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Anxiety

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Chris_B Forums etiquette: give support to receive support
  • replies: 0

Hi everyone, particularly any new members who may be reading. From time to time, we get contacted by members who are unhappy that they haven’t received a lot of replies to their posts. Our community champions work very hard to make sure that all newb... View more

Hi everyone, particularly any new members who may be reading. From time to time, we get contacted by members who are unhappy that they haven’t received a lot of replies to their posts. Our community champions work very hard to make sure that all newbies are welcomed when they first post, and we understand that it’s a big step to post for the first time on a forum like this, especially if you aren’t feeling great. It’s important to remember, though, that these forums are a community of real people, just like you, not a one-on-one support environment like going to see your psychologist. To get the best out of being here, one of the best tips we can offer is give support to receive support. Being a good community member means: participating in different threads (not just your own), replying to people who have taken the time to reply to you (even if it’s just to say thank you), and... posting words of emotional support and encouragement when you see others who are hurting and reaching out. You don’t have to feel obliged to solve the problems of others: that’s not what we’re here for. But you can offer empathy and what you’ve learned from your own life experiences, even if it’s just a line or two, eg. “I don't know what to say, but I want to give you my support and tell you I care about what is happening to you and hope life will get better soon.” Try to develop an interest in the journeys of others here on the forums. You may be surprised at how good being an active, caring member here can make you feel. For those of you who have had good experiences giving support here on the forums, please post in this thread here and let us know how it has helped you on your journey.

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Viaxoxo School and exams
  • replies: 5

Hi!I'm in high school. I often feel overloaded with some of my assignments all being at the same time and I am a master procrastinator so I get stressed and leave my assignments to the last minute and then get more stressed. Do you have any strategie... View more

Hi!I'm in high school. I often feel overloaded with some of my assignments all being at the same time and I am a master procrastinator so I get stressed and leave my assignments to the last minute and then get more stressed. Do you have any strategies for studying and how to work consistently? I've tried a few things but they don't really work...Thanks

blondietraveler Worrying about asbestos
  • replies: 2

Hi, I’m working in construction, I love my job and everything but I have one problem, my biggest fear is asbestos and the other day I went to a site I was wearing all PPE but think I breath little bit of asbestos the site was clear of a asbestos exce... View more

Hi, I’m working in construction, I love my job and everything but I have one problem, my biggest fear is asbestos and the other day I went to a site I was wearing all PPE but think I breath little bit of asbestos the site was clear of a asbestos except the items that I had to touch it has asbestos I’m really worried about that disease I have breathing issues and feel so scared about cancer, I can not stop think about it :,(

VioletSunflower I feel like I'm smart enough for the degree I'm doing
  • replies: 6

I'm almost at the end of the first year of my Bachelors. I feel like I'm nowhere near smart enough to do this degree, in all of the core classes I'm completing I'm getting lower marks than in the elective classes I'm enrolled in. if I can't achieve t... View more

I'm almost at the end of the first year of my Bachelors. I feel like I'm nowhere near smart enough to do this degree, in all of the core classes I'm completing I'm getting lower marks than in the elective classes I'm enrolled in. if I can't achieve the best results in the classes that are in my field then should i even be doing it? Everyone seems to be grasping the content so much easier and quicker than I am, which is making me doubt myself even more.

Aussie.Girl Should I quit my job?
  • replies: 6

I was working as a dog bather/trainee groomer at a grooming salon and really enjoyed it. Unfortunately that salon has since closed, but one of the groomers started up another business and offered me a job with her. We worked well together at the othe... View more

I was working as a dog bather/trainee groomer at a grooming salon and really enjoyed it. Unfortunately that salon has since closed, but one of the groomers started up another business and offered me a job with her. We worked well together at the other salon, but now that she is the boss: - She is booking far more dogs than we can reasonably get done in one day and expects me to stay 1-2hrs overtime every day to help finish them. - She went on a 5wk overseas holiday at the last minute and left me 100% alone to handle everything. I have had very limited training as a groomer (due to no time because of the number of dogs) so she is incredibly lucky that I have been grooming my own dogs for years and was able to handle things on my own. - She has started complaining about and criticising everything I do. Even things I used to get praised for are 'wrong' now. To be clear, this is not constructive criticism. Examples include openly mocking my work, and saying things like "why are you so slow", "try harder" etc. - She complains endlessly if I am 5mins late or have to leave on time. I live an hour's drive (one way) from the new salon, so sometimes traffic is awful and I end up late even when I leave an extra 20mins to get there. She is 5mins away and is regularly 5-10mins late. I have tried to explain to her that she either needs to hire more staff or book less dogs, but she insists 'we' can handle it and she doesn't trust anyone else (yet I do everything wrong??). The whole situation is stressful and frustrating and has made my anxiety so much worse than it needs to be. I want to quit, but I know I would feel awful for leaving when she is so overbooked (because there is no way she could do that many dogs on her own). I also know it's her fault that we are so overbooked so idk. I can't keep going the way things are though; something has to change. I have already started doing 4 days instead of 5, but she just books the same number of dogs in a shorter time frame so it hasn't really helped. It just increased my overtime. Maybe I will tell her I'll stay till the end of the year to train my replacement, and then leave, but I'm not even sure I can tolerate this for that long. Any advice would be appreciated.

Amanda2000 zoom anxiety
  • replies: 7

Whenever I have a zoom meeting for work, I just worry so much beforehand and rehearse what I'm going to say over and over again in my head all weekend. I've tried various things like not looking at myself on the screen etc. but nothing seems to help.... View more

Whenever I have a zoom meeting for work, I just worry so much beforehand and rehearse what I'm going to say over and over again in my head all weekend. I've tried various things like not looking at myself on the screen etc. but nothing seems to help. It's the feeling of "being watched" that gets me. During the meeting, I feel like I'm shaking/heart racing/unusual voice and then I worry that the others will notice my strange behaviour. Public speaking has always made me nervous but zoom seems to be worse for me. I know my anxiety is so unnecessary but I just cannot rationalise within myself to calm down.

AimeePullman Recommendations please... Anti anxiety medication that does not effect orgasms
  • replies: 4

I am looking to help my partner find an anti (social) anxiety medication that does not effect sexual function, in particular climax. He has tried two SSRI's and they both helped the anxiety but they block climax. Is there someone in this forum who ex... View more

I am looking to help my partner find an anti (social) anxiety medication that does not effect sexual function, in particular climax. He has tried two SSRI's and they both helped the anxiety but they block climax. Is there someone in this forum who experienced this and was able to overcome it? Thanks in advance

Loz83 Feeling overwhelmed
  • replies: 4

Hi all, having a very hard time atm and I feel like things will never get better. I’ve struggled with depression and anxiety since a teenager as well as endometriosis from age 12. This year my Endo has become the worse it ever has been, along with ov... View more

Hi all, having a very hard time atm and I feel like things will never get better. I’ve struggled with depression and anxiety since a teenager as well as endometriosis from age 12. This year my Endo has become the worse it ever has been, along with ovarian cysts and uterine polyp, which has subsequently left me in pain more often than not. I can’t function anywhere near my normal level and the bad day’s have far outweighed the good. As a result my metal health has suffered incredibly and i feel like I’m failing life. I have 4 kids and a hubby who works 2 jobs and very long hours. I just had my second rather large operation for Endo, cyst etc removal 2.5 weeks ago which I was so optimistic would help me but the recovery (approx 6 weeks) is proving to be much harder than expected. To make things worse my husband has had ongoing severe back and sciatic issues which became so bad this week he can’t walk and is looking at surgery himself now next week. I’ve had to take on everything in the household as well as looking after him while trying to heal and now I’ve overdone it and my pain levels have gotten really bad again. I don’t know how I am going to keep going. Im so down and full of anxiety, my hormones are a mess, I’m struggling to function and it’s so hard to go any see anyone about it as we have no family to help out and I don’t have a GP I trust. My life is just full of physical and emotional pain that never seems to disappear. I feel like I haven’t enjoyed life for a very long time and I’m worried how it is affecting my children in the long run. What do I do

Rach93 Body Jerks / Health Anxiety
  • replies: 4

Hi, i have been going through a stressful time and I find when I’m resting and I feel anxious or upset about something different parts of my body will jerk.. has anyone had this due to anxiety? I honestly think it gets worse when anxious so it makes ... View more

Hi, i have been going through a stressful time and I find when I’m resting and I feel anxious or upset about something different parts of my body will jerk.. has anyone had this due to anxiety? I honestly think it gets worse when anxious so it makes me believe it’s apart of my anxiety. I don’t know anymore and I am constantly worried about my health it’s exhausting. Does anyone else suffer from health anxiety and it presents itself in physical form?

seanwild What to do next
  • replies: 8

Hi this is my first time posting. Im 58 and have had GAD all my life, been taking medication continuously for just short of 20 years and off and on since I was a late teen. Ive seen psychologists and am currently seeing a psychiatrist. I have learnt ... View more

Hi this is my first time posting. Im 58 and have had GAD all my life, been taking medication continuously for just short of 20 years and off and on since I was a late teen. Ive seen psychologists and am currently seeing a psychiatrist. I have learnt cognative techniques such as ACT, breathing, safe place imagery where I use affirmations and relaxation to feel better about myself. I recently went a new psychologist to understand if there any other techniques that I could learn as I was feeling overwhelmed and going into a slump for the third time in 3 years, his advice was that my anxiety trick bag was full and made the correct comment that I was worn out and close to not being able to work. I have changed medication type twice and increased the doseage 3 times for each, each time makes feel rock bottom and disoreientated for 3-4 weeks before I come good and this time I wanted to see if I could turn the corner without changing medication - Im up to week 4. What annoys me the most is I am unable to tell when I am about to fall into a slump and that's when the intrusive thoughts start, it is so debilitating as it impacts my ability to think clearly and concentrate at work, my memory of things said and written becomes poor and I have no energy other than to force myself to work. I do not get panic attacks, I feel sorry for those that do but I sometimes wish that was the type of anxiety I suffered from, if taking a tablet dissapated the feeling and I was able to be myself as soon as the medication took effect (bet it is not that easy) I want to claw back to feeling OK about myself and my loved ones. I walk regularly, have stopped drinking alcahol and coffee, backed off on the sugar, eat well but not as regular as ideal, in my head I beleive the answer is learning to continually practise relaxation during the day to keep the stress levels to a level that will not unbalance my chemical make up. Yoga is not going to make the difference. Any suggestions?

Luce1234 SSRI withdrawal and pregnant
  • replies: 3

Hello I’m 6 weeks pregnant. When I initially found out, I went to the doctor who advised me to immediately cease my daily dose of an SSRI that I have been on for 15 years to treat anxiety and OCD. She told me to take half one day, and then completely... View more

Hello I’m 6 weeks pregnant. When I initially found out, I went to the doctor who advised me to immediately cease my daily dose of an SSRI that I have been on for 15 years to treat anxiety and OCD. She told me to take half one day, and then completely cease cold Turkey. I was to then start on a different SSRI. The cold Turkey and withdrawal has broken me. I’m on the other SSRI now daily but have found myself in a depression I’ve never known before. Just wondering if anyone knows how long it takes for a new SSRI to “kick in” and the withdrawals to stop. not getting brain zaps anymore but I don’t feel like the same person anymore Thanks