How do you deal with constant anxiety?
Posted , 5 users are following.
Hello,
Sorry for the novel!
Just a bit of background. I have been off work for 4 weeks now give or take with anxiety attacks and stress. I had my first "major" anxiety attack in work (scary experience) completely out the blue, I didn't really understand what was happening at the time. I now understand that they are the usual symptoms, palpitations, sweats, shaky, dizzy, hot flush, hyperventilating etc etc. After a trip to A&E who ran multiple tests only to confirm everything is fine.
Despite being told I am fine (after multiple GP visits as well), I have had multiple attacks since. At one point, I could barely manage going outside, shopping was so daunting! I am only a 25 year old male, and two months ago I was perfectly healthy and cycling 10-20 miles a day without a care in the world!
Since being off work however, I have not improved at all. I just feel completely disconnected with everything and just have this horrible tension headache all day, I can barely focus on anything as my eyesight just seems so blurry (prescription is fine as well) and just get drained so easily. I could barely manage 20 minutes on my bike last week before having to call for a lift!
I had lost about a stone and a bit in just over a month and just feel physically drained because of it (I was thin to begin with – 5,11 and 66kg) so losing this much weight has worried me.
I have been told that it’s just anxiety multiple times, I have tried propranolol, and therapy both to no avail. My anxiety has been more under control lately (more therapy controlled) and I have started eating properly again which is good, so I thought it was time to head back to work.
I am happy go luckily and pretty laid back, my job is not particularly stressful either. I have worked there for 8 years now and never used any sick pay and admittedly yes, I am bored to my whit’s end now. I spent 10 hours a day in a windowless office set inside gloomy grey, dirty warehouse just staring at numbers. There is no mental stimulation and barely conversation between colleagues / barely enough work to get us through the day – I hate “finding” something to do. Its soul destroying and not what I envisioned when doing my degree / masters at all. I have actually counted the ceiling tiles more times than I dare admit – 274.
Why do I stay? Honestly, I have no idea. It’s just become to routine and comfortable and the pay / hours suite me. I have always had distractions around work and it seems I always put barriers up to trying new things in comparison to what perks I have at work. Lately though the distractions have all ended and nothing has replaced them.
Today was my first day back in and was feeling confident about it, and I just couldn’t face it. I was up all night vomiting, barely slept and on my morning commute, had to stop 3 times to calm down / be sick. Not pleasant at all – I didn’t make it into work needless to say. It was like every fibre in my body was screaming don’t go back to the place – don’t be stupid.
Now’s the kicker, the catch 22. I need work to live and can’t face going to the place I work. I have rented for 4 years now, and financially okay, no real debts. I am due to complete on a house soon (first time buyers) and I should be looking forward to my new start with my partner. However I just can’t shake the feeling that by signing, I will be trapped at my workplace forever and forced to “get over” this anxiety overnight. How can I sign, when I can barely get through a day as it is and what type of new start is it, when your job is having such a physically effect on you now, it’s taken the enjoyment out of everything and replaced it with shear panic.
I know I need to leave my workplace, I am pretty sure that is the driver for all this, though the anxiety always wins and I just muddle on with feeling rubbish 24/7.
I am more stressed out now than I ever have been. Gah!
Any advice would be greatly appreciated. What would you do?
Feel free to share your own experience as well below.
It’s helped a lot just writing the worries down!
1 like, 5 replies
j38024 thomas44921
Posted
I'm not experiencing the type of anxiety you are but I can hopefully give you some advice as to what I would do in your shoes.
Obviously, I do feel like you need to look for another job. Maybe you could go to a career advisor and look at what options you have available to you? This could help shake some of that anxiety to know that there are other options out there. For example, you sound like you like sports? Try and find a job that's more active and could possibily incoporate sport in some way.
I do think you should talk to your partner and tell them everything you've put here in this thread. They might be able to come up with other options and help you in some way if you open up. Maybe you could work part time for now in a less well paid job whilst you find a better job, but that will also for the time being provide you financial support? However, the end goal should be finding a way to manage anxiety because you can't run from your fears forever.
I have also just been advised on the thread I started that I should watch my diet and what I eat because certain food can trigger anxiety. This is something you could too look at.
To manage your anxiety you could practice mindfulness which I was advised to do and I'm going to watch a video on it today.
Hope I helped in some way and good luck with everything.
cia42277 thomas44921
Posted
First of all there is no such thing as JUST ANXIETY. Unfortunately, even many doctors don't get the horror of anxiety. If you really want help, let's start with this. You need to understand what is happening to you, why it is happening and that tens of thousands of people suffer and I do mean suffer, with this. For the answer to what and why I want you to do something right now. Google exactly this....adrenaline and anxiety. Open and read at least a few of the sites until you understand what they are telling you. It's very clear and not complicated. They cover it more fully than I can do here. Please, please do this for your self. This will be the start of you knowing you can take your power, mind and body back from the thief that anxiety is.
When you get that, come back and let's go on from there.
Swaggdalu thomas44921
Posted
Hi Thomas,
I can totally relate to what you are going through. I was diagnosed with GAD back in november. Before that, like you, i was very fit, running 2 miles a day every day. On the weekends i also hiked alot with my buddies. I started my job in Febuary of last year. i really liked it for a while but then around September i kind of started getting anxious while i was at work. I didnt pay much attention to it as i thought it was normal. So fast forward to november when i had my first panic attack. I went to the ER and had the typical symptoms, Shortness of breath, chest pain, lightheadedness. All major red flags for the H word (Heart Attack, i still hate that word). Anyways, after that i went like a couple more times because i didint know what was wrong with me. Ive seen my doctor like so many times already its embarrasing, Ive had my heart checked and im fine. I also have health anxiety and i constantly worry about my BP and my heart rate and other things. Every little symptom i have i atribute it to something dangerous when there is a simple explanation for it. Anyways, 1 month ago i took a break from work. It was a week long break. Before my break i was always stressed, Always in pain and i always was in bed. I went to work came back and then slept. That was it. I couldnt do much exercise and i didnt hang out with my buddies anymore. During my break, i noticed my symptoms started to go away. I was less stressed, less pain from the chest, i was overall happy. After my break, i went back to work and noticed that work really stressed me out. I was more anxious at work. I get more symptoms at work, Like chest pain, shortness of breath, muscle aches and muscle twitches and spasms, Feelings of impending doom, just an overall not good feeling. So thats when I figured out work was the culpirt. Im in the same boat as you, do i leave do i stay? work provides me great benifits and great medical. And right now i really need the medical. So do i stay for the medical or leave because if the medical things its making me get. Im at a cross road right now. I am managing a little better, but i need or we need to come up with a plan where anxiety does not take over our life's and dictate where we go, what we do, or how we spend our days. Just know that you are not alone. It will get better. I would rely on your partner and let them know whats going on. Hope you find your answer Thomas.
kimberly59704 thomas44921
Posted
Yep out of the blue. Everything fine 1 min, and the next is a nightmare. You are in the throes of constant anxiety and panic. When Iwould have a panic attack,I couldn't get out of them. I would run out of places, and cry. I couldn't eat, sleep, or function. Went on for years. When this first happened to me I was 23, and there wasn't these amazing life saving meds, so I lived with this for years. Thought I would die. I went to my family doc in my early thirties and got on meds. Oh my gosh,I feel fabulous. I am 56 now and have changed meds a few times, cause of a sm. side effect or needed a change, but they have saved me. Please call you family doctor right away and get relief from this madness. You will be riding 20 miles again, I promise.
helen20833 thomas44921
Posted
The turmoil you are enduring is sad. Obviously, your job has a negative effect upon you. It is not mentally stimulating and you are "trapped " and confined in a windowless space.
It is very difficult to remove ourselves from our "comfort" zone, in your case that being your job. But perhaps if you look around for something else, taking control and that positive step, will assist you in feeling better. At the moment you are floundering which will exacerbate your physical symptoms.
It was interesting that you fear signing for your house. This is something you need to open up to your partner about. Truth is, though you view it as being trapped, you still have to work to pay rent on your current property. So where is the difference? You should be proud that you are about to be on the property ladder as rent, after all, is wasted money. So you need to ask yourself why you truly fear such a commitment.
It appears your thought process is all muddled and you need to be honest both with yourself, and your partner, about what and why you worry over.
Taking positive steps to sort things out can only benefit you!
I wish you well