Need to hear some sucess stories!

[Leafs93]

Hello all,

I suffer from GAD and mild obsessive thinking.

I would love to hear some stories where people have beaten anxiety or at least some strategies for curtailing the symptoms. I exercise 5 or 6 times a week and this helps a great deal, but when I am not active my anxiety and obsessive thinking is overwhelming. Medication is not an option for me and things have gotten especially bad in the last month.

It is the depersonalization and thinking that I will never get better that is kicking my ass right now.

Thanks

[Robbed]

Perhaps I am not exactly what you would call a 'success story', as the problems that got me into this whole mess are still there, and seem as intractible as ever (but whether we want to call this 'anxiety disorder' or 'mental illness' is a matter of debate). However, in the almost four years that I have had anxiety disorder per se, things have gotten ALOT better. Specifically, the really nasty symptoms like depersonalization, obsessive thoughts, and intense 'free floating' anxiety seem to be largely gone. In other words, I feel MUCH more like myself these days, and don't really worry anymore that this is all going to last forever (the anxiety disorder, at least). I should also note that I did not take medication, nor did I go to therapy sessions (except in the first few months of the disorder, but quit due to a lack of results).

So what did I do about it? For the most part, not alot. HOWEVER, I DID make it a point to try to best of my abilities NOT to let anxiety disorder rule me. I made it a point to still get out and do things, for instance. Also, I spent LOTS of time outdoors, which is REALLY good for anxiety disorder. I've always liked the outdoors, and I am sure that it played a large role in my recovery. Furthermore, I learned to accept and dismiss obsessive thoughts to the best of my ability, including worry about the disorder itself. I believe that all these things helped to get me where I am at this point in time.

Of course, it took me a while. But much of that is probably due to all those other nasty problems that plague me to this day (social ineptitude, low self-esteem, low confidence, etc). In other words, without those problems, I could probably have recovered ALOT faster. And ultimately, these problems are ALOT more difficult to overcome than the worst of anxiety disorder. Because although anxiety disorder is strong, it is mindless. It really takes more patience than effort to overcome it. After all, dismissing mindless obsessive thoughts (regardless of how scary) is child's play compared to learning the art of conversation.

So there you have it. As a human being, I am absolutely nothing special. So if I can overcome these symptoms, most anyone can. Then again, perhaps you probably can't say that I have overcome much until I can actually beat all the other stuff.