Starting to feel obsessive

[Cleo18]

Hi I had been struggling with my GAD for a while now and feel I’m holding my breath more and more which I can seem to control, but I’m now starting to get obsessive over my food and weight. I have tried breathing techniques, mindfulness apps, and I exercise. It hits me the hardest when I go to bed because I feel so wired all the time. Does anyone ever feel that way or have any help or ideas or how to manage this?

[geoff]

Hello Cleo, thanks for posting this comment.

From what you told I'm sorry that it's happening and although I'm not qualified to say, I think you may have OCD, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, which is caused by anxiety and it makes you continuously perform behaviours because you feel you have to.

I also have it, as do other people and know it can be quite distressing, just wonder whether your doctor has diagnosed you with this because there is medication for this illness, and a psychologist can help you.

Hope to hear back from you and be more helpful to you.

Geoff.

[romantic_thi3f]

Hey Cleo18,

Welcome to the forums and thanks for joining us.

I’m sorry that you’re struggling with this. You’re absolutely not alone - I have GAD too and it can be incredibly hard to tackle. The hard thing about GAD is that what works for one person isn’t really going to work for another, so it can take a bit of juggling and trial and error to figure out what works for you.

I find that the mindfulness and breathing apps take time. It’s very hard for me to try breathing apps when I’m super wired because the last thing I think about and feel like doing is trying to breathe to a certain pattern! So in a sense a lot of these techniques are like muscles - the more that you use them, the easier that it gets.

For me personally, I find a lot of the time I have to think about thinking (ha!) and challenge my thoughts. A lot of the time our thoughts are automatic and untrue, but yet at the time we get so hooked on them. Do you have common sorts of thoughts that come up? Are any of them real or helpful? Sometimes challenging them can help, or finding ways to set a plan/goals can help too. We’re problem solving people so being able to set goals and focus on things you can control can help your mind be a bit more productive and a little less worried!