UPDATED: Dealing with my partner's anxiety. Just want to talk

[Belthizor]

Hi all, I'm new here, my name is Sheldon and basically I just want to talk to others about how to deal with my partner's anxiety. For the past couple of months, she has been having anxiety-related issues, but only very recently have these issues intensified. In the past two days we have been to the ED twice, Seen the Doctor twice and been to see her psychologist. The attacks are getting worse, and I am really worried for her. She has even been having suicidal thoughts. This of course worries me even more, but I feel that I have to stay strong for her sake. I love her very dearly and it just breaks my heart to see her so upset. She's crying, has involuntary hand movements, feeling nauseous and has even physically thrown up. She has recently been prescribed a benzodiazaprene and tomorrow we will be going to the doctors to review her current anti-depressant medication. I love her with all my heart and I don't ever want to lose her. While we are doing everything we can to address these issues, it's still hard - especially for me, and I would love someone to talk to who has been through this, or even just someone willing to bend an ear but not judge. This girl is my whole world and without her... I don't know what I'd do.

 Thanks for listening, I know I rambled on a bit, but I do that.

[Belthizor]

Hi guys,

Wednesday, I'm not sure I like what you're insinuating when you say "​Please do something for yourself, even if it is at the expense of your gf"... I love my Gf and I'm not about to lose her. I have my own things I can do that help me to de-stress - video games (PS4, Nintendo 3DS), watch DVDs on my laptop, read a book, so don't worry I am keeping myself busy and taking care of myself.

As for my current health issues, that's nothing more than a summer cold or something like that, it was exacerbated in me because I also have asthma. That's on its way out now. There was nothing much I could do to accelerate the progress of it. Just throat lozenges, cold and flu medicine and cough medicine plus rest. That's all I could do.

I do have one question that I hope someone in here might have a plausible solution to - regarding my girlfriend's addiction, what ways do you know that might help her to overcome it?

[Belthizor]

Hi guys,

Just an update on today. My Gf has just told me that she's been feeling "bleh" all afternoon. She doesn't think it's anxiety, but thinks it might be because she changed her anti depressant dosage. Either way, she's not doing so well today. She wants it to stop, and thinks she can't handle it. She's also having suicidal thoughts. This whole thing is so frustrating! I suggested she do some mindfulness exercises but she doesn't want to do that because she says it's not anxiety.

[Wednesday]

Hi Sheldon,

Sorry I offended you. I realise that you love your gf very much and I have no doubt she feels the same way about you.

Oh I see about the health stuff I misunderstood, glad that you are heading in the right direction with your recovery. Asthma is a beastly disease.

W.

[Belthizor]

Hi guys,

An update on today, bases on my observations and what my gf told me:

Today has been better than the last few days. We went out and spent the day at the local shopping centre with her best friend and her [the best friend's] 16 month old daughter and then went back to her house where we stayed for dinner and for a few hours after. My Gf did feel SOME anxiousness and was a bit unsettled but nowhere near as bad! I think spending time with her friend helped take her mind off the anxiety and when it did surface she was able to deal with it easier. I have told her that things will get better, but they will take time to get there and that in the meantime she should just take baby steps rather than try and take gigantic leaps. She understands this and I think with the aid of me, Her family and her best friend, she will be just fine.

Tough times ahead but there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

That's all for now,

Cheers,

Sheldob

P.S. Wednesday I accept your apology. I think things just got really tense and I probably misread your intentions. I shouldn't have snapped like I did, and for that I apologize

[Belthizor]

Hi Guys,

Once again I come to you wishing I could give you all good news, but alas, that is not the case. For the past few months (since my last post), things have been good. No major anxiety and things have been peaceful. Unfortunately, as they say, all good things must come to an end. Today my gf has been fighting off anxiety all day, she tells me. Tonight it reached its zenith, with my gf experiencing a large anxiety attack, that no amount of talking or suggestions could help her through.

She ended up taking a benzo, which appears to have (finally) kicked in, but before that, she was talking about how she is "broken" and how she just wants to end it all.. She refuses to do the mindfulness exercises saying they make her think about the anxiety more. She feels that the only reason she would do the mindfulness is to try and help the anxiety, hence the constantly thinking about it.

She threw the whole thing about how I don't have anxiety so I can't know exactly what it's like to have it spiel back at me. Claiming that I make out that these methods that I suggest to her are "easy solutions".

I don't know what to do, I suggested making an appointment with her psychologist but she said that there was nothing she could do to help.

I love my gf, and it pains me greatly to see her like this and I just wish I could take all this pain away, and make her better.

I don't know if you guys will have anything that you might be able to suggest that might help, but any ideas are appreciated.

Cheers,

Sheldon

P.S. I suspect that a part of my gf's anxiety attack tonight could be because she was so tired. She'd had a fairly full on day

[Belthizor]

Hi guys,

My apologies for not writing sooner with this update. I did write one, but something went wrong and it didn't post. So the general gist of it is as follows:

The panic/anxiety attack my gf had was what we consider a minor one. The next day, she was still a little bit "anxiety-y" but nothing serious. She started feeling a bit anxious at one point during the day, but I sat down with her and discussed the next week's dinner which helped.

Since then, short of a few VERY minor anxiety-related things (social anxiety getting in the way of her answering her phone when it rang - resolved by calling them back straight away - for example), nothing untoward has happened. The overtired/ pushed herself physically too much theory turned out to be correct. It was just one of those days where a whole lot had happened and she just over exerted herself.

Anyway, I hope you're all doing well, I'm off to bed - Official Driving Lesson #4 tomorrow which I need to be lucid for, lol.

Chat to you all soon,

Sheldon