Need help with strength

[mustangsally]

Just hoping to get some positive thoughts. Ive been dreading tomorrow since last week. I have to drive to Seattle to do a job shadow. I hate driving there, I avoid it at all costs. The traffic is horrible and I always get turned around. I've been trying to prepare myself the best I can, but I'm still nervous.

I hate not having control over everything. All these thoughts go through my head....what if I get lost, if I'm late, if I make a mistake, make a fool out of myself...ugh! Why can't I be normal, and just accept things as they come?

[Enduronman]

Chill out, pull up a mapquest and print it out and do a search for road construction or detours too. Its all right there at your fingertips. Take some calming meds if you have any 1 hr prior to arrival also. Dont shoot yourself in the foot just yet!! Have faith, and have confidence in yourself to succeed because once youre there you'll realize how goofy it was to worry about it the whole time anyway.. You will prevail. Just map your plans out with great detail.

Goodluck!!

E-Man.

[Enduronman]

PS: purposefully make a fool outta yourself the minute you find optimum to do so. Say something stupid to whomever like "I am terribly horrified and terrified by clowns".. it'll create a smile and calm the atmosphere around you instantly. No explanation required, and when they ask why?..just act like you have no idea what theyre talking about and then get down to business... Trust me.

E-Man. :)

[mustangsally]

I've done everything I could possibly think of to prepare. Mapquest, google images so I could see the building I needed to go to, even looked at it at ground level w 360 degrees so I knew the surroundings. I went and bought a small notebook to take notes while I was there.

I understand what u r saying though. I know this is all silly and ill be just fine once I get there. It's just all the anxiety and worrying leading up to it.

[Enduronman]

It is silly, but I also lived in the same silly world and place that you now are so I'm silly too. Just follow the plan, and expect a slight miscalculation anyway, even if it doesnt happen of which it wont..but, being mindfully prepared for it will also be a huge and vital part of tomorrow. I'm serious about makin up something funny, off the wall, and stupid to say because this is used as leverage for you to just relax, and be YOU.

E-man.

[mustangsally]

Ok well the shadowing went great! Everyone was nice and helpful. THEN my car got towed and it all went to shit. Ugh see THIS is why I have anxiety and WHY I worry. I always expect the worst because the worst always happens. $247 later I have my car back and I'm about to take another xanax. Thank god my new boss was there to take me to get my car. I'm hoping my job reimburses me.

[DrZafirides]

Sally,

You are much stronger than you give yourself credit for. Please take the time to check out some of the information on my website, The Healthy Mind. I created it to celebrate the strength and courage people truly have, despite how negatively they feel.

I have a bunch of articles on anxiety and depression. I also do a weekly podcast called The Healthy Mind with Dr. Zafirides.

The Healthy Mind is not a commercial site. I am not selling any product or service on the site. I do not have advertisers or sponsors, nor am I seeking any. That isn't the goal of my website. You can read my website's mission statement to understand why I created The Healthy Mind.

It is my passion and my sincere hope that - in my very small way - I may be able to help people begin to realize how incredibly strong they are.

Don't doubt yourself, Sally. You are so truly powerful.

Kindly,
Peter Zafirides, M.D.

[MainerMikeBrown]

I think that more often than not, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger. So Mustangsally, view this as an opportunity to get better at facing challenges like this. After all, life is full of headaches like this. So it's better to learn how to cope with this problem instead of trying to avoid it.

[mustangsally]

Thanks for all the help guys. As silly as it sounds, even if I think about that day today it still stresses me out. I know its in the past, I know the outcome, but if I think about the emotions I had that day I get all depressed and anxious. I hate that I'm that way.

Now on to the next. Tomorrow is our opening day of the New clinic. If u would have asked me my anxiety level a few weeks back I would have said it was manageable. Now, not so much. I'm not ready for this. I have no idea how to do my job (a job I've done for the past 7yrs) its like quitting my job and going somewhere else w new rules and procedures. I hate not being in control. What makes it worse is I have MUCH more responsibility, and going outside my job to fill in elsewhere. I'm already stressed to the max just thinking of all the things I need to figure out w my job, let alone worry about filling in for someone else doing something completely different.

How do u teach urself to just go w the flow and take things as they come?

[mustangsally]

Well I made it thru the first day. Barely, there were a couple times I thought about walking out, or having a break down. I hope it only gets easier from here. It's got to right?