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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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Flipperz Ocd pure o intrusive thoughts
  • replies: 8

Hey, I’m new to this and this will be my first time posting on any type of forum but I have been struggling for probably a few years now with 100% certainty pure o and also ADD both being undiagnosed so far but with some internet searches I strongly ... View more

Hey, I’m new to this and this will be my first time posting on any type of forum but I have been struggling for probably a few years now with 100% certainty pure o and also ADD both being undiagnosed so far but with some internet searches I strongly believe I have them ! I do think I have done quite some damage to my brain in my 20s with partying being my main focus for the majority and never really set meaningful goals so my brain chemistry has been a little wack for a while but porn has also been a problem so sexual thoughts were quite frequent but never really bothering me too much. Until a few years ago multiple videos of some fetish pornography videos were shown to me and of-course shrugged and cringed as most would but out of nowhere I kept getting flashes of some of those scenes throughout the day and started thinking yuck why did that pop up in my mind but would only be about a dozen times per day but as I’ve read the more you dwell on a thought the stronger it becomes so fast forward a couple of years I now suffer with constant images of that theme which is extremely embarrassing to even admit even though I understand they are just thoughts but also just total confusion and scattered thinking to the point I can barely think at all or focus on any task at hand I quite literally feel I’m becoming demented at times but to the average eye I probably seem fine and I guess just a little slow sometimes! I strictly have disgusting foul images, there is no voice in my head saying that I want to be this way or no urges at all and funny enough no real anxiety just pure disgust and feeling like I’ll never have nice thoughts and clarity again! I’ve seen a psychologist for a few sessions but he pretty much told me what I’ve already read and was costing too much, so now as I know I shouldn’t be doing is googling ways to attack this rotten monster that saps away at my soul and this is where I’m stuck because on one end is ERP but that’s aimed at reducing anxiety where I feel I don’t have much of that due to the thoughts only when I can’t give my undivided attention to someone and the other was from a book I read called brain lock where they talk about rewiring your brain chemistry through focused attention on anything you value so more of a mindfulness approach to getting through this disorder! I’m not sure which way to turn on this cross road :s I’m very sorry for the lack of grammar but I would love some advice thnx

Sarah0209 Bulimia & chest pains
  • replies: 1

Hi there, ive never been diagnosed with Bulimia but I’m pretty aware that I have it. Ive been having symptoms for quite a few years now and we’ll aware that I have a problem. My dr is aware that I have issues with my body issues but I have never brou... View more

Hi there, ive never been diagnosed with Bulimia but I’m pretty aware that I have it. Ive been having symptoms for quite a few years now and we’ll aware that I have a problem. My dr is aware that I have issues with my body issues but I have never brought up all my symptoms. Yesterday however, I have noticed that I have been getting sharp pains on the right side of my chest during an episode and this has continued to happen today. Obviously being the opposite side of where my heart is, does anyone know what this could be? thanks everyone..

Worried_Dad Anxiety before work
  • replies: 3

My son has just left school and started a job. He was very nervous the first two days, but talked highly of his experience and people he worked with, on both afternoons after work. On the third day he was unable to get out of the car to go into work ... View more

My son has just left school and started a job. He was very nervous the first two days, but talked highly of his experience and people he worked with, on both afternoons after work. On the third day he was unable to get out of the car to go into work and sat there shaking and feeling like he was going to throw up. He tried again today, with the same result. I am not sure what I can do to help personally and not sure what help I should try and get him professionally.

Rhi-Ann Stopping those "protective" thoughts
  • replies: 6

Keen to hear what strategies you guys implement to avoid catastrophising? Those intrusive thoughts spiralling, that can stagnate and avoid you getting into action. What are some different tips you guys utilise? ✌ Rhi-Ann

Keen to hear what strategies you guys implement to avoid catastrophising? Those intrusive thoughts spiralling, that can stagnate and avoid you getting into action. What are some different tips you guys utilise? ✌ Rhi-Ann

LC80 Is it just too hard?
  • replies: 3

I am an older retired male, and I have been estranged from my two daughters from my first marriage for ten years. I have tried to have some contact but that has been rejected. The older one at least reads my messages but does not reply. I recently se... View more

I am an older retired male, and I have been estranged from my two daughters from my first marriage for ten years. I have tried to have some contact but that has been rejected. The older one at least reads my messages but does not reply. I recently sent a thoughtfully written letter to the younger one who is 42 y/o to at least convey how much she still means to me and received a extremely abusive social media message from her via her mothers account. The resulting shock of the viciousness of the wording has taken me fully a day or two to understand. To be told that I am worthless and I will never see her again has resulted in two nights of night terrors. I could go one for quite some time but that's the gist of it. My first marriage was a disaster from early on, and I have sought help from mental health professions to understand my actions during that time of my life. Living my life on tenterhooks wondering if she will seek me out for retribution is tiring. My life is full of other things that are good, but the anxiety shades them grey a lot.

daisy211 Severe anxiety with meeting new people
  • replies: 6

Hey there, I've recently joined the online dating world and I would absolutely love to meet the person I've been talking to in person but I am way too anxious for that. I guess I have a fear of not making a good first impression but I also don't real... View more

Hey there, I've recently joined the online dating world and I would absolutely love to meet the person I've been talking to in person but I am way too anxious for that. I guess I have a fear of not making a good first impression but I also don't really know the kind of things people usually do when they meet new people from the internet. Things like eating in front of someone makes me anxious enough I'm not sure about other date ideas that might work for me without feeling like spiraling out of control. We've been talking for over a month now and honestly its about time I meet him in person but yeah I'm just way too anxious about it and I don't know how to take control of my thoughts.

Ballerina Giving up
  • replies: 3

I just need to vent. It's 2.26 in the morning and I can't sleep. My anxiety won't let me. I'm overthinking about something that I don't even know that has happened. I need to be in control of everything that happens around in my life when there's som... View more

I just need to vent. It's 2.26 in the morning and I can't sleep. My anxiety won't let me. I'm overthinking about something that I don't even know that has happened. I need to be in control of everything that happens around in my life when there's something that I can't do, that I can't control triggers my anxiety. I'm getting tired of it and honestly I don't want to have this control anymore, and that's where starts my suicidal thoughts. I just want to put an end in all of it. I'm trying to do everything right but it's hard, and overwhelming. I can't breathe.

Gerryboy90 I don’t want my health anxiety to get out of control
  • replies: 4

Hello, I never really used to have anxiety until last year. I thought I had covid, I had all the covid symptoms you could think of. I went for a test and it was negative. All the symptoms dropped. so, sometime in January this year. I started working ... View more

Hello, I never really used to have anxiety until last year. I thought I had covid, I had all the covid symptoms you could think of. I went for a test and it was negative. All the symptoms dropped. so, sometime in January this year. I started working out, after eating one day, I went for a walk. I started having pain under left breast. I started googling, which was my biggest mistake. Everything I read pointed to a heart attack. I called the Telehealth and was told that I should go to pharmacy for some antacid cos I went for a walk immediately after eating a spicy food. It took about 3 days after my medication for it all to go away. Before then, due to anxiety, I went to my GP, he listened to my heart and told me that my heart was beating well. Also, he sent me to do a blood test to check cholesterol levels. All came back fine, he also told me to lose weight. I was weighing 129kg. And 5 months later, I’m now at 107kg. But since then I’ve been a mess. Then on Easter, i went to a friends house, they had a fire outside. We all sat there. I came home and was watching a Tv show, and on that show, someone died of smoke inhalation. My blood pressure that night was at 221/90. I tried my best to calm myself. And I did. It went down to 150/90 after 15 minutes. Since then I’ve been spiralling. Every ache or heart pain I get, I panic. 3 weeks ago, I went to see my gp. I told her I felt pain on my chest, and that it moves around. I had an ECG and it was normal. My lungs and everything were checked and all were normal. But then I couldn’t stop googling every symptom on my body. Two weeks ago, I went for an ECG and heart blood test. All came back normal. My Gp suspects all the pain I’ve been having were due to my working out and anxiety. But still, I still worry. I’m such a a mess at the moment. I’ve been having most of the anxiety symptoms like racing/fluttering heart, chest pains and tightness that comes and goes. Headaches, dizziness, blurry visions etc. It’s getting out of hand. I’m so convinced my heart is going to fail even though all the ECGs and heart blood tests say I’m okay. I don’t smoke, rarely drinks, I’ve been losing weight, eating more healthy. Yet. I can’t seem to relax. I don’t want to spiral.

Tense_Sez Health Anxiety - My Story So Far
  • replies: 2

Hi Guys, I've made a post before and have read and interacted on these forums before but I've been away from these forums for a very long time because when symptoms become manageable... you sort of stop worrying as much. Which is exactly what happene... View more

Hi Guys, I've made a post before and have read and interacted on these forums before but I've been away from these forums for a very long time because when symptoms become manageable... you sort of stop worrying as much. Which is exactly what happened to me... But hear me out. I used to have a consistent shortness of breath, which used to worry me consistently - this was after having a panic attack at a festival due to being over worked and sleep deprived. This gave me intense health anxiety. I went to see a doctor, and finally after months and months of going back and forward with testing and results, I accepted I must have Health Anxiety. This was particularly hard for me as I was studying medicine at the time. I went to see a psychologist which didn't help me very much because I'd never found myself really thinking about stressors BAR my health. Symptoms improved slightly each month, and became... bareable. After I'd finished my degree, symptoms were very similar. bareable, but persistent (probably a consistent 3-4/10 if you had to scale them against best to worst). I thought that I may as well try anti-anxiety medication to see if it could improve quality of life. It did improve symptoms, but brought on a new one. Erectile Dysfunction. Note that this was a forewarning and common side-effect. This was a deal breaker for me and decided to ween off the medication, which I did successfully. Now, probably 3 months after weening off medication. I have had a barrage of slightly new and slightly old symptoms. These are all very common symptoms and have moderate to high evidence of Hypothyroidism. I can't shake this thought. I have had common tests done; ECG, TSH, Bloods. The only thing the doctor could tell me was wrong was slightly raised cholesterol (LDL) Otherwise, I am in the least stressful environment of my life. Dream job, no debt, no relationship problems, exercise daily, eat healthy - and yet, symptoms persist... the more I stress the worse they get. I am 25 yo with not a problem in the world bar my health! Do I chalk this up as Health Anxiety once again? Thanks in advance for any replies. It really means a lot to hear your thoughts.

car10001 coronavirus
  • replies: 1

hi wasnt sure where to put this but wondering if you live with people that are known to get sick and/or someone in your house ever has to isolate and you like the independence and/or don't want to take the chance of quarantine possibly lasting longer... View more

hi wasnt sure where to put this but wondering if you live with people that are known to get sick and/or someone in your house ever has to isolate and you like the independence and/or don't want to take the chance of quarantine possibly lasting longer if another person in your house gets it, what would be able to be done to reduce exposure if you live with people known to get sick and the property you live at doesn't have a detached flat with its own bathroom and kitchen to reduce if not eliminate contact with others. do live with people known to get sick and because you live with them you may have to quarantine as well and if you do then quarantine might last longer and don't want to take that chance and the property you live at has only one bathroom and kitchen and is small and doesnt have a room out back with its own bathroom and kitchen going off the sa health website if someone has to quarantine and/or tests positive its better if you make arrangements for that person or the rest of the house to stay elsewhere during that time until they test negative. or even the person who likes their independence and/or doesn't want to quarantine longer than they have to and take the chance of theirs lasting longer especially if a household member catches it. if you paid for a month accomodation in cabin costs would add up pretty quick. just wanted information to keep in mind incase its ever needed at any time. just at age where am wanting own space (part time to start with) and dont want to be affected or quarrantine seperate so the posibility is not there of having to face longer and start the 14 days again as for the shed am dependant on the local mens shed that am going to because the place that normally live at doesnt have a big enough yard to add a extra shed right out back out way and am realising that you have to pay your own way and its only fair that you do and dont yet have a big enough deposit to buy property and dont want to rent as it costs as much in rent and also the posibility is there of having to shift stuff and youre limited to what you can do to place. the only current options for a shed and space of your own may have to close and thats one reason for being concerned. what can be done to reduce exposure if you live with a at risk person preferably in a way that doesnt cost too much money, what ways are there ranging from cheap to expensive just prepared for anything please reply soon as you get this thanks