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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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Redline84 Long time sufferer win anxiety,march 2021 though began with really strange sensations!
  • replies: 4

Hi everyone, Thank you all for the opportunity to post this thread! I've suffered with anxiety for many years, mainly fears of the unknown, failing, not good enough etc. My anxiety got worse when living at my in laws(2017-2019) for 2 years which deve... View more

Hi everyone, Thank you all for the opportunity to post this thread! I've suffered with anxiety for many years, mainly fears of the unknown, failing, not good enough etc. My anxiety got worse when living at my in laws(2017-2019) for 2 years which developed into this knot feeling throat - still present today when I feel anxious. March this year it all started with these cold patches around my left knee (very odd) followed by this string like pulling sensation bellow the knee cap as I walked(MRI showed nothing). Around 1 week passed and those symptoms disappeared but leaving this slightly redish patch around my knee which is now sensitive to warm water(goes slightly red) . Tingling started on my left foot soon after(lots of googling probably didn't help) and progressed to my calf leg hand arm & face(mainly on one side). I even developed an eyelid twitch on the left. Tingling on the right was present but mainly on right foot and right hand only. As I kept googling, MS was coming up quite a lot and knowing my mum has MS I convinced myself that's what it was! I also had severe hand numbing while falling asleep(nothing during the day), and a little on my toes. At this stage I went into panic mode and for weeks I had hardly any sleep thinking why I had all this numbness. My GP arranged for blood tests which all came back ok, also did a CT scan of my neck,nerve conduction studies, MRI of the brain & neck which discovered a bulged disc on my upper neck - however my GP, Oesteo & Chiro could not connect these symptoms results. Brain MRI also came back ok. I did see a Neurosurgeon but my symptoms almost disappeared by my appointment, neurosurgeon confirmed again these symptoms couldn't be linked to the bulged disc, describing it could've been a "viral phenomenon". I was symptom free(around 1 month), 3 months ago new symptoms started, again on the left leg - buzzing sensation on quad muscle while walking followed by left & right foot buzzing. I also developed an itch that happens when I rub my leg in one spot & is felt in another!(googling suggests referred itch). Hand numbness started also creeping in and now they're worse( only at night time). I've seen a Neurologist 1 month ago and he think it could be anxiety related as I'm apparently very aware of my own body! Seeing him again in Feb 2021 as he may want to do a few more tests. Thanks again for this long post! Hope it helps anyone out there with similar symptoms : ). I

BengoB Topic: Anxiety, but my only Symptom is Chest Tightness and Discomfort
  • replies: 1

Hi Everyone, Hope you all are well and I thank you for taking time out to read my post. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. My story starts about 6 months ago. At the time I was smoking a fair amount of marijuana, and it got to a point everyti... View more

Hi Everyone, Hope you all are well and I thank you for taking time out to read my post. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. My story starts about 6 months ago. At the time I was smoking a fair amount of marijuana, and it got to a point everytime I smoked my chest would get tight and feel uncomfortable. This continued until one time after smoking I actually had a heart palpitation, followed by a panic attack. At the time I thought it was a heart attack but later I discovered it was a panic attack. After this event my chest was very tight, and the sensation didn't seem to want to leave. Also in the time since I have undertaken every test imaginable, including ECG's, 24 hour halter monitor test, blood tests, stress test and even an ultrasound of my heart - all coming back with positive results. After time the constant tightness ended up getting a bit better, but after lockdown ended I had 2 big nights of drinking within a 3 day period, and after that my chest was incredibly tight for a week. Its hard to explain the feeling - it often feels really tight, and i can feel the tightness through to my back. It can also feel like my heart is almost 'airy' and I describe it as being able to feel a sensation of my heart in my chest. It is incredibly uncomfortable and stops me from getting on with day to day life due to my discomfort with it. Since this incident where it got tight for a week - it has been tight for the past 2-3 months with NO let up. It is constantly tight throughout the day and it doesn't seem like theres anything I can do to help it. I have quit coffee, marijuana (and all other forms of smoking) and drinking for the past 2-3 months but It is still not improving. I then seeked help from a psychiatrist who diagnosed me with anxiety and I started taking medication for it . I have been taking these medications for a month and noticed no change in the chest tightness. But it just doesn't make sense to me - I don't feel anxious. My mental state is clear and I feel fine in that regard, but my chest is constantly tight - essentially 24/7. To me I couldn't imagine a worse symptom of anxiety, and it makes me confused when my emotional and mental state doesn't match up with my physical one. It is really ruining my life, holding me back from being with my friends, working, doing university work, and even exercising due to the intense discomfort. Again, any help would be appreciated. Thank you.

PsychedelicFur Crying doesn’t come easy anymore
  • replies: 2

Hello all. PsychedelicFur here. Hope you are all well. Crying does not come easy to me anymore. After starting my new antidepressants about four or so months ago - crying has become extremely difficult for me. I have always been a highly emotional pe... View more

Hello all. PsychedelicFur here. Hope you are all well. Crying does not come easy to me anymore. After starting my new antidepressants about four or so months ago - crying has become extremely difficult for me. I have always been a highly emotional person and I have always been very much in touch with my inner thoughts and feelings. And it makes me really upset because now I find it difficult to release any sad or intrusive thoughts through tears. And recently, I have heard that this is a side affect of anxiety medication. I feel extremely numb. And it’s bothering me. Because I want to cry. I want to be able to let out my emotions in a healthy way. Because after I cried I would ALWAYS feel cleansed and refreshed. It was as though I was letting out the bad toxins from my body. And now it doesn’t come easy to me anymore. I have to sort of force it, in a way. PF.

EIIot I keep on saying things I don't mean
  • replies: 3

I keep on saying things I don't mean then I get judged by everyone because they took what I said out of context. I always get really bad anxiety when this happens and I'm so confused on why I keep doing it even though I'll get anxiety from it. I alwa... View more

I keep on saying things I don't mean then I get judged by everyone because they took what I said out of context. I always get really bad anxiety when this happens and I'm so confused on why I keep doing it even though I'll get anxiety from it. I always say the wrong things and I'm always ashamed of myself so I always hate myself then I think everyone hates me so I cut all contact with people and then they think I hate them. I hate myself for this and I really wish I knew how to make people understand or find ways too understand people better so I don't say the wrong things.

Guest_2957 Anxiety taking over my life
  • replies: 3

How do you stop anxiety destroying everything I reached out and talked to a counsellor on here but now freaking out what sort of personal information does she know about me , can she access my profile, know my last name etc , I'm scared that I reache... View more

How do you stop anxiety destroying everything I reached out and talked to a counsellor on here but now freaking out what sort of personal information does she know about me , can she access my profile, know my last name etc , I'm scared that I reached out and feel I shouldn't of I'm just scared of bad things happening all the time , I'm scared of driving i won't really drive unless someone else in the car , I'm scared i will do the wrong thing always, I'm scared I'm not a good enough mum or partner I feel overwhelmed and im even feeling scared posting on here I don't enjoy life because I feel im holding my breath all the time waiting for something bad to happen

MammaOf3 Anxious about sudden memory loss while driving
  • replies: 4

Hello A weird thing happened to me yesterday. I was driving with my daughter in the car on a very familiar route (I drive it about 3 times per week). As I was approaching a familiar intersection, for a split second I didn’t know where I was. I looked... View more

Hello A weird thing happened to me yesterday. I was driving with my daughter in the car on a very familiar route (I drive it about 3 times per week). As I was approaching a familiar intersection, for a split second I didn’t know where I was. I looked around and immediately I remembered where I was and continued the journey but it kind of freaked me out because it was so weird. I’m 40 years old, healthy, very active and have no issues with memory. I have 3 kids so sometimes I have too much going on and tend to occasionally forget stuff but I think it’s normal. There is no history of dementia or Alzheimer’s in the family. I suffered from anxiety a couple of years ago and this incident has been on my mind since it happened. I tend to overthink things and worry too much so I don’t really want to end up anxious because of what happened yesterday. Has anyone experienced anything like this before? Does it look like I was just day dreaming and distracted? Or could there by anything else going on? I don’t really want to go to the doctors as I doubt they would do much, but I would like to put my mind in ease. Thanks for reading this.

SiobhanW Medication
  • replies: 5

Hello! I dont know if this is the right criteria to do this in, but, I've been taking some medication for anxiety/ suicidial ideations. I am starting to feel ashamed of having my medication. Any suggestions? I am on a low dose, it was making me happy... View more

Hello! I dont know if this is the right criteria to do this in, but, I've been taking some medication for anxiety/ suicidial ideations. I am starting to feel ashamed of having my medication. Any suggestions? I am on a low dose, it was making me happy and it still boosts my mood. I know i am in a dark place, because I have had days forgetting my medication and I feel suicidial and anxious straight away. Anyone have any suggestions on how to not feel ashamed and anxious about taking it??

Kally_jo How to deal with anxiety at parties
  • replies: 4

On this weekend I have a Christmas party coming up. I get abit nervous at parties and there’s been a couple of times when I have nearly passed out at parties and other social events because I’m an introvert and loud talking and noises get a bit much ... View more

On this weekend I have a Christmas party coming up. I get abit nervous at parties and there’s been a couple of times when I have nearly passed out at parties and other social events because I’m an introvert and loud talking and noises get a bit much because I get sinus headaches easily when there’s a lot of noise. There was a time at my aunt’s birthday party I started getting a really bad sinus headache because there were several people talking and the next minute I started seeing black cloudy spots. My aunt was aware of my dizzy spell so she walked me upstairs to the lounge room and told me to lie down for a bit. The second time I had a dizzy spell at a baby shower and I was nervous about passing out in front of people so I went to sit in the front yard alone. How do I deal with anxiety at parties?

JSP Relationship between anxiety and eating disorders.
  • replies: 2

I have a question for those who have knowledge of eating disorders. I have never been diagnosed with, or felt like I had an eating disorder, but what I do have is anxiety. It started running wild a few months ago after lying dormant for a little bit.... View more

I have a question for those who have knowledge of eating disorders. I have never been diagnosed with, or felt like I had an eating disorder, but what I do have is anxiety. It started running wild a few months ago after lying dormant for a little bit. When I lost control, it destroyed my relationship with food and I haven't really recovered even though the anxiety is receding. I lost 8kg in 1-2 months and am now the lightest I have been in 6 years. I still struggle to keep meals down (especially lunches) and I don't even try to have breakfast due to lack of appetite in the mornings. I want to eat, I want to gain weight, but at the same time I can't deny that I like how I look at the moment (not that I hated myself before). Is it possible for my anxiety to have triggered a subconscious eating disorder, or is this all just a mess of subconscious anxiety?

Jarred28 GAD and problems with intimacy
  • replies: 2

I thought id express myself on here with what I'm feeling lately. Been waking up every day in a panic state which then leads to depersonalization its like I'm not in my own body and everything is blurry and seems unreal. I also get extreme bursts of ... View more

I thought id express myself on here with what I'm feeling lately. Been waking up every day in a panic state which then leads to depersonalization its like I'm not in my own body and everything is blurry and seems unreal. I also get extreme bursts of tiredness during the day like I'm about to pass out or just fall to sleep which leads me to panic even more. I have a real lack of concentration during the day because of this and even people talking to me I don't take in half of what they're saying cause I feel like I'm just not there. Onto the intimacy stuff, I'm a 26 year old male but I haven't had intercourse with anyone in over 4 years due to this anxiety. The last time I remember doing it I was just extremely nervous about my performance and I was shaking a lot. Any help with either issues would be appreciated thanks