Best treatment for anxiety

[Fontenoy]

I have had very mild anxiety for a while but it snowballed around Christmas after the Martin Place siege.  Why I don't know. I panick a lot and over dramatise resulting in a panick attack affecting where I loose control.  I started doing online therapy for 5 weekly sessions last year but at the time felt my anxiety was not severe enought so did not benefit.  That was last year. This year have experienced severe pounding heart, muscle tightness, jelly like legs, sadness and non motivation in my home or interests or interest in going out.  If I do I need a reason I.e. Meeting someone or activity planned otherwise just stay in.  Work is different it is a focus so am ok going.  I work alone and live alone so feel loneliness has contributed.  This year I started seeing a psychologist but she has not helped with tools on managing anxiety just positive thinking and family background information.  I have a boyfriend and is fine when he visits but this is coming between us. I am coeliac and understand anxiety is a symptom. I am on here hoping people can help or guide me into the best way to manage my anxiety and low sad feelings.  I have interest but indecision gets in the way and I end up not pursuing interest.  Please help.

[Beltane]

Hiya and welcome to beyondblue.

your anxiety is probably seperate to your coeliac- as in anxiety is its own illness. However they can impact on each other. I have IBS and I know my anxiety can make my IBS play up! But it's important to remembee that anxiety is an actual illness (a mental illness) that many people suffer from, and it requires treatment.

try a different therspist. There are lots, and they all think differently of course and teach different coping skills- there are even many different types of therapies. I didn't find the Cognitive Behavioural Therapy helpful for me but I found Acceptance and Commitment Therapy  very very helpful. So it really can make a difference who you see and what they teach! 

a wonderful book I recommend is "The Happiness Trap" by Dr Russ Harris, based on ACT. I loved it and I found th techniques life changing!. So much better than the boring old "positive thinking" or even worse "so tell me about your childhood"! There's much more helpful techniques out there than just "positive thinking".I mean honestly, I find positive thinking only so helpful.. It gives us something to hope for, but it doesn't actually help us cope and overcome the issues of the present, does it? So you need to learn some other techniques!

try out the book 🙂 even better, find a different therapist who spends less time focusing on your past and more time helping you cope with the present,

oh and consider medication. I know many people are quite resistant to it, but there is no weakness in going on medication for an illness, is there? Besides, mine really really helps me, and the therapy has combined with it so well I've overcome my anxiety and depression completely. I love a normal life full of interesting hobbies and frienda, lots of goals and dreams,- and no anxiety to stop me from enjoying them all.

you can beat this, just like I beat mine. you just need to try a different therapy/ therspist and consider maybe a medication 🙂