Hey everyone! To start off, I'm going to say that it's taking a lot of courage for me to make this post. I'm stepping outside of my usual comfort zone to talk about something that I don't quite understand fully, yet have endured for most of my life. That something is severe clinical anxiety.
About me: I'm 26 years of age, and have suffered from various forms of anxiety, depression etc since about ten years of age, if I remember correctly. I've never been very good at learning to cope, which is why I'm posting this. Before anyone may get the wrong idea about this post, this is not a post saying to pity me, this is a post of me admitting that I could use advice from someone who may have been in my shoes at some point in their life and had improved.Â
As some of you may know, Anxiety is a very real but also very silly thing. When I say silly, I do not mean in terms of severity or seriousness, but just how it makes you think. You may see a plane crash on the news, and think 'Oh god, what if that happens to me?!' even if you never intend to board a plane. It plays upon your fears and projects them upon you as if they are happening at the very moment. (Even posting the plane scenario got me a little choked up. @.@).Â
For most of my life, this has kept me from being as functional as I -know- I can be. I just keep saying 'I know I can beat this', but some days it completely whoops my arse. Sometimes words, or medicine isn't enough, and I confide in friends but can sometimes find it difficult to keep a conversation going or keep reciprocating. I know for a fact my anxiety has caused me to lose a lot of friends due to things I didn't mean to say, or due to shoving them away when I simply couldn't handle the pressure. In the event someone I did that to is reading this, I want to sincerely apologize, as I likely didn't mean it and do feel genuinely apologetic.Â
The point of this thread is: Has anyone overcome this, or at least gotten to a point where you can function fully and push it aside? I want to get to that point, and I know it's not just a magical happy switch. I know it's a long process, and I know a lot of the days are going to be tough. A few of my friends have already talked to me about some steps, which is how I continued to pursue a few methods. Still, some days(Namely yesterday and today) I feel that those methods have fallen short and I feel entangled in those clutches again. Comparative to weeks or months before this, what I'm feeling now is not as severe as it once was, which soothes me a little. Thank you all for reading, and I'm very much looking forward to responses. If your response may border on more personal subjects, you're also willing to send me a PM!
About me: I'm 26 years of age, and have suffered from various forms of anxiety, depression etc since about ten years of age, if I remember correctly. I've never been very good at learning to cope, which is why I'm posting this. Before anyone may get the wrong idea about this post, this is not a post saying to pity me, this is a post of me admitting that I could use advice from someone who may have been in my shoes at some point in their life and had improved.Â
As some of you may know, Anxiety is a very real but also very silly thing. When I say silly, I do not mean in terms of severity or seriousness, but just how it makes you think. You may see a plane crash on the news, and think 'Oh god, what if that happens to me?!' even if you never intend to board a plane. It plays upon your fears and projects them upon you as if they are happening at the very moment. (Even posting the plane scenario got me a little choked up. @.@).Â
For most of my life, this has kept me from being as functional as I -know- I can be. I just keep saying 'I know I can beat this', but some days it completely whoops my arse. Sometimes words, or medicine isn't enough, and I confide in friends but can sometimes find it difficult to keep a conversation going or keep reciprocating. I know for a fact my anxiety has caused me to lose a lot of friends due to things I didn't mean to say, or due to shoving them away when I simply couldn't handle the pressure. In the event someone I did that to is reading this, I want to sincerely apologize, as I likely didn't mean it and do feel genuinely apologetic.Â
The point of this thread is: Has anyone overcome this, or at least gotten to a point where you can function fully and push it aside? I want to get to that point, and I know it's not just a magical happy switch. I know it's a long process, and I know a lot of the days are going to be tough. A few of my friends have already talked to me about some steps, which is how I continued to pursue a few methods. Still, some days(Namely yesterday and today) I feel that those methods have fallen short and I feel entangled in those clutches again. Comparative to weeks or months before this, what I'm feeling now is not as severe as it once was, which soothes me a little. Thank you all for reading, and I'm very much looking forward to responses. If your response may border on more personal subjects, you're also willing to send me a PM!
