Crippling anxiety settled to general anxiety

[Guest_01156043]

Hi community. This is my first post and I have experienced anxiety my whole life but fought it always. But in the past few years I had a breakdown due to an extremely stressful situation. Ever since I'm like a egg shell that's cracked all over but still has the egg inside. Fragile. Just a few days ago I had a crazy day where I was completely crippled by anxiety. Dry reaching and vomiting. Crying and restless like crazy. Scared out of my mind and thinking how can I function. I'm a wife and mother of 5 little ones. And I'm expected at work tomorrow. My meltdown culminated in myself and my husband ( who was really worried) working out the cause. We were about to sign a contract I think I knew we couldn't afford. Once this was sorted we decided not to go ahead I immediately felt 100 times better. However 3 days later, I'm still feeling so bad. Nausea, wanting to cancel everything that I'm expected to show up to. Wanting to stay in bed. I'm crippled again but in a quiet way. Not like the extreme episode the other day. This feels sadder. I feel broken and I'm letting everyone down .  That egg shell is really crumbly. I hate being so fragile that my family can't do things. I want to be strong. 

[Summer Rose]

Hello and welcome to the forum

I’m so sorry that you are in pain and feeling so unwell. Hugs to you. 
You are definitely stronger than you think—finding the courage to reach out for support on the forum for the first time whilst unwell is commendable.

I care for my daughter who experiences anxiety and OCD and on occasion she has suffered through really severe and crippling anxiety attacks, very similar to what you’ve described.

Her psychiatrist gave her “emergency medication” (as distinct from her usual medication) to take at times of extreme illness. Forum rules prevent me from naming the medication but it really works for her. It essentially decreases the length of a debilitating attack and reduces the severity. She can essentially bounce back faster.

Medication can be a sensitive issue, but perhaps it could help you. If you have existing professional mental health support you might like to explore this option. Even if you don’t, now would be a good time to make contact and gain support.

If you are in need of professional help, I’d really like to encourage you to see your GP and get the ball rolling.

From my experience, what you are feeling will pass. Hang in there and get as much rest as you can. Tomorrow is a new day and hopefully a much better one for you.

Kind thoughts to you