Anxiety

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

All discussions

Richy238 My nan passed and my anxiety has spiked back up struggling to get back to work
  • replies: 3

Hi ever since my nan passed i have been trying to get back to work but i get overwhelmed and can't go ahead, i like my job but i fear there patience might be running thin and i have only been there for about 3 months. I don't know how to i can get my... View more

Hi ever since my nan passed i have been trying to get back to work but i get overwhelmed and can't go ahead, i like my job but i fear there patience might be running thin and i have only been there for about 3 months. I don't know how to i can get myself to go, I'm joining the Gym again and going to go everyday until my swing starts again in 4 days. Its a 4 days on 4 days off roster and hoping that might help otherwise anyone got any more ideas that may help? Thank You Richard

James54 Anxiety about COVID
  • replies: 3

Hi guys, I have really bad anxiety and struggle with mild OCD and i have been really worried about corona virus these last couple days as i have had a bit of a blocked nose and excessive saliva in mouth and i haven’t been able to sleep at night worry... View more

Hi guys, I have really bad anxiety and struggle with mild OCD and i have been really worried about corona virus these last couple days as i have had a bit of a blocked nose and excessive saliva in mouth and i haven’t been able to sleep at night worrying i have the virus even tho i live in Adelaide Australia were we don’t have any active cases. My parents tell me it’s just allergies and because i have a fan in my room while sleeping but i just worry and i don’t know if my anxiety is making at worse or if i actually have something and i’m real scared i’m giving it to my friends at school

Amianxious Acting strange in public
  • replies: 2

I don't know if it's just me but sometimes when I am out in public and think I am feeling ok I do strange things that drive my husband crazy. I will be walking along fine one minute taking the lead and then just suddenly slow down and expect him to t... View more

I don't know if it's just me but sometimes when I am out in public and think I am feeling ok I do strange things that drive my husband crazy. I will be walking along fine one minute taking the lead and then just suddenly slow down and expect him to take the lead ( often without me saying anything). It's like I have suddenly become too afraid to lead or say i don't know where i am going. I don't know why I do t speak up or have a 'real' reason for the change of tack. I will do the same thing boldly walking first into a new cafe/bar/restaurant but then sort of go off into some other planet lost in thought and don't communicate anything to my husband or dither about with the cafe worker. Is this normal? It's like I just lose focus on what I am doing.

Petal22 You Can Recover From OCD
  • replies: 1

Just sharing a positive thread, you can overcome OCD you don’t need to stay trapped in the OCD cycle... I’m living proof of this... with the correct help you can be free of it.

Just sharing a positive thread, you can overcome OCD you don’t need to stay trapped in the OCD cycle... I’m living proof of this... with the correct help you can be free of it.

Worried xgen My struggle to live in the moment
  • replies: 4

Hi im new here,male in my late 30s married with 2 kids mortgage etc etc and have had a lifetime of on and off worry and anxiety from as long as i can remember. I know deep down I'm overreacting to most situations and i tend to overthink and run thru ... View more

Hi im new here,male in my late 30s married with 2 kids mortgage etc etc and have had a lifetime of on and off worry and anxiety from as long as i can remember. I know deep down I'm overreacting to most situations and i tend to overthink and run thru these in my head before and after events. I tend not to live in the moment thru life and look back at certain times and wished i could of relaxed more and enjoyed myself at the time. I think back and really enjoy those memories more than actually living it at the time. I was a shy quiet kid at school. Especially at high school where i went most days with anxiety of what may or may not happen. I have a social anxiety too which has eased over the years as ive gotten older but still comes out from time to time. Lately i have been in a bit of a rut with my worries getting me down. My wife has a chronic illness which she is in alot of pain constantly and can't work. So ive been the only one bringing the income in and i feel so much pressure to be the only one doing so. I feel burdened by this, sometimes i feel trapped. One of my kids has a learning disability and her struggles get me down and i worry about her future too. There are times i struggle to Sleep with my worries always on mind which add to the anxiety and periods of depression. Thanks for reading my post

lonelyglassesgirl Feel anxious that I will "go crazy" if certain things happen (OCD coming back?)
  • replies: 10

I have a significant personal history of mental illness including anxiety disorders and OCD diagnosed during my childhood/teens (and a major episode about 18 months ago), and also a family history which includes schizophrenia. As a result, a lot of m... View more

I have a significant personal history of mental illness including anxiety disorders and OCD diagnosed during my childhood/teens (and a major episode about 18 months ago), and also a family history which includes schizophrenia. As a result, a lot of my anxiety at the moment is me worrying that certain behaviours or situations will make my mental health issues get worse again, or even precipitate a psychotic break. One of the things I have convinced myself will "cause" me to develop schizophrenia is lack of social contact. What happened is that late last year, I read an article saying that if you are in a risk group for schizophrenia, it is important to have social contact as it can reduce the risk of having a psychotic episode, and also that social withdrawal is a sign that you might be about to have one. As a result, when I decided to move from a sharehouse into a studio flat after getting a full-time job, I developed some anxious thoughts that this (living alone/wanting own place) was either an indication that I was about to have a psychotic episode, or could actually cause one. Now with the lockdowns, I obviously have very little social life, and am worried that I could go crazy. At night I feel scared, or don't like it to be quiet, or get scared of shadows, or have broken sleep with bad dreams (usually related to coronavirus, e.g. being sick and taken to hospital but the "hospital" is actually a conference centre, etc). But then I worry that not sleeping enough, having weird dreams, feeling scared at night, or doing something odd (e.g. mindlessly brushing my teeth when I walk into the bathroom) are not normal for an adult and am signs that I am "losing my mind", or, more concretely, am about to have a psychotic episode. Is this normal, is there any way to stop it, and does it indicate that the stress might be causing me to have a psychotic episode?

peacock Anxiety and guilt over sick leave
  • replies: 9

Hi, I am going through a difficult time at present with anxiety and depression. I saw my doctor yesterday and she gave me a week off work. Now I feel guilty for taking this time off as I’ve only been in the job four months. I sent a text to my boss e... View more

Hi, I am going through a difficult time at present with anxiety and depression. I saw my doctor yesterday and she gave me a week off work. Now I feel guilty for taking this time off as I’ve only been in the job four months. I sent a text to my boss explaining the situation and she was very supportive but I can’t stop feeling guilty about this. Has anyone else experienced this?

mads8796 Anxiety and relationships
  • replies: 4

Hi all, I’m new here, and apologies in advance for the mess this post may be. I have struggled with anxiety for a long time now. I started dating this guy 6 months ago who I am head over heels in love with. But he doesn’t understand anxiety at all an... View more

Hi all, I’m new here, and apologies in advance for the mess this post may be. I have struggled with anxiety for a long time now. I started dating this guy 6 months ago who I am head over heels in love with. But he doesn’t understand anxiety at all and really struggles with my anxiety. I’ve tried numerous ways of talking with him about it, but nothing clicks. He gets stressed and frustrated. He’s got a very dismissive/avoidant attachment style when it comes to discussing serious things whereas I am very much an anxious attachment person. In every other aspect of our relationship, we are PERFECT. honestly, he is amazing and we work so well together. We got in our first massive fight last week, where our relationship almost ended (over the dumbest thing that was exaggerated by my own anxiety) and now he has gone on a trip to the snow with the guys this week. My anxiety is at an all time high. We worked throughout relationship before he left and we are “good”. However, at the back of my mind, there is a voice telling me he is going to cheat on me because he is still mad at me. He has given me NO reason to feel this way, and I know logically that it is my anxiety talking, but I can’t stop this pit in my stomach. I don’t want to be needy, or put this anxiety on him because he honestly deserves a fun week with his friends right now. I was cheated on in my last long term relationship when we were living together, so I know that trauma has something to do with this I guess my question is, how can I help ease this? And is it possible to to cope with my anxiety when my partner simply cannot understand it and has a very different communication / attachment style to me? im so scared of ruining the first relationship I feel so great about and can see a REAL future with. Please help.

Guest_13432 Today’s thoughts made me have a full blown panic attack, can anyone help?
  • replies: 1

Hi, as I’ve posted on other threads I have massive anxiety that I am going insane and developing a serious mental illness like schizophrenia, today as I was driving I started having these thoughts that I’m delusional and everything around me is just ... View more

Hi, as I’ve posted on other threads I have massive anxiety that I am going insane and developing a serious mental illness like schizophrenia, today as I was driving I started having these thoughts that I’m delusional and everything around me is just my imagination and nothing is real, it let me to have a panic attack and it terrified me that I had these thoughts, I don’t believe it but it t terrified me, where do these thoughts come from and can it be me losing touch with reality? thank you.

Monty89 Needing an ear.
  • replies: 4

I'm new to this and not sure if i'm even posting in the right forum. I'm not one to talk about mental health. I find it difficult to speak to others about it and will often bottle things up. I'm really struggling tonight after receiving an email abou... View more

I'm new to this and not sure if i'm even posting in the right forum. I'm not one to talk about mental health. I find it difficult to speak to others about it and will often bottle things up. I'm really struggling tonight after receiving an email about my studies. Long story short, I feel like i'm not being supported by my work to grow and typing this makes me feel silly to say out loud but I just feel like I can't win. My friends are trying to encourage me that I can get past this but I honestly feel like I can't. Am I overreacting? I just feel broken and can't stop crying.