Happy Sunday /r/Anxiety!
It's everyone's favorite day of the week... Sunday, the last 24 hours before Monday rears its head again. Let this thread be a space to set your intentions, share your goals and concerns, or just check in, about the week ahead.
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I sometimes wish i was a psychopath because they don't feel guilt remorse or anxiety! like I really wish I was born a psychopath. having anxiety is literally the opposite and I hate it.
Can cold kill you?
I have been having a cold for a week today! It started with the most severe sore throat and the worst fatigue hen started to cough then sneeze,etc Right now my heart feels so weak and my heartbeats are 98-100 bpm literally laying back or sitting doing absolutely nothing for about a whole week now. I’m scared it would kill me,I’ve never had such a bad cold I’m a 23F,5’2 and 127 pounds.
Just need to vent as I’m trying to calm down.how many of you go months without one, every thing seems good then bam it hits you hard out of nowhere? And if you have this problem do you also forget how bad they really were until they happen again?
I’ve been anxious for as long as I remember, and only recently I‘ve come to accept that I owe it to myself to do something about it. However I’m unsure on where to start & I’m hoping to gain some perspective on what’s worked for others?
Everyday I feel a knot in my chest, like my body is constantly waiting to fight a threat. My brain is always whirling at a million thoughts a second, and I find it extremely difficult to ever relax. One day in every few months, I’ll feel “normal” & I simply want to experience that as often as I can.
Two years ago I was prescribed Sertraline as I was going through an intense depressive/anxiety period. It started giving me brain zaps & I felt that it blocked out a little too much emotion than I’d like, and since I work in the creative industries I feel like tapping into my emotions is what keeps my drive & inspiration going. I stopped taking it after a few months but I’m not completely against the idea of going back to antidepressants, but is there anything in particular that’s helped?
I tried a few supplements, Ashwaganda most recently however I started getting muscle aches every time I took it so I stopped. Are there any others with similar benefits?
Any advice would be warmly welcomed, medical or otherwise - TIA!
About 6-7 years ago, I was looking for a job as a computer programmer.
My brother, who has been abusing me my whole life, started threatening to kick me out of the house if I didn't find a job quickly.
On top of that, he would point out what a loser I am. That no girl would want to marry me. That I'm X years old and still can't find a job
He thought it would motivate me to work harder.
Instead it made my anxiety issues and crippling self-esteem 10x worse. The thought of doing an interview feels terrifying, whereas I used to have very little trouble with it.
I developed a severe fear of failure because failure meant getting kicked out.
Now I feel dead knowing I wasted so many years of my 20s. I feel resentment towards the rest of my family for not defending me more. I feel heartbroken that our family will never truly be whole because of this.
I need a job so I can eventually move out and get out of this toxic environment, but the gravity of is so powerful.
This applies for those of you with any kind of anxiety ESPECIALLY those who have health anxiety and get “symptoms”. Becoming aware of what anxiety actually is and learning about it studying it and understanding what it can do relieves anxiety tremendously!! Stress causes anxiety, worry causes anxiety, your diet causes anxiety, your situation causes anxiety, something you read where some random person or maybe even someone you know got some sort of disease or had a medical issue causes anxiety!! ANXIETY CAN NOT KILL YOU!!!! Anxiety causes all sorts of physical symptoms because anxiety is FEAR and ADRENALINE that isn’t needed and you’re not exerting said adrenaline so its idle in your body with no where to go causing these physical symptoms!! The chest pain, the chest tingling, the arm pain, the arm tingling, the numb fingers, the weird eye floater and blurry vision, the head pressure, the ringing ears, the off balance feeling, the fear of the uncertain, head aches, being tired but can’t sleep, the memory loss, the brain fog, the random aches and pains, the random fear of death and so much more. Learn what anxiety is what causes it and accept that you have it. Don’t fear it but don’t run from it embrace it!! Sit in discomfort allow it to do what it’s going to do which is NOTHING! Over time you will realize that it can’t hurt you and your brain learns to accept and realize that it’s harmless it becomes the norm nearly to the point of not even noticing it 99.9% of the time! The best way I learned what anxiety was was going to therapy and asking 10000 questions about it learning tips and tricks and applying them! Don’t be afraid of therapy those people are super cool and usually deal with anxiety themselves! Be sure to set aside time to be alone with yourself and allow yourself to feel these feelings of anxiety! Sit alone pray and say out loud the things you are thankful for even if it’s small things and victory’s such as waking up! Being able to see another day! Your dog! Your health that you can’t accept you have! Remember there’s always someone doing worst and you’re in a position a lot of people wish they were in!
RE CAP!
1: learn about it
2: identify your anxiety symptoms and accept them
3: sit with them
4: pray about it and be thankful!
Y’all got this I know y’all do! Love y’all and glad we all have each other to share our struggles because it sheds light on the fact that we are not all different after all!
(Typed this fast sorry for any typos or mistakes)
I always end up feeling anxious over something that doesn't exist, like whenever i feel relaxed for a moment, i feel like the next minute is just gonna be a chaotic disaster and i have no right to relax, how can i learn to not be anxious over nothing?
I feel like i sabotage myself, i get 'obsessive' and have a hard time letting go once i like someone. Today i started crying cause he wanted me to go (keep in mind i also forgot to take my medication so that was probably the reason) i called him so many times today, even 'returning' money to get a convo started. He promised to meet me for a proper date in two days but i just feel like a wreck and i dont know what to do ;-; I miss him, it's stupid i have seen and talked to him relatively a lot, but he just became really busy so now im practically latching onto him in fear.
Okay so I usually wake up and feel an important and tiring amount of anxiety as soon as I open my eyes in the morning, with no reason. Fears just pop in my head randomly, I worry about stuff, exams, relationships, myself, and feel exhausted even if I just woke up. Things are overwhelming and I was wondering if you encounter that kind of problem too, and how do you deal with it
i keep spiraling thinking i have this and it’s getting worse. my health/heart anxiety is so severely bad and i finally was in a place where i wasn’t worried anymore. i don’t know why my brain always has to tell me that i’m going to die soon. i’m only a 21 year old female i’m probably healthy but why do i always have physical symptoms? this sucks. now i have to spend MORE money on a doctor just to tell me everything is fine or i’ll never have peace of mind. :(
Recently I've been having panic attacks before going to work. I'm in a call center, dealing with customer and very particular leads. Been there for a few years now, I'm good at my job and one of the best they have, according to QA scores. Idk man I just work there and follow scripts.
Normally feeling nervous about going to work is like a teeny thought. Now? For the past month now it's been fear-inducing. And little things have been turning my work anxiety into just general anxiety. Once a day this past week I've been having a panic attack to the point where Im shaking. I've been fine for a long time and now all of a sudden it's just worse, like flipping a switch. I don't feel human anymore and I really hate it.
I'm hoping to get to the point where I can feasibly work from home. Right now I have to tough it out. But it's just rotting my brain, I swear 😂😭
I feel like this is so stupid and it feels so embarrassing to ask for help with. I had a bad experience with IV contrast and almost had my throat close, and ever since then I’ve been DEATHLY afraid to take literally any medication.
I have super bad vitamin deficiencies and I’m terrified to take the vitamins I need. I’ve been having horrible health effects from this and I desperately need to take the vitamins and possibly get b12 shots. I’m so scared my throat will close or something horrible could happen or worse. Idk what to do about it I’m afraid to even take them at the dr or sitting outside of the ER. I go into straight panic attacks right before I work myself up to take them.
Does anyone have any advice on how they got over something like this? Or is there somewhere I can go where I can sit in like a hospital and take them?
Idk I need to do something asap it is literally ruining my body. TIA.
My anxiety got so bad i wasnt able to leave home so i had to find a remote job. Im blessed to have found one where I can work anywhere I want in remote sales. Curious to know what kind of jobs you guys have?
Just wondering, have you noticed a pattern of anxiety “break downs” in your life sometimes? Where you may be functioning, but then it comes back again for a few weeks or months and it affects your job? Please tell me about it - what snaps you out of it?
So tomorrow I’m starting my first job ever. I don’t know exactly the name but I think it’s “Touristic Center agent”
To be honest right now I wished I had been crushed under a bus because I really don’t wanna go, I’m really anxious lol.
For context, I have always been anxious and went into a 6 years depression phase which made my anxiety worse.
Since i graduated high school, I left everything behind, lost all friends because of anxiety, moved into a new apartment thinking I would be able to get a job(which I didn’t) and went into depression.
So I get back at my parents house and start working on myself.
Until today, I have been working on my anxiety and depression for two years bow but of course it will never go away.
My new job tomorrow is terrifying me and I know I might have a panic attack.
My main language is French. English is an asset and I can manage it. But my anxiety is fu*ing this up. I have blackouts and forget everything as if I had never learned them in the first place.
Also my social skills aren’t on top since I don’t have friends, and I will have colleagues.
I need advices and tips to manage my anxiety tomorrow!
Thank you in advance ☺️
Quick backstory. End of 2020, I made a poor decision, that led me to ending my 7 year relationship. At the same time, my mom and step dad divorced, which further created a fracture.
My life has been drastically different since. I was 25 at the time, fast forward to now, I have lived every single day of my life in absolute regret. I reminisce about my old life, and how stable and happy I was. All of this reminiscing gives me so much anxiety and recently has intensified.
I’m having panic attacks often. I don’t even know how to be in public without breaking down. Anyone else experience this? Where any bit of your old life, or old you, causes intense anxiety? I just want my old life back 😔
Please be kind, I am well aware that mistakes have consequences. It’s been 4 years, I wish this was an exaggeration - but the guilt and anxiety of it all has affected me nearly every single day. I am exhausted.
Hi everyone. Rifht now I’m having a horrible anxiety attack. I can’t t stop swallowing air and I’m having trouble breathing. I feel like my wife and family is sick of me saying the same thing over and over again. I’m feeling crazy right now. I just want to be myself again. I feel so scared something is wrong but I’ve been checked out. The breathing issue is the worst.
For 1)
I think I built a lot of shame around it. When I was growing up, I got made fun of for potentially liking a girl or the prospect of having a girlfriend. I would get upset about this and embarrassed and never express it. Like it's some sort of extreme taboo. It's actually one of the hardest and most fearful things I can do. Letting someone know I'm interested in someone else. Or letting that person know I'm interested in. And I don't know why. I just feel massively embarrassed and massively shameful for feeling attraction, like I'm not allowed to feel it.
In my early childhood I definitely had some bad experiences that I shouldn't be allowed to feel a certain way or shouldn't have interest or excitement or attraction. Which, was super fucked up. But then I guess I've never really allowed myself to actually explore my attraction or sexuality or genuine interest in someone, in reality, with vulnerability. It makes rejection that much more unsafe. And I'm aware that expressing love and attraction is in itself a gift to someone, and they can choose to receive it, but I guess my problem is just the extreme lack of safety on my side in order to be able to express that.
I'm not quite sure what to do about it yet. It's possible I will never feel safe to express interest in someone. That it will always be this massively fearful experience. I don't know yet.
For 2)
I've realized this is probably a defense mechanism. I'm noticing myself reading a lot of stories about how wifes or gfs mess up in a relationship. I'm not quite sure why yet but it's building a pattern of resentment towards women. I'm noticing myself be distant from women, particularly women I'm attracted to, with the story that she's a bitch or whatever. I think it's the flip-side of the consensus that men can be assholes that take advantage of women, that it's becoming obvious women can do the same. I just feel like I see a lot of it which might be because I'm drawn to it. Or it's the youtube algorithm or whatever. But I'm realizing I should probably step away from these even though it's good to be aware of them, because I'm already super fearful and incapable and unable to express attraction. Throwing this layer of resentment over top is just complicating things.
Sorry for the rant and thanks to anyone who reads this. I'm not quite sure yet what to do about all this but I'm trying to build more awareness in myself. Learning it's ok to be attracted to women, to express that attraction, and to be seen attracted to someone. And to build gratitude instead of resentment towards the good women in my life.
I’ve been having problems with my heart chest whatever for the past year. I lost 55lbs thinking that would help and it didn’t help not one bit. I also walk 3-4 miles every day. My chest whenever I’m standing feels as if it’s blocked almost. It feels like I can’t get a deep breath. But it feels like every breath I take needs to be a deep breath as well. But I also get this feeling in my chest like it’s being pushed or something. Usually after I sit for a while this feeling will go away. I have no idea what this is but it’s making me miserable. I get exhausted standing just for a few minutes because of this feeling. I don’t think this is anxiety at all because it doesn’t really have anything to do with me being anxious. I literally can’t cook myself dinner or even let my dog out without having this awful feeling. It’s every single time I stand. I was never like this before I have no idea what happened or what’s causing this. I have agoraphobia and can’t leave my house. So I can’t see a doctor about this. Like I’m sitting right now and literally feel like my chest is tight and I can’t breathe correctly. It’s making me genuinely so miserable. I want to go back to before I felt like this, I’d give anything to not deal with this anymore. I don’t even know what this could be. No one understands. My mom just thinks it’s anxiety but I try to tell her that anytime I’m standing or doing something I feel it and even if I’m not thinking about it it’s still happening. Me feeling calm doesn’t help the feeling at all in any way.
(F20) I’ve been feeling like i’m about to have a heart attack every day for the past 3 months. However, I have never been a hypochondriac before, but always had severe anxiety. 3 months ago I had just finished at the gym and as soon as I got home I just felt this squeezing pressure in my heart and felt dizzy and genuinely thought i was about to die. From that moment I have not lived a single day without thinking I was going to die of a heart attack. I’ve been to hospital 3 times since then, each time deathly terrified that I was about to die. I’ve visited numerous doctors, had heaps of chest x rays, heart ultra sounds, blood tests, blood clot blood tests, everything. I actually went to the hospital last night because of this same issue. I’ve been hyper fixated on how fast my heart beats, every time I feel a pain in my chest I get tunnel vision and things fade in and out. It’s terrifying and it’s real. Each test and x ray I’ve gotten back has shown that I’m perfectly healthy. Every doctor has just told me that anxiety manifests in physical symptoms when it’s very severe. It’s difficult and it’s debilitating and it impacts every part of me. I can’t even sleep anymore because all i think about is how i might have a heart attack and how fast my heart is beating. it’s awful.
does anyone else feel this way? how can i get my life back? i miss being happy, i can’t live like this anymore, im so scared of dying.
please someone give me advice or tips if you’ve struggled with this
I hope this post brings you comfort and clarity, as it did for me when I processed this epiphany.
I've been on a healing journey to overcome health anxiety for seven months. At times, it can be exhausting, especially when I experience setbacks after making progress. I've been working on redirecting my thoughts when they dwell on the past. I often wish I could go back in time and warn myself about my behavior before it becomes too late, but I know it's unhealthy to dwell on the past. I need to accept my choices and move forward while acknowledging the progress I've made.
Yesterday, as I was tucking in my dog, Emmy, for bed, I noticed a blue sticky note under my computer tower that read, "I don't need to go back and save myself. I already have." I'm not sure when I wrote this or in what context, but it resonated with me. Just by merely beginning the healing journey and acknowledging my unhealthy behavior, I had already saved myself. The idea of going back in time to tell myself to stop escaping reality and listen to my body was just a fantasy. I wouldn't have been ready to hear that advice back then, so it's better to focus on the present.
These thoughts distract me from the progress I've made in balancing my body, building a relationship with myself, and being more interested in my future. I've come a long way from where I was seven months ago, struggling with anxiety and negative thoughts.
One day, I'll be able to look back and see that this journey was necessary and worth it.
You, too, are actively redirecting your life for the better just by being on this Reddit forum and seeking community and understanding. Your future self thanks you and loves you.
In 2019 I travelled to 5 different countries for holidays. I had my first panick attack during the Covid lockdown. Since then, my anxiety got worse and worse. Now being on a 15 minute train ride is literally impossible. I cannot go anywhere alone without feeling like I’m going to shit myself literally or feel dizzy anytime I feel like I’m not close by my home. Exposure therapy is literally so painful, and even so I cannot comprehend being on a flight or being away from home for more than a day. It’s just so frustrating because these are things I used to do easily, these anxiety wasn’t even an afterthought. Everyone tells me you can do it! It’s been 4 years, this feels like being crippled but wanting to walk like a normal person.
I often inflict pretty bad wounds on my lips whenever I enter an anxious moment, and it makes me feel really bad afterward because although it helps me relieve anxiety in the moment, lately it’s been much worse, my nails end up full of bl**d, and my lips develop very ugly and painful wounds. How can I better heal or care for them? And how could I stop touching my lips?