Anxiety Help

[joannehazel]

Hi,

Lately I’ve been feeling very anxious for no reason. I have shortened breath, breathing feels like an effort and there is a huge sense of impending doom. I’m 16 years old. Last night I couldn’t get to sleep – was tossing and turning and felt extremely inadequate.

On other nights, when I do manage to sleep, I dream A LOT. They’re very vivid and I always wake up tired, like I was awake in another world and now I have to conquer the stresses of this one… I can’t remember the last time I slept well.

My mum doesn’t think I have a disorder worth diagnosing, and I. Really. Hope. I. Don’t. Either. I don’t want to take medications for the fear they’ll possibly do more damage than harm, I don’t want to be labeled as crazy and inefficient. But this feeling is so hard to fight. Just right now I was studying with the dark hand of anxiety clutching my throat, squeezing me so hard I had to put my pen down. I got teary (the feeling is scary – a concoction of hopelessness and doom and inadequacy), and decided to seek help online.

School starts on the 30th January and I have very important exams to prepare for. I want this anxiety to go away. I’m desperate, please help. I hate feeling like this. It’s suffocating.

P.S – I don’t know if you believe in personality tests, but I am an INFP with an enneagram 4w5. Apparently they are more prone to mental disorders, but I really hope there is a way to get around this without going down... that path.

[Neil_1]

Hi Joanne



Firstly, I’d like to welcome you to Beyond
Blue and to thank you for coming here and providing your post.



With all that you’ve described, I really
think it would be a worthwhile thing to get yourself to your local GP and to
let them know exactly how you’re feeling.
And please don’t be thinking about those labels that you mentioned –
those were the things that people who know nothing about mental illness would
say years and years ago and with so much publicity about mental health, we’re
hoping to knock those kinds of terms on the head; because they are simply not true.



With regard to medications, they can be
very beneficial to a person who is need of them … and again, some people fear
of a stigma attached with taking meds to help your mind get through each
day. There is nothing to fear. We who suffer from this awful disease, simply
don’t have the chemicals in our make up to help us through each day and so we
need these kinds of medications to produce these chemicals to work with us and
to provide some relief. It’s not a sign
of weakness or any other thing like that … if we’re on meds, it’s cause we
really do need them. For myself, I’m on
3 different types each day.



At this age, school can be quite heavy with
the workload; although I find it a bit
unusual that you’ve got assignments (projects) outstanding and school hasn’t
even gone back yet? Do you have good
friends, close friends, who perhaps could help you with some of your school
work? I know my daughter (who is also 16yo),
will get together sometimes with friends, when either studying or completing
some kind of assignment – with 2 or 3 heads being better than one.



I’m sure there’ll be others who’ll write to
you as well, and I would really love to hear back from you.



Neil

[Croix]

Dear joanneHazel~

I'm sorry for the delay. Thank you for posting here, it's a big step, but a pretty good one as there are heaps of people here, many around your age, who have had similar problems.

You sound tired and anxious, inadequate and scared - a horrible place to be. I don't really think you have a mental disorder, just reacting to circumstances - but we'll come to that in a moment.

I'm a bit older but I remember exactly what it was like to have have the exams looming up. Even though I was a pretty good student they were always on my mind, even if I did more and more to prepare. I too could not sleep as things got closer, couldn't think straight, had nightmares, and on the day of the exam I'd be a mass of nerves. Once I sat down though and looked at the questions and started working out what I was going to answer first and so on things would fall pretty much into place.

It was the same deal at Uni. Before I go any further I found two things that helped, firstly know your work, and secondly have your exam technique down pat (do the easiest first and so on)

There are some things you can do yourself to reduce stress, including exercise and breathing - living a lifestyle that reduces background stress - have a look at The Facts menu above about anxiety, particularly things you can do. With breathing one particular app is at:-

http://au.reachout.com/reachout-breathe-app

There are others if it does to fit your phone, or you do not have one.

There would be nothing wrong with getting your parents to visit a GP with you and discuss the matter. A professional opinion might set your mind at rest about your mental state. If you think you might not set it all out in the appointment write it all down at your leisure and go thought the paper with the doctor.

Please come back and say how you are going

Best wishes

Croix

[Charlie3]

Hi Joanne,

i suffered the exact same symptoms for over 2 years and they just got worse before I finally went to the doctor and he said so easily "yes that's anxiety"

not for 1 minute did I feel like a crazy person, as I am a psych student so I know all too well that this is simply a chemical imbalance and beyond my control.

now with that in mind a few things that help me with my sleeping is working out or at night going for a long slow walking and just breathing deeply and clearing the mind.

If this is not possible why don't u try reading a book or even sitting quietly for 10 mins and counting you breathing, this is called mindfulness and can be a powerful tool for those who suffer anxiety.

yet on the other hand you may not suffer anxiety and it may just be the pressure of school, which is extremely hard.

life is hard for most people and for some it shows up as anxiety. Which does not in anyway define who you are or your personality. Nor does it define your future.

its easily managed and overcome by understanding it and understanding your triggers.

I hope this can offer some relief.