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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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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.

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Mary_G Don't know how to better myself
  • replies: 2

Hi guys, my names Mary. Let me start of by giving you a little background about myself. I'm a uni student 2nd year doing engineering. I have been suffering anxiety for 2 years but didn't want to admit I had anxiety. I struggled mostly last year where... View more

Hi guys, my names Mary. Let me start of by giving you a little background about myself. I'm a uni student 2nd year doing engineering. I have been suffering anxiety for 2 years but didn't want to admit I had anxiety. I struggled mostly last year where the cause of most of my anxiety came from. My daily life is consumed with panic attacks where studying is just basically impossible to do and going to uni can be really challenging. I start of my day everyday for the last 1 year and a half feeling anxious and tired. Anxiety made it difficult for me to sleep but most specially eat. Even though i know i've got it i never wanted to admit it to myself as I feel like anxiety are for weak people, well so i thought it was. For the last one year and a half , I became thinner and thinner almost unrecognisable by others. But even then the thought of me having anxiety just something i can't accept so I continued to blind myself with my foolishness. My anxiety is really bad to the point where I do irrational things. Now it has gotten to the point where I just feel like I need to help myself because no one else will. I don't want to fail in life and fail the people I love. I really want to better myself for my family and my boyfriend but most specially myself. I don't want to lose everything i worked so hard for. I don't want to ever feel like death is the only way out. I joined this in hoping I can save the little hope of change in me. I want to change not just me but my life.

andy2112 Off to Canada for expat experience - anxiety making me want to pull out
  • replies: 1

Hi guys, Just a little bit about myself. So over the last few years, I've had a bit of anxiety, but it has fully blown up over the last several months. I moved to Canada for the expat experience, with my ex. Then it started to go bad...The long-term ... View more

Hi guys, Just a little bit about myself. So over the last few years, I've had a bit of anxiety, but it has fully blown up over the last several months. I moved to Canada for the expat experience, with my ex. Then it started to go bad...The long-term relationship exploded, calm down and exploded again, before ending; I travelled to Russia for the WC, but got sick beforehand so pretty much melted down before the trip, so had to force myself to go. I came back home to find out that I have stomach issues, which will change my lifestyle again. Now, planning to return to Canada to finish off my expat experience there, but as the days are getting closer, the anxiety is kicking in. It waves between excitement and pure dread. I know if I do it, I can come out of it better. If I don't, I'll live to regret it as I won't have the chance again. I have a few friends, but the group is slowly starting to split up. I am terrified of being alone. I'm worried that I won't have the confidence to meet people, and I am terrified about even doing the most mundane of things. I'm finding that me doing all this will be extremely daunting and because I will be by myself, I have no one to turn to if things go sour. So how do I go about managing this? When I get overwhelmed I pretty much just break down emotionally, cry, and just shut down. And this can't happen on a continual basis. Any advice on what to do, or how to manage this before I go, or when I get there? Thanks

dryfuneraldrum is this social anxiety or am i just very shy?
  • replies: 1

i was wondering if i have social anxiety? weird thing is i do a lot of public speaking and debating, but there have been a lot of recent times where ive felt really uncomfortable with social situations: - i was on the bus and my sibling told me to as... View more

i was wondering if i have social anxiety? weird thing is i do a lot of public speaking and debating, but there have been a lot of recent times where ive felt really uncomfortable with social situations: - i was on the bus and my sibling told me to ask the bus driver if the bus stopped at a specific spot but i just remember this awful, sick feeling in the pit of my stomach thinking about going up to him and asking him a question, i felt uncomfortable so i didnt ask - i was trying to get off a bus but while the doors started closing, and a nearby transport officer really sternly told me off for it and i immediately started crying, i nodded and hurriedly walked off because i thought people were staring at me and i found a quiet spot where i could cry without having to worry about being seen and my heart was just beating so fast - ive noticed in class at school when i speak i feel tears starting to prick at the corner of my eyes and my face gets really hot and i just get brain fog and lose my train of thought which makes me feel even more uncomfortable and i can hear the blood thumping in my head - i get really scared when talking to strangers that im going to embarrass or humiliate myself, or make things feel really awkward, or make them think im stupid or boring i think im comfortable with public speaking and debating because its much more structured than social settings, debating in particular im comfortable with even though its much more impromptu, i think because its very much more about ideas and arguments and rhetoric and not about *me* or trying to connect to people the same way you would in a casual conversation. also i find that im fine with expressing my thoughts and feelings online or when im messaging people, but as soon as im talking to someone face to face about those things i start crying and i get really uncomfortable.

Wendy72 Could this be anxiety?
  • replies: 2

I know it's normal to worry about your kids. But what do you do when it goes too far? My son is 8, and whenever he goes anywhere without me or his dad, I spiral into full-blown anxiety. As an example, there is currently a huge fair on in my city, tha... View more

I know it's normal to worry about your kids. But what do you do when it goes too far? My son is 8, and whenever he goes anywhere without me or his dad, I spiral into full-blown anxiety. As an example, there is currently a huge fair on in my city, that happens every year. My 20 year old stepdaughter is taking my son on Saturday. I am FREAKING OUT, imagining all kinds of horrible situations like him getting injured (or worse) on a ride, or getting lost. I can't stop thinking about it, and am crying myself to sleep every night worrying about it. I want to say that he can't go. Similar thing earlier in the year. We went away for the weekend with my Mum & MIL. Due to space constraints, he had to travel in MILs car. Again my imagination went into overdrive, lots of tears & stress in the days leading up to it. No-one knows about this. I can't keep doing this, but I'm terrified of losing him. I don't feel like this all the time, just when he is going somewhere without me.

anickname My social anxiety
  • replies: 1

Since moving high schools, I have never felt more alone. I am constantly in fear about every small mistake I make. I obsessively criticize my every move and worry about what people will think of me. When i'm not at school, i'm always at home but i'm ... View more

Since moving high schools, I have never felt more alone. I am constantly in fear about every small mistake I make. I obsessively criticize my every move and worry about what people will think of me. When i'm not at school, i'm always at home but i'm okay with that because i'm happiest at home by myself. When I get anxious about something, I spend days on end thinking about it and I never want to leave my bed or go to school because I feel safe at home. But when I do stay at home, I hate myself even more because I think of all the worst possible things people could be saying about me - keep in mind when I do gain the courage to school no one even notices me, ever. So when this fear happens again, I try to remind myself "no one cares enough talk about you" and "it's not a big deal" but it never works. It's like my irrational fear of always being hated and isolated has taken over and my brain won't listen to reason. When I think about my anxious thoughts, it's like I can feel it under my skin. I can imagine the isolation in my head. I can picture it and in the motion picture every one has turned on me, everyone hates me and I feel small and alone and have no where to go. When this happens, and it happens frequently, its like I am in the middle of an empty room my mind is pulling me in hundreds of different directions and I just want my thoughts to rationalize but it can't and it never does.

Guest0012 Intrusive thoughts 24/7 making me depressed.
  • replies: 1

Hi. I have had an extremely tough year. I had graduated high school in aus, and then took half a gap year in my home country, but it didn't go as expected. I was very lonely, and sad, and my grandma who was there became terminally ill. I didn't reall... View more

Hi. I have had an extremely tough year. I had graduated high school in aus, and then took half a gap year in my home country, but it didn't go as expected. I was very lonely, and sad, and my grandma who was there became terminally ill. I didn't really leave the house (due to many reasons i won't go into) except for seeing her in the hospital, and on the way back i would always cry. my dad was with me. Due to all the stress i started getting intrusive thoughts, that made me so ashamed and depressed. In may after about 6 weeks of her being in the hospital she passed away. I was sad beyond belief, and due to my unhealthy mental state i could barely keep on living. A few weeks after the funeral i came back to aus, and started university in july. I have extreme intrusive thoughts non stop, all the time. I started therapy in august, but only see my psychologist every 3 weeks, and though it is helping i still think does it ever get better. I get so frustrated and ashamed with myself due to my intrusive thoughts that i have non stop. If i'm with friends i have them, if i'm at uni i have them, if i'm at home i have them. And it's the EXACT same thought, it's only 1 thought i keep having and i can't believe it. I suffered for 3 and a half months alone, before i told my mum who got me to the psychologist after i asked. but she doesn't know my thoughts, no one does except my psychologist because i'm too ashamed to tell them. Now it's been over 4 months and i start to wonder does it ever get better. i feel trapped in my mind sometimes i even wish i couldn't think. I've been depressed before but nothing like this. it affects every part of my life, to where i can barely function. I'm almost failing uni, i'm losing friends, i'm keeping distance from my family and i'm hating myself. i just don't know what to do, at this point i want to get any medication to just reduce it, but my psychologist hasn't talked about medication, or even diagnosed me yet.

The_walking_dead_girl Getting through withdrawals
  • replies: 1

I’m 3 days in and have stopped drinking and drugs. I have major depression and anxiety. Was so sick, now just shaky hands and completely uninterested in my hobbies even. And really frustrated and irrated at even the slightest thing my parents do . Wh... View more

I’m 3 days in and have stopped drinking and drugs. I have major depression and anxiety. Was so sick, now just shaky hands and completely uninterested in my hobbies even. And really frustrated and irrated at even the slightest thing my parents do . What’s the point if meds don’t work and your miserable and bored without alcohol?

Guest_125 Social anxiety and no meaningful friendships.
  • replies: 6

I have been trying to recover from depression and anxiety, including social anxiety, for a while now. Met up with some people over the weekend for my husband's birthday and was mostly fine. That is until I was caught up in a situation where I was lef... View more

I have been trying to recover from depression and anxiety, including social anxiety, for a while now. Met up with some people over the weekend for my husband's birthday and was mostly fine. That is until I was caught up in a situation where I was left alone with another woman, a partner of my husband's friend. I know this woman and I've been to her house for BBQs with my husband before. She's by all accounts a really decent person. Usually I am OK talking briefly to other women, with my husband or other familiar people by my side. But one-to-one I felt fearful and couldn't talk. Since then I realised I have actually managed to avoid any situation where I am alone with a woman my age in a social setting for years and years. Maybe through subconscious effort. But this goes beyond my normal strain of social anxiety. In hindsight I kind of suspect I felt that way because she is the same gender and age and in the same circle as me, and therefore a genuine candidate for friendship. I've realised I've been totally fearful of making friends and have done everything I can to put enough walls up to stop it from happening. I mostly satisfy my need to socialise through my husband's mates who I've known for 15 years, but who'd otherwise have nothing to do with me if it weren't for my husband. I have been seeing a therapist who has touched on social anxiety with me a bit (mostly focused on other issues though). I have improved in terms of just being around others in social situations, but none of it is going beyond the very brief obligatory chat to any real meaningful connection to others. Some fear in me will just not allow it to happen. It's like a mental wall is up in my mind and I can't see a way around or over it. Most of my life, I have contrasted myself from others to keep the walls up - pretending I am different to them, have nothing in common, and so there's no point in getting to know me. Now I am reaching a point where I want to more actively seek meaningful connections to others, but I just can't move past the mental barriers. I think that I need to focus on my social anxiety a bit more in my therapy sessions now, but I don't see my therapist for another month. I guess I just want to get my thoughts and worries down. Would appreciate any insight or sharing of remotely similar exeriences/feelings...?

Naed Anxiety
  • replies: 2

Lately I have been getting really anxious when I have my days off work. I’m in my third year out of uni and I feel lost. When I’m at work I’m so much better then some days at home. It’s like I can’t switch off from work and I’m constantly thinking ab... View more

Lately I have been getting really anxious when I have my days off work. I’m in my third year out of uni and I feel lost. When I’m at work I’m so much better then some days at home. It’s like I can’t switch off from work and I’m constantly thinking about what it’s going to be like when I go back. It’s like a viscous cycle especially when I’m coming close to my days off i get really excited for them! And then when I’m off I just can’t feel calm anymore and I start to feel really depressed about going back to work. I don’t know if it’s because when I’m at work I feel like I’m losing my ability to do anything right. Like my time management is getting worse, I can’t focus & I’m stressed. Dose anyone having any tips to help me get over this horrible stage!

KTKat92 I think I have Body Dismorphia how do i get help when im afraid to leave the house.
  • replies: 1

After my partner cheated on me a few years ago, i have become very insecure about how i look. Mainly because i was told by him that he cheated because i got fat. Its gotten to a stage where i am to scared to leave my house because i am afraid of how ... View more

After my partner cheated on me a few years ago, i have become very insecure about how i look. Mainly because i was told by him that he cheated because i got fat. Its gotten to a stage where i am to scared to leave my house because i am afraid of how people will judge me seeing me in public. After having my first child i am the heaviest i have ever been in my life. Everytime i step on the scales i have a complete meltdown. Everytime we are ment to go to some kid of social event i am crying in my room because everything i put on makes me look fat or makes me feel disgusting. I constantly buy clothes and makeup trying to make myself feel better but it never works. Im constantly dieting or not eating and then crying myself to sleep when i have given in a binged. I hate that i dont have beautiful long hair like some girls. That i dont have a beautiful white straight smile. I consider myself hideous and no matter what people say thry dont change my mind. I cant see it when they say ive lost weighy or thay i have nice skin or they think my hairs pretty. As far as im concerned nothing i do is good enough. Anyway my main question here is im terriefied to go to my doctors about it. I dont like waiting in surgeries i get very anxious and antsy. And to be honest everyday when i have to get dressed and leave the house im crying cause i fear judgement from other people. So how can i bet help when im scared of people and judgement as well as leaving the safety of my home. Im also afraid of being pushed aside on this being told theres nothing wrong im just being silly.