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Anxiety

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BeyondBlue Hi! Check out this post if you're not sure how to start
  • replies: 0

Hi there and welcome to the Anxiety section of the Forums First of all, thank you so much for joining us here. We think it’s amazing that you’ve taken this step to getting support and learning from this Community. You are very welcome here and we are... View more

Hi there and welcome to the Anxiety section of the Forums First of all, thank you so much for joining us here. We think it’s amazing that you’ve taken this step to getting support and learning from this Community. You are very welcome here and we are really interested in what you might want to add to these conversations. We get it, having anxiety makes it hard to share in a public place. Remeber, this is anonymous and the Beyond Blue team are here to help if you need it This section is for people who are experiencing anixiety in some form in their lives. This might be in social settings, at work, or just in the day to day. You don’t need a diagnosis to post here. If it feels like the right spot for you post, go right ahead! We know that feeling anxious can make it hard to reach out so we want you to know that getting this far is amazing and a great start. A few tips for getting the most out of this section: Get involved when you can! Posting and replying is the heartbeat of this community and you DO have something worthile to share (when you’re ready ) Every experience is different. There is no competition here. We know how challenging anxiety can be and how it comes in all shapes and sizes. What you are experiencing will be respected and supported here. Trust yourself! You are the expert in your experience. This community works because people like you share what has worked for you. Thank you for getting involved and taking a look. We can’t wait to hear from you! Beyond Blue

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bc48 Insomnia- Can't sleep- Help
  • replies: 5

Hello everyone. I am an 18-year-old male who has recently completed Year 12. In the past couple of weeks, I have been experiencing insomnia which hasn't improved and is getting worst. On average I was getting around only around four to five hours of ... View more

Hello everyone. I am an 18-year-old male who has recently completed Year 12. In the past couple of weeks, I have been experiencing insomnia which hasn't improved and is getting worst. On average I was getting around only around four to five hours of sleep a night, I would go to bed at 11 pm, sleep at 1 am, and get up around 5 am. I believe this has been caused by my intrusive thoughts and my anxiety about the future in general. I have tried every technique to fall asleep, including meditation, mindfulness exercises, avoiding caffeine and heavy food before bed, avoiding screen time, and also drinking camomile tea. However, these have been no improvement and have had an even worst effect on me. In the past week, I am only able to get three hours of sleep and there are nights when I go sleepless. It is normal for me now to stay awake in bed until 3 or 4 am, counting sheep and doing anything I can to fall asleep. It makes it even worse when I look at the clock or googling the effects of Insomnia which terrifies me. I really miss sleeping 7-8 hours and I am so desparate to get out of this situation. Any responses will be hugely beneficial for me.

itsokayem Dealing with anxiety/health anxiety.
  • replies: 2

TLDR: my health anxiety is taking control of my life and I hate it so much. I guess I’ll start with how I’ve always had anxiety and depression really, growing up and I used to be able to deal with it the best I could, (minus a few times I tried to of... View more

TLDR: my health anxiety is taking control of my life and I hate it so much. I guess I’ll start with how I’ve always had anxiety and depression really, growing up and I used to be able to deal with it the best I could, (minus a few times I tried to off myself when I was a teen) but now I’m 23, and I’m about to move out of my family home. Things are changing and they have been for a long time; my uncle died a year ago in November, from throat cancer, I didn’t really have all that much of a connection with him but once he died it was like I couldn’t stop constantly checking my neck in case I felt a lump. I sort of moved passed it and I was okay for a while until a family friend passed away from bowel issues and then came the self checkings again. The stop-breathing-to-hear-my-heart-beatings again, I don’t think it really clicked that this was health anxiety until I started to constantly check my heart rate, kept thinking it was beating too fast or too slow. And I’ve been trying to help myself by relaxing and thinking about other things but there’s always the lingering feeling in the back of my mind of ‘what if I’m about to die?’ What if this tingling feeling that’s in my hands is a sign of a heart attack or what if the dizziness I’ve been getting is a sign of low iron that could mean I’m internally bleeding. it’s this constant thinking that I’m going to die or have a heart attack or stroke that keeps me up all night and constantly checking my pulse. I don’t like this feeling, I’ve tried upping my heart medication to what I originally started with but they just lower my heart rate even more and it scares me so much and I don’t know what to do about it. i don’t know who I’m writing this for, maybe myself, and I don’t know who can help me but I guess if anyone else is experiencing the same then now you know you’re not alone.

Nelle__09 My anxiety has gotten so bad I can no longer work
  • replies: 1

Its been a little while since I posted my first discussion and I ended up quitting my job to help my anxiety but it has now gotten to the point I am afraid to work. I took steps to try help myself I got a mental health plan, I booked in for counselli... View more

Its been a little while since I posted my first discussion and I ended up quitting my job to help my anxiety but it has now gotten to the point I am afraid to work. I took steps to try help myself I got a mental health plan, I booked in for counselling session, and I’ve been re-applying for jobs even went on medication. But I now have so much anxiety I can’t even bring myself to go to interviews. I have to work in order to have an income, I can’t get government assistance as I’m not an AUS citizen but it’s now gotten to a point I can’t work, I can’t leave my house, I can’t do anything without my anxiety controlling me. I’m just kinda stuck. If any body knows any support websites or organisations I can contact it would be a great help.

Turtle82 Overthinking, Lots Of Anxiety
  • replies: 6

Hi All, I really need some advice Since Covid Lockdowns in 2020 Been really struggling with my mental health. As I'm sure many others around the world have also I am currently prescribed medication having tried several medications previously. Tested ... View more

Hi All, I really need some advice Since Covid Lockdowns in 2020 Been really struggling with my mental health. As I'm sure many others around the world have also I am currently prescribed medication having tried several medications previously. Tested positive to covid 9 days ago and still have a cough My anxiety is so bad at the moment, worse then ever from morning until night What are your thoughts on Covid and how this impacts on mental health? My Gp said if not better in a week she would increase again. Have a psychiatrist appt tomorrow but I feel scared I'm going to be like this forever It's horrible

KFPDW Intrusive thoughts I'm facing today :(
  • replies: 3

Hi I need to talk to someone please. I'm not sure if anyone is catholic on here but I've had a intrusive thought recently that's related to my religion. It's not religion heavy but I just need to talk to someone who will understand where I am coming ... View more

Hi I need to talk to someone please. I'm not sure if anyone is catholic on here but I've had a intrusive thought recently that's related to my religion. It's not religion heavy but I just need to talk to someone who will understand where I am coming from. Please, I really need to talk to someone about this! Because it's a intrusive thought, I might be worrying about nothing but it doesn't hurt to be sure.

Luke_D My Anxiety and OCD is impairing my ability to run my business and be a husband and farther.
  • replies: 1

Hello dear friends, my name is Luke. 
I am a 32 year old business owner who has been suffering from anxiety and OCD for most of my life. As of the last 5 years my disorder has really begun to impair my ability to run my business. I have been unable t... View more

Hello dear friends, my name is Luke. 
I am a 32 year old business owner who has been suffering from anxiety and OCD for most of my life. As of the last 5 years my disorder has really begun to impair my ability to run my business. I have been unable to make decisions without them going around and around in my head. I can not make any work related purchases unless everything is falling onto line on that day and being the right time/date and perfect day when I buy them. For example I have been needing to update my work computers now for 3 years and every time that I purchase one if anything that I would consider negative/bad happens on that day I would then return the computer to the store because it hasn’t been a good day and that computer won’t bring me good luck. For some reason I can only make purchases on certain dates and times and even then if anything doesn’t feel right or perfect I would not make the purchase or will return the item.The other pain haunting me is my ability to use computers. I am unable to use a computer as they are designed to be used. It will take me 30 minutes to open a single web browser after turning on a computer and then another 10 minutes to visit a website. For each simple tab I will wait 5 minutes and a work task that should take me 1 hour to complete will blow out to over 5 hours. Once I have finally completed my work I will wait 30 minutes to turn off the computer and I will repeat this process everyday. As one could imagine this has significantly effected my quality of my life and the life of the family. I am currently seeking help with a Psychiatrist and Psychologist but am yet to find help to correct these problems.I have built a successful business and a good life my family but it would seem my illness is impairing me to the point where I am far from the husband and father that I could be and I fear without any help this will not improve. I am trying to talk to people but maybe my situation can be confusing for many of my friends and family. I have turned to beyond blue to seek any potential advice or guidance if available or any direction that could improve my quality of life and that of my family.

gloria10 Social anxiety becoming more difficult, especially with family events
  • replies: 2

Hi, I wanted to get some advice with managing social anxiety. I've had a few things on lately where anxiety gets the better of me and I just have to leave, its like I cant get out fast enough. I try to use techniques for my anxiety, but I cant seem t... View more

Hi, I wanted to get some advice with managing social anxiety. I've had a few things on lately where anxiety gets the better of me and I just have to leave, its like I cant get out fast enough. I try to use techniques for my anxiety, but I cant seem to concentrate and get overwhelmed easily. I can acknowledge i have definitely been more stressed lately due to some health issues and work, but I am trying to volunteer at the moment in order to get out and be more social. The thing is, with family, although they know I have anxiety I sometimes feel they don't really accept it as I constantly feel I'm being pushed to do more than I am comfortable with and I think there is some PTSD from past visits. They also get snappy as I'm not behaving in a way they want, even though I am at least able to leave with some dignity I have been looking online at counseling, I feel that could really help, but it isn't cheap. What techniques have you found to be helpful when it comes to managing social anxiety? I don't want it to get in the way of volunteering. After Christmas I also want to focus on my own thing a bit more too. Thanks, Gloria10

ELLMA Anxiety symptom: Tingles and Prickles - Does anyone else get them?
  • replies: 4

Hi,I am new here. For a few weeks, I have been experiencing a new physical symptom of my anxiety that feels like prickling and tingling in my legs and arms. Sometimes it feels like a burning sensation. Usually when I try to sleep or rest, they show u... View more

Hi,I am new here. For a few weeks, I have been experiencing a new physical symptom of my anxiety that feels like prickling and tingling in my legs and arms. Sometimes it feels like a burning sensation. Usually when I try to sleep or rest, they show up. When I am distracted or not thinking about them, they tend to go away until the next attack. But I can feel them everyday and for hours. Will this ever go away? Does anyone else have this and how do you cope with it?It's uncomfortable and unsettling to me... Thank you all

LaTeRaLuS777 The Dark Spiral of OCD and Bipolar
  • replies: 82

Hi, first time posting on here (or anywhere for that matter about this stuff)... I have OCD and Bipolar Disorder. As i sit typing I am aware of every noise in the house and outside being "They/Them" coming to get me. My OCD has been leading me down d... View more

Hi, first time posting on here (or anywhere for that matter about this stuff)... I have OCD and Bipolar Disorder. As i sit typing I am aware of every noise in the house and outside being "They/Them" coming to get me. My OCD has been leading me down dark rabbit holes of thoughts and images recently (in a self-destructive spiral) and I couldnt take it any more. I chatted with one of the BeyondBlue people who helped me to seek out a positive distraction for the night so I joined this community and started to type. For me OCD is like a little urge going "just one more dark thought, just until midnight, then i will let you go...." but it never stops! It is never satisfied until I feel like giving up and taking one way out or another (neither are good options by the way!). I am a good person with a good heart and I know i would never do these things yet that spiral is so strong, so desperate and so persistent that I fear I may not be strong enough to fight it. Seeing others going through this same process makes me feel like im not alone, yet i fear that "They/Them" would have me locked away because of the "Darkness" within me. When I was younger (18-19 yrs old) I first experienced this dark spiral and it terrified me so much that I contemplated suicide so that I could never hurt anyone like that! Thankfully I am alive but the OCD "Darkness" remains and it is a constant battle. How do you fight what you cannot see/touch/destroy? Im sorry for this stream of consciousness post but im really trying to convey my feelings as best as i can. Thank you for taking the time to read this and thank you for (hopefully) accepting me as I am. (ps: I am seeing a psych and I am medicated and for those two things i am forever grateful).

HisOwn VERY ANXIOUS ABOUT BLOOD TEST RESULTS FOR ADULT DAUGHTER
  • replies: 6

Hello all..I am seeking support. I have quite severe health anxiety/PTSD specifically related to past trauma involving my dad getting bad news diagnosis after getting blood tests and other medical tests done as well as other personal traumas that per... View more

Hello all..I am seeking support. I have quite severe health anxiety/PTSD specifically related to past trauma involving my dad getting bad news diagnosis after getting blood tests and other medical tests done as well as other personal traumas that personally happened to me at the same time - going through traumatic sickness in a pregnancy at same time and then medical scares for myself. This was all nearly 24 years ago but I am still greatly triggered by any medical tests. So my adult daughter who has a disability and I care for full-time had some blood tests done recently, which is a particularly huge trigger for me. I was hoping that the doctor would not call her back after her blood tests done but she has called back and this has REALLY tipped me over into full on anxiety now and my anxiety is stressing my daughter out now. I am not 100% sure but the appointment is possibly going to be because of low iron and/or low Vitamin D because she has had this in past because her diet not the best but I won't actually know until the appointment. So I am wondering how on earth I am going to be able to sleep tonight and get through the next 24 hours. I need to try to stay calm for my daughter's sake but it is near impossible at moment. So any tips/strategies about how to handle this will be so greatly appreciated.