Will never be able to attend college classes :(

[JEH2004]

I have been avoiding going to college for a while now.

I fear:
Not being smart enough and failing
Having a panic attack
Cannot make eye contact with teacher/classmates
Group projects
People thinking Im wierd
People looking at me and laughing
Vomiting

Should I get on some sort of medication? Or try some therapy and wait until this gets better? Im tired of living my life in fear but at this point I absolutely cannot just jump in and face my fear because I know I will have to drop the classes because mentally Im sick.

[vaio]

To me it seems that college is not really important for you, think that many people with big health problems make everything possible to go to college, to them is so important, they like live for it.

The big problem for us with anxiety is that we anticipate too many problems. Most of them of course don't happen, but we always imagine them and even search for solutions...for these inexistent problems...

[txmom]

Not to belittle the problems and symptoms associated with anxiety/ panic disorder, but he's right.
People with terminal cancer go to college, knowing they probably won't survive long enough to utilize their degrees.
People with severe, incapacitating disabilities go to college, knowing that their disabilities will prevent them from ever entering the workforce no matter what sort of degree they get.
Why do these people go?
Pretty much, just for the hell of it.
Just for the experience of going.
Not because they think it will help them later on, because in many cases, they know that it won't.

You should go for the same reasons: just to do it. Just for the experience.
You also have even MORE reasons to go: presumably, you'll be alive for a long time, and will HAVE to enter the work force at some point.
Having a degree will give you more options, more control over the type of work you eventually end up doing.
People without degrees have to take whatever they can get. Often, this translates into low-paying jobs in the service industry- food service or retail.
Those jobs, besides being low-paying, require one to be constantly interacting with strangers, which is quite possibly the worst of all possible positions for someone with social anxiety to be in.

If you go to college and get a degree, it's unlikely you'll end up working in the service sector.
You will have more leverage when it comes to creating a life for yourself that is inside your personal comfort zone (for instance: perhaps, with the proper education, you can work in an office with only a few other people in it, or even work primarily from home, on your computer).

If you don't go to college, you'll end up poor, and poor people don't get much choice about what they want to do for a living; they end up doing the jobs nobody else wants, and if your anxiety disorder is severe, you might find these jobs extremely uncomfortable if not impossible.

Go to college, if you have that option.
If someone with Spina Bifida, Cerebral Palsy, AIDS, MS, or inoperable cancer can go to college (and ENJOY it!) then so can you.
Believe me, you can.
Many people with anxiety do, and there are social/mental health services available on every major college campus to assist you if your anxiety gets out of control during the school year.
I imagine these on-campus services will be even more extensive and prevalent in light of last week's school shooting in Virginia, which many people believe could have been avoided if the shooter's mental illness had been detected and treated in time.

[txmom]

Not to belittle the problems and symptoms associated with anxiety/ panic disorder, but he's right.
People with terminal cancer go to college, knowing they probably won't survive long enough to utilize their degrees.
People with severe, incapacitating disabilities go to college, knowing that their disabilities will prevent them from ever entering the workforce no matter what sort of degree they get.
Why do these people go?
Pretty much, just for the hell of it.
Just for the experience of going.
Not because they think it will help them later on, because in many cases, they know that it won't.

You should go for the same reasons: just to do it. Just for the experience.
You also have even MORE reasons to go: presumably, you'll be alive for a long time, and will HAVE to enter the work force at some point.
Having a degree will give you more options, more control over the type of work you eventually end up doing.
People without degrees have to take whatever they can get. Often, this translates into low-paying jobs in the service industry- food service or retail.
Those jobs, besides being low-paying, require one to be constantly interacting with strangers, which is quite possibly the worst of all possible positions for someone with social anxiety to be in.

If you go to college and get a degree, it's unlikely you'll end up working in the service sector.
You will have more leverage when it comes to creating a life for yourself that is inside your personal comfort zone (for instance: perhaps, with the proper education, you can work in an office with only a few other people in it, or even work primarily from home, on your computer).

If you don't go to college, you'll end up poor, and poor people don't get much choice about what they want to do for a living; they end up doing the jobs nobody else wants, and if your anxiety disorder is severe, you might find these jobs extremely uncomfortable if not impossible.

Go to college, if you have that option.
If someone with Spina Bifida, Cerebral Palsy, AIDS, MS, or inoperable cancer can go to college (and ENJOY it!) then so can you.
Believe me, you can.
Many people with anxiety do, and there are social/mental health services available on every major college campus to assist you if your anxiety gets out of control during the school year.
I imagine these on-campus services will be even more extensive and prevalent in light of last week's school shooting in Virginia, which many people believe could have been avoided if the shooter's mental illness had been detected and treated in time.

[txmom]

Oops, sorry for the repeat post.
Maybe the mods can delete one of them for me. :oops:
Thanks.

[JEH2004]

No, I REALLY do want to go. You know what, I dont really like that you people are ganging up on me telling me that I dont really WANT to do this. You think Im just a whiny little person over here. I dont know if you guys have experienced social anxiety or not but there are days I WANT to go see a movie but Im too scared to do even THAT. You dont know the extent of my anxiety so dont judge me.

[txmom]

I'm saying, NOT going to college will have repercussions that will be even more long-term, difficult, and unpleasant than GOING to college will be.

You need to accept that, and factor it into your decision.

Also recognize that college campuses are increasingly well-equipped to deal with mental health issues among the student population. There are resources for students who are struggling with social anxiety and other forms of psychological illness.

You should also factor that into your decision.

Don't say you aren't making a decision, because you are.
Your choice is this: "Try to go to college, or don't try."

Not trying will have lifelong negative ramifications.
Trying and succeeding will improve your future quality of life- as an anxiety-disordered person- significantly.
Trying and failing means you have lost nothing. You didn't have a degree before, and you still don't have one. At least you tried. Perhaps you can try again, at some later time when you're feeling more stable. If you've managed to earn even one college credit, that's still better than none, which is what you will have if you do not try.

[V for Victor]

JEH, we're not here to gang up on you, we're here to help you, because we DO have anxiety/depression problems too.

I for one can sympathize with you. I'm primarily OCD, but I also have some social anxiety. I know what you're saying, in terms of WANTING to go out and do something, but feeling afraid to, or even incapable of doing it. Sometimes I even get angry with myself over it, because I feel like I'm the only one stopping me from doing what I want. But the fear can just be so overpowering at times.

Fortunately, I've gotten over a lot of my fears, thanks to medication and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy.

The answer to your question about going onto medication is largely up to you. If your fears are preventing you from doing the things you want to do, and it's running your life, then you might want to look into speaking with a doctor/therapist about your problems. There are other methods for controlling anxiety, such as therapy, that do not require the use of medication, but are greatly enhanced by them.

I was very hesitant about taking pills off the start, but I got so bad that I decided that anything that could help me get over my anxiety would probably be worth it. Now I'm really glad I decided to start on the medication, because it has made me fell better than I have in years, and has cleared my mind so I can work on my problems logically.

You don't have to go on medication forever. Often times, doctors will put you on pills for about a year or so, to see if you can learn to control anxiety yourself while gradually coming off the meds.

[R8DRN8SHN]

I can see what your saying. Im kind of like you in a different situation. Except Im not worried about college right now, Im worried about when Im gonna get my job. Sometimes I feel like I just wanna go out there and do something and get a job. But I just cant. I feel embarresed doing anything when people are just lookin at me. I also hate group projects. Thats why I usually ditch History class with a friend. Unless I get high the day before I do something that might normaly be anxious for me, I feel like a new person. I feel like how I felt when I was a kid. Happy. I feel like I dont care what people think. IT JUST FEELS GREAT !

[amaya]

I would say take meds and take counsling dont ever deter your dream beacause of nerves

[TWYI]

I was terrible at uni, always had to sit on the end of the row just incase I had to dart out if I felt an attack coming on. Could never contemplate sitting in the middle of a row for lectures. I got some weird looks from friends that I had to sit on my own but I got through it with meds and time.

There were people at my uni who sat their exams in a separate room to the rest of us as they could not handle the masses of people in a huge exam hall. I was not quite this bad, but there are tons of people at uni with problems like yours. Talk to someone and try not to be embarrassed about it. You are most certainly not the only person going through this.

[MikeMarcoe]

It took me 13 years to get through college, because I had symptoms just like yours. Here's what I suggest you do:

Take a long time. Take one class per semester, preferably one LARGE class per semester, where there are about 200 or more people and you can sit in the back row. Go to a large state university if that's what it takes. You won't have to do group projects there. Periodically, move up in the rows until you are near the front. This is what I did.

Wear sunglasses in class and make very short eye contact once or twice per class. People will think you're weird, but they won't be able to see your eyes. You'll be able to see theirs, though, and they'll look pretty stupid while they're looking at you.

If you can, take a martial arts class, either at uni or outside of uni. In martial arts, you are EXPECTED to screw up, fail, do everything wrong, and make yourself look like a total idiot. The teachers know all about this. Why? Because martial arts teach you how to generate power from your body, and every beginner at this does it the wrong way, just as the teachers did when they were young. You will soon learn that failing will not cause you anxiety.

If you go to a big-enough university, you can find counseling and support groups. Take them while you are going slowly through school. Eventually, as time goes on, you will conquer your symptoms.

The key is: take small steps, and let yourself take many years if need be to make progress. Rome wasn't destroyed in a day, and neither is anxiety.