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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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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

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PsychedelicFur Still Pursuing Something That Is Giving Me Stress
  • replies: 2

Hello there, at the moment I’m pursuing a hobby that for many years has brought me many moments of happiness and continuous satisfaction. However, just recently this hobby has been the one thing that has overwhelmingly caused me so many dilemmas and ... View more

Hello there, at the moment I’m pursuing a hobby that for many years has brought me many moments of happiness and continuous satisfaction. However, just recently this hobby has been the one thing that has overwhelmingly caused me so many dilemmas and furthermore problematic situations. Started this hobby from a really young age so it has been an enormous part of my youth. recently this place has been such a hateful and negative environment. People at this particular place want control, desire manipulation and have a large admiration for POWER. I love what I do. Because I am fully involved and passionate about it. however why is the one thing that I have done for so many years now the one thing that has affected me so greatly with stress and more anxiety? signed, Psychedelicfur

Number 86 Health Anxiety - Strength Training
  • replies: 7

Hi all, this is my first post. I have been struggling with anxiety for the past 5 years. Originally I had thought I had a heart condition as I would be doing something not stressful then bam! Feel dizzy/light headed tense chest and arms with the Terr... View more

Hi all, this is my first post. I have been struggling with anxiety for the past 5 years. Originally I had thought I had a heart condition as I would be doing something not stressful then bam! Feel dizzy/light headed tense chest and arms with the Terrified feeling of oh shit I am having a heart attack, this is it. I have had issues with my stomach and throat that convinced me I had cancer. I am starting to be aware of my patterns once I start to check my self over repeatedly after some kind of body sensation, I then go to doctor google and after a few days of that I am terrified and wanted reassurance from the emergency department. unfortunately of late i am perceiving my anxiety to be getter worse. I have been on medication for 5 years now and thinking I am building an immunity. Some times I get so bad i need to lay in bed face down and close my eyes until I relax enough to get out of bed. I have booked in to see a psychologist and feel a little nervous talking about it as I have hidden my anxiety from friends and family and never spoke about it to anyone besides my doctor. I have become a hermit as I feel better alone and when I am anxious I feel I need to run away. i have gone through every test with my doctor multiple times and I am completely healthy but I panic that I am going to have a heart attack if I elevate my heart rate with exercise. has anyone experienced this and have any pointers on how to combat this issue ?

Kingbabyw Brain tumours??
  • replies: 3

hi so about?? 2 weeks ago I searched up brain tumours out pure anxiety since I was having pins and needles in my arms a lot (turned out to be a b12 deficiency) ever since I feel like I’ve been on the decline, heart palpitations, headaches sometimes, ... View more

hi so about?? 2 weeks ago I searched up brain tumours out pure anxiety since I was having pins and needles in my arms a lot (turned out to be a b12 deficiency) ever since I feel like I’ve been on the decline, heart palpitations, headaches sometimes, twitching/muscle spasms. I’ve seen an eye doctor to rule out the possibility that my eyes are just bad since I also know eye tests can detect tumours (I came out with great vision) I went to see a doctor multiple times and she told me it’s simply my anxiety since my blood tests came back clean with zero abnormalities. She told me not to google my symptoms and just enjoy life but I can’t seem to shake the fact that something is wrong with me, is this jsut a form of health anxiety or do I have the right to be anxious? I made her do a neurological test on me and she said I was fine.. a lot of symptoms have only come up after googling it and it makes me terrified

Zorn What helps for instant relief (while investigating long term strategies)
  • replies: 8

Hi guys. I had quite a scary incident the other night where I was woken from sleep with tight chest and difficulty breathing, sweats and weak legs. Naturally we went to the hospital where they thought it best to investigate the potential of a heart a... View more

Hi guys. I had quite a scary incident the other night where I was woken from sleep with tight chest and difficulty breathing, sweats and weak legs. Naturally we went to the hospital where they thought it best to investigate the potential of a heart attack as my blood pressure also hit 159/117, where I usually sit the 120/80 (no issues in the past). After finally getting the chance to calm down and symptoms subside, the doctors came to the conclusion this was caused from major stress (I have a highly stressful job along with personal life stresses) and has seemed to trigger Anxiety in me as it was a case of waiting for that last straw to break the Camel's back. It was a hug relief to know it wasn't a heart attack and a manageable condition. The past few days, I have been noticing more Anxious moments such as tingling extremities, shortness of breath, light headed, etc. I am just wondering if these are somewhat amplified and more noticeable (and also triggered by the Monday episode) now I am aware of what I have and if there is medication that can give near on instant relief from these symptoms, whilst I investigate a long term solution? I would love to hear back from you all as I want to get a little normality back (even fleeting) while I look for a long term fix.

PJ89 Anxiety journey
  • replies: 1

Hi all, I'm looking for some help as my anxiety journey has been long rough so far I am 30 yrs old (male) and I've had anxiety my whole life but around 4 years ago it became so prevalent that it changed my life for good. There was no direct cause of ... View more

Hi all, I'm looking for some help as my anxiety journey has been long rough so far I am 30 yrs old (male) and I've had anxiety my whole life but around 4 years ago it became so prevalent that it changed my life for good. There was no direct cause of why my anxiety had gotten so bad, it just happened out of the blue. I was working full-time - unfortunately I lost my job around this time last year - no small thanks to my anxiety problems (unfortunately companies can work their way around to weaselling you out of a job when you have MH issues). Over my adult life I've been on a variety of different anti-depressants, most of them having little effect. When I was 18 I first started having bad panic attacks and was prescribed medication for a little while until they settled down. I've been through a variety of doctors and have finally settled on one I'm okay with. Currently I'm on a combination of medications setup by my previous doctor but we're working my way off of it. In addition I also take another medication (for impulsiveness as I've had 3x suicide attempts), a medication for blood pressure (I have a high heart rate which contributes to my anxiety) and am allowed to have another medication as needed (they don't really seem to work so I save them for when I leave the house). I've seen therapists and psychologists who insist that there must be triggers to my anxiety - I don't believe there are. I wake up anxious and am anxious every second of the day and it gets worse when I have things to do. I'm lucky that I currently live with my father as he helps a lot - as stupid as it may sound, sometimes when I'm making dinner I get anxious that I'm going to mess it up. I saw a psychiatrist last year (recommended more therapy and some drugs) and quoting directly from my psychiatrist report I have "generalised anxiety disorder, panic disorder, and dysthymia/persistent depressive disorder on the background of cluster B personality traits." I was also sent to an endocrinologist to see if my hormones were out of whack and they were but they believe this is the fault of one of my medications. I've been on six different medications. I guess my question would be where would you go from here?

Lynn16 Struggling with anxiety.
  • replies: 1

I need help to stop my imagination . Having panic attacks.

I need help to stop my imagination . Having panic attacks.

brandon8249 What are your biggest issues with anxiety
  • replies: 1

Hey everyone, I’m currently trying to find out how one could make the lives of people with social anxiety a lot easier Which is why I have two very simple questions: 1.As people with social anxiety, what are the 2 biggest issues you’re dealing with? ... View more

Hey everyone, I’m currently trying to find out how one could make the lives of people with social anxiety a lot easier Which is why I have two very simple questions: 1.As people with social anxiety, what are the 2 biggest issues you’re dealing with? 2.Regarding your romantic life, what would you wish for more than anything else? Thanks so much in advance - looking forward to reading your answers!

spiral123 Struggles of dealing with anxiety and work
  • replies: 3

Hi all, this is my first post in the forum. I need some perspective into what I should do in my current situation. I struggle with social anxiety every day and it significantly interferes with my well-being at work. I work in an office job and the ro... View more

Hi all, this is my first post in the forum. I need some perspective into what I should do in my current situation. I struggle with social anxiety every day and it significantly interferes with my well-being at work. I work in an office job and the role is suited to an extrovert. I will avoid social interactions where I can at work and I have found that if someone new comes into the office, at times I won't introduce myself and make small talk due to my social fear and I am worried this might come across as being rude. Every time the phone at work rings, I get a fear that it is a client calling for me to complain to me about something. I struggle to run through things with my boss as he can be very straight to the point and blunt, which cause me to freeze in fear with the worry that I am going to say something stupid or wrong. The stress and anxiety I feel at work has impacted my health and well being.I find the constant fight of keeping to tight deadlines and dealing with my anxiety puts a massive weight on my shoulders or like I struggle to breathe. I feel like this feeling is becoming too much and that I need to leave my job to focus on creating a life for myself where I don't feel like I carry such a heavy burden. My dilemma is that I have only been in this job for 3 months which wont look good and I know my family will be disappointed if I leave. At this point though, I feel stuck as I don't know how much longer I can deal with juggling my anxiety and this job or alternatively, the thought of facing my boss to resign and sitting my family down and explaining to them why I want to leave my job. Has anyone been in a similar situation?

miss_jade I need help with odd OCD obsession
  • replies: 3

Hello everyone, I've had OCD since I was twelve, and have had many obsessions in the past, religious (afraid being possessed by demons), harm (afraid of secretly wanting to murder people), existential (afraid I was in a dream/lucid dreaming) and many... View more

Hello everyone, I've had OCD since I was twelve, and have had many obsessions in the past, religious (afraid being possessed by demons), harm (afraid of secretly wanting to murder people), existential (afraid I was in a dream/lucid dreaming) and many others but this one has been the hardest on me for some reason, and the first time it's ever escalated to panic. Basically a few months back I had a bad experience with pain medication in which I experienced physical and emotional withdrawal symptoms when I ran out and didn't go back to the GP to renew my prescription like I should have. During that experience, I was finding it difficult to divert my attention away from the experiences in my body, my thoughts and feelings and, very oddly, perceiving time moving slowly. My obsession is this, I'm afraid of noticing or being aware of time moving slowly. I'm afraid it will never go away and be 'stuck' in my head and I won't be able to focus on anything else. I don't want this thought in my head because I believe it will cause extreme boredom and anxiety that will be present as long as its in my head interfering with the quality of my life. It's basically an obsession about the thought/awareness of time moving slowly causing emotions that I don't want to be there, I just want it gone so I can focus and be at peace again. It's constant and I'm so tired. I have been seeing a therapist which is helping, but its hard because it's so long between sessions.

miss_jade Irrational fears after trauma
  • replies: 5

Hi, This is my first time posting. I’ve suffered from OCD since I was about 12 and have had every obsession you could think of (religious, sexual, harm, existential, etc.). Recently, I was on a pain medication (taking the highest legal dose) and I de... View more

Hi, This is my first time posting. I’ve suffered from OCD since I was about 12 and have had every obsession you could think of (religious, sexual, harm, existential, etc.). Recently, I was on a pain medication (taking the highest legal dose) and I decided one day that I would stay home and study (exam period) instead of refill my prescription and that I could deal with the pain for a few days. I experienced severe withdrawal symptoms (felt like a severe depression or anxiety), but I didn’t know what was happening I thought I was going insane. I tried to do anything to keep my mind occupied off the symptoms (working, cleaning, video games, tv) but nothing worked and I ended up staring at the clock for hours just waiting for it to be over, it moved so slowly. Once I got the medication back, the physical symptoms faded within an hour but the mental stuff stayed with me. Now I have a lot of fears pertaining to physical anxiety symptoms and perception of time. I’m afraid of thinking about or experiencing time moving slowly. I don’t know exactly why that is or what I think will happen, but I feel as if it would be a never ending torture if I did. I’m afraid that I won’t be able stop thinking these thoughts about time, that they’ll always distract me. I’m also afraid that the physical symptoms of anxiety (I developed later on) will dominate my attention, that I won’t be able to stop thinking about them and not be able to focus on other things (fun, work, partner). That I won’t be able to function and they will get worse/unbearable. I had some bad experiences with panic (I started on SSRI) because I thought the same psychological consequences (focusing on slow time/not being able to disconnect from physical sensations and focus on other things) would happen again. I don’t know whether it’s PTSD, OCD, panic, etc. but these are the fears that are bothering me and it’s been hard trying to find someone with my experiences. Any advice would be much appreciated, thank you.