1 step forward 2 steps back...

[Mattimuss]

Hey everyone,

I thought I was making progress, been anxious about bats and rabies and it has stopped me going for walks around the block after work. Yesterday however I thought I’ll go for a short walk around the court, it was sometime between 5:30-6:00pm, I thought I’d be able to go as bats wouldn’t be out in Winter however I think I was mistaken. I was close to home, walking on the road and to my left something came flying out of a tree on a nature strip and away somewhere. It didn’t come towards me or anything however my anxiety is trying to make me think it did. It’s driving me silly. I did have an anxiety episode in the past about bats and rabies and stupidly googled so I know all about it and the Australian equivalent of rabies in some bats. Why does just seeing a bat within a couple metres fly outta a tree and away freak me out so much. I’m always checking around when walking to see if there are any bats, it’s annoying but I have anxiety towards them lately. I’m gonna try book back into a doctor tomorrow or early next week to discuss this again. I was doing well with it too, until stopped doing something’s I like due your family and travelling, plus now having to look after a puppy which doesn’t help at times with small scratch marks on my neck from him just being a puppy with sharp paws. Hopefully I can get it back to how I was a week or so back

[CJ1998]

Hey Mattimus,

I am currently experiencing high levels of anxiety also and I have felt the same many times. As soon as i start to make some kind of progress, it seems as I go backwards not long after. I have come to realise that my mind constantly focuses on the negatives, giving the positives hardly any thought. It is important to acknowledge and recognise our progress as well. I have found that it helps me to write down a list of positives which helps me realise that there is a lot of them and it is just that my negative mindset focuses on the negative side of things all of the time.

Well done on taking the steps to going and taking to your GP about this issue. It can be a tough thing to talk about but it is a step in the right direction. If you haven't already I would suggest getting a referral to see a psychologist. I put off doing this for so long but I recently starting having appointments with one and am finding it to be helpful to get everything off my chest and it is helpful me to understand my anxiety more.

[Mattimuss]

That’s a good idea there writing the positives down. Also that is true focusing on the negatives. Never thought about that. I use to write in a journal about my anxiety which helped but slowly forgot about it.

I saw one ages ago but was hard to book another appointment with work and everything, I realise I should have put more emphasis on seeing a psychologist. I know that for next time which hopefully won’t be too much longer.

Thanks for the advice CJ

[CJ1998]

I was exactly the same, I was so busy with work and study commitments that I felt like there just wasn't time for appointments, so I put it off until it got worse. The thing to remember is that your health is a priority and there are always alternatives such as counselling over the phone too. Many workplaces also have assistance programs now where you can access free counselling so this could be something to look into and see if your workplace offers it.

In regards to the walking, is there someone else you can walk with after work? That way you can chat while you are walking and it might help you feel safer and distract you from your worries.

[Mattimuss]

Yeah slowly learning that gotta take it seriously and not brush it off, especially as I’m pretty sure mental health issues run through my family. I will also look into that counselling through work. Thanks for that info

I normally listen to podcasts when out which generally distract me. Yesterday I was actually playing that new Harry Potter game that gets you walking around, it was just at a lul point so was paying more attention to what was around me. Thinking about it, there’s probably been tonnes of bats around me when walking around probably more so in summer but no dramas. It’s weird aye