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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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SilverLight Broken Brain/ Memory Loss
  • replies: 4

Does anyone else suffer short term memory loss? I just seem to magically forget things all the time... For example my mum told me to leave the gate open to help the laundry dry. The next time I hung laundry out (literally the same 24 hours) I told my... View more

Does anyone else suffer short term memory loss? I just seem to magically forget things all the time... For example my mum told me to leave the gate open to help the laundry dry. The next time I hung laundry out (literally the same 24 hours) I told myself to leave the gate open as I went out and still forgot and closed it behind me on the way back in... I hate this so much..it gets me in so much trouble with employers and makes me look like an idiot... My mum recommended maybe looking for an app like Lumosity to train my brain but it's too expensive:( does anyone know of a cheaper/free one?? Thanks

Jessten Anxiety over being judged
  • replies: 4

I spent the day in hospital in another town I was visiting before being discharged with pain relief and told to follow it up with my gp but to come back to either that hospital or my local hospital if pain doesn't settle. My problem is that I'm in pa... View more

I spent the day in hospital in another town I was visiting before being discharged with pain relief and told to follow it up with my gp but to come back to either that hospital or my local hospital if pain doesn't settle. My problem is that I'm in pain however I'm petrified of going to my local hospital as I have been so many times they ignore me now or I feel as though I'm being judged for wasting their time with comments like oh U have had this before. Or nurses comments like this is ... She is a regular. The last time I went with a friend I got oh it's not for U this time. I have persistent pain before this and don't know if I'm overthinking things and how to overcome my anxiety of being judged

KitEmily University & Social Anxiety
  • replies: 4

University & My Future Stressing Me Out. Originally I started studying a BFA with a local uni, and hated it. My social anxiety really flared up, and I was having multiple panic attacks in class. I felt isolated alone, literally had no friends and cou... View more

University & My Future Stressing Me Out. Originally I started studying a BFA with a local uni, and hated it. My social anxiety really flared up, and I was having multiple panic attacks in class. I felt isolated alone, literally had no friends and could tell the teachers thought I was odd. (Just so you’re aware I have social anxiety, anxiety, and I’m on the autism spectrum). After the worst year of my life at uni I transferred and continued my studies online which I enjoyed. Now I’ve finished my degree and am going to be doing my postgrad Masters, but I am stressing about what uni I will go to. I’ve applied to one local uni (the same one as the one I hated but a different campus) and several really good online unis. Though I love the idea of being online, I would really like to meet new people (face to face and make friends). If I decide to study online what are ways I can actually make friends ? And the thought of studying on campus makes me sick I honestly don’t know if campus study would help me or push me back to how I was before... Thanks Kit

LorelaiLee Struggling to cope with anxiety and insomnia
  • replies: 3

Hi guys, So awhile ago a specific event triggered an episode of increased anxiety and insomnia in my life. I had been sick with the flu and this caused me to snore. My snoring would then wake me up several times a night. This in turn triggered my anx... View more

Hi guys, So awhile ago a specific event triggered an episode of increased anxiety and insomnia in my life. I had been sick with the flu and this caused me to snore. My snoring would then wake me up several times a night. This in turn triggered my anxiety, I began to worry I’d never sleep properly again as every time I dozed off I’d wake myself up ten minute later. I obsessed on it for weeks on end. Nearly three months later my anxiety is still high but seems to have shifted to a new topic. In researching sleep problems, which have occurred on and off through my life, I came across this ridiculously rare disease and now I’m convinced I have it (as if I don’t have enough going on). I know it’s silly but the idea has stuck and I can’t shake it. I think I’m now experiencing health anxiety, something else I’ve had problems with. I’m anxious all day. I’m scared of going to bed at night. I’m tired, irritable and am starting to exhibit other sleep deprivation symptoms too. Sometimes it’s hard to concentrate, I struggle more with communicating and occasionally get tongue tied or mix up words while speaking. I’m tired but when I go to bed, my body/mind seems intent on keeping me awake. When I doze off, I jolt awake again. My muscles twitch sometimes. I guess I’m just looking for confirmation I’m not alone. Are these normal patterns for anxiety and insomnia? My partner is sympathetic but doesn’t struggle with these issues so I feel he doesn’t understand. I’m set on seeing a psychologist, something I’ve never done before. Im glad I have found this community and hope we can help each other through our hard times

shannon_02 My anxiety
  • replies: 2

Hi, so this is my first time in one of these chat forum things so I'm still getting use to it Anyway, everyone has insecurities, I'm not trying to get attention and say 'I'm the only one' its human to feel insecure. But I don't know if I'll ever acce... View more

Hi, so this is my first time in one of these chat forum things so I'm still getting use to it Anyway, everyone has insecurities, I'm not trying to get attention and say 'I'm the only one' its human to feel insecure. But I don't know if I'll ever accept and love myself, I haven't physically harmed myself but mentally, if you were to ask me to describe myself all I would say is negatives, I hate the way I look, act, thing, everything. Its worse in public, which is where our little friend called anxiety kicks in. Whenever I'm shopping and looking at makeup or clothes and I see a group of really skinny attractive girls I feel like I'm not worthy to be around them, to look at them, so I always leave or run off to a different section of the store, whenever I hear a group of random people laughing at something I always think they're laughing at me because "oh she looks fat" "she's ugly" 'wtf is wrong with her?" And I start having an anxiety attack, my breathing hitches, I get dizzy, I can't focus, I wrap my arms around myself so I may seem smaller. This happens at school too. When I'm with friends I feel insecure, they're all so so gorgeous and it sucks because I'm the fat, ugly, worthless friend. Lets move on to a different anxiety topic for me, I will always be 2nd place, my older sister is so smart, she has a scholarship and amazing grades, everyone compares her and I. I feel like I have to be smart like her and get a scholarship or I'll be a failure in my families eyes. When I said I didn't want the same scholarship as what she received (hers was for law and I don't want to work in law so what's the point??) Not only my sister but other family members seemed to be upset. I don't get perfect grades and I doubt myself in every subject which makes me believe, why try and be better you're just stupid anyways? My sister is my grandmothers favourite, its been like that for years, no I'm not rude to her, its just something she does, she has a favourite kid and everyone but her can notice it, I get treated like I'm not water, ignored, treated like an idiot by my sister and grandmother and I just will never be good enough! Idk what to do, I'm near breaking point, I will always be the fat, stupid worthless person Why can't I ever be number one for once? Just once! To make my family actually proud of me. Sorry if this was long, I just needed to rant.

feelingalone1234 Should I be ashamed I saw a psychologist for fear of being gay ? Do I need to tell future partners
  • replies: 6

Hi I’m a 30 year old male from Sydney. Following a long term relationship breakup, I went and saw a psychologist. Turns out I have HOCD, a fear of being gay directly linked to my childhood and trauma stemming from my dad and grandmother. while I’m no... View more

Hi I’m a 30 year old male from Sydney. Following a long term relationship breakup, I went and saw a psychologist. Turns out I have HOCD, a fear of being gay directly linked to my childhood and trauma stemming from my dad and grandmother. while I’m now over the breakup. And the HOCD. I’m fearful that if anyone found out I had HOCD they would not want to be with me. Do I have to tell future partners ?

Kindness_is_beautiful My anxiety and compulsive overthinking
  • replies: 4

I have struggled with what has recently been identified as social anxiety disorder and OCD. The anxiety started out as unpredictable, serve panic attacks that could be triggered by just a thought. I would break out in what looked like red, lumpy hive... View more

I have struggled with what has recently been identified as social anxiety disorder and OCD. The anxiety started out as unpredictable, serve panic attacks that could be triggered by just a thought. I would break out in what looked like red, lumpy hives all over my chest and my thoughts would race rapidly, making it difficult to get my words out. My heart would race and I felt faint and like I couldn’t breath. After being medicated for a month, my attacks completely subsided. For the first time I felt a little in control. But I am still struggling with the fear of judgment and overanalysing of conversations. Whether it be a conversation at work, amongst friends or family, lately every conversation I have I walk away feeling defeated thinking ‘why did I say that’ or ‘why didn’t I say this instead’. I feel unintelligent and irractic when I talk. Like I can’t stick to a topic or opinion, I get lost in thought. My mind runs back and forth over the conversation wondering what the other person is thinking of me. I feel a little embarrassed and vanrable sharing this but these thoughts are exhausting and I am hopeing that someone out there who may have/is experiencing something similar can share some techniques that could assist me to manage them. Appreciate any suggestions/advice.

Italianstallion91 Recurring worries After minor car incident
  • replies: 1

So I have suffered depression and anxiety for a long time now. And as we all know some of the things we worry about are silly and we know it. However my particular problem I am battling about is the worry about wetting myself because of a slipped dis... View more

So I have suffered depression and anxiety for a long time now. And as we all know some of the things we worry about are silly and we know it. However my particular problem I am battling about is the worry about wetting myself because of a slipped disc that happend 10 years ago. I have been seeing a psychologist about this and he said himself you have nothing to worry about and would know by now and the only cases that happens is from major car crashes and falls. Well it was only yesterday I had a minor car accident although as we all know with depression and anxiety we blow it out of proportion. And now the worry has come back full force with the pins and needles in my leg and feet like before. Does anyone have any advice or tips to battle this ? And I know it's stupid but it's so hard to get over

Rae1505 Today I went to my GP..
  • replies: 4

I have struggled with anxiety since my early teens. (I am 32). It started small, never being able to do oral presentations at school. Never wanting to stand out. That horrible sick feeling when you walk past a certain group or person for no apparent ... View more

I have struggled with anxiety since my early teens. (I am 32). It started small, never being able to do oral presentations at school. Never wanting to stand out. That horrible sick feeling when you walk past a certain group or person for no apparent reason. I have always managed on my own. I knew what I had, but never felt the need to have it typed under my name in a file by a doctor. But I am struggling now more than ever before. It is effecting me in ways I can’t control and is becoming unmanageable for me. So I went and saw my GP today.. burst into tears and fell apart like the mess Im accustomed to being. Somehow I managed to get out “I have anxiety issues”.. which is barely the tip of the iceberg. Nonetheless, she listened and she took me seriously. Which is really all I wanted. Someone to not just sweep it under the rug. She sent me for a blood test to check my thyroid and some other things. I have an appointment next week for results and a mental health care plan. She’s referring me to a psychologist and we will be discussing meds at some point. Full on day. i got home and spoke to my husband who seemed more annoyed at the potential cost of it all. He also said I should only tell immediate family and don’t make it a constant “topic of conversation”. I’ve never been one to do this. In fact I’ve kept it to myself for almost 2 decades.. so I’m not sure where his comments have come from. I feel a bit sad about that. anyway.. hopefully a change is on its way. The first step is the hardest as they say..

benisaterribleperson Is it anxiety? If so, what can I do to help?
  • replies: 2

Hello, I'm new here and I've really only joined to ask this question. I'm only 14, but I fear I have anxiety or I will have anxiety if I don't do something. The past year or two I've been in high school, and I've been getting supet stressed about my ... View more

Hello, I'm new here and I've really only joined to ask this question. I'm only 14, but I fear I have anxiety or I will have anxiety if I don't do something. The past year or two I've been in high school, and I've been getting supet stressed about my marks on tests and completing homework, and being a procrastinator doesn't help. On top of that, I'm also worried about my cousin who's boyfriend of two years suddenly left her and is now in hospital for mental help. I've also got my closest friend, who I'll call K for now, who seems to have a mild depression or something like that. I try my best to help her and encourage her to seek professional help, but I still fear I don't do enough to help her, and I'm running out of time to help her. Another person, who I'll call T for now, that's my girlfriend, seems to have a bunch of mental issues, I seem to be discovering more about it every day. She has anorexia, and has apparently been on anti depressants aswell as help from professionals for over a year and a half, and she now doesn't take anti-depressants or listens to much of what they say. As well as all that, I'm so terrified of my future. A WWIII could be called at any moment, house prices are onlygoing up and wages are only going down, college costs are already expensive and haven't got amy sign of getting cheaper. Climate change is a much bigger issue then thought, in a couple of decades my city will probably be underwater. I'm going to book an appointment with the psychologist tommorow, to see if they can give me a professional diagnosis. Again, do you think I have anxiety, and also what are some small things I can do to avoid/recover from anxiety? Also also: how can I help my friends?