Immediate support
Immediate support

Anxiety

Anxiety is the most common mental health condition in Australia. Share your own story and learn about other member’s experiences with anxiety.

Start a discussion

FAQ

Find answers to some of the more frequently asked questions on the Forums.

View the FAQ

Forums guidelines

Our guidelines keep the Forums a safe place for people to share and learn information.

View the guidelines
Categories
Start a discussion

Pinned discussions

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. Remember, this is anonymous and the Beyond Blue team are here to help if you need it This section is for people who are experiencing anxiety 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 your 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 worthwhile 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

All discussions

Start a discussion

CCR Relationship Anxiety Attacks
  • replies: 2

Struggling to understand my anxiety. Probably had mild social anxiety for 30 years but it mostly surrounds relationships (I have an anxious attachment style). Anxiety dramatically escalated after a horrible narcissistic marriage which ended 8 years a... View more

Struggling to understand my anxiety. Probably had mild social anxiety for 30 years but it mostly surrounds relationships (I have an anxious attachment style). Anxiety dramatically escalated after a horrible narcissistic marriage which ended 8 years ago. Since then had 2 fairly short relationships with a borderline personality disorder and a severe avoidant attachment style - not surprising neither of those worked out. Have been seeing someone for 6 months. Very calm, kind, gentle soul. We are both so happy with each other and want this to last long term.My anxiety has been triggered by little things not working out as planned.I overreact, even when I know - logically - that it's no big deal and these things happen. My mind and body spirals into panic and I find it hard to hide my reaction or override the physical reaction happening. It is causing problems in our relationship - my partner feels like I'm being selfish/misunderstanding/overreactive etc. (and rightly so). The honeymoon phase seems to be wearing off and I know I'm the cause of this demise.In turn, this is causing me greater anxiety, because I know my irrational reactions are causing a rift in our beautiful relationship. I don't know how to stop it and I'm panicking...I've been really open with my partner about it, and he's really understanding. But I want to get it under control as my anxiety around our relationship potentially failing is worse than ever.

Ro97bert Boss says I'm incompetent
  • replies: 2

Hi there, I am a 27 year old male who just started an electrician apprenticeship in Brisbane. When I was hired I was told I would be on a 3 month probation period before I was fully accepted to do my apprenticeship. It takes about 4 years to complete... View more

Hi there, I am a 27 year old male who just started an electrician apprenticeship in Brisbane. When I was hired I was told I would be on a 3 month probation period before I was fully accepted to do my apprenticeship. It takes about 4 years to complete and so far I have done 8 weeks now. I have been working hard and trying to be as helpful as I can to the tradesman I work under. Yesterday I stopped into my boss's office to ask him how I was doing and if I needed to improve anything. He told me I was incompetent and that this job is not for me. I felt hurt and disheartened. I dropped out of FIFO work to do a 10 week course in TAFE. I applied to so many apprentice jobs and none got back to me. I then got hired by a company that does electrician and aircon. I worked in the aircon side for about 3 months before chasing up the electrical boss and urging him to give me a chance which is how I've ended up here. I overhead workmates talking that they are firing people at the moment because work is quiet. I plan to work twice as hard for the remainder 3 weeks I have. But cannot help but feel hopeless and defeated. It is my dream career to become an electrician but hearing these words from my boss who is a master electrician has made me feel like it is not possible. What should I do? Thank you.

jemma09 OCD and intrusive/aggressive/taboo thoughts - I feel like this is not talked about a lot?
  • replies: 15

Hi everyone, I hope you are having a peaceful day I noticed this anxiety section of the forum says we can also talk about OCD. I heard about intrusive, aggressive or taboo thoughts associated with OCD only maybe a year or two ago after reading about ... View more

Hi everyone, I hope you are having a peaceful day I noticed this anxiety section of the forum says we can also talk about OCD. I heard about intrusive, aggressive or taboo thoughts associated with OCD only maybe a year or two ago after reading about it on some article. I never knew it was something to do with OCD. I remember reading one person explain that they found a lot of peace when they accepted their thoughts were in fact intrusive and did not define them as a person or what they wanted in life. I wish this was talked about more. Does anyone experience these? I never thought there was a name for it. I would have the most random thought just present itself in my head. (It's not so bad now after learning it is part of OCD, I thought I was a horrible person. I couldn't understand why it was happening.) A thought that might be intrusive or taboo and something that I would never do. Sometimes my mind would say to me - 'what if you did this?' 'or what if you were this?' usually referring to negative connotations. It would make me feel horrific and within myself because I knew I am not someone who would do any of the things that were being asked of me. These thoughts were always against my very soul and being and nothing like who I am as a person. I felt so alone and didn't understand why my brain was doing this. It would upset me so much each time. But finding out other people experienced it too was so comforting. I've never talked to a therapist about it because I was so worried I would be labelled as insane or as someone who would commit crimes or be a danger in society. Thank you so much for reading and listening

Guest_42214218 Homeowner nightmare
  • replies: 1

Anyone is having anxiety over their home with all possibilities that could go wrong?

Anyone is having anxiety over their home with all possibilities that could go wrong?

RCWolf Anxiety after being hacked
  • replies: 3

Back in November. I was compromised by a virus and had a social media account stolen since then I have felt like I’m being watched, even though I’ve taken every single step and measure to resecure everything but I’m so scared that this person will sh... View more

Back in November. I was compromised by a virus and had a social media account stolen since then I have felt like I’m being watched, even though I’ve taken every single step and measure to resecure everything but I’m so scared that this person will show up somewhere else, continue to have nightmares Just don’t know how to cope or deal with it every DM ping increase my heart rate…I keep trying to convince myself that I’m back in control but I just don’t know what to trust…i don’t know how to move past this without looking over my shoulder

Bookgirl feeling hopeless
  • replies: 7

I know i have posted here before and people are probably sick of me but all the Political stuff is really getting me down. The world feels headed for war and hopeless. I worry about my 16 year old son. What kind of future will have? I feel useless to... View more

I know i have posted here before and people are probably sick of me but all the Political stuff is really getting me down. The world feels headed for war and hopeless. I worry about my 16 year old son. What kind of future will have? I feel useless to protect him from what is to come. I don't know what to do or how to cope with what is going on. Everyone says distract yourself but how do you do that when its everywhere and everyone feels down. I think back to my grandmother who in ww2 was in london with my 6 year old dad getting bombed every night and i think of her resilience and i wish i had just a tiny bit of that courage and resilience that she had.

bebrave2023 How can I let my mum move out of my house?
  • replies: 3

Because I have been tormented by my narcissistic mother for a long time, I have developed severe depression and anxiety. My psychologist has advised me to stay away from my mother. She has no income or job and has been living in our house. She has be... View more

Because I have been tormented by my narcissistic mother for a long time, I have developed severe depression and anxiety. My psychologist has advised me to stay away from my mother. She has no income or job and has been living in our house. She has been controlling our lives, even demanding that we take her with us when my husband and I go on vacation with our children. She often threatens me, saying, "If you don't make me happy, none of you will be happy!" My husband and I can't take it anymore and want her to move out of our house, but she demands that we pay her rent because she raised me, and I owe her this in return! However, my husband and I have a mortgage to pay and two children to support, so we simply can't afford to pay her rent. I feel so helpless and have thought about suicide many times. Is there any way I can make my mother move out of my house? Are there any organizations that can help me?

Ellaminowpea Grades & School
  • replies: 1

I'm in high school, and I usually get good grades, but recently I've been struggling with my assignments, especially since I have five going on at a time. Its gotten to the point where I've had to hand in my assignments incomplete or lacking detail. ... View more

I'm in high school, and I usually get good grades, but recently I've been struggling with my assignments, especially since I have five going on at a time. Its gotten to the point where I've had to hand in my assignments incomplete or lacking detail. I'm worried that when my report card comes out, Ill get lots of Ds. I'm trying my hardest, but I've been getting overwhelmed and that often leads to me procrastinating and leaving things till the last minute, and I think to myself that I'm not smart or good enough. I was wondering if there's any thing I can do to help me feel less overwhelmed and get rid of the negative self talk?

Rach28 eryone, Burnt out from 5 months of looking to study/ finding a job
  • replies: 3

Hi everyone,I'm writing this post because I really need to vent. I'm so frustrated, angry and disappointed.Since November/December 2024 (last year) I've been looking into studying Certificate II in Animal Care (TAFE) and during the month of December ... View more

Hi everyone,I'm writing this post because I really need to vent. I'm so frustrated, angry and disappointed.Since November/December 2024 (last year) I've been looking into studying Certificate II in Animal Care (TAFE) and during the month of December i went crazy sending out my resume and customized cover letters to potential work placement locations in my local area to start studying potentially in January 2025 (two months ago). And even after a positive interaction just having a chat to a Practise Manager at a local vet hospital/clinic I feel I've failed in gaining a spot. He told me to email him in early-mid January to follow-up when he would have a potential opening as the current students would be finishing their placement/study. And so obviously i looked into other study options that could potentially including a work placement. So I investigated the RSPCA who hold a training education course to gain work placement and physical classroom/ online virtual teaching classes. I thought it would be perfect and so I applied for any opening for future groups this year. The March 2025 dates fell through and so they changed it to May 2025 (two months from now). This week I got an email for the study coordinator team informing that applications are open. So I completed the form and read all the information. Big issue - the Smart Skills Australian Government study cost subsidy is currently basically $0 for RSPCA right now. So as I am currently on Centrelink payment - JobSeeker I cant even fork out $3000 to pay for the upfront costs to complete this course. Its perfect and would be fast tracked 10 weeks intensive so full on study dedicating 4 days a week to do work placement days and otherwise studying online and completing assignments etc. I was SO excited and beyond words read to study and do this course but I cant afford this cost and feel so frustrated and disappointed. So that's two strikes on my road to attempting to gain a career working with animals. I'm finding this whole process frustrating, beyond exhausting and I feel nothing is going my way. I am connected to an Disability Employment Services organization and fortnightly appointments with a job coach to meet Centrelink requirements and look for study/work. I just feel like screaming honestly and I feel I've lost my direction. I don't know what to do, think or apply for anymore. Does anyone have any advice because I feel so lost right now and burnt out above all. I'm mentally exhausted after 5 months.

buglove Scared of doing something wrong
  • replies: 4

I have had anxiety for a long time. I am constantly worried that I am going to or have made a mistake that will ruin my life in one way or another. For example, I have trouble driving because I keep telling myself that I will hit a car and for some r... View more

I have had anxiety for a long time. I am constantly worried that I am going to or have made a mistake that will ruin my life in one way or another. For example, I have trouble driving because I keep telling myself that I will hit a car and for some reason my insurance will be invalid and then I will be paying off a debt for my whole life and my life will be ruined. I’m feeling alone and helpless as I don’t know anyone who experiences the same thing. It impacts my life everyday and I am scared to do anything. I feel an unreasonable amount of guilt at all times and constantly am worried about getting told off or someone not liking me, even though I am an adult and shouldn’t care that much. I would love someone to let me know I am not alone. And if anyone has any tips on how to get over catastrophising and experiencing extreme guilt.