Time to have a rant......it's long

[Evelyn]

I've had GAD since August 08. I had suffered from anxiety before but nothing like this! It started when I had labyrinthitis LABS (vertigo/inner ear problems). I was bedridden for 10 days before I could even stand up, I had to crawl everywhere. Thats when the anxiety started, it was manageable at fisrt, mainly induced by seeing insects, flies and the falling sensation from my vertigo. Anyway this carries on for about 6 weeks, during which I'm off work because of the labs and sitting around all day isn't doing anything for my anxiety. About 8 weeks into my labs I got all phone call saying my grandma had died from a stroke. I've never felt so much pain (we were close) I found it hard to help with any funeral arragements etc. as my dizziness from labs was so severe. The panic attacks and anxiety got really crazy. I had a panic attack in a supermarket cafe cause some guy's shoe laces were undone?!? I don't even have a phobia of knots? The labs slowy passed after about 4 months and I went back to work. This has helped as I am focused, but as soon as I get home the worries started again.

Has anyone thought they were ill when there not? I was thirsty constantly for about 5 days and asked my doctor for a diabetes test. She was reluctant but did it for my peace if mind. As I waited for the resluts I was convinced I had it, but they came back negative. Then I thought I had MS! Half of me says 'Stop being so stupid' and the other half is saying 'but maybe I do' ARRGGHH. How can I relax when I'm my own enemy? Please let me know if your going through the same, I hate feeling alone.

[northstar]

hi evelyn! you wrote a similar post recently & i replied to you after it, but perhaps it's been lost down the boards somewhere and you didn't see it! so i'm just copying and pasting my reply to you here :) i also had labs last year, the extreme dizziness lasted about 6 weeks for me and then anxiety and panic took over, so our stories are similar and i totally understand your problems. oh and i also experienced the extreme thirst with the labs, and was also worried about diabetes lol! anyway, here is what i wrote first time round, i hope you find it comforting:

evelyn i had the exact same problem with my ears for about 6 weeks last year so i know exacly how you feel! and man was it a nightmare, my anxiety and panic shot through the roof, it was honestly one of the worst times in my life. i can't believe you had it for 3 months, that must have been so hard! my doctor told me that i'd be fine in a couple of days when i first came to her with the problem, but i think she was just trying to comfort me cause really she had no idea how long it'd last! i lost my balance and had extreme vertigo for so long, i was dizzy 24 - 7, even when lying down, i couldn't eat or sleep and work was out of the question (even though i did try to lol)

i had already been having problems with anxiety previous to the virus, but when it came along the stress of it, plus not eating for those 6 weeks (chewing made me feel even more dizzy and sick! i lived on smoothies lol) along with the stress of several other things combined into a major meltdown. my sympathy to you that you had to experience the same thing, it was really awful.

good news though, even though it sent me into major meltdown and i thought my life was pretty much over now a whole year later i am 1000 times better! so it is possible to get better smile

i'm really sorry that you lost your gran, what with the labyrinthitis on top of such loss it's no surprise at all that you found it a bit too much. you're probably just mentally and physically exhausted from such extreme stress Sad the good news is that there is a lot that you can do to help yourself out smile i wrote a big long post on all the things that helped me get better, you may like to have a look through and try some things out for yourself: http://www.anxietyforum.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4087

you also may want to look into getting therapist to help you out with the irrational thoughts. it's not unusal with anxiety to think that you're seriously ill, and it can be hard to get such irrational thinking cycles to stop by ourselves so reaching out for help is a good idea smile i went to see a psychotherapist and also went to neuro linguisitc therapy and found them both extrememly helpful with the irrational thinking! cognitive behaviour therapy is also highly recommended for this kind of problem. so there's lots that you can look into smile

i hope you find some of this a bit comforting - have a look at that link i posted and you'll find lots of other helpful information smile good luck, i hope you're feeling better soon!

[Evelyn]

Thank you much, it's hard to find people who had labs as it's uncommon. I too lived of smoothies and ice cream cause if the chewing lol. Sorry I missed the first reply you sent, but I'm extremely gratful you responded! I'll start looking into getting a therapist soon. My doctor also said the dizziness it will be over in a few days! LIARS lol Anyway thanks again, and for the link xxx :D

[northstar]

well if you were living on smoothies, icecream and yoghurt like me then the likelihood is that you're suffering from a bit of malnutrition and stress and just need to start improving things with diet and supplements :) i'm sure you'll be better in no time at all if you take extra good care of yourself for a while. i'm not surprised you're so worn down after all that stress!