How do I know if I have a disorder?

[amneasy]

So a little over a month ago I had a very stressful week and that led to a few panic attacks and my anxiety level got pretty high. Since then I haven't felt completely normal yet, some days I feel better and some days it gets bad again, but it seems like overall I'm making progress and slowly coming back to "normal". I have no particular fear or phobia, I don't have any problems going out or being in a crowded place for example, I'm a little shy person and have mild OCD but that's all. What seems to make me anxious is the fear of having a disorder, sometimes I start to wonder if I'll need to take some strong pills (I REALLY don't wanna do this) or go through treatment, and that's what triggers anxiety on me. I'm constantly "checking" myself to see how I feel hoping that I'll be feeling normal (for the past weeks the very first thing I do when I wake up is to check how I feel).

How do I know if I have anxiety disorder or if I'm just recovering from all the stress that my body went through a month ago? By the way before that week I had never experienced such strong anxiety feelings.

[dazza]

The only qualified people who can absolutely tell you whether you have a mental disorder (or not) are:

1/ Doctor
2/ Psychiatrist (who specialises in mental health diagnosis)

To me, it sounds highly probable that you suffer anxiety disorder (everything in your post suggests you have) but you need a professional opinion.

Question: What do you think you have if it ISN'T anxiety (or a derivative thereof) disorder?
I.e. why do you question it?
(In the short paragraph you've written you've pretty much diagnosed yourself)

[amneasy]

The only qualified people who can absolutely tell you whether you have a mental disorder (or not) are:

1/ Doctor
2/ Psychiatrist (who specialises in mental health diagnosis)

To me, it sounds highly probable that you suffer anxiety disorder (everything in your post suggests you have) but you need a professional opinion.

Question: What do you think you have if it ISN'T anxiety (or a derivative thereof) disorder?
I.e. why do you question it?
(In the short paragraph you've written you've pretty much diagnosed yourself)

I thought that maybe I just had a nervous breakdown and my brain is recovering. I know that right now I have anxiety, but I was wondering if it is a disorder (something that it won't just go away with time) that needs to be treated. I mean, people can still feel anxious without necessarily having a disorder.

[dazza]

Ahhhh Ok... now i'm with you.

Even worst case disorders can be treated. There's always hope on that front.

On a personal note, I was diagnosed with anxiety disorder back in December 2011. 6 months on and I'm pretty much back to normal.

There are plenty of people on this forum that have made a full recovery. The methods they used clearly worked and it is up to you to persue those methods (rather than do nothing about it).

You SOUND LIKE you simply have health anxiety... or a form thereof.
That is EASILY treatable through (maybe 10 sessions) of cognetive therapy.

STOP worrying unnecessarily about things that aren't there and concentrate on getting better.
In particular, DON'T for gawds sake worry about therapy... we ALL need it from time to time when things are particularly crappy.

[amneasy]

Ahhhh Ok... now i'm with you.

Even worst case disorders can be treated. There's always hope on that front.

On a personal note, I was diagnosed with anxiety disorder back in December 2011. 6 months on and I'm pretty much back to normal.

There are plenty of people on this forum that have made a full recovery. The methods they used clearly worked and it is up to you to persue those methods (rather than do nothing about it).

You SOUND LIKE you simply have health anxiety... or a form thereof.
That is EASILY treatable through (maybe 10 sessions) of cognetive therapy.

STOP worrying unnecessarily about things that aren't there and concentrate on getting better.
In particular, DON'T for gawds sake worry about therapy... we ALL need it from time to time when things are particularly crappy.

Thank you for your reply. Yeah, I really need to stop worrying so much, I can pretty much distract myself for hours without thinking about anxiety but once I stop doing what I'm doing I then check myself to see how I feel, that's when the anxiety comes up and I think like "Shit, I still have it. Won't this feeling never go away?". Then I start thinking that I'm trapped forever in this state and will have to take some strong medicine to feel better and all that, even though I AM getting better and better each day. I'll work on trying to relax and just let my brain "heal", I think that's what I need.

Contratulations on your recovery by the way, it's always nice to hear that.

[dazza]

SEE! you already know the answer! (high five!)

We've ALL been there. I mean, thinking this will NEVER go away and that we're trapped in this freakish hell forever.
(Same as depression, actually... depressed folk think the same)

WRONG!

It's a passing phase... honestly. You're already most the way there by the sounds of it.

Next time you check yourself... say out loud, "What the hell am I doing?"
Ask yourself what frickin' difference is checking yourself making? (the answer is of course... F*CK ALL) < remember this

[amneasy]

I'll follow your advice. Thank you very much, you are really helpful.