topic Anxiety in Anxiety

Anxiety

shanna_d — Tue, 10 Dec 2019 06:42:01 GMT

Anyone else have intrusive thoughts about hurting your pets or others? I feel so bad when I have them and like I’m a bad person. I’m now on better meds for my illness so I’m hoping they’ll work. Takes about 2 to 3 weeks.

Anxiety

Here_I_am — Tue, 10 Dec 2019 20:50:16 GMT

Hi shanna d,

I can appreciate how horrible intrusive thoughts are, and can recall when I was in the grip of my first experience of real anxiety how confronting it was to have these kind of thoughts and impulses. I remember one particular night when I had been lying awake for hours wrestling with thoughts of suicide when all of a sudden the thought that my dog must be miserable too and would probably be better off dead came out of nowhere. I felt so bad that I had this thought, but what was even more concerning was how rational the thought seemed to be.

Reaching out and speaking with a GP and getting on the right track to stability was of course the best thing I did, and it sounds as though you're doing that right now.There are some great threads here in the forum on how to cope when things are not right and out of balance; I encourage you to go and check some of them out.

Hang in there and work with your supports. Hopefully your different meds work a little faster than the suggested two or three weeks.

Talk soon.

Anxiety

White_Rose — Tue, 10 Dec 2019 21:17:33 GMT

Dear Shanna d

Welcome to the forum. If you have a look around the forum you will find lots of people have the same problem. So it's good you have written in here and can pick up tips from other people.

Do not be concerned if your meds have not fully kicked in by two to three weeks. You will feel some benefit as the meds start to work but it can take up to six weeks for the full effect to be felt. I don't want to disappoint you, I want you to know that it can take this time as you may start to believe the meds are not working properly.

Intrusive thoughts are horrible as I know. They arrive without an invitation and take up house room making themselves at home. It can be frightening as they often revolve around harm to others. It's all the more scary as this is not the way we would usually behave. Where do they come from? I have no idea. I wonder if you are receiving therapy from a psychologist or psychiatrist. Possibly a counsellor.If so ask them why this is happening. Sometimes having some background knowledge can be tremendously helpful.

I have a GP who I see only for my mental health stuff even though I also see a psychiatrist. I have been with my GP for about 17 years, initially for all my medical care. Do you think it may be helpful to talk to your GP? Just a thought.

I would love to hear from you again.

Mary

Anxiety

Step_Twelve — Wed, 11 Dec 2019 02:25:32 GMT

Hi shanna d,
As others have said, you're not alone in having these uncomfortable intrusive thoughts. I get them too, and yours are pretty tame compared to some of the things that go through my head!

You're certainly not a bad person. Quite the opposite actually. Our anxiety puts us through these dreadful imaginary scenarios to make sure we don't do those things. Never mind that we would never even dream of doing such a thing in the first place, anxiety doesn't care about that, it just wants to make absolutely totally 100% sure you don't do anything bad. It does this by showing you just how awful it would be if you did do something bad.

What really helped me was learning that my anxious thoughts were actually trying to protect me. They're doing a terrible job, but still, it's a mechanism designed to keep us, and those around us, safe. It just goes into overdrive sometimes and starts latching onto things that aren't realistic dangers or possibilities.

Know that when it comes to anxiety, no one has ever acted on these awful intrusive thoughts. No one has ever been compelled to actually do anything, even if you feel like you might. It just doesn't happen. Just think of it as a warning system (a completely useless one!).

Take care of yourself and perhaps read through some posts here about intrusive thoughts. You'll find they're very common and manageable.

Anxiety

shanna_d — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 12:47:40 GMT

Feel helpless right now. Everything seems so bad. I need help. Feeling scared and don’t know what to do. It’s been a shit time lately. More shit tonight. Seems like it never ends.

Anxiety

Sophie_M — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 13:01:06 GMT

Hey Shanna,

Welcome back to the Beyond Blue forums. We're sorry to hear how scared and helpless you feel right now. Could you tell us a bit more about what's happening with you? Please know you're not alone and we are here to support you.

Our Support Service is trying to reach out to you via email as we are worried about you.

We hope you know that there is always help available to you, whether it's from our professional mental health counsellors Beyond Blue (available 24/7/365 on 1300 22 4636) or our friends at Lifeline (13 11 14) or the Suicide Call Back Service (1300 659 467).

Please check in and let us know how you are whenever you feel up to it.

Anxiety

Here2Talk — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 08:21:27 GMT

Hi Shanna,

whats going on? we are here to talk to you? This forum is a safe and anonymous place, so give us a little indication of what’s going on, if you can. I know it can be hard to get the words out sometimes.....

Anxiety

Petal22 — Tue, 27 Apr 2021 12:41:53 GMT

Hi shanna d,

Sorry you are feeling this way.

please know you are not alone..... many people experience intrusive thoughts....... I understand how frightening they can be..

I went through a stage in my life were I was plagued with intrusive thoughts...... it was a very scary time in my life..... I seeked professional help...... I first saw my gp who put me on a antidepressant for my anxiety... I also did a mental health plan with my gp which gave me 10 free sessions with a phycologist ( I was given many strategies to deal with my anxiety) I also saw a psychiatrist who diagnosed me with OCD...... Obsessive Compulsive Disorder....... ( anxiety disorder) this then led me to a OCD clinic were I did group therapy..... I learned how to master my OCD......this is the best thing I ever did it gave me back a full life 😊

Please know there is help out there.... I don’t know we’re I’d be with out the help of professionals... step forward and ask for help it is the first step towards recovery..... if I CAN recover there is hope you can too...,

A lot of people have this disorder and it’s usually the nicest of people who develop this condition...

im here if you have any questions or want to chat.... you are not alone...😊