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Thread: Funky Symptom

  1. #11
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    Quote Originally Posted by gypsylee View Post
    Absolutely. I actually did it last night because I was trying to fall asleep (I was anxious) and it worked. If I could teach people with anxiety only one thing it would be diaphragmatic breathing. It does take a while to get the hang of though. Have a look at a picture of what the diaphragm actually looks like then you can visualise what it's doing as you breathe. When you breathe correctly you stimulate the sympathetic nervous system, which is not working properly when you're anxious because the parasympathetic is in overdrive. It basically thinks you will be attacked by a bear if you fall asleep. So what I do is focus on my breathing and calming the nervous system. It's not some magic bullet and I've had to practice, but I've found it really does work.

    I agree with you there. I've used diaphragm breathing when I got bad flashbacks and could not get to sleep. I find it harder to do outside the home though, maybe I need more practice? Have you used it for panic situations, for example agoraphobia or social anxiety?

  2. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by Im-Suffering View Post
    Copy paste here from the other thread. If you need more let me know. I've rushed it a bit, my eyes are blurring from overwork. I hope you get the concept.

    Short exercise:

    I want you to become that little girl again, recount from her perspective what she was thinking at home and with her interactions with mom and dad. I want you to hold her, in your imagination, as she cries and expresses all of those hurts about being not good enough. Tell her you love her. Because she felt unlovable. And this is the cause of it all. She is inside you, she is the one showing you all these emotions that you feel. She is making you feel them.

    You must cry together, heal all of the false ideas and beliefs about you and the world. Her stories will play back like movies to the inception of the pain, and that is what you must face. You must find that. And that once let go will heal you.

    This is an exercise for maybe 15 minutes a day.

    If you release fully you will have an epiphany, and sleep. You won't ever have to 'force' confidence or conceptualize a way to feel, you will just be living it. That's what a release does, you come out feeling the opposite
    Will try it tonight, have been getting a few flashbacks so it will be easy to go back there

  3. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by Kixxi View Post
    I agree with you there. I've used diaphragm breathing when I got bad flashbacks and could not get to sleep. I find it harder to do outside the home though, maybe I need more practice? Have you used it for panic situations, for example agoraphobia or social anxiety?
    Yeah I try to but I find it much easier when I'm at home obviously. I haven't had bad agoraphobia or social anxiety in a while though so it's hard to say.
    "You're the worst thing that ever happened to me." --Marla Singer

  4. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by gypsylee View Post
    Absolutely. I actually did it last night because I was trying to fall asleep (I was anxious) and it worked. If I could teach people with anxiety only one thing it would be diaphragmatic breathing. It does take a while to get the hang of though. Have a look at a picture of what the diaphragm actually looks like then you can visualise what it's doing as you breathe. When you breathe correctly you stimulate the sympathetic nervous system, which is not working properly when you're anxious because the parasympathetic is in overdrive. It basically thinks you will be attacked by a bear if you fall asleep. So what I do is focus on my breathing and calming the nervous system. It's not some magic bullet and I've had to practice, but I've found it really does work.



    P.S. Another thing you can do is sing. When you sing you naturally breathe with your diaphragm. I do it mainly when I'm driving and I get very anxious. Music takes the focus off your anxiety and singing works the diaphragm.
    I agree that singing helps. I tried to hum in the supermarket to get rid of my anxiety and it did work, although the strange looks I got were not helping lol! Was quite the sight though lol

  5. #15
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    Quote Originally Posted by gypsylee View Post
    Yeah I try to but I find it much easier when I'm at home obviously. I haven't had bad agoraphobia or social anxiety in a while though so it's hard to say.
    Just quick question, what steps did you to get rid of that nasty agoraphobia? It is still one of my biggest issues. The anxiety at home I have under control. I just like to hear what other people have to say about their recovery from it.

  6. #16
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    Quote Originally Posted by Im-Suffering View Post
    Copy paste here from the other thread. If you need more let me know. I've rushed it a bit, my eyes are blurring from overwork. I hope you get the concept.

    Short exercise:

    I want you to become that little girl again, recount from her perspective what she was thinking at home and with her interactions with mom and dad. I want you to hold her, in your imagination, as she cries and expresses all of those hurts about being not good enough. Tell her you love her. Because she felt unlovable. And this is the cause of it all. She is inside you, she is the one showing you all these emotions that you feel. She is making you feel them.

    You must cry together, heal all of the false ideas and beliefs about you and the world. Her stories will play back like movies to the inception of the pain, and that is what you must face. You must find that. And that once let go will heal you.

    This is an exercise for maybe 15 minutes a day.

    If you release fully you will have an epiphany, and sleep. You won't ever have to 'force' confidence or conceptualize a way to feel, you will just be living it. That's what a release does, you come out feeling the opposite
    Well, I tried it for the first time last night. I did notice quite the difference this morning. I felt better about myself. I did not criticise or feel bad about being me (which I often do).
    I do think there is a long road ahead, so I will keep doing it until that epiphany comes Also, it worked great to get to sleep. Where I usually get plagued by those flashbacks, I could bend them by immersing my older self into them and protecting my young self if that makes any sense

  7. #17
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    Quote Originally Posted by Kixxi View Post
    Just quick question, what steps did you to get rid of that nasty agoraphobia? It is still one of my biggest issues. The anxiety at home I have under control. I just like to hear what other people have to say about their recovery from it.
    Agoraphobia is like any other phobia really in that you have to expose yourself to the fear. If the fear is having a panic attack in public, then you have to force yourself to go out in public. I wrote a detailed thing somewhere here about what I do when I can't leave the house (I'll try and remember where) basically involving gradual exposure to being in public. Then after a while I find I don't even think about it much. It does come back though if I stay at home for too long, so I always make myself go out, even if it's just to the supermarket to buy milk.
    "You're the worst thing that ever happened to me." --Marla Singer

  8. #18
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    Here's what I wrote about it:

    "My whole thing is social phobia. I guess the key to phobias is exposure, which basically means you desensitise yourself to whatever it is by facing it. So with social phobia it means being around people no matter how anxious about it you feel. I've gone through times where I find it terrifying to leave the house, but I didn't have anyone else who could get me things, so I had no choice (which is a good thing). What I'd do is wait until it got dark (because I feel less freaked out at night and there are less people around) and drive to the supermarket. I'd even go specifically to the supermarkets with self checkouts. That would be the extent of my "social life" and I'd make myself do it even if I didn't really need anything because if I missed a trip to the supermarket it'd be worse the next day. Then I'd go to say a shopping mall on days I was feeling strong enough. Sometimes I'd just sit outside and smoke a cigarette and look at people and notice how they pay no attention to me whatsoever (because the whole thing with social anxiety is being self-conscious and thinking you will embarrass yourself somehow).

    I don't think I'll ever be completely over this phobia but yeah that's how I deal with it when its bad. I also have a phobia of spiders (I live in Australia so we have big ass spiders who get inside your house and car). That phobia is a whole different ballgame and I have strategies like spraying citrus oil in my car and checking under the sun visors before I drive off lol."
    "You're the worst thing that ever happened to me." --Marla Singer

  9. #19
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    Quote Originally Posted by gypsylee View Post
    Here's what I wrote about it:

    "My whole thing is social phobia. I guess the key to phobias is exposure, which basically means you desensitise yourself to whatever it is by facing it. So with social phobia it means being around people no matter how anxious about it you feel. I've gone through times where I find it terrifying to leave the house, but I didn't have anyone else who could get me things, so I had no choice (which is a good thing). What I'd do is wait until it got dark (because I feel less freaked out at night and there are less people around) and drive to the supermarket. I'd even go specifically to the supermarkets with self checkouts. That would be the extent of my "social life" and I'd make myself do it even if I didn't really need anything because if I missed a trip to the supermarket it'd be worse the next day. Then I'd go to say a shopping mall on days I was feeling strong enough. Sometimes I'd just sit outside and smoke a cigarette and look at people and notice how they pay no attention to me whatsoever (because the whole thing with social anxiety is being self-conscious and thinking you will embarrass yourself somehow).

    I don't think I'll ever be completely over this phobia but yeah that's how I deal with it when its bad. I also have a phobia of spiders (I live in Australia so we have big ass spiders who get inside your house and car). That phobia is a whole different ballgame and I have strategies like spraying citrus oil in my car and checking under the sun visors before I drive off lol."
    It's a little comforting to know that I'm not the only one going through it. Just like you, I also feel a lot more comfortable at night.
    I tend to stay in more and avoid going out, given the fear I experience when I do go out. But you are absolutely right, if you stop going out at one point, it does get worse again. I noticed after a week of holiday, constantly going out, my agoraphobia went from a 9/10 to a 2/10. Also during the holiday, we tend to go with public transport, which is not my idea of a safe place. I do realise it is all in my head and that it eventually will pass. I'm going on holiday again in three weeks, so I will grin and bear the anxiety until it dies down

    Oh and a fear of spiders I can totally understand when you live in Australia You have some big ass spiders over there

    Thank you for sharing your experiences with me. I really appreciate it.

  10. #20
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    You're welcome
    "You're the worst thing that ever happened to me." --Marla Singer

 

 

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