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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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Casey4 MAJOR ANXIETY
  • replies: 2

Hello. Haven't really used this website much although now i feel like i need it more than ever. I have been dealing with anxiety for a while now.. Home was my safety zone... but recently had to move out into our own place. I constantly feel like im h... View more

Hello. Haven't really used this website much although now i feel like i need it more than ever. I have been dealing with anxiety for a while now.. Home was my safety zone... but recently had to move out into our own place. I constantly feel like im having a heart attack or im going to pass out. I used to see someone but didn't finding breathing or anything helpful as when im in a panic i forget all the things and breathing just makes me panic more. I used to take meds but didn't find them to help, found it worse actually which is weird. If it was up to me i would stay at my family home forever and never leave. Moving out for the first time is supposed to be fun.. i am NOT having fun. Its terrifying and scary and i constantly feel like im going to die. I have it when i go out anywhere.. i always have to know where the exits are and if i can buy it online i do that instead of going out. I cant live my life like this forever.. so someone please give me advice and help me out. im struggling and by struggling i mean REALLY REALLY REALLY struggling. I dont want to be like this for the rest of my life, i want to be able to go out somewhere and not even worry about "if" im going to die, if im going to be sick or if im going to pass out. Please share any experiences or helpful hints that you have... ill try ANYTHING not to feel like this anymore. Thanks for reading!

Clara Dealing with anxiety... without treatment or support
  • replies: 9

Hi everyone, I've recently joined Beyondblue hoping that connecting with others will help. I was diagnosed with Generalised Anxiety Disorder around 6 years ago. After 3 years of treatment, my therapist considered I was doing well enough to continue t... View more

Hi everyone, I've recently joined Beyondblue hoping that connecting with others will help. I was diagnosed with Generalised Anxiety Disorder around 6 years ago. After 3 years of treatment, my therapist considered I was doing well enough to continue the journey on my own and without any medication. Even though I've learnt a fair bit about Anxiety, the fight over the last three years hasn't been easy without treatment or any support other than my partner (living in Australia I'm away from all my loved ones). Although at times it can become hell, inside me I know that I'm not that far from recovery...I just need that little 'push' from the right person or treatment. I just don't know where to find it. Any ideas on how to get help without medication or breaking the bank? All comments and suggestions welcome Have a great evening Clara

MCA Am I having panic attack?
  • replies: 5

Hi, I am new to the forum. I started having symptoms like numbness on the fingers and feet, tightening of the chest area and having difficulty in breathing around 6 months ago. I thought I was going to pass out with my heart racing and was taken to t... View more

Hi, I am new to the forum. I started having symptoms like numbness on the fingers and feet, tightening of the chest area and having difficulty in breathing around 6 months ago. I thought I was going to pass out with my heart racing and was taken to the hospital where they checked my heart. The result came out inconclusive and found no problem with the heart. I took a vitamin that night prior to the attack. I had a retina detachment operation 12 months ago and have been relying on one eye for vision. Since then I have been having on and off episodes of the same symptoms. It happens sometimes when I read some article about people having suicide or depressed and sometimes just out of no where when I am working or reading a newspaper. When the panic kicks in, the more I think about it, the worst it gets and I am so afraid that I will have a heart attack. I am at the point that I am constantly worrying about when the symptoms will come again. I have the following questions: 1) Is this considered a panic attack? 2) How serious is my symptoms? 3) I went to a local GP and he heard my "story" for 30 seconds and prescribed me with some medicine and told me to take it continuously for two weeks and the "attack" would go away. Is that right? 4) I have scheduled an eye operation for squinting (retina detachment side effects) in 10 days time and I am having the panic episodes more often lately. However, I have been told not to take the prescribed medication in case it interfere with the anesthetic during operation. What can I do now to stop the panic without medication? Hope someone out there have similar experience who can share.

Shell4444 My anxiety is ruling my life
  • replies: 4

At times i feel ok and pat myself on the back if I have tackled something like the shopping and survived quite happily, other times I have to approach everything with military precision and wake up with that anxious feeling and a sense of dread.becau... View more

At times i feel ok and pat myself on the back if I have tackled something like the shopping and survived quite happily, other times I have to approach everything with military precision and wake up with that anxious feeling and a sense of dread.because I have to face the outside world. I tell myself when Im in military precision mode that this is stupid, nothing bad is going to happen but I feel faint and that I have no control over myself or my world. My doctor has started me on medication which he says will take about a month to kick in, in the meantime I want to hide. I try to push myself out of my comfort zone every day because locking myself away is not doing me any good. I am seeing my psychologist this week. In my previous post I felt I might have rounded the corner but I dont feel I have any control anymore and I cant give in, but at the moment my ability to fight is running out. How does everybody else cope, Michelle

EW Fear of feeling sick/dating/anxiety
  • replies: 7

Since about the age of 12 I've been scared of feeling sick when in restaurants or at people's houses for dinner. For a long time I avoided these situations or simply felt miserable throughout the evening feeling sick and panicked. The situation is mu... View more

Since about the age of 12 I've been scared of feeling sick when in restaurants or at people's houses for dinner. For a long time I avoided these situations or simply felt miserable throughout the evening feeling sick and panicked. The situation is much better now and I often enjoy a meal out with friends. However, I still struggle terribly with situations I find stressful in particular going out for dinner on a date! Unfortunately, the anxiety isn't relieved on leaving the restaurant and if I continue to date the person the anxiety remains whether he is there or not and I am unable to eat at all resulting in unhealthy weight-loss and constant anxiety that interferes with my every day life. Benzodiazepines do not work and I have tried CBT, which has helped to a certain extent but the panic is so overwhelming I've actually been sick on occasion. This is really getting in the way of me living how I want to and often leads to depression. Has anyone else suffered from this and how did you get over it. I have been prescribed an SSRI which is said to help anxiety and panic disorder, but I am hesitating to take it. Has anyone experienced something similar and how did you resolve it, I'm sure it can be!

Chloekat84 Im going to try and stay positive
  • replies: 4

Hope everyone is having a good or better than usual day today. Im going to try and stay positive throughout this post as i find negativity makes me think about my problems more and i feel worse. The last few days have been very similar. Not really ba... View more

Hope everyone is having a good or better than usual day today. Im going to try and stay positive throughout this post as i find negativity makes me think about my problems more and i feel worse. The last few days have been very similar. Not really bad but not the best either. Anxiety still likes to stick around which is very annoying. I try and keep myself busy with my daughter who is a handful as shes home from childcare atm as shes sick, just a cold i think but gota go to the docs anyways in case its an infectious as she has a very chesty cough and her nose wont stop running. I guess thats kids for ya. She would be home with me today anyway as she doesnt o to childcare on thurs. Even if its not an infection think ill leave her home 2moro then she will be 100% when she goes back on monday. Dont wont her to get worse or recatch another bug. I know this is all prob very boring to a lot of you but just thought id have a bit of a chat to see what everyone is up to so i can get my mind off my anxiety. Also watching scrubs atm which is pretty funny so thats another good distraction. Well my daughter is screaming for attention so hope to talk to some of you soon Take care x

Nedkelly990 End of the world, or not...
  • replies: 4

I'm very new to this and like i previously said to another guy I'm not even sure if what I'm dealing with can be called anxiety or whether I'm just a nut. Im thinking I can trace this back to my time as an infantry soldier in the army when I deployed... View more

I'm very new to this and like i previously said to another guy I'm not even sure if what I'm dealing with can be called anxiety or whether I'm just a nut. Im thinking I can trace this back to my time as an infantry soldier in the army when I deployed to Afghanistan. I haven't suffered from PTSD or anything but now that I'm out of the army I'm constantly concerned about how my own personal actions will effect these things that I stress about. Namely the end of the world! I'm constantly stressed about how much power I use or how much petrol I use or how much water I use, this stresses me out because I feel so strongly as if the world is going to end sometime in my lifetime. Or just around the corner. That we'll run out of oil and our society will crumble or something ridiculous like that. It affects me every day in a lot of things that I do. I can't talk to my wife about it she just thinks I'm a nut when I talk about the world ending. But it's something I legitimately worry about every day. There is always horrible stuff all over the media and the news and it's impossible to get away from and it just fuels my reasoning. I guess what I'm looking for out of this post is maybe someone who can relate, and a bit or clarity about whether what I'm feeling is in fact anxiety. Thanks

Chloekat84 Really bad anxiety hits me today :(
  • replies: 2

Ive been doing fairly alrite lately but today hasnt been a good day. Ive got nothing to be anxious about i dont understand. My daughter is at childcare so i have the day to myself. I slept for a bit this morning after i dropped her off which helped b... View more

Ive been doing fairly alrite lately but today hasnt been a good day. Ive got nothing to be anxious about i dont understand. My daughter is at childcare so i have the day to myself. I slept for a bit this morning after i dropped her off which helped but since i got up i have been feeling anxious ever since. I had to go down the street which i really didnt want to do but did anyway. I found it hard to deal with when i was out in public i just had to keep moving all the time. Do any of u have any strategies when out in public and u have this horrible feeling like theres too much adrenaline in my system. Thats the only way i can describe it. Home now and still feeling anxious but not quite as bad. Thats it for now. Take care guys x

binjyb "After The fall" recovering and anxiety after falling over .
  • replies: 1

Hi- wondering if anyone has ideas - or experiences to share? Almost 3 mths ago I tripped , fell, landed heavily on the ground and bounced my head off a large lump of wood. Concussion, broken rib, whiplash and injured shoulder . I am still on a number... View more

Hi- wondering if anyone has ideas - or experiences to share? Almost 3 mths ago I tripped , fell, landed heavily on the ground and bounced my head off a large lump of wood. Concussion, broken rib, whiplash and injured shoulder . I am still on a number of pain meds daily ...so that is MUCH better However , I am so scared of falling over again We live rural - and everywhere I walk is uneven/strewn with things that a bumblefoot such as I can trip on . I use a walking stick all the time - have done for years , and yes, that helps ! How does one get rid of the constant worry - the "wotifs" ? Any tricks /plans ? The whiplash pain was so bad , I am petrified of doing it again ... ( and am also hoping that it IS finally healing) thankyou .

EmmaP Girlfriend Hospitalised into Mental Health Unit- My Anxiety Worse
  • replies: 4

Hi everyone, I finished an 11 hour shift at work last night and checked my phone to see a dozen messages and missed calls from my girlfriend saying she had been involuntarily admitted to the Mental Health unit at our local hospital last night (its no... View more

Hi everyone, I finished an 11 hour shift at work last night and checked my phone to see a dozen messages and missed calls from my girlfriend saying she had been involuntarily admitted to the Mental Health unit at our local hospital last night (its not the first time that this has happened, but the first time since we have been dating, for 7 months now). She has borderline personality disorder, anxiety and depression. She was admitted because long story short her new medication wasn't working, she couldn't get into her doctor for two weeks to review the medication, so she told her therapist at her appointment yesterday that she was going to "neck herself if the voices in my head don't stop" so her therapist drove her to the hospital and admitted her. She told me she said it "jokingly" and that she knew it would get her into the ward so her medication could be reviewed earlier because she couldn't last two weeks until her next appointment. I struggle with my own demons- severe anxiety and depression. I am on medication but I am getting it reviewed because I don't feel its working, and I also have seen a therapist twice now, and have another appointment this week. I have been struggling of late and I guess I have been self centred. I feel guilty that I didn't see that she was struggling. However on the other hand she doesn't tell me that she is feeling bad so I can help her. I feel like my mental health is a burden on her, especially yesterday when I had a breakdown at lunch time when I saw her because everything had overwhelmed me in life. I am now worried that I have contributed to her hospitalisation even though she said I haven't. She isn't allowed her phone, and I feel so disconnected from her. One of my huge anxieties is separation from the people closest to me, so I'm really struggling not being able to text her and see how she is. My boss will only let me ring her twice today quickly and I can't see her until I go in after work this afternoon. She will be in there for at least 48 hours. I'm glad that hopefully her medication will hopefully get sorted out. But I can't help but feel more overwhelmed in life now. Is this being self centred and selfish? I just feel exhausted all the time and this is another thing to add to my uncontrollable anxieties. I feel guilty that that's how I feel. I dearly love her and want her to feel better and this is her time of need. Sorry I just needed to get it off my chest. EmmaP