Anyone struggle with Anxiety?

[SvilleKid]

I went thru major bout in early 80's ended up outside on mother-in-law's lawn, puking guts up. Week later, at doc's, thinking heart attack in my 20's!!

Many tests later, thinks stuck up both ends, no problems found, closest stupid doc could say was spastic colan, take these pills three times a day.

Then I heard a radio ad that described my symptoms to a "T". Had me nailed 100% Took the course that was offered, was at a community type school, about stress, its causes, and remedies. Taught by a doc from South Africa. Found that I was big time Type A, and that having three major life events in 3 years or less (New Job, Marriage and new home) made me prime candidate for stress and anxiety related issues. Course was major help. Also found that Dale Carangie's "How to Stop Worrying and Start Living" was some help. I also talk to God a lot more. Hope he listens, but in any event, I find it helps just to get things off my chest.

I wish I could say that I'm cured, but no such luck. I do, however, have a little better handle on it, know symptoms are a physical reaction to my often piss poor ability to handle my stress and anxiety levels. It halps to go back and re-establish the relaxation and bio-feedback thecniques I learned in the class. But, mostly, I have flare-ups from time to time when I have to sit back and acknowledge what is bothering me. The most apparant manifestations I have when my stress and anxiety level kicks up is that I have difficulty in handling crowded places, and fight like hell any actions requiring me to eat in public places.

Everyone has things that trigger their attacks. As a self employed. one person business, I know that money issues are one of my major triggers. Since I'm involved in Real Estate, these days I definitely worry about money, which has the result that I've been re-fighting anxiety attacks more in the last 12 months than in the last decade or so.

Kinda in line with what floydpink said, my mom tells me that "It's not what I'm eating, it's what's eating me" She's correct, of course. I know it, but still have to fight to control it!

Good luck in handling your issues. Do look into classes about dealing with stress, and keep an open mind. I know that there are many drugs out there that my RN wife swears are real life savers for many suffers. Having some non-medical remedies can also be a big plus. Now, if I can just follow my own advise, i would be great!!!

[Jimbo14]

I used to be as weak as a worm in the sun. Now im strong as a rock (mentally).

Drugs are GOOD mmmKay.

[Thaplumbr]

Man, im glad i read this thread!

[Coach Deg]

I get it very bad when I lay down to go to sleep at night. Happens about once or twice a week. Sometimes wakes me up. I am not big on medicine so my Dr refered me to a phsycologist and we did not even talk about what could be causeing it. We just talked about breathing exersices to get it to calm down and help me relax. I still get the attacks, but the controlled breathing usually helps and I fall asleep or back to sleep shortly. there are plenty of Dr's that can steer you to the drug alternative.

Good-luck

[The Poet]

I wear two wristbands, one on each arm. Unlike those loud yellow or pink ones you often see, these are more sedately toned. The right one is gray, and says "Ennui", and the left one is black and says "Nihilism." They are a constant reminder to me of my philosopy of life, gleaned after years of hardships and heartbreaks - namely, "#^@+ it all, I don't give a #^@+."

It's the misanthropic version of Ommmmmmmmmm.

[Tenor CS]

I have never been diagnosed with anxiety, but a MD friend of mine is firmly of the belief that my many health problems over the last few months are caused, at least in part, by stress.

A couple of months ago, I had what my MD friend suspects was a panic attack in the classroom in front of my students. I honestly thought I was having a heart attack. Cold, clammy sweats, dizziness, shortness of breath. But EKG turned up nothing suspicious. At the time, I was VERY stressed at work and home. I must say, however, my wife has been a ROCK through all this.

In the last two months, I have had severe difficulty sleeping. I have trouble falling asleep. When I do get to sleep, it's a fitful sleep. If I wake up earlier than planned (e.g. I wake up at 4 when I don't need to be up till 7) I can't fall back asleep.

I have a sleep study next week so that a professional can tell me what I've suspected for a long while, that I have sleep apnea. I am morbidly obese and I'm sure that that contributes to my health problems as well.

Thanks for letting me vent.

[Texan in Mexico]

Nice thread fellows.

I get it bad on planes sometimes but I think many people do so it is worked as Scott says with breathing and just trying to calm down.

On the other hand the gf gets it pretty bad and it is hell to go through sometimes especially with all the trips I make.

I like the phrase that depression is lookin ginto the past and anxiety looking into the future. I will surely remember that for a talk with her.

Thanks for the great replies.

Travis

[Tenor CS]

Originally Posted by Texan in Mexico

I get it bad on planes sometimes

Don't even get me started. I'm terrified of flying. Haven't been on a plane since 1999.

[floydpink]

Prozac has helped me a lot with work related anxiety.

Speaking of planes, I was returning from an island off Brazil's north coast a few years ago and took a small plane rather than the bumpy boat that had brought me over.

I was sitting by the wing window when the right engine began smoking and we had to do an emergency landing and evacuate the plane in a hurry while fire trucks doused the plane with white foamy stuff as the engine was burning. We were in a remote wooded area about 1 mile from the airport we were trying to return to and the pilot managed to put the 8 passenger twin prop in a field.

There was a row of ambulances waiting and thank God they weren't needed.

It was a very bumpy landing and the scariest day of my life, but I have flown at least 100 times since.

[Don Fernando]

Originally Posted by Tenor CS

In the last two months, I have had severe difficulty sleeping. I have trouble falling asleep. When I do get to sleep, it's a fitful sleep. If I wake up earlier than planned (e.g. I wake up at 4 when I don't need to be up till 7) I can't fall back asleep.

I have a sleep study next week so that a professional can tell me what I've suspected for a long while, that I have sleep apnea. I am morbidly obese and I'm sure that that contributes to my health problems as well.

You don't need a sleep study, you have sleep apnea. There is a thread about this on the board, read it, there is good information there.

Back on the anxiety, I don't have it but my ex girlfriend had panic attacks, severe panic attacks and the took xeroxat for that, and when she had an attack she took a pill called temesta which calmed her down. I tried a quarter temesta one day and sat on the couch like a zombie for hours, that stuff was strong!

To be honest, I always thought that she was overreacting, how bad could a panic attack be? A few months after we broke up I was scheduled for an MRA and while in that machine I got my first (and only) panic attack ever. That's when I realized how she felt at least once a day and I felt sorry for her.

[AAlmeter]

Runs in the family. Many here can attest to the fact that I am a type A know-it-all who has to have every problem sorted out. Back in college is when it was at its worst. Being trapped in a world where I had little control really got to me. I rarely slept, and when I did, I awaken shortly after falling asleep to an irregular heartbeat that I can only describe as feeling similar to the feeling just before you cough when you are sick and are coughing up a large amount of the chunky stuff.

After I left college it diminished somewhat, but then reared up again in full force when I was 25. I had taken off to work a job in a new area, away from everything, living out of a hotel, high stress job. 2 weeks into it, my girlfriend amicably broke up with me, and then she decided she didnt want the whole remain cordial part. Id get calls at 5am telling me Im awful, and to this day I still deal with her occasional calls and texts. Needless to say, that was a bad time. There was no sleep, there was a lot of booze. I withdrew from a lot of things, including here CS then, I think), because I just couldnt handle it. Even the thought of deciding between two cigars was too much stress for me. It was kind of through default that a few things happened to ultimately help me along. One, I just stopped everything. I was done. I no longer made any decisions. I was able to get by with work, and actually did a very good job, but personally, I did nothing. I wouldnt even order at restaurants....I told them to bring me something. It wasn't a form of prescribed treatment or anything like that, it was more a mix of no longer caring and being too exhausted to even consider picking a meal. I guess what I'm trying to illustrate is that I put more faith into others helping me out.

Another thing I did (again, not prescribed, just examining these periods in my life and what helped) was I instinctively found a role model. Never really thought about it at the time, but I naturally gravitated towards an older gentleman working with me. He was away from his wife, who had been stricken with cancer. He certainly had a lot more on his plate than I had....but he was able to deal with it...I'd lose it over ordering a f'in meal at Chilis. I learned to emulate him and his "go with the flow" attitude, and that helped a lot...not only with dealing with anxiety, but also with my professional career.

Finally, I learned a bit more about the importance of God. I have a very odd idea of God, I think. I like to think that He exists, I firmly believe that a society believing in a Judeo-Christian God is the most moral and productive society, but I would not go so far as to label myself a full believer. Despite my feelings, I think I am more naturally inclined to find label myself as a deist...though I honestly find myself leaning, or at least wishing to lean, more closely towards Catholicism than Deism. The reason I say that is to explain that I am not particularly religious, yet I have found that having that faith and the idea that someone is there to guide and help you through anything can be very productive in combating anxiety and depression.

I'm still not free from anxiety. A few times a month I will lose it, always when Im inactive and have nothing concrete and immediate that I can concentrate on. That leads me to the final advice that I can give. Get involved in something can consume your thoughts, you enjoy, and can be completely yours. I have several. I really enjoy building. From home improvement to woodworking. Woodworking is especially beneficial because there really is no added anxiety. With home improvement, you need to worry about paying for the granite countertop, how will you get the house closed up, thousands of things. When you're making a box or a pen just to create something beautiful that you enjoy, there are few worries. The other is hunting. Ive found this to be very difficult, yet very rewarding. When you're sitting there doing nothing, its very easy for the mind to wander. But it is one hell of an exercise to get yourself to focus on the nothingness of the woods and to learn to take in the now, to focus on every little aspect of what is currently happening in the hope that you will see that glimpse of an antler, the slight sound of a buck 100 yards off walking through soft snow, etc. Hunting became my ultimate test.

Others in my family have dealt with it other ways (2 diagnosed, my father and I have not been officially diagnosed as we haven't seen anyone about it). One brother (diagnosed) has changed completely since he was hit with it. Its nearly impossible to even hold a conversation with him. Its like he's not even there. He has done yoga, meditation, pharmaceuticals, and drinks a bit. My father grins and bears it. He rarely sleeps. My sister (diagnosed) drinks, she has shown little progress at all. My other brother has the most stress of all of us, and never has an issue with it....go figure.

Best of luck to you. It can be absolutely horrible, but it can also be controlled and cured. There are plenty here to help, and feel free to PM me if you like, but from my experiences, that will only cause you to think about the things I say and how they apply to your life and what you're feeling and will further compound things. Its a f'in ***** aint it? Grab some laughs where you can, and branch out. Learn to flip that switch off and immerse yourself in pointless activities. It was necessary for a caveman to mindlessly stare at the fire to recharge, its necessary for modern man to mindlessly stare at TV (or Jessica Alba) to recharge....learn to turn that brain of yours off for a while, and you'll be OK. We all have stress, but its impossible to deal with when you're exhausted from anxiety.

[shilala]

Good post, Adam.
I just stopped thinking, which is kind of odd sounding, but I have.
Not the thinking that I do when I'm figuring out how to get dressed or cook something, I quit thinking about me. My problems, my life, what's going to happen next, how things will turn out, what I should do, where the next meal will come from, all that kind of stuff.
I let God do that and it just happens.
I did the same "pick a role model" routine, too. Once I learned all he could teach me, I picked another, then another, then another, and ended up at Christ. I still have lots to learn from Him, so it's gonna take awhile.
I still take suggestions and ask for help from everyone around me.
I went to dinner the other night and told the waitress "I want some tamales and whatever the gentleman cooking wants to throw on the plate."
I just wanted to make comment because there were so many parallels in your post and mine.

Mother ****er

here I was selfishly thinking no one else was like this. No one else experienced thoughts just rushing by at the speed of light and futile trying to grasp every one of them and follow each to its end. There is no end, just the answer to one question leading to more questions. Having to know all those answers before being able to give a response to the original question. Thereby being debilitated by my own thoughts. Not able to make the simple choices like which cigar to smoke, which shirt to wear, what beer to drink and God help you if you don't know what we are doing for dinner because I will damn near go to throwing punches before having to answer one more question. Not knowing how to explain that all that is going on. Feeling like a complete failure because I have this problem and I can't sort it out, which, of course, compounds the whole situation. Looking for something, anything to keep my mind busy so I don't have to stay in my head, but everything loses its interest pretty quick when you think about nothing but that one thing. Video games helped, but if they were short or repetitive it defeated the purpose and just lead to more frustration. I keep having recurring suicidal thoughts. Each one of them a different method, and each more vivid than the previous. It's changed my marriage. I love my wife, but I don't want to hear that she has some kind of problem because I've created so many of my own problems that are only in my head and I want to help her but I can't because there is already too much going on. I can't explain that to her because that shows up as being weak, in my head again, and I can't do that either. We want kids and this is something I don't want them to have to deal with and that throws another wrench into this.

Reading through the posts above has given me some insight, but also as said above

There are plenty here to help, and feel free to PM me if you like, but from my experiences, that will only cause you to think about the things I say and how they apply to your life and what you're feeling and will further compound things. Its a f'in ***** aint it?

I know he's right. It's kind of already started.


How do you stop the questions? How do you keep yourself distracted? How do you make it ok to not have all the answers to the questions no one will ever ask? How do you keep from taking it out on others?

Stopping now before this obsession takes the rest of my day, but I thank you all for sharing your experiences.

[Thaplumbr]

How do you stop the questions? How do you keep yourself distracted? How do you make it ok to not have all the answers to the questions no one will ever ask? How do you keep from taking it out on others?

for myself talking to my family and my doctor has helped, Zoloft is my friend nowadays! just my
Leroy

[hammondc]

Bump old thread. I am struggling these days. Had General Anxiety Disorder years ago and I think it is rearing its ugly head again. Panic attacks and general feeling of anxiety.

[jjirons69]

Chip, here's wishing you the best, my friend. Lots of good advice in this thread. Don't get too out of the lines before seeing a medical professional. I like MCS's advice of treating it like a game and not letting it win, but I know the game can be horrible at times. Never be ashamed to ask for help. I, like a lot of us, don't have a problem with you PM'ing if you ever need to chat. Support goes along way. Good luck!!

[sikk50]

I struggle with it. I'm the guy that will take a drug test, having never done drugs, and stress over it for weeks. Little things like that become crippling to me sometimes. I have no idea why or where I got this trait. With my new job I've noticed I've experienced it a lot less, so I'm wondering if it came from 9 years at my previous job.

[hammondc]

I struggled really hard about 4 years ago when I was in grad school and working full time. That was the first time I had panic attacks and it completely wrecked me. I got on Lexapro for about 90 days and that broke the vicious cycle. No problems until we had baby boy back in September. Roller coaster ride since then. The mind is a big asshole for playing tricks. I had a rough weekend and ended up getting a short Rx for Xanax, but was only taking 1/4 of one .25mg tab. I am NOT a fan of these very strong drugs, but I went to urgent care and that is what they insisted on.

I go tomorrow to my regular doc to see if he thinks I should get back on a regular small dose of Lexapro---last time I was only taking 1/2 of a 5mg pill every night. Alternatively, should I just keep something like Xanax or Ativan to get me out of the funk when things get deep. Normally, I would relieve stress via running or working out, but I am out of commission on both accounts for a long while - Jacked up rotator cuff in my shoulder and Achilles Tendonosis in my left feet (which is going to require wearing a custom brace for 6-12months).

[jjirons69]

Sounds like you're doing the correct things, Chip. Kudos.

I'm a sucker for one-liners, also. Just a few of my favorites.

• When in doubt, just take the next small step.
• You can get through anything if you stay put in today.
• Read the Psalms. They cover every human emotion.
• If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.
• Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
• Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift.
• The best is yet to come.

oh... and FYI... when I wrote the above I had only read the first page...

guess you have found a solution, atleast I hope, by now that works... if not give meditation a shot... cause I'm not going to go through the effort of deleting all that typing I did for nothing....