People say, Oh just don't think about it. Ignore them?

[frisby]

This relates to most things not just anxiety. How many times have you heard,

Oh just don't think about it.
Geeze, yea I don't know why I never thought of that!

How do you deal with people acting around you like this?

[CryingDutchman]

To be fair, you can't really expect people who never had problems with anxiety to know what you are going through.
If you've never had an anxiety attack there's simply no way you can understand what it's like.

So the way to deal with people who tell you to 'just not think about it' is to educate them about your condition.

[bluebell]

Obviously ,this words is often said out by the people who don't know anything about the problem of anxiety .So we do not need care much about this kind of words .

That is a pointless suggestion for you .Sometime sufferers may mistake this for the concept of acceptance .That is totally wrong."don't think about it "means you are supposed to escape,deny ,and repress it ,or we can also say ,hide it .And one of the reasons why some sufferers are not able to overcome the neurosis is they keep thinking of the things they deny .

Don't try to find any reason for your anxiety and do not make any reason for it .The point is just we can't be pushed by the negtive energy inside .The only thing you should believe is turn back and face yourself bravely .The real life of a person shouldn’t be loaded with lies by others .

[Robbed]

Sometime sufferers may mistake this for the concept of acceptance .That is totally wrong."don't think about it "means you are supposed to escape,deny ,and repress it ,or we can also say ,hide it .And one of the reasons why some sufferers are not able to overcome the neurosis is they keep thinking of the things they deny .

Actually, it all depends on what this phrase means to you. Saying not to think about it and/or to ignore it CAN mean trying to escape, deny, repress, or hide it. And this is not a good thing to do. On the other hand, not thinking about it is a GOOD thing when it comes to acceptance. In other words, you should not try to figure out your anxiety or try to 'problem solve' it away. This causes additional anxiety, which maintains the condition. By accepting, what is really meant is that you should treat your anxiety symptoms from the standpoint of an observer rather than a participant. And while this DOES means NOT denying or covering up its existance, it DOES imply that you are not going to pick it up, think about it, and make it out to be worse than it actually is.

[StevieH]

Hi All
It all depends in what way they say it,for somebody who as never been depressed,had a panic attack,suffered from anxiety,or felt so ill they dont know if they will wake up in the morning,they will never understand!! so they are best taken with a pinch of salt.You can tell most of the time if folks are for real. I have met so many patronising pr*ts that talk and dont understand,IT'S UNREAL!! Then again I have seen people that run me down when I was first ill ,go through similar things and almost apologise to me.This is why I think this forum is so good,because we are all in the similar boat.
StevieH