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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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Lind779 Its back. Why?
  • replies: 12

I was doing so well over the last couple of months. Felt like I was completely over the anxiety until now.I know my eating habits haven't been great lately and was consuming high volumes of sugar for some reason but I feel my anxiety is spiralling ba... View more

I was doing so well over the last couple of months. Felt like I was completely over the anxiety until now.I know my eating habits haven't been great lately and was consuming high volumes of sugar for some reason but I feel my anxiety is spiralling back and I dont know why? Surely the medication isn't wearing off, I've only been on them for a few months?? This is day 3 and woke up being anxious again.Just need reassurance that I will feel better again and this is a little setback

Michaelhc Travelling overseas with anxiety
  • replies: 2

Hey Guys I am guessing this is a very common thread.. Never the less it is my first time travelling overseas since I started battling feelings of anxiety. I currently suffer from generalised anxiety disorder. I can still remember the day and time of ... View more

Hey Guys I am guessing this is a very common thread.. Never the less it is my first time travelling overseas since I started battling feelings of anxiety. I currently suffer from generalised anxiety disorder. I can still remember the day and time of my first panic attack, July 14th at around 1:30pm, 2014. OF all places to be I was in Bali, with my 9 of my best mates. In 5 weeks time I travel to India and Bali for 10 days. My India trip is business related and my Bali trip is more for relaxation. I will be accompanied by a friend whilst travelling. I would love some advise on what to do in the event of a panic attack overseas. I know I am setting myself up for disaster by even mentioning the worst possible outcome. I feel that given my situation though it's important to have safety plans in place. I would probably describe my anxiety as chronic and not debilitating. I feel a trip like this is the perfect opportunity for me to get out of the comfort zone and let go of my worries, even for a few days.. The hard part is actually learning how to let go... I am sure this is the case for so many of you. I do have medication which I will keep handy at all times, however this is only as a last resort. If I had it my way I would throw these meds out the window and never look back.. If any of you have been in similar situations where they have felt tremendously nervous or anxious about going overseas, please any advise would be great. In fact anyone with any positive suggestions i'd love to hear them.

blondguy Agoraphobia Terror
  • replies: 27

Hey Everyone! (New Posters are more than welcome to post too!) I just wish to clear the air on 'agoraphobia'. This condition is an 'extension' of Anxiety disorder that some people suffer and some that dont. I have noticed that there is some confusion... View more

Hey Everyone! (New Posters are more than welcome to post too!) I just wish to clear the air on 'agoraphobia'. This condition is an 'extension' of Anxiety disorder that some people suffer and some that dont. I have noticed that there is some confusion about this illness on the forums. Agoraphobia is not only a fear of leaving one's home it can be a fear of walking 100 meters down an ocean beach from your car knowing its a 'safe place' and have difficulty walking any further as the need to return to your 'safe' place is very real and very powerful. This is not an anxiety state but sometimes can bring on an anxiety attack or even worse 'hyperventilation' if a sufferer is too far from their safe 'place'.....It is not a fear of leaving one's home. I carry a paper bag 'just in case' I hyperventilate which I have only done once about 40 meters from my home in 1997. It takes 20 minutes for me to walk around the block with my dog. I can only get half way and have to turn around around as the 'fear' of getting to the point of no return scares me like a person would fear being stuck in an elevator. So I walk my dog (Prince) in straight lines everywhere so I get 45 minutes a day I can drive to Perth from Melbourne without a problem. My agoraphobia prevents me from being too far away from my safe place whether its my home or a vehicle. I have a crackerjack therapist and GP that have been helping me with my 'minor' agoraphobia. They have said that because I refused meds from 1983 to 1997 I actually exacerbated my anxiety levels to the point where I actually laid the foundation for the agoraphobia that I have now. Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated as this really gives me the 'sads' Thankyou for reading my post Paul

MoominGirl Catching public transport makes me anxious, leaving the house makes me anxious
  • replies: 4

I am a wheelchair user, I have been physically assaulted multiple times on trains by strangers. (Four assaults in the last 2 months alone.) That gave me anxiety, and now I take an SSRI. But even with the SSRI, I feel scared and anxious to leave the h... View more

I am a wheelchair user, I have been physically assaulted multiple times on trains by strangers. (Four assaults in the last 2 months alone.) That gave me anxiety, and now I take an SSRI. But even with the SSRI, I feel scared and anxious to leave the house/catch trains. I tell myself "the person who assaulted me was just one person, most people aren't like that", but then I get assaulted by different strangers again and again and again, a different person each time. I am not doing anything at all to provoke the assaults except being a wheelchair user. It's gotten to the point that I am cancelling medical appointments rather than take the train.

geo87 Anxiety about Driving
  • replies: 5

For as long as I can remember I have had an aversion to driving a car. I used to pray that my driving instructor wouldn't turn up when I was a teenager and I eventually went to university without passing my test and then didn't think about it again f... View more

For as long as I can remember I have had an aversion to driving a car. I used to pray that my driving instructor wouldn't turn up when I was a teenager and I eventually went to university without passing my test and then didn't think about it again for 5 years. Then I needed a driving licence for work... cue being in a constant state of anxiety for months while I did an intensive course and failing the test 3 times because I was shaking so much I couldn't use the clutch. When I passed I thought that would be the end of it and when I went out on my own I would get some confidence. But this was not the case. Everytime I get in a car my legs start shaking and I feel myself panicing. I have only managed to get more than 5 mins from my house once and do everything possible to get out of driving at work. I keep thinking that maybe if I just keep going out even for really short drives it will get better but it just seems to make it worse. I drove for 30mins at work recently and haven't even been able to get in a work car since. I feel so stupid because its such a simple task that everyone does everyday. I dont even know where to start getting help, none of my friends understand they just think im being a drama queen about it. Its on my mind constantly and I even have dreams about driving. Has anyone else experienced this kind of irrational fear and managed to get over it? It just feels like its an impossible task. Feels good to talk about it though and already feels like a small weight has been lifted

Crimson74 Food phobia help needed
  • replies: 7

Hi all I have GAD ,PTSD , agrophobia and suffer panic attacks which I all find really hard to deal with everyday but on top of all that I have now got a phobia of food and not sure how to deal with. It all started because I was very obese weighing 14... View more

Hi all I have GAD ,PTSD , agrophobia and suffer panic attacks which I all find really hard to deal with everyday but on top of all that I have now got a phobia of food and not sure how to deal with. It all started because I was very obese weighing 140kg and need to lose weight because I use to comfort eat when my anxiety got really bad . I was doing really well at got down to 110kg in a year. But then my weight just stayed the same for 2 months and I got upset . So I then started watching what I ate and counting my calories and by doing that I was cutting out a lot of food and was only eating about 1000 calories a day but I got tired and weak which then made my anxiety so bad that I was having panic attacks everyday and they were really bad and lasted for 1-2 hours and the only ended because I got so exhausted I ended up falling asleep. So since then every time I tried to eat my throat would tighten and then bring on another panic attack, so now I'm really scared to eat . I'm only managing to eat about 300-400 calories a day and I have lost 24kg in just 2 months so I now weigh 86kg and I'm scared that I'm going to get to 65kg and still not being able to eat properly but still be losing weight because I'm losing 3-4kg a week . I was wonder if anyone could give me some advice on how to eat again . Because I've been stuck at home for 8 months now so not eating on top of that is really starting to get to me Thankyou for any help

Moonstruck Should we tell others we have an anxiety problem?
  • replies: 11

Is it best to keep our mental health challenges to ourselves - or just be upfront with a carefully chosen few? The relatively rare (thank goodness) times I have to cancel plans, or late in beginning projects (procrastinating) saying No to requests et... View more

Is it best to keep our mental health challenges to ourselves - or just be upfront with a carefully chosen few? The relatively rare (thank goodness) times I have to cancel plans, or late in beginning projects (procrastinating) saying No to requests etc...I wish I could simply tell the truth and say "I have an anxiety disorder"...or "I have big problems with anxiety that overcome me sometimes" or similar. Wouldn't that sound like I am "making excuses"?. People would find it hard to believe because I am so good at putting on a false, breezy, "together" switched on, capable, coping, good listener facade....the one OTHERS confide their problems to. I tried a couple of times, something simple, not making a big deal of it or anything - like "I have a problem with anxiety" or "I have an anxiety disorder" I think I said. Responses included "Ah, you just worry too much" and another asked re anxiety disorder "What's that?" I've also had in the past "It's about time you got your life together- what have YOU got to worry about?".......obviously we have to keep it a big secret!!! I would be interested to hear if anyone else has had similar responses, or do the majority of us just keep our mouths shut?

Barby Driving Fear
  • replies: 2

Hi, my name is Barby. Approximately 6 months ago I had a panic attack whilst driving. Since then I have had another 2 attacks. Its always along the same stretch of road. Its got to the point that I feel anxious just getting into the car for the fear ... View more

Hi, my name is Barby. Approximately 6 months ago I had a panic attack whilst driving. Since then I have had another 2 attacks. Its always along the same stretch of road. Its got to the point that I feel anxious just getting into the car for the fear of it happening again. Has this happened to anyone else out there? I would love to hear some feedback and any suggestions that can help me would be appreciated. I want to point out that I have never been involved in a car accident or had anything happen to me whilst driving, so I am at a loss to understand why this is happening to me.

Dazed_and_confused Scared and alone
  • replies: 1

Hi everyone33 yr old mum of 3This is my first time posting here. I was diagnosed back in April this year with Anxiety and Depression after a very frightening panic attack. It all started just after my mum (who was visiting from interstate) and I had ... View more

Hi everyone33 yr old mum of 3This is my first time posting here. I was diagnosed back in April this year with Anxiety and Depression after a very frightening panic attack. It all started just after my mum (who was visiting from interstate) and I had just finished doing the housework for the day. She'd gone off for a shower and I sat down with my kids playing with Lego. I started to feel slightly unwell and my left arm started to go numb and my finger had a tingle in the end. I'm a bigger person and have recently started to worry about my weight and dying. So instantly I thought I was having a heart attack. My mum come back in and I was starting to sweat and panic I told her I was not feeling so good and I think I'm going to have a heart attack, she initially laughed at me and kept getting ready. I went off for a shower, the whole time in the shower my chest started to feel extremely tight and felt like an elephant was sitting on it. By this time my breathing had become quiet fast from the panic and I asked my mum to take me to the emergency room. Once I got there I was rushed off to be put on a machine, this of course made me panic even more. My blood pressure was 205/190. I literally felt like I was going to die like my heart was going to explode in my chest. Once the first ECG was done and they told me my heart was ok I started to settle down. I was kept over night just in case with 6 blood test done. They just said I'd had a panic attack and sent me on my way.Three days had passed and I still was not feeling too well, I started having bad headaches where my head would be so tight I'd cry, I felt dizzy all the time standing, sitting and even at night while in bed I spun out of control. I made a doctors appointment and was told there was nothing wrong with me. It was one of those Drs who pulls you in and pushes you out as quick as possible and charges you an arm and a leg with no answers. I decided to change Dr surgeries and found my current Dr. She listened to every word I said explained everything to me and knew what I was going through. It Did take 2 more visits for her to say you my dear have anxiety. She has put me on medication, it's started to help but now not so much so will be seeing her when she's back from holidays. I'm supposed to be seeing a psychologist but every time I go to make an appointment I have a panic attack and can't bring myself to do it. I don't know why or what I'm afraid of.​

Angelicfruitcake Alcohol and anxiety
  • replies: 5

Hi all, new here. I experience anxiety and often self medicate with alcohol which i know isnt good. It makes my anxiety worse i will wake up worried i did something i shouldnt have. It can be unbearable i go numb and feel like im not in my body i get... View more

Hi all, new here. I experience anxiety and often self medicate with alcohol which i know isnt good. It makes my anxiety worse i will wake up worried i did something i shouldnt have. It can be unbearable i go numb and feel like im not in my body i get so worried sick. Then i get so anxious i need to drink again so over this never ending cycle