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

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. Remeber, this is anonymous and the Beyond Blue team are here to help if you need it This section is for people who are experiencing anixiety 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 you 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 worthile 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

All discussions

Start a discussion

Lily181 Relapse and might loose my job
  • replies: 1

I suffer from PTSD, anxiety disorder and depression.I have been seeing therapists and medical professionals on and off for 5 years.I was doing very well for over a year and was able to manage my anxiety.I recently started a new job in June and start ... View more

I suffer from PTSD, anxiety disorder and depression.I have been seeing therapists and medical professionals on and off for 5 years.I was doing very well for over a year and was able to manage my anxiety.I recently started a new job in June and start of August, I've had a relapse and I'm getting panic attacks 4-5 days a week. It's usually starts in the morning and I struggle through it on and off for half a day and get exhausted after it has calmed down and need to rest and am not able to do much. Because of this I haven't been able to go to work and now I'm worried that I might loose my job or what people think about me being absent or feel guilty that I have made things worse at work. These thoughts have made things worse.I'm really tired of being in this loop. I'm taking medication, doing therapy but I'm still struggling and really fear I'll loose my job and have financial difficulty. I'm also scared I'll struggle to find another job.I don't know what to do with all these thoughts that doesn't seem to stop.

Copgirl379 Anti-Anxiety Medication and Applying For WA Police
  • replies: 1

Hello! I've been on Anti Anxiety medication for a few months now but I'm looking at applying for the WA police force. I'm wanting to know if this would hinder my chances of being accepted?

Hello! I've been on Anti Anxiety medication for a few months now but I'm looking at applying for the WA police force. I'm wanting to know if this would hinder my chances of being accepted?

soph33 Body swelling from anxiety? Anyone else?
  • replies: 1

Hi guys, for years I’ve been battling severe anxiety/borderline agoraphobia. But my main complaint besides that is body swelling. Does anyone else experience this? Constantly swollen.

Hi guys, for years I’ve been battling severe anxiety/borderline agoraphobia. But my main complaint besides that is body swelling. Does anyone else experience this? Constantly swollen.

Johan71 Moving home.
  • replies: 16

I’m incredibly anxious about moving house. I’m retired. We live in a large home and moving to an apartment. Typical downsizing. The process of selling one home and moving into another is stressful and unsettling. I can’t help but think of the things ... View more

I’m incredibly anxious about moving house. I’m retired. We live in a large home and moving to an apartment. Typical downsizing. The process of selling one home and moving into another is stressful and unsettling. I can’t help but think of the things that could go wrong. Will we sell? Will I like the apartment etc etc.

Maisy Nina Paralysing anxiety
  • replies: 7

Morning guys, I am still fairly new to the site, so I haven't read all relevant posts yet I have had nerves/anxiety since my parents split when I was around 7 (40 years), and bouts of severe anxiety for the last 29 years. No matter how many therapist... View more

Morning guys, I am still fairly new to the site, so I haven't read all relevant posts yet I have had nerves/anxiety since my parents split when I was around 7 (40 years), and bouts of severe anxiety for the last 29 years. No matter how many therapists/psychologists/psychiatrists or medications I have tried over this time, I still get bouts (sometimes months) of paralysing physical anxiety whether my thoughts are negative or fearful or if my day is going fine. I have had to take an extended amount of time out of the workforce since the end of May as I had just hit rock bottom with this issue (and less often, bouts of depression) and to work on coming off the 2 substances I medicated myself with just to get some relief from the crippling symptoms and seek further help for it all. I would SO appreciate hearing other people's stories and suggestions for turning off the seemingly constant fight/flight response that is setting off in my brain. Thanks heaps and have a great day.

mirrorball13 New grad and work anxiety
  • replies: 1

Hi everyone, first time poster here. I’m 6 months into my first job out of uni and I’m really struggling with anxiety and depression at the moment with this job. I dread going into work everyday because I am so anxious about the amount of tasks and r... View more

Hi everyone, first time poster here. I’m 6 months into my first job out of uni and I’m really struggling with anxiety and depression at the moment with this job. I dread going into work everyday because I am so anxious about the amount of tasks and responsibility I have. I am making a lot of mistakes because I’m thrown in the deep end a lot - my degree isn’t related to my role and it’s hard to get help from my coworkers because they are all so busy. I also find it so hard to connect with them because I am the youngest in my team and I don’t really know what to talk about with them. Due to my lack of knowledge I also find myself working extra hours just to understand more and keep up. As well I put a lot of pressure on myself to do well and I am a big people pleaser. I think I have a lot of performance anxiety after seeking a lot of academic validation my whole life. It also has me questioning my role as I don’t think it’s very well suited to my personality at all, I am in meetings all day and have to reach out to so many different people across the business who don’t prioritise me because I’m a grad, and I am super shy and introverted. For example I cried for hours after work today of stress because a higher up expects a project to be done by end of September, but I incorrectly gave later dates to another team which is causing delays in the project and I’ve been beating around the bush with her because I’m scared to tell her it’ll be delayed. I am seeing a therapist and try to enjoy myself outside of work but it’s hard when I have an 1hr+ commute and feel so burnt out when I get home. I also work casual shifts in retail on the weekends sometimes to save money so I don’t get much time to myself. While I feel very lucky because I am the first in my family to even go to uni and have a corporate job, I feel so out of depth at work and like I don’t fit in. I feel like I’ve wasted all my studying, money and time spent on my degree to not like my career path. It has even made me consider going back to uni for further study in a different field because I don’t like my role at all. And I become so jealous of other grads who found their perfect role out of uni or at the least tolerate their job while I am barely surviving. Thankfully I’m in a grad program and I am rotating out of this team in 6 months so I do see a light at the end of the tunnel but I don’t know if I can take it until then. I know 100% I’ll be trying to move jobs or go back to uni after my program ends because this role and company are making me miserable. Hoping there are people who can just listen and understand…

___A___ anxiety at work
  • replies: 4

hi i've never posted anything like this before and i'm really scared to do it, but i feel so anxious about making mistakes at work. some things i thought were mistakes ended up not being mistakes, but some did and now i am constantly stressed about p... View more

hi i've never posted anything like this before and i'm really scared to do it, but i feel so anxious about making mistakes at work. some things i thought were mistakes ended up not being mistakes, but some did and now i am constantly stressed about past mistakes coming back to bite me or that i'm on the verge of making another mistake. i feel useless at work which is a high stress clinical job and it has been impacting my sleep, my self-esteem, my motivation, and my apetite. i've been through a really bad breakup in the last few months too which has made my anxiety spiral because my main support person left my life very abruptly without giving a reason. i feel like if he was still around i could talk to him about it. i feel like i don't have anyone i can share my thoughts and anxieties with because i'm scared of making my friends and family sick of me and my problems like i did my ex. i'm convinced everyone is sick of my mess and that everyone will wake up and realise i'm awful and unlovable. i see a psychologist and have recently been put on meds but i'm still in a constant state of panic, dread, worry and fear. i feel like nothing is ever going to get better and my life is always going to be a mess. i don't know how to start cleaning the mess up and it's so overwhelming and scary. has anyone been through anything similar and have any advice? i'm really struggling and appreciate anyone even reading this.

Fenerbahce Health anxiety back again….
  • replies: 1

Health Anxiety Here I am again….. it’s a never ending battle.. trigger warning… 37M with Health anxiety for over 15 years. I’ve had numerous self diagnosed medical diseases that I’ve dwindled on for months on in and until some professional interventi... View more

Health Anxiety Here I am again….. it’s a never ending battle.. trigger warning… 37M with Health anxiety for over 15 years. I’ve had numerous self diagnosed medical diseases that I’ve dwindled on for months on in and until some professional intervention (scans etc) the symptoms were there everyday. My new one (and I need some help on this one) has been a mid back pain that comes around after 2pm ish and makes me bloat, alongside stomach pains and a full feeling after eating… this started Feb this year.. When this symptom started I already was going through another episode that lingered for 2 months.. so the doctor prescribed me medication.. and funnily enough 4 weeks into the meds I was symptom free. And I continued to be symptom free until early June (which is when I tapered off Lexapro) From early June until the first week of August this continued and then it finally disappeared. On the 15th of August, I went into my GP and he ordered blood work and everything came back normal besides my Ferritin which was just under the normal, and when I told him what I went through, he suggested that I see a GI doctor. So I went to see a GI doctor, and he suggested that we should do an endoscopy and colonoscopy( I had both done 3-4 years ago and was clean)… this is where it went downhill. He started saying we should do this because if it is Cancer, we would want to catch it early. I freaked out, I then asked him the likelihood (considering that I’m pain free now, and that the pain was gone when I was on medication) he brushed it off… Until yesterday my stomach pains were non existent and it is back in full force. Please talk some sense into me… I am literally freaking out.

1979_lou Anxiety help
  • replies: 1

What are some strategies you use to help with anxiety? 

What are some strategies you use to help with anxiety? 

Chelsea l Anxiety getting worse
  • replies: 3

I’ve been Feeling really anxious since Friday Night, to the point where I spent Saturday and Sunday night sobbing and feeling like I was going to be sick at first I thought it was about my dentist app which happened yesterday but the feeling hasn’t g... View more

I’ve been Feeling really anxious since Friday Night, to the point where I spent Saturday and Sunday night sobbing and feeling like I was going to be sick at first I thought it was about my dentist app which happened yesterday but the feeling hasn’t gone away. I’m headachy, I’m stressing over everything. I see my psychologist next Friday and I see my doctor tomorrow, I’m hoping to discus wether I could have my Medications Adjusted