Need help with anxiety and my relationship

[Nathan415]

I'm still new to anxiety but given a lot of traumatic things that have happened in my life, I can understand why this might be happening to me.

I grew up in an unstable household. My mom suffered/s from depression. My parents would never have money saved and when my dad would lose his job it set everyone off.
My dad recently died from a sudden heart attack and that is what led me to my first panic attack. I was on the plane to visit my dad in the hospital for my goodbye's and a common story, I began to feel my heart race and thought the same thing might be happening to me.

I was ok for a while after that, but recently I lost my job which before I was let-go, was becoming very stressful. My mom and my sister live half way across the country. I have a brother near by which is nice, but my closest companion lately has been my girlfriend.

This is where I'm stuck. Recently I've realized that my girlfriend can trigger my anxiety. Maybe she has been this way all along, but it seems that she can become very upset about things that I really don't understand. so the idea that my girlfriend is upset is scary, but the confusion on my end about the problem can be a big trigger. Now I'm scared that I will have a panic attack when were together. I love her, so I'm not sure what to do. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!

[str8trippin]

Can you sit down and talk to her about the situation with your anxiety? I don't know the situation well enough to know this, but is there a chance she just doesn't know what to do to help and gets frustrated? It can be frustrating and upsetting when someone you care about is going through something and you feel like you can't make it better. Just a thought. Communication is really important in any relationship, so maybe opening up to her would help, and help you to know if something she is or isn't doing is really triggering your anxiety or if it's something else, like the fact that your family is far away from you, or losing your job, or if it's a combination of a lot of things. It sounds like you have been through a lot, and those things can affect you WAY more than you even realize, so opening up about them is a great place to start...it can take a lot of weight off your mind.

[Nathan415]

Thanks,

I have been talking with her about things but it quickly escalates. My anxiety is a lot worse in the evening, so maybe if I try to discuss big issues during the day it will help. Also its true that other things are probably setting me off, so when I'm in a better place with work, and family, I might be more comfortable.