Is this anxiety? Am I getting better?

[Dyabolic]

So I'm 19, I smoked spice (synthetic marijuana-- Possibly mind-altering and dangerous. But this was the only time I've done it.) on September, had a panic attack, and after a week I felt normal. I smoked actual marijuana early this month (the 9th) and suddenly I went through a huge panic phase where I had lost of appetite, nausea, constant anxiety, derealization, loss of concentration, loss of interest in things that I like, and I couldn't go to school or work because I would panic. Finally I overcame my fear in 2 weeks (Actually hit the second week from when I smoked the marijuana today) and my appetite came back, and I'm no longer afraid to be at work or school. My doctor gave prescribed me 12 Ativans (0.5 MG) ever 6 hours last Friday, but by Tuesday I no longer required them, and in truth only ended up taking 2 overall.

However, now I have this problem with concentration. When people talk to me while I'm focusing on TV or computer all I hear is words and I don't end up hearing what they say. When focusing on stringing up lights for Christmas and I'm untangling them, I kind of get confused at what I'm looking at and it gets a little more difficult to untangle them.

I'm not sure whether or not to say this is a result of my anxiety, or if I'm going crazy from something else! My doctor hasn't actually given me a name for what I'm going through (infact, he says I'm probably just worrying myself sick). I'm scared I have some kind of cognitive disorder or something. This morning I freaked out because I was afraid I was becoming Schizophrenic, but now I kind of doubt that because I don't have any serious symptoms that would reflect that.

Summary:

After 2 weeks I've gotten over nearly all none cognitive symptoms. I have an appetite, I'm not longer nauseated, I only get anxious when I think about possible disorders. However, my cognitive abilities are pretty bad. Am I getting better? Was this whole thing only a phase? Is this a result of my panic attack in September and the marijuana I did in November? And, Will my cognitive abilities return to normal? Am I dealing with some kind of anxiety disorder, or something more serious?

Thank you folks!
(P.S: Please don't think of me as a druggie, I do work hard in academics and my job, I was only trying something new at the time.)

[Charmbracelet81]

Yep, sounds like anxiety to me! The thoughts make us anxious because we can really make ourselves feel the things we are thinking are actually happening or are in the near future. I think about death alot and I get butterflies in my stomach and get really nervous. Well, who doesn't when they talk about or envision their own death? It's how we react to the thoughts that make us anxious. We must let the thoughts come (not try to avoid them because that makes them worse) and rationalize them, and let them pass.
Also, something that really helps me that my therapist has told me is, if you think you are going crazy, you aren't because poeple that go crazy don't know they are!
Same with schizophrenia ect.
Trust me, the thoughts are hard to handle, but think back to any thought you have had that has actually come true.
For me, absolutley none of my bizarre thoughts have happened to me! That shows how irrational they are. ;)

[Dyabolic]

Yep, sounds like anxiety to me! The thoughts make us anxious because we can really make ourselves feel the things we are thinking are actually happening or are in the near future. I think about death alot and I get butterflies in my stomach and get really nervous. Well, who doesn't when they talk about or envision their own death? It's how we react to the thoughts that make us anxious. We must let the thoughts come (not try to avoid them because that makes them worse) and rationalize them, and let them pass.
Also, something that really helps me that my therapist has told me is, if you think you are going crazy, you aren't because poeple that go crazy don't know they are!
Same with schizophrenia ect.
Trust me, the thoughts are hard to handle, but think back to any thought you have had that has actually come true.
For me, absolutley none of my bizarre thoughts have happened to me! That shows how irrational they are. ;)

I'm actually glad to hear that you think it's anxiety. Compared to what I've been investigating (For 2 weeks I've been looking through my symptoms and came to a crazy amount of conclusions, like dementia and multiple sclerosis) at least now I feel like I may be able to work through my problems.

That part about people who go crazy not realizing they're going crazy actually made me feel a whole lot better, thank you.


You have to stop worrying about everything face the facts you have anxiety and welcome evry part of it into your life it will soon go away.
Everytime you think about the next what if you are feeding the worry and in tum fueling the anxiety.
Try to let the thoughts in and ignore them actually egg them on if your not afriad of fear how can it hurt you?!

Thank you, you're right. It seems really hard to embrace and forget though, my symptom (the memory/concentration/problem solving issue) is a scary experience for me and sometimes I don't even know I could possibly just ignore it, but I may be making a mountain out of an ant hill.

[Dyabolic]

Honestly, I don't know where I stand on the level of severity for my anxiety. I seem to do O.K sometimes, other times I seem to worry and panic about stupid things, like my symptoms. Today I went to work and my concentration seemed to come back almost fully. As the day went on my concentration went down, my memory of days before is still pretty bad. Headaches weren't present today, so that's good.

However, I freaked out over an hour ago about whether or not my symptoms are gonna get worse tomorrow (humming in my ears didn't help). Now I'm calm again, and seem to do best when someone else is in the room. I don't know whether I'm actually managing my own anxiety to the point of fully treating myself, or if my brain is waiting for a chemical explosion of fear.

I'm so ignorant to this whole condition, I don't know whether I'm instigating my own fears, or if there's some kind of chemical imbalance that is causing my fear and DP/DR and cognitive impairment.

(Thanks for letting me vent :) )