Life with Anxiety. Pls Help. Desperate :(

[JA]

I'm really tired of anxiety running my life.

I'm now 20 years old, and I've been experiencing anxiety symptoms since I was 15. However, I do believe that I no longer have a mild case of anxiety but it has now developed into a case of generalized anxiety... I'm scared to leave the house. My number one problem right now is not being able to go to work. For 3 consecutive shifts I had severe anxiety attacks..Now I'm scared to even go to work because I know that it happens every single time I go there... It's ruining my life. I was about to lose my job after being there for almost 4 yrs. Being on meds is not an option for me, I was taken to emergency after 1 anti-depressant and since then I've had a phobia of ANY kind of medication. I'm going to see a youth counsellor tommorrow..


I've researched breathing techniques/exercsises but they DONT help whatsoever when I feel my anxiety coming along. It just doesn't stop it. I've been told that Vitamin B is a really good supplement for those suffering from anxiety. I've just started taking it..but honestly I fear even taking vitamins??...I don't party/drink alchohol/smoke weed like everyone my age. I don't drink caffine. I'm too scared to do any of that. I'm scared to consume anything unnatural because I'm scared of feeling anything BUT normal. Even a little buzz kinda freaks me out. It's so difficult to deal with what this has become. I know excersize is important but honestly I have no energy to do even the simplest tasks at home.. As I type this I can feel my anxiety building up..



My symptoms are:
*feeling DISCONNECTED/DEREALIZATION. (I feel this all day everyday.)
*extreme FATIGUE, LETHARGY, very WEAK
*difficulty eating/swallowing while having an attack
*cold sweats
*numbness through out my body (especially feet&hands)
*vision is extremely affected, very sensitive to light, everything is REALLY bright.
*feeling of insanity
*dread
*depression
*irritability
*extreme FEAR
*muscle tension (lock my jaw alot & grind my teeth)
*lightheaded
*feel like I'm going to faint/pass out if I walk
*chest feels tight
*restless
*need to urinate/use washroom frequently
*feel like I need to eat something to restore my energy and I always force myself to eat but I cant...


I'm not the type of person to fear the public. Everytime I experience my anxiety in public I can't help but cry & I honestly don't care what people think. My main thought is just to get through it, it gets so bad I can't think of anything else...Any advice is welcomed! Please feel free...


Please tell me about your experiences and what has helped you best to get through your anxiety! (books, types of therapy, natural remedies..)

Thank You,
-JA

[seizetheday]

I found that yoga has helped me a lot. It gives you a good workout and put you in a nice, more peaceful good state of mind. Also, calming instrumental music helps me a lot too..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSgPDKG6bB0
i have stuff like this on my ipod and it helps my mind calm down : )

[JA]

thank you! i've heard that yoga can be a good way to deal with stress

[binkerK]

I am 23 and have suffered with anxiety for the last 12 months it rules my life sometimes. I have had cognitive thearpy sessions CBT and this did help too sum extent. I too signed up to a gym, and it does help but i lack motivation. Lately i canot sleep at night and im afraid to go to bed now for fear of not sleeping i go through the day like a zombie. I just feel frightend more than anything. will i feel this way the rest of my life?

[JA]

I am 23 and have suffered with anxiety for the last 12 months it rules my life sometimes. I have had cognitive thearpy sessions CBT and this did help too sum extent. I too signed up to a gym, and it does help but i lack motivation. Lately i canot sleep at night and im afraid to go to bed now for fear of not sleeping i go through the day like a zombie. I just feel frightend more than anything. will i feel this way the rest of my life?


That's good that you sought out help by going to CBT sesssions. It's good to hear. Today I didnt even get to go to my counsellors appointment because I felt too drained .. I feel almost exausted all day even if Im not doing anything active. I fell asleep for 3 hours straight after waking up and eating in the morning... I think one of the reasons we stress too is we overthink the situation. I too go to sleep fearing that I won't be able to get enough sleep for the next day if I have to wake up early for work or something... and then you end up not getting the sleep you need and then you go on to the next part of your day that you overthink... friends don't understand. they say "its all in your head, youre doing this to yourself" but my anxiety didn't happen overnight. and I can't help my nature..I had a really abusive childhood aswell and after that my dad left. I don't know what exactly will help me, but I'm hoping to find a way soon because there's no way this can last forever.

[Belle]

It won't last forever JA, you have a lot of fear regarding your anxiety and it's keeping the cycle going. Nothing will make the anxiety stop when you are having an attack, but things like exercise, yoga etc will help over the long run in making you feel stronger, less tense and less physical stress because your anxiety is depleting and draining everything, so you need to keep on top of the physical side so anxiety doesn't feel as bad, epsecially diet, we tend to forget to eat when we're anxious.
Also breathing techniques do help, they take time to learn and practice everyday all day of you need to. If you can have someone to show you how, when I have anxiety and I breath and concentrate only on my breathing it will help the symptoms and you can begin to focus on releasing you fears and anxious thoughts.

Honestly, I really think it's a cycle of fear for you, once you let it go and not worry so much about how bad it's making you feel, this is when you will truly begin to heal and see better days. Sometimes it takes time, you'll get sick of how your feeling and just say eff it, this has gone on long enough and it's ruining my life, I don't care how I feel, it can do whatever it wants.
Don't fight the attacks, just let them happen and relax and breath when they happen, the less you fear, the less it will control you. When your at work or anywhere, just close your eyes and just watch the wave of motions going on inside (the anxiety symptoms) but don't react to them, in time you'll fear them less as you realise it's not hurting you. It won't go on forever I promise.

[coops025]

It looks like you are already looking after yourself within respect to your diet, what you drink and avoiding caffine and this has now become worse for you. Finding the root cause for Anxiety is one of the hardest things to do for most sufferers but keep searching and you may find an answer before you know it.

Just recently i found out about Adrenal Fatigue, which according to the herbalist i spoke to is something Anxiety sufferers overlook. so im looking into that now as taking herbs linked to supporting adrenal fatigue are helping me alot.

Vitamin B complex is aimed more at brain function and is good for you so dont worry about taking that, i still do :)

A few things that helped me with symtoms you suffer from:

*feeling DISCONNECTED/DEREALIZATION (Liquirice Root and possibly Gotu Kola but im trailing this at the moment)

*muscle tension (Magnesium)

*chest feels tight (sounds silly but indegestion tablets helped me and some others)

*lightheaded (a small amount of asprin per day to help thin the blood and promote better circulation) Make sure its a small amount around 75mg per day.

*vision is extremely affected, very sensitive to light, everything is REALLY bright. (Liqorice root is helping with this)

*feeling of insanity (Normal to feel like this and only when i started to have a recovery did this go, my point its your not going crazy)

[JA]

thank you guys so much for all ur input so far! appreciate it!
i was researing amino acids/magnesium n i came across this which may be important for those who are currently on medication!

Prescription medications for anxiety (such as Paxil®, Effexor®, Zoloft®, Wellbutrin®, and a multitude of others) serve to reduce the symptoms of anxiety, but don’t fix the problem. When your body is low in serotonin, these medications work by tricking the body to metabolize serotonin. They work on serotonin metabolism, but they don’t replenish serotonin, which is actually what your body truly needs. Therefore, patients who suffer from low serotonin levels often experience withdrawal symptoms when they go off prescription medications, because serotonin is never being replenished. If you stop these medications, you will most likely return to low serotonin levels and continue to experience the same problems of anxiety and depression. In addition, these medications actually deplete serotonin with long-term use, which is exactly the opposite of what you need to do!


serotonin is a neurotransmitter (affects our moods & anxiety levels.) Amino acids = key to providing our bodies with the right amount of neurotransmitters which help us fight feelings of anxiety!

therefore instead of constantly relying on medication which makes the body produce neurotransmitters, amino acids are a better option!

[Robbed]

Prescription medications for anxiety (such as Paxil®, Effexor®, Zoloft®, Wellbutrin®, and a multitude of others) serve to reduce the symptoms of anxiety, but don’t fix the problem. When your body is low in serotonin, these medications work by tricking the body to metabolize serotonin. They work on serotonin metabolism, but they don’t replenish serotonin, which is actually what your body truly needs. Therefore, patients who suffer from low serotonin levels often experience withdrawal symptoms when they go off prescription medications, because serotonin is never being replenished. If you stop these medications, you will most likely return to low serotonin levels and continue to experience the same problems of anxiety and depression. In addition, these medications actually deplete serotonin with long-term use, which is exactly the opposite of what you need to do!

I should note that it has never been proven that low serotonin is indeed the cause of problems like depression and anxiety. If it was, then drugs like SSRIs would ALWAYS work. But they don't. Furthermore, drugs which actually DECREASE levels of serotonin don't necessarily cause problems like depression and anxiety. All of this suggests that serotonin is not necessarily THE cause of anxiety. Or, at the very least, that a wholesale increase of serotonin levels throughout the brain is not the answer.

[JA]

Even if it has never been officially proven I'm all the way for a natural process to help deminish my anxiety. Its been said that studies have shown a large majority of anxiety sufferers have either an amino acid deficiency/magnesium deficiency. Both these minerals are key for our nervous systems. If medication helps then I say keep doing what you have to do. Everyone's bodies react differently to different treatments. I refuse to rely on medication to keep me stable. It's only a temporary method of relief and most medications for anxiety are hard to get off of.

[Robbed]

Even if it has never been officially proven I'm all the way for a natural process to help deminish my anxiety. Its been said that studies have shown a large majority of anxiety sufferers have either an amino acid deficiency/magnesium deficiency. Both these minerals are key for our nervous systems.

Magnesium deficiency may be an issue for many people. SO many people are averse to fruits and vegetables (which is probably due more to bad childhood experiences than a real dislike). Given that fruits and vegetables are the primary sources, I can see why people might be deficient. But amino acids? I find it EXTREMELY hard to believe that people are deficient. Unless you live in a third world country, you probably get WAYY more protein from your diet than you need. I should also add that protein/amino acids are NOT minerals. They are organic nutrients like fats and carbs (although some proteins, like casein, can be associated with minerals).

[JA]

Yeaaa I barely eat vegetables. I really lack that in my diet.. I used to eat alot of junk food for snacks. I would eat alot of fast food, and processed foods. There are certain things which can affect the functioning of amino acids in your system. Poor diet (like me but I'm trying to change that lol), pollution, caffine/stimulants..I'm a small girl & I never gain weight even if I wanted to... I guess I been taking advantage of that all my life by stuffing myself with junk food ><

[Robbed]

Yeaaa I barely eat vegetables. I really lack that in my diet.. I used to eat alot of junk food for snacks. I would eat alot of fast food, and processed foods. There are certain things which can affect the functioning of amino acids in your system. Poor diet (like me but I'm trying to change that lol), pollution, caffine/stimulants..I'm a small girl & I never gain weight even if I wanted to... I guess I been taking advantage of that all my life by stuffing myself with junk food ><

Then again, if factors like poor diet, pollution, and caffeine affect the functioning of amino acids in your system, then it is THESE factors that need to be dealt with. Not your protein intake. In this day and age where protein is still considered sacred (and carbs evil), one thing that few people seem to acknowledge is that excessive protein intake is not necessarily a good thing. Your body doesn't need NEARLY as much of it is people think. And it can literally kill your kidneys if you consume too much in the long term.

[JA]

Aright, aright. Gee. I come on this site expecting sympathy & help but instead I get people trying to critic every post?. lol. MY BAD if i didn't get ALL my facts straight. Thanks for the help and positivity (Y).

[superkoz]

I have started to take vitamin B, and found them to be a great help.

[JA]

thats good to hear, magnesium supplements should work well too!