raggamuffin
07-21-2013, 08:45 AM
It's not a tangible substance or material like our skin or a phone that you can touch and feel and see. It's all in our mind and it's the fuel that keeps the fires of anxiety burning.
The mind is very powerful, and as corny as the quote "Mind over matter" sounds, you're living it right now. Anxiety - conjured in the mind is powerful enough to make you physically hurt. The aches, the pains, the constant self doubt. We get ourselves so wound up by being stressed and worried for months and years that the body starts giving you aches and pains and all manner of symptoms to say "Look i'm stressed out and I need to take time to recover".
I imagine the stress and worries built up over years. There could be key events, abuse, loss, self confidence issues, bullying. But what's apparent with everyone is that when the mind has been put through so much negative emotions it starts to push back with symptoms. For some it might start with an anxiety attack. The conclusion is often severe. We feel alienated within our own body. Suddenly we no longer feel safe. We start to doubt, we start to worry and the vicious circle of stress takes up our daily lives. We wonder when the next anxiety attack will come. We think to ourselves "What if next time I die". Perhaps you had an attack in a shop. From then on your mind will associate shops with danger. You might avoid shopping entirely to feel safe. However safety behaviour is a hinderance and not a help. Some people engage in this so much they become utterly housebound convinced that the slightest change in routine could cause an attack.
But there is a complete lack of safety in our minds when anxiety takes a hold. We fill our minds with countless "what if" questions. Often thinking up the worst possible outcomes for day to day life. Sometimes you wake up feeling fine, those few moments of bliss before reality sets in. But our anxiety is a fiction, a nightmare fairytale which we are penning ourselves. The weight of our worries piles ontop of us shortly after we wake up and we feel like there'll never be a day when we wake up not feeling groggy or aching or utterly fed up with the rut we're in. The aches, the pains, the fears, the blues. But please refrain from going to the Dr's whenever a new pain manifests itself. It can be hard to believe the Dr's when we are told it's "just anxiety". We can't piece together how feeling anxious could cause a pain. We convince ourselves it must be something else. Soemthing the tests have not found. But remember we are not thinking logically when we feel anxious every day. We don't have 5+ years of medical knowledge to our names. If it's not visiting the Dr constantly it can be using Google, but often doesn't help. How many times have you ached, Googled and then felt complete dread and terror? A simple headache could lead to you reading about life threatning conditions. So do yourself a favour and refrain from bad habits. If you really can't resist Googling pains or symptoms put in "Anxiety" at the beginning of each pain description.
We can be our own worst enemy when it comes to anxiety. It's all in our minds and it's up to us to overcome it. You can throw drugs, supplements, herbal remedies, acupuncture, holsitic healing or whatever else you think might cure you instantly. But it won't. You could be dosed up to your eyeballs and feel like things are better because the anxiety isn't there. But it's still lurking in the background because the root causes need to be addressed.
It's through understanding and reading about anxiety that things start slotting into place. This is what therapy will address with people. Piecing together your trains of thought, working out the negative and unhelpful ways of thinking. When we're so self absorbed in an anxious world logic tends to be put aside. Instead we have the fears, the worries and sheer paranoia. Day by day you go through pains and sometimes they're so bad you think to yourself "this is it". But what happens? Every morning you wake up again. This shoudl be a sign that anxiety won't hurt you. It won't kill you. You may feel weak or helpless. But know this, you are all brave. TO go through this uphill struggle day in day out takes courage.
But what's also important to remember is that we are all in various stages of recovery. You may well feel lost, but each day we experience the anxiety, the pains and get through it we're one step closer to overcoming this. Yes, we feel utterly bogged down in it all, but being here will help. Provided you ask the right questions. By that I mean if you have a chest pain and ask on here you will no doubt feel at ease realizing how common a symptom it is. But don't post the question time after time, week after week. It can become an addiction and bad pastime in itself. What we must do is gradually Build up knowledge about anxiety. Rationalize the aches and pains and don't let the worries or "what if's" get a foothold. Understanding how our mindset has made our instinctual side become dominant is very important. This is the fight or flight response. Read about it, understand how everytime we get an ache or pain we feel that sudden rush. Perhaps it's not a rush, perhaps it's a sinking feeling or an all encompassing fear. But that is the fight or flight response. As you feel your heart race, the symptoms worsening. THis is all the bodies natural mechanism to fight or fly from danger.
So where is the danger? Much like the title says; it doesn't exist. The daily worrying about death, disease and pains... all of this kicks in the fight or flight response. Every day, perhaps even every hour. Sometimes it'll get so bad you have a full blown anxiety attack. Other times it'll make your aches and pains last for hours, weeks and yes, sometimes even months. But notice this; not only do we wake to live and fight another day. But have you ever noticed you have an ache or pain at the forefront of your mind and yet when you're busy, and I mean truly engaged the pains lessen or disappear? Often you could have an ache for so long then one day another pain comes along. Suddenly the previous pain is no longer a concern and POOF it's gone or dulled at least. This prooves without a shadow of a doubt that it's anxiety. Real illnesses wouldn't fade when you're busy or disappear when you feel another symptom. Again, rationalizing is key and takes practice to master.
The instinctual side of our mind is what must be subdued. This takes time. There is no overnight cure, as much as we'd like to find one. But through practice we can learn to not respond with emotions. So what if your chest aches. How many times in the past has it ached since you've had anxiety? How many times has it kiled you? That's right, none. So let your body ache. That's right, let it do it.... head, neck, shoulders, back, tummy. Wherever your body decides to make you hurt. Your body is simply showing you it's tired, wound up, fed up, stressed and every other emotion the anxiety has bestowed upon you. It's exhasuting isn't it? Feeling this way? Now think about how your body feels too because it's going through the motions just as your mind is. So don't add secondary worries to an aching body that aches solely due to worry. There is no danger and no need to fight.
It can make us panic, upset or downright angry when a pain comes along. But try not responding to emotions. When a pain comes along don't think about "what if's". Don't let your mind race at 100mph. Instead say to yourself you're not in danger. Laugh at your body "silly body, i'm not in danger". Might sound silly, but i'm sure most of us know that panicking, crying, fighting or getting upset doesn't help. It hinders us and can make the pains worse. We simply can't fixate on illness, pains, worries and fears all day. The fight or flight response simply goes into overdrive. Yes, it's hard to undo months or years of bad habit. But nothing is impossible and remember it's mind over matter.
Remove the fear and worry through understanding and knowledge. That is key. Everything else will help you along the way, such as eating healthily, removing processed sugars and junk food, exercising, getting enough daylight etc. They're the icing on the cake. But the real foundations is your mindset and digging yourself out of this self made hole that the worries and stresses have dug you into.
It does take time, but there's no need to loose hope. We are a community here and we are here for each other. But remember don't fixate on the bad. I know how hopeless and fruitless life can feel. Yet, when you feel at your lowest the only way is up. So let's help each other. Read each others stories and constantly build up the knowledge about anxiety. You will start to piece together how anxiety is affecting you. There will be times we feel so happy but pains might come on out of the blue. Again, don't fret or worry and don't respond emotionally. Your body will take time to recover, just as your mind will too. Be patient, unwind and focus on the good in life, because it is there...but sometimes we have to do a little digging to find it
Ed
The mind is very powerful, and as corny as the quote "Mind over matter" sounds, you're living it right now. Anxiety - conjured in the mind is powerful enough to make you physically hurt. The aches, the pains, the constant self doubt. We get ourselves so wound up by being stressed and worried for months and years that the body starts giving you aches and pains and all manner of symptoms to say "Look i'm stressed out and I need to take time to recover".
I imagine the stress and worries built up over years. There could be key events, abuse, loss, self confidence issues, bullying. But what's apparent with everyone is that when the mind has been put through so much negative emotions it starts to push back with symptoms. For some it might start with an anxiety attack. The conclusion is often severe. We feel alienated within our own body. Suddenly we no longer feel safe. We start to doubt, we start to worry and the vicious circle of stress takes up our daily lives. We wonder when the next anxiety attack will come. We think to ourselves "What if next time I die". Perhaps you had an attack in a shop. From then on your mind will associate shops with danger. You might avoid shopping entirely to feel safe. However safety behaviour is a hinderance and not a help. Some people engage in this so much they become utterly housebound convinced that the slightest change in routine could cause an attack.
But there is a complete lack of safety in our minds when anxiety takes a hold. We fill our minds with countless "what if" questions. Often thinking up the worst possible outcomes for day to day life. Sometimes you wake up feeling fine, those few moments of bliss before reality sets in. But our anxiety is a fiction, a nightmare fairytale which we are penning ourselves. The weight of our worries piles ontop of us shortly after we wake up and we feel like there'll never be a day when we wake up not feeling groggy or aching or utterly fed up with the rut we're in. The aches, the pains, the fears, the blues. But please refrain from going to the Dr's whenever a new pain manifests itself. It can be hard to believe the Dr's when we are told it's "just anxiety". We can't piece together how feeling anxious could cause a pain. We convince ourselves it must be something else. Soemthing the tests have not found. But remember we are not thinking logically when we feel anxious every day. We don't have 5+ years of medical knowledge to our names. If it's not visiting the Dr constantly it can be using Google, but often doesn't help. How many times have you ached, Googled and then felt complete dread and terror? A simple headache could lead to you reading about life threatning conditions. So do yourself a favour and refrain from bad habits. If you really can't resist Googling pains or symptoms put in "Anxiety" at the beginning of each pain description.
We can be our own worst enemy when it comes to anxiety. It's all in our minds and it's up to us to overcome it. You can throw drugs, supplements, herbal remedies, acupuncture, holsitic healing or whatever else you think might cure you instantly. But it won't. You could be dosed up to your eyeballs and feel like things are better because the anxiety isn't there. But it's still lurking in the background because the root causes need to be addressed.
It's through understanding and reading about anxiety that things start slotting into place. This is what therapy will address with people. Piecing together your trains of thought, working out the negative and unhelpful ways of thinking. When we're so self absorbed in an anxious world logic tends to be put aside. Instead we have the fears, the worries and sheer paranoia. Day by day you go through pains and sometimes they're so bad you think to yourself "this is it". But what happens? Every morning you wake up again. This shoudl be a sign that anxiety won't hurt you. It won't kill you. You may feel weak or helpless. But know this, you are all brave. TO go through this uphill struggle day in day out takes courage.
But what's also important to remember is that we are all in various stages of recovery. You may well feel lost, but each day we experience the anxiety, the pains and get through it we're one step closer to overcoming this. Yes, we feel utterly bogged down in it all, but being here will help. Provided you ask the right questions. By that I mean if you have a chest pain and ask on here you will no doubt feel at ease realizing how common a symptom it is. But don't post the question time after time, week after week. It can become an addiction and bad pastime in itself. What we must do is gradually Build up knowledge about anxiety. Rationalize the aches and pains and don't let the worries or "what if's" get a foothold. Understanding how our mindset has made our instinctual side become dominant is very important. This is the fight or flight response. Read about it, understand how everytime we get an ache or pain we feel that sudden rush. Perhaps it's not a rush, perhaps it's a sinking feeling or an all encompassing fear. But that is the fight or flight response. As you feel your heart race, the symptoms worsening. THis is all the bodies natural mechanism to fight or fly from danger.
So where is the danger? Much like the title says; it doesn't exist. The daily worrying about death, disease and pains... all of this kicks in the fight or flight response. Every day, perhaps even every hour. Sometimes it'll get so bad you have a full blown anxiety attack. Other times it'll make your aches and pains last for hours, weeks and yes, sometimes even months. But notice this; not only do we wake to live and fight another day. But have you ever noticed you have an ache or pain at the forefront of your mind and yet when you're busy, and I mean truly engaged the pains lessen or disappear? Often you could have an ache for so long then one day another pain comes along. Suddenly the previous pain is no longer a concern and POOF it's gone or dulled at least. This prooves without a shadow of a doubt that it's anxiety. Real illnesses wouldn't fade when you're busy or disappear when you feel another symptom. Again, rationalizing is key and takes practice to master.
The instinctual side of our mind is what must be subdued. This takes time. There is no overnight cure, as much as we'd like to find one. But through practice we can learn to not respond with emotions. So what if your chest aches. How many times in the past has it ached since you've had anxiety? How many times has it kiled you? That's right, none. So let your body ache. That's right, let it do it.... head, neck, shoulders, back, tummy. Wherever your body decides to make you hurt. Your body is simply showing you it's tired, wound up, fed up, stressed and every other emotion the anxiety has bestowed upon you. It's exhasuting isn't it? Feeling this way? Now think about how your body feels too because it's going through the motions just as your mind is. So don't add secondary worries to an aching body that aches solely due to worry. There is no danger and no need to fight.
It can make us panic, upset or downright angry when a pain comes along. But try not responding to emotions. When a pain comes along don't think about "what if's". Don't let your mind race at 100mph. Instead say to yourself you're not in danger. Laugh at your body "silly body, i'm not in danger". Might sound silly, but i'm sure most of us know that panicking, crying, fighting or getting upset doesn't help. It hinders us and can make the pains worse. We simply can't fixate on illness, pains, worries and fears all day. The fight or flight response simply goes into overdrive. Yes, it's hard to undo months or years of bad habit. But nothing is impossible and remember it's mind over matter.
Remove the fear and worry through understanding and knowledge. That is key. Everything else will help you along the way, such as eating healthily, removing processed sugars and junk food, exercising, getting enough daylight etc. They're the icing on the cake. But the real foundations is your mindset and digging yourself out of this self made hole that the worries and stresses have dug you into.
It does take time, but there's no need to loose hope. We are a community here and we are here for each other. But remember don't fixate on the bad. I know how hopeless and fruitless life can feel. Yet, when you feel at your lowest the only way is up. So let's help each other. Read each others stories and constantly build up the knowledge about anxiety. You will start to piece together how anxiety is affecting you. There will be times we feel so happy but pains might come on out of the blue. Again, don't fret or worry and don't respond emotionally. Your body will take time to recover, just as your mind will too. Be patient, unwind and focus on the good in life, because it is there...but sometimes we have to do a little digging to find it
Ed