Need reassurance

Leesy

It's Linda again! An illness left me with panic attacks and anxiety. It was awful. I was exactly like you. After a few months I just stayed at home. I even got anxious when people came to visit me. I felt vulnerable and scared and I couldn't stop my mind racing and going over and over all the anxious thoughts.

I have been lucky to have counselling along with the cit (week 13 and 4 sessions with psychiatric nurse).

It took about 4 weeks for the tablets to get into my system and then the dosage was upped from 20mg to 30mg to make them more effective.

You know that the negative thoughts are causing the anxiety and realise that you are creating the panic by letting the anxiety build. Instead of hanging onto the anxious thought in your mind try to make it move on by letting another thought come in - maybe something about your surroundings or what you are going to buy. Try not to stop going out like I did - just do one thing most days.

This worked for me and I have my life back. The anxiety hasn't completely gone but now if I have an anxious thought I just mentally say to myself \"It's just a thought. I am not going back to how I was.' I then just get on with what I am doing and the anxiety goes before it builds into anything at all. It is great to have me back!

I am an ordinary person so if I can do it you can too.

Linda

Hello Linda

the thing is that i didn't have this anxiety before when i was out so is it just anxiety from the medication and then because i am amxious i have made it worse? And if so, will the tablets calm this down when they have kicked in?

Certainly the medication makes it worse in the beginning. Can't say how long that would be for - varies from person to person. Could it be that you subconsciously think I am on tablets so I must be ill and that starts the anxiety?

Best not to dwell on it. The more you try to analyze a thought the longer it stays in your mind. I expect then like me your mind keeps going over the whys. This is the pattern of thinking I had to break. All my thoughts were me-centred - how am I feeling?, why am I like this? and so on. I had to focus on the world outside of me to re-engage with it. Now the thoughts that pass through my head are about the ordinary things in daily life.

Keep strong - you can beat this.

Linda

Yes i just go over things again and again. I try all sorts of ways to change but the negative thoughts just keep popping up again. Its a vicious circle.

I am putting it down to the medication and just hoping that although its horrible and the moment, but once the medication starts to work, i won't feel so anxious and can start changing my thoughts and coping better.

Do a google search for Will Beswick. I found his thoughts interesting and bought his book. It helped me. He tells how he got his life back after years and years of negative thinking. He did it without any medication just by letting negative thoughts pass through and positive ones take over.

Take care

Linda

Hi linda,

Thanks for all your help. I went to the doctors today for more reassurance and he said that i have not been on them for two weeks yet and i am just going through the rotten bit and will feel worse before feel better but they should work for me cos have done before.

Felt reassured for a bit but now feel anxious again!!