Anxiety Help!

[dantheman2003]

Hi everyone,

I've been suffering from anxiety over the past few weeks because of a game being showcased on a live stream broadcast in which I had a deadline to meet before then. I was having horrible symptoms, like not being able to eat any food that I used to and keep having panic attacks. Anyway, at the last moment our game broke terribly and I had to create a brand new game because I couldn't let the show down. The live-stream went fine after all and now, even though I have nothing to worry about I still have my Anxiety Symptoms!

Infact, I think my Anxiety which I now have, is anxiety of having that anxiety I had again! I know, hard to understand right? Let me put it in a much simpler way:

> Fearful of the Anxiety never going away
> Fearful of the Anxiety which I had (.. and am still having!)

My days are really horrible now - Waking up to a dry mouth which I never used to have, only being able to eat a few crisps (potato chips in a bag if that's what you call them in the USA), panic attacks etc. A close relative asked the doctor what I could do before the live stream and he said to do some meditation on my iPad (headspace). It does help, but only for the time I am doing the meditation. I get feelings of throat closing up too and a choking feeling. I can't eat things I used to such as cheese pasties (fear of it getting stuck down throat and choking), ham and meat, bread, etc

So, my questions to you guys is:

> How can I get rid of these symptoms?
> Will they ever go away and will I ever be able to eat my favourite foods?
> What helped you clear your anxiety if you have ever cleared it?

Thanks,

Dan.

[Kuma]

Hey Dan. I am not sure I understand your post entirely. Is this game or show a part of your job, or just something you do for fun? If the latter, why don't you just walk away from it, if it is causing you so much stress?

In any event, with many people who have this sort of anxiety, it is not really just about one thing. So you have to figure out a way of dealing with your anxiety. There are lots of options -- relaxation techniques (meditation, breathing exercises, yoga, tai chi, exercise, etc.), healing relationships, trying to eliminate from your life things that cause unnecessary stress, psychotherapy, and even medications. Unfortunately, there is no single one size fits all answer. But if you try some various things, and are committed to fixing this as you would be if you had a physical illness, you will figure it out.

[NixonRulz]

I didn't understand the whole story either but it doesn't matter

You have anxiety about getting anxiety again. Pretty simple and really common. That is probably what I suffered from the longest

Understanding what anxiety is and how it affects you is what cleared it up for me. I had always fought it but once me and Anxiety started to get to know each other better,, he was much less scary

Once I could decipher between my true thoughts and my anxious thoughts, it was easy to dismiss tha anxious ones

A great place to start is here

anxietycoach.com

[tooscaredtodrive88]

Hi Dan,

I can kind of relate to your experience. My first panic-attack happened over work, but continued to spiral because I feared "what if this never ends", "when will it go away". Basically, the newness of it as a first-time occurrence jump-started a whole slew of new worries, on top of physical experience, which is scary. I'm not sure what will help, but I wish I would have gotten some massages. A comforting-touch, massage, acupressure, holding a loved one, and crying helped with feeling safe. I think its awesome that you can do the meditation, and it works! Cling onto the fact that your able to have meditation work for you, even if its a short time.

Another thing to try, is watching one of your favorite comedians, and try to get yourself able to laugh. Try singing, too if you're able. A soothing warm drink. And a bath to try and relax your muscles.

If the impending doom and pressure is mainly related to work, take a holiday if you're able to make an informed decision to leave. If its many things at once, try to isolate a few of them. Kuma gives great advice. Most important, stay connected with people. If you're afraid to leave work, try and see if you're friends know of any other places that are hiring. For me, part of the pressure was "if I leave, it means i failed!". If I could go back in time, I would have focused more on a future plan.

Also, the livestream -- are you performing, like a stage-fright thing? I had a little trouble understanding. If its stage-fright, you could find a temp coach or a friend to keep your spirits up.

Hang in there, keep up the meditation, and focus on foods like ham-soup, cheese soups, soups with your favorite things.

[dantheman2003]

Hi Dan,

I can kind of relate to your experience. My first panic-attack happened over work, but continued to spiral because I feared "what if this never ends", "when will it go away". Basically, the newness of it as a first-time occurrence jump-started a whole slew of new worries, on top of physical experience, which is scary. I'm not sure what will help, but I wish I would have gotten some massages. A comforting-touch, massage, acupressure, holding a loved one, and crying helped with feeling safe. I think its awesome that you can do the meditation, and it works! Cling onto the fact that your able to have meditation work for you, even if its a short time.

Another thing to try, is watching one of your favorite comedians, and try to get yourself able to laugh. Try singing, too if you're able. A soothing warm drink. And a bath to try and relax your muscles.

If the impending doom and pressure is mainly related to work, take a holiday if you're able to make an informed decision to leave. If its many things at once, try to isolate a few of them. Kuma gives great advice. Most important, stay connected with people. If you're afraid to leave work, try and see if you're friends know of any other places that are hiring. For me, part of the pressure was "if I leave, it means i failed!". If I could go back in time, I would have focused more on a future plan.

Also, the livestream -- are you performing, like a stage-fright thing? I had a little trouble understanding. If its stage-fright, you could find a temp coach or a friend to keep your spirits up.

Hang in there, keep up the meditation, and focus on foods like ham-soup, cheese soups, soups with your favorite things.

Hi tooscaredtodrive88,

The livestream wasn't a performance - it was being broadcasted to over 3000 people across the world from California. All they were doing was playing a game which I had created on the day, but I was fearing that it would have an issue and break down.

[dancingsunflowers80]

Sorry that you are going through this...bless your heart. Have you considered counseling to talk about how to handle this type of situation in the future?

mommato2lilmonkeys