Recent anxiety!

[Oryt]

Hi sorry I'm new to this site today and just felt I needed to express my recent anxiety and get some tips!

Just little over a month and a half ago, I was having my haircut and all of a sudden I started shaking out of nowhere whenever the barber was doing the precise bits at my sideburns which made me really panic and my whole body started to shake and I got all these thoughts popping into my brain like "I need to get out of here" "I'll make an excuse to go to the toilet" or some other reason. The barber must of been thinking I was a right weirdo! :( I was a little shaky after that event as I had never experienced anything like it before!

However, I was fine until just about 2 weeks ago I done a presentation for University, and my leg started shaking out of control in front of the entire class and I had to keep going pretending it wasn't happening and my head shaking too. (I'm laughing at myself now thinking about how stupid I must of looked!). But I was fine later on that day and just sort of laughed it off to myself. But a few days later I started really panicking about going to work (I work as a waiter/bar person at my local pub where I've worked part time for almost 4 years) And thinking I was going to shake in front of the customers and embarrass myself. I had another sort of attack much like the barbers one where I was sitting in my toilet overthinking what bad things would happen if I started shaking in work. However I went to work and was a bit shaky at first but after a few minutes I was back to my usual self, chatting away to everyone and not shaky.

But now things have gotten worse, I went to the pub with friends and I seen how busy it was so we would have to stand, which made me so worried my leg would shake like the presentation... so I quickly gave my friend my money to buy my drink and I went to the toilet to calm myself down as my hand was shaking so bad. I came back from the toilet and the pint had been given to me, but I had to drink it with two hands as my hands were shaking so much (what a mess!) but after 10 mins I was back to drinking it normally with one hand and the nerves had gone!

But get this, recently I'm even panicking over eating dinner in front of my mum, dad and brother incase my hands start shaking holding the cutlery... I mean c'mon what is wrong with me?! I've managed to avoid dinner for the last two nights (1 due to work and last night I said I wasn't feeling well) however I can't avoid it forever, and I don't want to! I want to beat this thing :( It's slowly taking over my life but I'm trying so hard not to let it. I should of said that I've had an extremely stressful last few months... doing my dissertation for University, studying for exams, increase in work shifts etc. which might of added to this?

Has anyone got any tips or similar situations in which they have been in? I feel so silly for worrying over such trivial things like eating dinner or drinking a pint! But I have two exams in 2 days and I'm worried I'll shake during it and embarrass myself :(

[Anxiety91]

OMG I have had Panic Attack in middle of getting my hair done by barber, she noticed something was wrong, and offered me a glass of water, the positive thing about it is that she also sometimes suffers from Panic Attacks so she understood me well, and told me: Don't worry, I know how that Panic Feeling can feel like, no one else can't understand it better than I... This calmed me down so quick. I do not have shaky feeling, but I have fast and forceful heart beat, which freaks me out, thinking I am having Heart Attack...

The common thing I can read in your post is that you get that shaky feeling whenever you think, or know in advance it will happen, something in your mind triggers it... The way of you perception is not good. I guess the shaky feeling never appears when you are alone, or where no one can see you, or where you can't get embarrassed (Your safe zones), if that is true, you can start from there. Why this feeling doesn't appear when you are alone? Same for me, why I don't get fast heart beat, when I am alone? If something is wrong with both of us, this feeling will strike at random, and we will be hopeless to help ourselves, well not completely but in different way than we can help us if the result of happening is Anxiety. The worst tip I can give you is not to think about it, or think about it in positive way. I personally think. this is a solution to our problems, which is hard to implement. Give yourself a break, tell yourself okay If I get shaky feeling, I will give myself 5 - 10 minutes break, before i get into a panic mode. For example, if you get shaky feeling, tell yourself okay, its happening I am aware of it, it just started, and I won't panic until it lasts for 5-10 minutes, with my complete ignorance about it... If someone notices, you can say, I don't know why I get this shaky feeling, it started few months ago, I am completely fine, and it will end in few minutes...

The way it all started, you got shaky feeling at random, which may occur to completely healthy person, same as sharp feeling when you breath, or in the chest, or in the leg from time to time it is completely normal to feel them. But the way it happened to you is that you immediately linked this feeling to something very bad, and it stayed there in your mind like it, you started thinking about it and focused your attention to it. I have had tremor before, but somehow I considered it a normal response, and never worried myself out with the thought about that specific symptom... On the other hand, I know I am over-thinking my heart problem, and still I manage to coop with it, but not completely.

I hope I helped a little bit at least, it is good for a start. I wish you all the best.

[Oryt]

Thank you for the response!

Yeah when I'm alone I'm absolutely fine, and after some alcohol I'm fine too! From watching someones video on youtube, I've learned that I just need to learn to say yes to things, even if I feel I might be a bit anxious, just to fight through it and I will be normal in 5/10 minutes after its subsided. I done my first exam since this all happened yesterday and you know what, I was absolutely fine, didn't shake at all. I'm building it up in my head to be much worse :)

What you said about laughing it off was so true! It's not a big deal, it's not going to stop me living my life :) I've been reading the forums and one key thing I read was "It just takes time" to forget its happening, to learn to deal with it and eventually it will be forgotten about (I HOPE!). There's no point in me living in the fear of a panic attack all the time, it may or may not happen but why ruin the whole day worrying about something which has a very high chance of NOT happening.

Thanks again for your input, was very helpful to know that someone is going through a similar issue :) I know I'm not alone and that its just something silly to worry about!

[gypsylee]

Hi and welcome to the forum :)

[Anxiety91]

I am glad I managed to help you... Same thing is for me, I am also fine after using alcohol, which is completely logical since I never drink alone, and I am very relaxed when I am drunk, and don't have any stressful thoughts, usually when I drink I have fun or celebrate something... You don't need to be harsh on yourself, it is okay to feel the way you feel, it is something new for you, and you have to give it time to learn how to conquer it, no one is born with knowledge. Think about all this in a way of mentally improving yourself to the better point than it was before, and this is a step forward, it may look like it is step backward, but trust me it isn't. Once you learn how to manage this, you will be much more stronger mentally, than before...

And you are completely right about what you said, keep up with this way of thinking it certainly can help you improve.

[struggling1234]

Thank you, your post helped me!