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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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Hummer Do I really need a psychologist
  • replies: 2

So I’ve had a rough couple of weeks due to my anxiety and depression. I recently updated my mental health plan and a new referral to my psychologist. I’ve booked the appointment and so on. But my main question do you have days were thoughts go throug... View more

So I’ve had a rough couple of weeks due to my anxiety and depression. I recently updated my mental health plan and a new referral to my psychologist. I’ve booked the appointment and so on. But my main question do you have days were thoughts go through your head, do you really need to go to the psychologist? Because I feel better. But some days are crap. Also psychologist Will they just repeat the same stuff like previous times which has happened

BarbieR Anxiety causing Insomnia
  • replies: 3

I’ve come to the realisation that my Anxiety is the cause of my Insomnia or the other way around. I’ve tried everything but prescription medication, and yes, CBT, but I’m in a vicious cycle and I just want some sleep so that I can function and hopefu... View more

I’ve come to the realisation that my Anxiety is the cause of my Insomnia or the other way around. I’ve tried everything but prescription medication, and yes, CBT, but I’m in a vicious cycle and I just want some sleep so that I can function and hopefully work on my Anxiety. Is anyone in this rut?!

ForeverTrying2019 Multiple Anxiety/Panic attacks during the night preventing falling asleep
  • replies: 1

Hi everyone, Only recently have I really begin to understand and develop coping skills to help me really work on enjoying my life and not have my anxiety rule me. Interestingly after so many years, I have only recently experienced the physical sensat... View more

Hi everyone, Only recently have I really begin to understand and develop coping skills to help me really work on enjoying my life and not have my anxiety rule me. Interestingly after so many years, I have only recently experienced the physical sensations and symptoms of anxiety – previously all mental dysfunction. This has been really hard to cope with and very debilitating trying to work while everyday experiencing so many different symptoms and ailments. The most difficult symptom being a constantly increased heartrate which has caused me to also have panic attacks which I previously had not experienced. I am now on heart medication to slow my resting HR down and since then the panic attacks have stopped. I have been seeing my psychologist and recently also doing kinesiology and significant amount of meditation and have for the past 4 weeks stopped using benzodiazepines which I had previously needed irregularly. So then a few nights ago I noticed myself struggling to breathe and some of the initial panic attack symptoms before I went to sleep but I shrugged it off for the most part and thought I wont let it pull me in, I put my sleep meditation on and off to sleep I went. Then a few hours later I woke up in a jolt of anxiety/panic my heart racing and my chest feeling like I was being crushed, I then calmed myself down quickly put my sleep meditation back on and tried to go back to sleep - or so i thought. Some cycle then began which has me extremely worried. Between being awake and then falling into sleep when the body starts to relax, it seems my body is for some reason becoming extremely anxious in that level of consciousness, just as I am about to actually drift into sleep I will jolt awake and then the whole cycle will continue every 15-20 minutes for up to a few hours. I had hoped that this would be a one off scenario but it happened again last night and I was awake with the same repeated cycle from approx. 11pm – 3:30 am. I was in tears after waking one of the last few times, I just cant understand what the hell is going on. It is terrifying - I am exhausted and all my body want to do is sleep, but it literally will not let itself. I am struggling today because my regular daily anxiety is far harder to manage after such bad sleep deprivation. Does anyone have an experience in this – is anyone able to offer any suggestions? With the progress I have recently made I do not want to go backwards. Thank you in advance.

AnotherOne12 Positional Dizziness / Positional Hypotension using or upping antidepressant meds?
  • replies: 1

Recently started using a low dosage and all seemed well. After two weeks commenced uping the dose and noticed dizziness and when I went from one position to another, felt really shaky light headed. Anyone else with these side effects? Just wanting to... View more

Recently started using a low dosage and all seemed well. After two weeks commenced uping the dose and noticed dizziness and when I went from one position to another, felt really shaky light headed. Anyone else with these side effects? Just wanting to see if its a general effect that people experience. Thank you

Now Making social connections
  • replies: 3

I have anxiety/depresssion/panic disorder/chronic pain, and have done so over a number of years. I have good professional support and have coped on my own for the most part with their assistance. I have a husband who no matter what can not understand... View more

I have anxiety/depresssion/panic disorder/chronic pain, and have done so over a number of years. I have good professional support and have coped on my own for the most part with their assistance. I have a husband who no matter what can not understand my conditions & that is fine, it is his make up, my parents are deceased, I have a 10 yr old son with learning difficulties & level 1 Autism, I have suffered workplace bullying and resigned as a result and started studying; I am in my final year of a Masters in Social Work and have just started a part time job this year. I have had neck surgery a week ago for damage discs in my neck and so far things seem to be going well with that. I am hoping that it will help with the other aches and pains I have felt over the time, as I wish to get fit and exercise regularly, as I know this is good for mental health. My psychologist and I have discussed the issue of making a social network, that is able to support my needs to connect with people; as my parents and former work colleagues were the ones doing this previously and their was a balance between home and work for me, but since I have not worked for 2 years, I have found I have become incredibly lonely. How do you make new friends as an adult, I don't even know what type of things I could do as a hobby, as my life has always been my family. My husband was always the one who was out and about joining groups and things and I was at home on my own or with my son when he came along, I have spent a lot of time alone. Now my mother-in-law is living near us and he spends most of his time helping her, so I have this week decided that I need to start to get my life back on track & look at my surgery as a way of doing this, we live about 20 min out of a larger town and the fact we both work there & our son attends school there have decided that we will sell and move into there, which will be good & I am excited, but in the mean time, how do I try to maintain positive and start to make connections, as I can see it will be very easy for me to slip back down depression wise, as I spend a lot of time on my own & I don't want to feel as depressed as I was prior to surgery, thanks.

Biospythagorikos Cyclically afflicted by severe Anxiety and paranoia
  • replies: 2

Is the following typical of anxiety disorders? I have been plagued since adolescent with regular, almost cyclic, bouts of crippling anxiety. These are accompanied by ridiculous paranoia and unbidden thoughts. I had thought that this was related to wo... View more

Is the following typical of anxiety disorders? I have been plagued since adolescent with regular, almost cyclic, bouts of crippling anxiety. These are accompanied by ridiculous paranoia and unbidden thoughts. I had thought that this was related to work stress but about a year ago I left my high stress job to study and be a stay at home parent. I am also running a small market business on the side. The bouts of anxiety have not diminished. I realise now that I am not in control of this process and my brain seeks out anything to anxiously riff on. I don't believe I have panic attacks. My extended periods of mild to moderate panic. The cyclic bit is that one week I feel like nothing can stop me. I'm on my way to a PHD. They might just as well give it to me now as I am such an academic super star. My market business is going great and the kids... I am always worried about the kids. The next week I am dropping courses, feeling like I should not even be on campus, that I am a fool for thinking that I could do this, that the Uni is plotting against me to try and get me to leave. That my very presence is diminishing the experience for the other students. That there is no future in what I am studying. That my market business is just a ridiculous indulgence. That my friends have turned against me for any number of perceived slights. That extended family members have been slipping accumulating poisons in my drinks at family gatherings for years. That my partner has had enough of me and it is probably only a matter of time before they leave. That I have failed as a parent and set a weak example for my children. During these phases of the cycle any social contact precipitates a few days of paranoid analysis of every thing that was said to me and moments of mortification when recalling things I said, how I behaved and what people must be saying about it. These paranoid thoughts are unbidden and unstoppable. What is worse is that over the years some of them have built up into ridiculous chronicles in my head with full back stories all built on stupid paranoid untruths. I breath life in to these by acting on them. It is like a creeping ball of expanda foam slowly engulfing everything before it and turning bad. I have read loads of books about this, and think I have a bit of an understanding of CBT. I eat well, don't drink and exercise when I can. But this if anything seems to be getting worse.

Lee Francis Tips compulsive eating
  • replies: 6

Hi friends, I've started binge eating the last couple months and I can't seem to stop. It's proper compulsive eating, not just a matter of eating too much. I was just wondering if anyone had any tips or success stories? I think I know why it started.... View more

Hi friends, I've started binge eating the last couple months and I can't seem to stop. It's proper compulsive eating, not just a matter of eating too much. I was just wondering if anyone had any tips or success stories? I think I know why it started. I just moved to a different country after living with my parents for 30 years and I'm feeling very isolated. I'm having so much fun, but I guess I'm not ok either. Thanks

TheRavensDesk Anxiety is making university unbearable and unmanageable
  • replies: 3

I am currently struggling with severe anxiety and hence I am behind on my university work and am unable to attend my compulsory classes which contribute to my grade. How do you think i should deal with this? I live 2 hours away, so travelling and lea... View more

I am currently struggling with severe anxiety and hence I am behind on my university work and am unable to attend my compulsory classes which contribute to my grade. How do you think i should deal with this? I live 2 hours away, so travelling and leaving my house is incredibly difficult for me and the days leading up to Wednesday when I have to go are terrible. I have missed all the classes the past 2 weeks and I cannot miss anymore, but I just cant do it. Should I defer until next semester and get my mental health in check before returning? I am making efforts to manage it now, but I am unsure as what to do currently in my units, which I fear I will fail. But I also fear that if I defer, I am succumbing to the avoidance behaviour I have adopted. I made the first step yesterday and saw my GP and i am on the path to getting medication, but I just don't know what to do currently with university. I am 18 and I am a first year, but I feel like a failure if I stop...What do you suggest?

Underwood Please help! Panic attacks/constant panic
  • replies: 10

Hi guys, I’ve had anxiety for the past 8-9 years. I was getting awful neurological symptoms like tingling, bad brain fog and a host of other symptoms that have pretty much gone away until recently. I had every test under the sun because I couldn’t be... View more

Hi guys, I’ve had anxiety for the past 8-9 years. I was getting awful neurological symptoms like tingling, bad brain fog and a host of other symptoms that have pretty much gone away until recently. I had every test under the sun because I couldn’t believe what my brain was doing to me. To the point where a neurologist said to me you have anxiety and need medication. Ive been on meds that whole time and went off them for a few months this year - had a massive episode of panic and then went back on. Last sat night, out of nowhere my heart sank, I thought I felt numb in my hands which then lead me to a panic state for hours.now I keep getting random symptoms - sweating, feeling on edge, dizzy, crying. Im going to the doc this afternoon to ask if I may need a med change. I am just scared this isn’t going to go away. I’m in constant fear I’m going to pass out at the drop of a hat and everyone around me will need to call an ambulance. I almost wish I had a trigger instead of it coming from nowhere. No one at work knows about my anxiety which may make it worse. I just want to know how other people cope with this constant fear of a panic attack and constant overwhelming worry about every cell in my body.

Ollie2019 Work anxiety. I can’t take it anymore
  • replies: 1

I work as a veterinary professional and in the last few months I’ve been very anxious at work. I work in such a toxic environment. There are so many backstabbing two faced people there and I’m constantly worried about what that day will bring. i feel... View more

I work as a veterinary professional and in the last few months I’ve been very anxious at work. I work in such a toxic environment. There are so many backstabbing two faced people there and I’m constantly worried about what that day will bring. i feel like people are talking behind my back or that I’m not doing much work. Every time a meeting is booked I freak out thinking it’s about me. ive never had this problem before and it’s only at this job. i went to see my doctor last week because I am petrified going into work. She gave me a medical certificate and some sleeping tablets and I rebooked to see her in a week (which is tomorrow) i have resigned the day after my medical certificate as I really don’t want to go back. I have 3 weeks left until my last day. Can my doctor give me medical certificate for the 3 weeks? I can’t go back. I won’t. I can’t stop thinking about it and I feel beyond sick thinking of going back to that toxic place.