Hey, New here and I need help!

[Animekitten]

Hi everyone! My name is Rebecca and I'm 18 years old. Just recently my anxiety has gone from very mild to almost unnoticeable, to feeling severe and disabling, I'm even terrified to just get out of bed!

All my life, I have always been a worrywart, always worrying about my health, like if I was having a strange feeling that I didn't know what it was, I would always assume the worse. I've also have been quite anti-social, only recently have I become social enough to talk to people more and wasn't as anxious when talking to people I don't know, but my anti-socialism is kinda relapsing and I'm not hanging out with my friends as I use to and I'm not talking to them as much. Do you guys think this could be a part of my anxiety?:unsure:

The symptoms I have now are:
-severe tension in my back
-chest pressure (only when I'm really freaking out)
-feeling of choking/smothering/tightening of my throat (only when really freaking out)
-pounding of my heart
-trembling

Also, I'm wondering, can eating a lot of carbs. and sugar increases your risk of anxiety and panic attacks? Because I eat a lot of crabs. and sugars daily, I've also notice whenever I eat something very sweet or a lot of sweet things like candy, I tend to feel very anxious after awhile and sometimes even have a panic attack. Is this normal?

Is it also normal to fear the anxiety it self? because whenever my anxiety becomes really strong, I have this sudden fear of I'm never gonna get rid of it and that I'll have to live with it for the rest of my life. Dose anyone one on here feel that way?

I guess that's all the question I have for now. For those of you that read through it all. I thank you for your time.

[lorelei13]

I have anxiety a lot of the time, especially when I went travelling and I had serious panic attack kind of thing. I thought I was going crazy. For almost a month, I was terrorfied that I was losing my mind.

Learning that thoughts like that could actually be symptoms of anxiety and not impending insanity made me feel a lot, lot better =)

[Razz]

High blood glucose causes increased brain glutimates which will drive anxiety. Then the drop in glucose after eating lots of carbs will release adrenalin that can cause huge anxiety - I have had times where I was ready to call 911 - seriously - after a blood sugar drop

Raz

[Animekitten]

High blood glucose causes increased brain glutimates which will drive anxiety. Then the drop in glucose after eating lots of carbs will release adrenalin that can cause huge anxiety - I have had times where I was ready to call 911 - seriously - after a blood sugar drop

Raz

Hey Razz, thanks for telling me that, from now on I'll slowly decrees my carb. intake :)
I had a feeling that's what caused my anxiety to spike at times.
Beleave it or not I'm actually feeling a lot better, I went to school, felt very anxious and had my symptoms from yesterday still, but that only lasted till the afternoon, I also found out today that my friend is also has been suffering from anxiety for almost year now which made me feel SO much better and that I'm not the only one suffering. I defenitly feel much better than I did on the weekend, I'm not completely rid of my anxiety, though I feel much more relaxed than I did before. I'd say I'm around 80-85% on the relaxation scale. I still have a tight back, some nervous trembling, headache, upset stomach, and pounding heart occationally , but it's not as bad as it was before. I think all I need now is some good night sleep.

P.S.: I found out today that by saying "I'm the only one who has control over my life" actually helps reduce the stress by a lot.

[Mattymo]

Your anxiety symptoms sound very similar to mine. The first anxiety attack i had my throat felt tight and so did my chest i felt like i couldnt breath so i started hyperventilating from being scared. i actually had my roommate call 911 lol. I was told later in the er that i had a panic attack... My reaction was what the hell is a panic attack and why did this happen to me!!?? For awhile after i was freaked out and was terrified of this happening again this only made things worst and my daily anxiety sky rocketed until i was able to talk some sense into my self that everything was alright. I remained panic free most the time unless i went out drinking with my friends. the next day hangovers made me feel really crappy and have anxiety the rest of the day it led to atleast three other panic attacks where only xanax helped calm me down. I have since learned how to balance my college life style with my anxiety i now have come to the realization that i cant do all of the same things i use to with my anxiety. Anyway i was doing okay for awhile having my xanax as a fall back and cutting back on my drinking. But now i have chronic stiffness and muscle aches in my neck and shoulders that are super aggravating that i think are from continued stress. You can read more from my recent post if your are interested in my current condition. Anyway just wanted to tell you that you are not alone its a struggle and i am yet to have it completely under control like most people here. Good luck to you and stay away from meds if at all possible you will feel alot better about yourself if you can overcome without them.

[Mattymo]

one more thing. yes the fear of anxiety itself i think is a huge cause of anxiety for me atleast. when i am constantly thinking about it only makes things worst. Often i am asking myself " Is this going to last forever?" I think that answer can only come from ourselves... are we going to let this last forever? Its much easier said then done from my 2 year experience with anxiety. but we must continue to battle it instead of just coping or yes i think it might last forever. I joined this website because i want to battle my anxiety not let it get the best of me.

[palow]

Try not to take any drugs for now, Rebecca. There's nothing more sad than a teenager on antidepressants. All the wonders of your youth will go down the drain.

Listen, there's nothing that much wrong with you. You're not mentally ill. All those years of worrying has suddenly created a new programming in your subconscious, that's all. The new program has blackened all your thoughts with one goal: to stimulate your adrenal glands so that you go around all day feeling like a hungry lion is stalking you.

You have ZERO positive thoughts going through your head each day, yes? That's where your problem lies. Even when someone tells you to change your diet you start getting anxious. You start on a new diet and when you break down and eat a doughnut, you get a panic attack from all the guilt.

This is what you need to do: you need to find some activity that you love, something that will bring you joy and passion. Something that will make you new friends and take you to new places. Something that will break all your old routines. It could be taking up a musical instrument, learning to make sushi, knitting, book binding, gardening--whatever will generate enough positive thoughts and feelings to overcome your crappy anxious ones.

Patrick

[Animekitten]

Try not to take any drugs for now, Rebecca. There's nothing more sad than a teenager on antidepressants. All the wonders of your youth will go down the drain.

Listen, there's nothing that much wrong with you. You're not mentally ill. All those years of worrying has suddenly created a new programming in your subconscious, that's all. The new program has blackened all your thoughts with one goal: to stimulate your adrenal glands so that you go around all day feeling like a hungry lion is stalking you.

You have ZERO positive thoughts going through your head each day, yes? That's where your problem lies. Even when someone tells you to change your diet you start getting anxious. You start on a new diet and when you break down and eat a doughnut, you get a panic attack from all the guilt.

This is what you need to do: you need to find some activity that you love, something that will bring you joy and passion. Something that will make you new friends and take you to new places. Something that will break all your old routines. It could be taking up a musical instrument, learning to make sushi, knitting, book binding, gardening--whatever will generate enough positive thoughts and feelings to overcome your crappy anxious ones.



Patrick


Thanks for advise Patrick :)
but I'm feeling MUCH better, I've realized that I was just worrying about the symptoms that I had which made me think that I might have something wrong with me, which fed the anxiety and kept feeding until I broke down.
And i do have hobbies, which help me distract myself from the symptoms. Also I'm exceriseing more (which I never did much of in the first place) and no I will NEVER go on meds. NEVER I've heard so many stories about anxiety meds. from here and outside here that I've said to myself that I'll never take them. EVER!

[palow]

That's the spirit, AK. I have 3 friends who have been on either prozac or zoloft for years and they would rather be on drugs for the rest of their lives than think about quitting. They live a life of constant desperation.

I'm also very glad you know the value of distraction for anxiety. Keep distracting yourself every time you are anxious. You gave yourself anxiety through practice, and you can get yourself out of it through practice. Every time you distract yourself, you are practicing to be a calm person.

Also, once you reset your anxiety level to normal (don't forget you need SOME anxiety to protect you), you will find that you are mentally stronger than most people around you. Anxiety disorder is not a curse like chronic depression. It is a challenge.

Patrick