thing, and lots of us have it. As far as I can see, the advice on avoiding the virus makes us fundamentally suspicious of being near other people. That’s a huge psychological thing. Also, I guess that weeks and months of acclimatising to the tiny worlds of our homes have robbed our confidence for being in the bigger world beyond them. So it’s a big headf@*%, and you are absolutely not alone.

NIKEGIRL profile image
NIKEGIRL

Anxiety is hard to control. It requires a lot of energy and focus to keep yourself calm. Covid 19 has the world on edge. I would recommend looking on line for a meditation. Listen to bird song or maybe Tibetan bells. Anything to relax your mind. I like the bird song best. There’s always one noisy bird in the forest. Kindest regards and keep well NIKEGIRL

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