Anxiety

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  • Escape_Artist
    Escape_Artist Posts: 1,155 Member
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    I have anxiety. When I first started having anxiety / panic attacks I didn't know what hit me and I freaked out. I went to the ER a couple of times because I was having palpitations (I can feel my heart flip flop and skip / have extra beats fairly often, drives me nuts). After they did an ECG, blood work and a holter monitor for 24 hrs they told me they could prescribe something for anxiety. I refused.

    I started running more often and doing yoga along with lifting regularly. I cut alcohol, started eating better and sleeping at least 8hr a night.

    Working out is what keeps me together now I think, especially running. Yoga is helping with breathing and when I have a panic attack I can control it within minutes.

    I can't say I don't have panic attacks anymore. I went 1 year without any attacks but had two in one month but I manage them now. :smile:
  • jaelynsmith
    jaelynsmith Posts: 82 Member
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    ncboiler89 wrote: »
    Cutaway_Collar wrote: »
    Medication?

    You spelled booze wrong.

    Haha fact
  • jaelynsmith
    jaelynsmith Posts: 82 Member
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    jkhoffe wrote: »
    I am glad I stumbled on this today, as my depression has hit an all time high.

    I am usually pretty good at dealing with it, but due to some personal things going on at home, I can't seem to see through the fog. If I didn't love my kids so much, i am not sure I would have made it to this morning. It seems so scary to say, and even scarier to think about figuring out what is wrong, and the thought of maybe I am just broken forever.

    Oh, hon :( your babies need you. You can do this. I promise. Your anxiety and depression is not real life. Don't let it trick you into thinking it is real <3
  • melmelw03
    melmelw03 Posts: 5,338 Member
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    My anxiety/depression is raging at the moment. I'm literally waking in the middle of the night and forcing myself to breathe and avert my thoughts. It's becoming crippling.
    Unfortunately for me, others influence my own issues with this. I wish I didn't take on others' issues and let it affect me, but I do.
  • besaro
    besaro Posts: 1,858 Member
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    therapy didn't work for me, drugs didn't work for me. I've learned to accept some days/moments/hours I'm depressed but thats not a reason not to lace up and go anyway. Depression is suffocating but it part of me and I've decided to embrace that part of myself, acknowledge it, take care of it but not nurture it.
  • vingogly
    vingogly Posts: 1,785 Member
    edited July 2016
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    I've struggled with anxiety since the 1970s. I used to have panic attacks, but these went away several years after I quit drinking. Anxiety is an eating trigger for me. A lot of my anxiety today is related to the symptoms of my atrial fibrillation, and worries about health, which provoke anxiety. What I've found has helped me control anxiety:

    * Physical activity or exercise
    * Meditation and mindfulness
    * Limiting caffeine in my diet
    * Relaxation techniques
    * Rational responses to negative thoughts
    * Getting enough sleep
    * Not smoking

    Relaxation techniques you might explore include: the relaxation response, guided imagery, breathing exercises, deep muscle relaxation, biofeedback, self hypnosis. I've taught these techniques for quite a few years to others, and what I've found is that different techniques work well with different people, and some people simply can't relax without medical help.
  • sonia9240
    sonia9240 Posts: 140 Member
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    I struggle with disorder anxiety and depression and ADD. You name I have it
  • kbernier10211
    kbernier10211 Posts: 9 Member
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    Most days I feel that my anxiety gets the best of me. I have all the intentions in the world to get outside for a walk/start running again, then the fear being hit by a car or thinking about what people think of me sets in and I psych myself out and I don't do what I want to do. :(
  • Antd420
    Antd420 Posts: 161 Member
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    kbernier10211 wrote: »
    Most days I feel that my anxiety gets the best of me. I have all the intentions in the world to get outside for a walk/start running again, then the fear being hit by a car or thinking about what people think of me sets in and I psych myself out and I don't do what I want to do. :(

    Just force yourself and it will get easier each time.
  • Frankenklein
    Frankenklein Posts: 29 Member
    edited July 2016
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    Anxiety, Depression, PTSD, PMDD, OCD. Went off medication entirely a few months ago. Some days are harder than others. I took a Cognitive Behavioural Therapy course for depression and it has helped immensely. I've also done one on one therapy.
    I think medication can be beneficial to a lot of people as long as you're on the right ones and the right dose. I know it's certainly helped me over the years but it can only do so much. You have to work your *kitten* off to get better. You need to eat, sleep, exercise, work, relax, socialize, groom, avoid certain substances, make hard decisions and changes in your life, talk about it etc etc. Things that seem completely impossible when you're suffering a mental illness. Without pushing yourself to meet self care goals, pills can only do so much.
    Exercise definitely helps but it's hard to get motivated a lot of the time. I find listening to music is one of the most effective remedies for me.
  • joelo_83
    joelo_83 Posts: 218 Member
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    Saw some comments about meds and well, so much misinformation and preconceptions in this thread ... figured I'd chime in a sec :smile:

    1. Meds DO work when used appropriately - ie when dosed correctly to therapeutic effect (more is not always better), when SEs taking into consideration, and last but most important- when the patient is the one at the center of any communication involved a therapy maneuvers. There are dozens of meds which have their own pharmacological nuances and will work differently for different people in different situations. You can't prescribe with too broad a brush. There's also a host of other variables I won't get into ranging from kinetics to biochemistry that will determine efficacy. Lastly, an honestly trial of the drug regimen by the patient is essential - people will quit SSRIs a week in because they feel sleepy, but don't understand that fill receptor gene expression changes and clinical effect can take 5x that long. Give it an honest shot, with no missed doses, with constant communication with your doc, therapist or with us (pharmacist) so we can help you.

    2. OTC / herbals *may* work, for a given patient in a given situation, BUT since none of them undergo sufficient clinical investigation (anywhere in the world), most countries prohibit labeling which suggests efficacy .. Ever read a label that says "this is not intended to cure or treat any disease" etc? These products are not studied, not regulated, and the only evidence we as clinicians have they even work, is from pharma grade, academic samples purified and isolated in a lab from the original plant source. The random pill you're buying at a health food store...? Yea no one knows what's in that.

    3. Any patient on meds *should* be concurrently enrolled in a CBT program with defined goals and clear plan of action. Blindly prescribing x y z infinitely (I see it everyday) is flat out wrong and in my experience leads to benzodiazepine dependence for breakthrough anxiety and when it's all said and done the patient is back to square one. Very frustrating.
  • lexi3500
    lexi3500 Posts: 346 Member
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    I take 10 medications for different health problems
  • Miss1Bec
    Miss1Bec Posts: 20 Member
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    I feel like I'm finally coming to terms that I'm just naturally a sad person. I feel like my anxiety has sky rocket through the roof recently and I can't do much about it since it work related.
  • nezza_93
    nezza_93 Posts: 7 Member
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    I have anxiety and depression. I also have endo and mixed connective tissue disease. I try very hard to do one thing "extra" every day. Something besides just going to work. On my bad days I just try to treat myself gently because I tend to get super frustrated when I can't do as much as I think I should which leads to a vicious cycle of flare ups and feeling worse. I try to use only positive pep talking to myself and it seems to help. Just saying you got this on repeat can be motivating lol
  • M3L_ANI3
    M3L_ANI3 Posts: 3 Member
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    I completely understand how you feel, I started suffering from depression and anxiety this year. I don't even know what is the cause of it sadly...
  • Eljot1976
    Eljot1976 Posts: 3 Member
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    Annamarie3404 wrote: »

    EXACTLY! Cannabis works very well for anxiety and depression.
    Louise1491 wrote: »
    Cannabis actually makes me much much worse, just remember that what works for some does not work for all. Just try to find what it is that works for you.

    Exactly. I never get why many people say cannabis "relaxes" you. Maybe it relaxes some people. Cannabis is what CAUSED my anxiety. My first panic attacks were the direct result of smoking weed.
  • Eljot1976
    Eljot1976 Posts: 3 Member
    edited July 2016
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    I agree. I think meds, exercise, diet, clean living, enough sleep can all help to lessen anxiety but a therapy where you learn to change your anxiety triggering thoughts is what actually will be the most effective way to treat it.
  • RaeBeeBaby
    RaeBeeBaby Posts: 4,245 Member
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    Anxiety and worry have been my constant companions for most of my life. I'm finally turning that corner through therapy, exercise, yoga/mindfulness and breathing. Expressing myself through art is also helping to discovery my true heart. <3


    Eljot1976 wrote: »
    Annamarie3404 wrote: »

    EXACTLY! Cannabis works very well for anxiety and depression.
    Louise1491 wrote: »
    Cannabis actually makes me much much worse, just remember that what works for some does not work for all. Just try to find what it is that works for you.

    Exactly. I never get why many people say cannabis "relaxes" you. Maybe it relaxes some people. Cannabis is what CAUSED my anxiety. My first panic attacks were the direct result of smoking weed.

    Just like any medication, cannabis is not for everyone and not all cannabis is created equal. There are many different strains of indica, sativa and many hybrids with varying levels of THC. Not suggesting this is for everyone, but it is helpful for many if you find what works for you.
  • salembambi
    salembambi Posts: 5,592 Member
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    Miss1Bec wrote: »
    I feel like I'm finally coming to terms that I'm just naturally a sad person. I feel like my anxiety has sky rocket through the roof recently and I can't do much about it since it work related.

    i feel like that too, i am a very sensitive person as my dad says "you have always carried the weight of the world on your shoulders even as a little kid"

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