How to get help?

Can you pinpoint the trigger that started this a year ago? Let's find a starting point. Looking forward to hearing from you. We CAN help. Everone in this forum knows exactly what you are talking about. We are all in the same boat...dealing with anxiety.

How old are you? Have you been losing weight? Any recent change in diet habits? Have you been taking any medication, supplements or recreational drugs in the weeks preceding the episode? (No need to answer here just explore for yourself). Have you had blood tests (FBC and trace minerals, thyroid and liver function etc), ecg and full cardio check-up including echo doppler and stress test? Do you have asthma/done a chest x ray? How much coffee/soft drinks or energy drinks do you consume? Any alcohol? Do you have sleep apnea (stop breathing during sleep or struggle to breathe or snore excessively) ? (this can be confirmed by anyone who could stay by you at night while you sleep). Now, once all that is covered by the doctors who see you, still your lack of sleep seals the deal sending your condition into a spiral. You CAN't start feeling better (if indeed it is anxiety) until you have rested and regrouped. You need melatonin produced during sleep to repair your frail nerves. You can (provided your liver is ok which your FBC would have confirmed) take b-complex vitamins to help repair your nervous system while you are exhausted and unable to do so by sleeping well. You need to be referred to a psychiatrist to assist getting you back to sleep to help in your recovery and explore the need for anti-anxiety therapy be it in the form of medication (likely because it sounds like a chemical imbalance rather than a psychological deal in your case) or psychotherapy or both. Something is up and just because you don't have suicidal tendencies does not mean they can write off your suffering. You need to demand to be thoroughly checked out. I hope you get to the bottom of it and feel better fast!

You said you went to doctors for 6 months, so I'm assuming you have been pretty well looked over. If it is anxiety, the first thing to do is get on an anti anxiety drug. I am not a great fan of drugs and avoid them whenever possible, but with anxiety they are needed, at least initially, until you can think clearly again and make decisions that will help yourself. 

Actually, I am not going to go much further until you get help calming down. (that is the first thing I did, and saw enough difference in a few days to convince me I was not going to die, go insane or hate myself forever) remember that most of what is going on isn't real. It's your mind and caused by anxiety.I have experienced much of what you reported and am glad to say I am MUCH better.

While you are getting this help, you need to check your diet making sure you are not eating and drinking things that make it worse, and believe me, that is possible. If I have something on the no no list, I go through the roof in minutes. Many people in this forum report a positive reaction to right eating. Do what I did, (my doctor put me onto this) google FOODS THAT HELP ANXIETY, and FOODS THAT MAKE ANXIETY WORSE. The third thing is a good anxiety counselor. Yes, there are counselors that understand anxiety, and can help, even to tell you if is indeed anxiety or not. Many doctors, including one of mine don't get how awful this can be or flat out don't believe you and even laugh at you when you try to tell themwhat's going on. Fortunately, my other doctor is the one that spotted the problem as anxiety, and got me on a medication same day. I saw a tiny difference within a day or so, and have been progressing slowly but steadily since then.  If you do these three things, anti anxiety drug, total diet change, anxiety counseling with a counselor who verifies it is anxiety, you should be very aware you are improving and on the right path. One, two, three things to do Don't be overwhelmed, do them one at a time.

I do want to say that my counselor happens to be a social services counselor connected to the clinic I go to. It's not whether the person who helps you is a psychiatrist, psychologist, counselor, or whatever. The important thing is that they are an anxiety therapist. Like I said, they are qualified to tell you it is not anxiety  or that it is, and they can help. They can tell you this very quickly...not taking months to do so.

Have faith, have hope. You may get many answers here, some of them not agreeing. We only put our thoughts from our own experience out there and it is up to you to choose what feels right for you. No matter how messed up we get, if we pay attention, we will know what's best for ourselves. When my doctor told me what it was, even with no personal previous experience with anxiety, I KNEW he was right. I am not one of those people who believes what everybody says just because of their credentials. I trust intuition. I just "fired" my primary doctor because her error brought the anxiety on with a BIG drug mistake. As I said, my other doctor (thank god) caught it.

I have quite gone on long enough. Keep in touch. Oh, I just remembered, I once knew a priest who was an anxiety therapist, so really look around, google, etc. You may find your person in an unexpected place. Keep in touch. Some days we just need to know someone cares. I do...we do, Mantis