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
Jump to
Start a discussion

Pinned discussions

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

Start a discussion

cakeboss Mindfullness
  • replies: 2

Hi i am recently going through servere anxiety panic disorder .My doctors have said i over catastropfi the situation which isnt helping.I am on medication and drs visits every 2 weeks .I was told to try mindfulness for when these waves of anxiety set... View more

Hi i am recently going through servere anxiety panic disorder .My doctors have said i over catastropfi the situation which isnt helping.I am on medication and drs visits every 2 weeks .I was told to try mindfulness for when these waves of anxiety set in .Sounds like a good idea whats everyone elses ideas.Im also having counciling next week .

ZiggOh What does it feel like to not have anxiety? and how did you get there?
  • replies: 6

Hi everyone, I have had anxiety pretty much my whole life and I am wondering what it feels like to recover from an anxiety disorder? Also for those of you who have gotten help and are living a less anxious life, what was the best thing you did to get... View more

Hi everyone, I have had anxiety pretty much my whole life and I am wondering what it feels like to recover from an anxiety disorder? Also for those of you who have gotten help and are living a less anxious life, what was the best thing you did to get there? Thanks! Zig

Birdy05 Just wanting some advice...
  • replies: 4

Hi all, just wanting some advice. I want to start by saying I have never been to a Psychologist or a Doctor about my mental health however I feel after the past 7 months it may be time to. Over the past 7 months I have been feeling so clouded in the ... View more

Hi all, just wanting some advice. I want to start by saying I have never been to a Psychologist or a Doctor about my mental health however I feel after the past 7 months it may be time to. Over the past 7 months I have been feeling so clouded in the head and like my brain never turns off. My biggest issue at the moment is that whenever my other half goes away I get lots of moments of anxiety from being away from him to a point where I struggle to sleep and I wake up with a nervous feeling in my tummy for no reason. I lock my bedroom door if he isnt there and will check its locked multiple times before I am happpy it is. I do get this way sometimes when he is home as well, I just get over whelmed and break down into tears or just go quiet and wont talk. I am an overthinker and have been my whole life however I am worried this is crossing more to anxiety and OCD now. I study and work full time and I have moments where I will break down in tears as I am scared I wont pass or wont get a job in my preferred career however I know I am perfectly capable of passing and achieving my dreams. I also experience moments of anger and outrage when I am in a social setting without someone close to me where I just get tense and assume everyone is judging or looking at me. This has gotton to a point where I have almost said things to others that could land me in trouble. Through some self googling I believe I also might suffer from OCD. For example I HAVE to take photos of my oven or hair straightner before I leave for work or I will spiral into thinking the house will burn down and then my partner will leave me. If I dont have this photo I will turn back from my way to work or go home to check. I have also been having some in intrusive thoughts about my sexuality which is causing me anxiety as I identify as straight and have never questioned this before but watching a movie a couple of months ago made me just think 'what if I am?' And my brain has never let go since. I do enjoy a healthy emotional and sexual relationship with my male partner and want to continue this forever. I guess what I am seeking is if anyone has experienced these feelings before and has found actually seeing a Psychologist has helped? I am sick of constantly feeling mentally exhausted and I want to be my confident and self-loving self again. Any advice would be appreciated.

jess334 Passing on anxiety to children
  • replies: 2

I have a long history (15 years) of anxiety and depression. I am fairly stable now and managed to come off medication about 2 years ago. I had my first child in January, and while I managed to side step post partum depression, my anxiety has been wor... View more

I have a long history (15 years) of anxiety and depression. I am fairly stable now and managed to come off medication about 2 years ago. I had my first child in January, and while I managed to side step post partum depression, my anxiety has been worse. I have a mental health plan and am seeing a psychologist too. However recently I have been overwhelmed with feelings of guilt that my son might inherit my anxiety. Mental health problems are rampant in my family, although my partners family doesn't have the same issues. My psyc says to remember that there are good things that anxiety brings with it; such as compassion, sensitivity, ability to think through situations etc. While I agree with this, I don't think the trade offs are worth it tbh. I know if he gets the genetics there isn't much I can do to stop the anxiety from occurring, but does anyone else have anxious children? Are there any signs I should look out for? Is there a way to start teaching him how to cop from an early age?

That_French_Kid First Time Posting! Vomiting fear and anxiety.
  • replies: 2

Hey, my name is Harry. I'm 14 years old and my life is being controlled by fear and anxiety. This is a big step in my life since I haven't talked to anyone about my problem yet because i'm not close to my Father ever since my parents got divorced and... View more

Hey, my name is Harry. I'm 14 years old and my life is being controlled by fear and anxiety. This is a big step in my life since I haven't talked to anyone about my problem yet because i'm not close to my Father ever since my parents got divorced and I don't want to tell my Mum because she already does enough for me and my sisters. So four weeks ago I got really sick with vomiting and diarrhea. Iv always had a fear of vomiting wheater it was the sound, smell or actually vomit I would cover my ears and run. After I was sick I was worried about throwing up again. I feel sick all the time like I'm about to throw up but I never do. I usually play a lot of basketball but I haven't lately because I feel sick before I play. I've fallen behind in school work and assignments because I lose focus in class because I feel sick. I feel like im about to be sick, I've started eating less so that I don't throw up and only drinking sips of water so that I don't have too much water so that I throw up. Its also keeping me up to late times at night, for the last month I have been running off 3-4 hours of sleep a night. I'm really looking for some help and guidance.

SilverLight Work Related Anxiety
  • replies: 2

Does anyone else find that working worsens their Anxiety? I've been a full time worker for close to 6 years since high school (took 2 years off to study in between and just recently had a baby) and every job I've had I've had to leave because my anxi... View more

Does anyone else find that working worsens their Anxiety? I've been a full time worker for close to 6 years since high school (took 2 years off to study in between and just recently had a baby) and every job I've had I've had to leave because my anxiety and depression flare up so bad that I start getting into trouble. I don't know what to do... My worst nightmare is not being able to work because mental health suffers so poorly with workplace pressure... I've had my share of bad jobs too... For example in my last job I was hit by a colleague for my mistakes. My boss was so abusive when I asked for help in day to day jobs that I was too scared to report it in case I was laughed at or fired... I was then shoved under a bus figuratively when I got into trouble for doing what my supervisor asked and my Supervisor told the boss she'd never asked me to do it... I was unfairly dismissed and thanks to some very dedicated family and my very pissed off husband we won a fair work case. Needless to say I don't want to return to the work force anytime soon... I'd rather stay home with my little boy. I'm scared one day though I'll have no choice and I'm panicking I'm going to have anxiety relapses again if I do...

45987 Social anxiety (disorder) without physical symptoms?
  • replies: 2

Although I've felt like I have some form of social anxiety for years, because I don't have any server physical symptoms like panic attacks (only really stomach butterflies, lack of sleep, stress) , I thought it would be impossible for me to have it, ... View more

Although I've felt like I have some form of social anxiety for years, because I don't have any server physical symptoms like panic attacks (only really stomach butterflies, lack of sleep, stress) , I thought it would be impossible for me to have it, and my parents also basically said it was rubbish when I asked them, and on another site for social anxiety I mentioned this to someone else I was chatting to online, and after this they completely stopped talking to me, so I assumed I'm some sort of disgrace to people with real anxiety/I'm not good enough to be diagnosed with anything. However I've recently been seeing a psychologist at my university who said there was definitely social anxiety there (without me specifically bring SA up, just from me describing my feeling/day to day life/experiences). Can anyone else provide an opinion or experiences regarding this? Is it really possible to have SA without having full on panic attacks? Thanks for taking the time to read.

Mrjoseph Severe death anxiety
  • replies: 1

My thoughts! Was talking to a friend saying I've been through so much in life hence why I feel so old ( im 25 ) then suddenly my mind turned to what if you feel so old because your time is up then I started thinking is my time really up? And the anxi... View more

My thoughts! Was talking to a friend saying I've been through so much in life hence why I feel so old ( im 25 ) then suddenly my mind turned to what if you feel so old because your time is up then I started thinking is my time really up? And the anxiety started. I've had a death anxiety for a while but I've been able to control it because of my faith every time I do a good thing I say to myself what if im doing all this good because I might die soon I've completely changed I've become so different Ive completely 360 degree changed since September 2017 now it's September 2018 I've become so nice it's scaring me im never like this and I know it's a good thing but my mind questions if im so good now because Im about to die and enter heaven, I know sounds dramatic but that's what plays out in my mind. Thank God im not sick im physically A ok so there's no need for me to think like this. I've been going through some really big changes in my life all positive and moving on to bigger and better things has anyone experienced something like this before?

Livvy18 Anxiety. Germs
  • replies: 7

I have always been carefree and relaxed. However, just over 2 years ago my sister was 3 months pregnant and I came in contact with someone who supposedly had hand foot and mouth. I was a total mess, as the thought of passing it on to her and her unbo... View more

I have always been carefree and relaxed. However, just over 2 years ago my sister was 3 months pregnant and I came in contact with someone who supposedly had hand foot and mouth. I was a total mess, as the thought of passing it on to her and her unborn baby terrified me. I never actually caught anything, but my brain kept telling me I had all the symptoms. It was as if I was seeing and feeling things that I didn’t actually have. Since then my anxiety over “germs” have become an almost every day battle. I have also had a son in this time. His 6 months old. He is my world and so is his daddy! My husband is very supportive but I don’t think he understands my anxiety fully. He is a very easy going person so the smallest thing that I find dirty wouldn’t even cross his mind. In a way it calms me down but sometimes it freaks me out. Anyway, I have asked people not to kiss my son as I’m terrified of him catching a cold sore (I know it’s not the end of the world but my brain tells me differently). I hate going out in public or to family/ friends houses as I don’t want people to touch him. If I do go out I’m watching him like a hawk, however I feel like I can’t tell people to not do something if I don’t like it. Then when I get home not only do I constantly wash my hands to the point that they bleed but I feel sick that I have let my son down and that he is going to catch something. I feel like my anxiety will eventually come between my husband and I or that my son will turn out just like me or have an awful childhood because of me. Am I the only one? Do you have any suggestions?

WendyRose Genuinely terrified
  • replies: 2

I have been concerned for the past nine months or more that I might be exhibiting signs of early onset dementia. The very thought of this makes me panic. I have suffered from depression all my life due to early childhood abuse but have never been a h... View more

I have been concerned for the past nine months or more that I might be exhibiting signs of early onset dementia. The very thought of this makes me panic. I have suffered from depression all my life due to early childhood abuse but have never been a hypochondriac. In fact, I almost never go to the doctor. It seems ironic that someone who has been suicidal all her life is now scared of leaving her children in this way. I am only 48.