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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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Southern_star Is this health anxiety?
  • replies: 3

OK up at 2 am typing this. I have been waking up middle of the night 3 nights now with numbness all over my body. It takes a few mins for me to walk around and feel normal again. I have been extremely stressed as my dad passed away last month and fee... View more

OK up at 2 am typing this. I have been waking up middle of the night 3 nights now with numbness all over my body. It takes a few mins for me to walk around and feel normal again. I have been extremely stressed as my dad passed away last month and feel that I am always anxious and stressed especiay about my health . Is it normal for your body to be numb all over when sleeping ? Is this caused by anxiety ?

Rachiie90 Anxiety & eating
  • replies: 5

I have been suffering with almost constant anxiety for the last few months. for the last few weeks I've been finding I get hungry every 2 hours or so. I don't think I should be hungry but if don't eat I get really shaky, lightheaded & feel like I'm g... View more

I have been suffering with almost constant anxiety for the last few months. for the last few weeks I've been finding I get hungry every 2 hours or so. I don't think I should be hungry but if don't eat I get really shaky, lightheaded & feel like I'm going to pass out. I have had blood tests & they were all ok. now I think my anxiety is worse worrying about this happening. has anyone else experienced this?

Toll Where too now confused
  • replies: 1

Hi new here, and not sure if should be here? Ok my story, 6 months ago was walking home late and very drunk, my leg gave way! (I do remember staggering and swaying a lot) i had feeling in leg but no strength to take wait! Went to public hospital they... View more

Hi new here, and not sure if should be here? Ok my story, 6 months ago was walking home late and very drunk, my leg gave way! (I do remember staggering and swaying a lot) i had feeling in leg but no strength to take wait! Went to public hospital they did the reflex test etc, 3 hours latter leg came back and they said it was caused by intoxicated! Next day my opposite hip was real sore, my wife took me to see her doctor that sent me to a private hospital that did heaps of reflex tests blood tests head ct scan, mri of lower spine! All came back fine! Hospital said could also be a neurological thing like ms or something! Doctor said not trying to scare you, but said after all reflex tests he is 95% sure nothing wrong! Since then i have goggle ms soo much! I now have been dizzy for 5 months (will not fall over) more head pressure! My left arm and hand shakes and trembling (parkinson's i google) funny tingling in toes, popping ears non stop driving me crazy, shocking sore neck and shoulders! I have seen 3 separate doctors in the last 4 months all say its not ms its anxiety! Went to a new doctor last week who said i have a fluid in ear and did xray of my neck (came back good)! I used to be full if energy, up 5am everyday, walk,ride, friends houses, bands, movies, now i stay in bed for as long as i can, still go to work, its driving my wife up the wall with my symptoms and googling! I have never had Anxiety, live a good life etc! Do i go back to the doctors and demand an mri of headneck? Its the dizzy, trembling hand, popping ears that scare me! I also get like pressure in face, and heart pumps fast! All symptoms say ms or simular! I do freak out a lot when i get sick, all ways think the worst, even for my family and pets etc! Doctors must think here he comes again! One thing i must say had a friends birthday last week, end of the night we did a handfull of shooters and i noticed my trembling had gone away so did my jellylike legs! So is this anxiety or? Thanks

Pam89 Anxiety and losing control with food
  • replies: 2

I literally lose control around food I dont know what is up with me I just need something in my mouth at all times, Whether its food or drink I like to be healthy but when I lose control I binge on healthy foods as well as bad foods its so strange I ... View more

I literally lose control around food I dont know what is up with me I just need something in my mouth at all times, Whether its food or drink I like to be healthy but when I lose control I binge on healthy foods as well as bad foods its so strange I could just eat apple after apple which is ridiculous because im not hungry. I have always been an anxious person and that is what I am putting it down to its anxiety. I hate to lose control and food is the only thing that I cant control sometimes. I worry when I get hungry and there is not food around and I dont know why because its not like I am going to starve to death I just dont know what to do when I get these feelings and I lose control.It seems to be getting worse and worse especially when I am drunk I come in from a night out and just eat everything in sight and I cant stop. Does anybody else have this problem???

Elizabeth CP Experiencing increased anxiety & unable to calm myself down
  • replies: 13

Over the last couple of years depression has been my main problem. I typically become anxious when very stressed & trying to do too much. I stopped work last October because the stress from competing demands (work, my carer role & depression) became ... View more

Over the last couple of years depression has been my main problem. I typically become anxious when very stressed & trying to do too much. I stopped work last October because the stress from competing demands (work, my carer role & depression) became too much. I have been trying a number of strategies to manage my depression with mixed results. At times I felt like I was getting better but then things fell in a heap with no logical reason. I saw my psychiatrist last week & he talked me into trialling a different AD on a very low dose to avoid side effects & enable me to stop more easily if required. My previous experience of ADs has been very negative. Since the appointment I have felt very anxious. To make things worse I have had an extremely busy/stressful week which hasn't helped. I'm really struggling to calm down even though life has settled down. I would welcome any advice. I would also like advice how others monitered the effectiveness of ADs. Because of my condition I go up & down anyway and in the past increased anxiety has been a side effect of ADs but this time the anxiety increased before I started so this makes it hard to tell what is affecting what

ci Does anyone else ever feel like the thought of a normal life is impossible?
  • replies: 39

Haven't been on here for awhile trying to focus on changing my life getting my ocd undercontrol. Today it seems like I've bitten off more than I can chew. So overwhelmed by everything I've gone back to studying this year in my mid 30 with 3 kids and ... View more

Haven't been on here for awhile trying to focus on changing my life getting my ocd undercontrol. Today it seems like I've bitten off more than I can chew. So overwhelmed by everything I've gone back to studying this year in my mid 30 with 3 kids and a business to run. Travelling back and forth to uni I so worried I can't do this. I'm not sure if I should quite and accept that I can only have a simple life and stay home where it's safe and easier to get through the day? Sorry to vent on here but don't want to disappoint my family by telling them I'm not strong enough! Does anyone else feel like this?

Mumof_four Anxiety at all time high
  • replies: 5

This is my first post, not sure how this all works or if it will even help,but here I go. Since September after witnessing a fatal accident and nearly being involved myself, I have been having anxiety and having guilty feelings over that day.. the pa... View more

This is my first post, not sure how this all works or if it will even help,but here I go. Since September after witnessing a fatal accident and nearly being involved myself, I have been having anxiety and having guilty feelings over that day.. the past week I have been having high anxiety and don't know how to deal with it or myself at this point ... As Mother's Day is approaching, I'm struggling with how can I celebrate with my children when another family will be without their mother this mothers day..Can anyone help me with some tips of how to stop needing to take constant deep breaths ( feels like my lungs just arnt getting enough air) and the heart pounding feeling,... i have tried to do mediation, but my brain just can't relax at the Moment... Any advice would be great, thanks in advance

Krytie Anxiety and yawning so much it hurts!
  • replies: 10

Hi all, just joined up today so please let me know if this is not the right way to post. Anyway, I have depression and by what's happening to me I'm guessing anxiety, hoping someone can offer some suggestions. So any time I'm not hugely distracted by... View more

Hi all, just joined up today so please let me know if this is not the right way to post. Anyway, I have depression and by what's happening to me I'm guessing anxiety, hoping someone can offer some suggestions. So any time I'm not hugely distracted by something else, I find myself feeling like I need to yawn or take a very deep breath. Constantly. Like, 3-4 times a minute pretty much all day every day, and it's really getting quite painful! It just feels like when I'm breathing normally I'm not getting enough oxygen. Does this happen to others too and have you found any way to cope with it please? I suffered from severe depression and anxiety after having PND but haven't really had any problems for about 4 years now (except this yawning thing happened for a few weeks a bit before christmas), until I lost my job about a month ago and now can't get another one so I feel stressed, useless and hopeless. I went to my GP who gave me a referral but it will be weeks until they call apparently so I'm hoping to get some suggestions to try in the meantime as my jaw is getting very sore. I try distracting myself, mindfulness, sensory games, etc, distraction helps a little but everything else seems to make it worse as I'm overtly aware of it, if that makes sense. TIA!

SH87 Are my feelings "normal"/minor?
  • replies: 5

Hi all, This is my first post, and to be quite honest I'm not sure what to say. I joined because I'm not sure if I have issues with anxiety or if what I feel is "normal". My sister has severe anxiety, she is medicated and seeing someone for help. I d... View more

Hi all, This is my first post, and to be quite honest I'm not sure what to say. I joined because I'm not sure if I have issues with anxiety or if what I feel is "normal". My sister has severe anxiety, she is medicated and seeing someone for help. I don't think I'm on her level but I'm struggling to manage my feelings of shame, embarrassment ect over things I do everyday. I'm always recounting conversations I've had and agonising over everything I say. I spend hours thinking of "excuses" in case people think something I've said or done is offensive (which is pointless because no one ever does). If I drink (which I very rarely do) the next day is horrific, and often I'll be a wreck for days (I pretty much avoid alcohol now as even one drink sets me off). I'm pretty functional despite all this, I work full time, go to uni part time and have a great group of friends. However, on a bad day I can convince myself they are friends with me out of habit and obligation, which is awful. I know at times they get frustrated with me although in their defence I don't really tell them about my "bad days". I don't like going out outside this group, and normally turn down invites with other people. Sometimes I get confident and go out but this always leave me in a state of feeling mortified for reasons I can't put my finger on. I spend the next week trying to "suss out" if I've upset anyone even though I know I haven't, (like I said I don't drink so I don't get where this comes from). I'm always looking for someone to say a "magical" sentence that will make me feel better but despite people's reassurance no one ever seems to say the right thing. I'm single and have been for over four years. This doesn't bother me as I much prefer to be on my own. Often I'll spend my weekends just going to the gym, studying and watching TV and that's fine by me. Im very stubborn and I'm embarrassed to admit to my friends I might need help. I've tried to manage this on my own with exercise, healthy eating and positive thoughts but I'm exhausted. I don't want to tell my family as they have enough to worry about because of my sister. Any advice would be great. Should I be getting help? Or is this minor? I came on here today because I want something to change, because I'm so tired of feeling this way. Thanks in advance.

Jasperw Cause of Stress
  • replies: 5

1. Commonality or Individuality? How can you find what makes you different from everybody else (individuality) without first checking to see what other people have? (commonality). What is the common cause of stress? 2. Stress not caused by the events... View more

1. Commonality or Individuality? How can you find what makes you different from everybody else (individuality) without first checking to see what other people have? (commonality). What is the common cause of stress? 2. Stress not caused by the events you encounter, but by your mind's interpretation of that event. It is caused by what you think the event means. Your thoughts, opinions and beliefs about the event. What thoughts (i.e. worries) are common to people with psychological stress? 3. Society's philosophy of "If you are good, you will get" sets up the subconscious mind to believe that you need to live up to particular criteria in order to prove that you are worthy of receiving your needs for development. This sets up the following chain: Fail to achieve criteria=nothing to offer=no value=no approval= MISS OUT on requirements for development (what you need for your life to progress)= die (to the subconscious). So what is development? What do you need? Can you miss out on it? 4. There are two different models for measuring personal development. The first is the "achievement model", where they say "measure yourself by your achievements". In this model, people gauge their development and self-worth by the level of control they have over life. The more accurate model is the "wisdom model", where it is understood that all events you encounter provide growth in understanding the reality of what is occurring in life. We can't miss out out our development. All events are food for thought, whether they go the way you want them to or not. This does not mean you stop having goals, but rather do not measure your life by whether you achieve them. 5. The concept of "Free Will" is incorrect. (defined as "that person had free will and could have simply have chosen to have acted differently at that moment regardless of their beliefs. They are not being governed.) Can you choose what you believe? (Think of something you do not currently believe. Try "the earth is flat". Now choose to believe it. Can you?) Can you choose how you act? (Think of something you would not do no matter what. Now choose to do that action. Can you?). "I do not want to do that acton" is not a valid response, as we are not talking about whether or not you can follow my demands, but whether you can use your power of choice to do something, when your beliefs (your wants) are governing you and preventing you from doing the action. Can you choose to do that action you do not want to do?