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Anxiety - Any Tips?

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I wrote a post a couple of years back about my past and how my struggle with PTSD. With the comments I had received and from having a look around here I saw some great advice and I’ve managed to clear up the majority of my PTSD symptoms through therapy and self care but the one thing I’ve never been able to shake is my anxiety.

I am anxious about pretty much everything and it’s really starting to take a huge hold of my life. The best way I think I can explain it is a recent holiday I went on for 3 days, I took the train (from the UK to Spain, about a 15 hour journey) because I am now so terrified of flying I refuse to do it, but while on the trains I was feeling anxious at the speed we were going, terrorism and if the driver was really paying attention. Once at the destination (a sea front hotel) I started obsessing over the thought of a tsunami hitting, getting bitten by a mosquito and getting a disease or having a medical emergency. I was very cautious about what I ate, making sure I didn’t eat anything that was likely to give me food poisoning, every weird smell would give me thoughts about a chemical leak and anyone who looked slightly out of the ordinary put me on edge. I didn’t really partake in any activities because I was so scared about having a heart attack from over exerting myself. Really, I just spent the 3 days counting down the minutes until I could come home. These are just the examples I can think of from the top of my head but they’re are many more. This isn’t isolated to my holidays too, it’s starting to creep into my everyday life more and more but it’s just heightened when I’m out of my familiar surroundings. I feel exhausted, out of breath and faint most of the time, I’ve gained 2 stone because of feeling this way and this is of course adding to my anxiety.

I am now unsure of what to do to treat this, I’ve had lots of CBT, counciling and even hypnotherapy to treat my PTSD and I have always mentioned my anxiety. My therapists have always given me techniques and I’ve left the session feeling optimistic but within a few hours that horrible voice in the back of my mind would be back drumming up anxious thoughts. I’ve tried self help techniques, meditation, yoga and eating healthy. I feel like no amount of reasoning or rational thinking can get rid of it, and it really feels like it’s something which is sub consciously going on in the back of my mind. I have tried anti anxiety medication before but if I’m honest I’m even feeling too anxious about the side effects to try them again. I was just wondering if anyone else has suffered this problem and if so, how did you learn to live with it and stop it from taking control of your life? Sometimes I wonder if there is some miracle tip I just haven’t heard yet!

Anyway thank you for taking the time to read my post.
 
Sorry to hear this. Sounds like you have done are doing what you can

Sometimes the only approach is to take one method and really sit with it

Also wonder if you have explored this with a therapist?

On a more superficial level I dont know how your mobility is but skipping helps me to unload anxiety. If your worried about weight gain guess that could help too

Stress often results in high levels or corisol which if goes way out of balance causes weight gain. Sense you probably already know this

Is there some activity that you could put the anxious energy into?

I know you mentioned yoga. Unsure if you meant only asana. Have you practiced any pranayama (breath practices) paticularly Nadi Shodhana?
I have found that this for even ten minutes a day helps the system

Also, herbs? Rhodiola, Swanzda Berry, Licorice etc
I'm currently taking a nervine tonic which is helping

I'd encourage you to keep doing the healthy eating, watering, sleeping, these are the foundations

Sending support and wishing you well
 
healthy. I feel like no amount of reasoning or rational thinking can get rid of it, and it really feels like it’s something which is sub consciously going on in the back of my mind. I have tried anti anxiety medication before but if I’m honest I’m even feeling too anxious about the side effects to try them again
suffered this problem and if so, how did you learn to live with it and stop it from taking control of your life?

hey,
I have OCD.
I can relate to a lot of the anxieties you described and the way you describe them.... like they're not rational, you can't reason out of them etc.

took my p-doc a long time (years) to pick up on the fact it was ocd and not ptsd or other anxiety disorders.

Traditional CBT and medication don't work for OCD.
CBT can actually make OCD worse. way worse because CBT exercises end up turning into compulsions.

I've kinda just started therapy for ocd specifically (kind of) and my p-doc recommended the book Freedom From Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
author is Jonathan Grayson PhD

pretty enlightening for me when i read it
 
Sorry to hear this. Sounds like you have done are doing what you can

Sometimes the only approach is to take one method and really sit with it

Also wonder if you have explored this with a therapist?

On a more superficial level I dont know how your mobility is but skipping helps me to unload anxiety. If your worried about weight gain guess that could help too

Stress often results in high levels or corisol which if goes way out of balance causes weight gain. Sense you probably already know this

Is there some activity that you could put the anxious energy into?

I know you mentioned yoga. Unsure if you meant only asana. Have you practiced any pranayama (breath practices) paticularly Nadi Shodhana?
I have found that this for even ten minutes a day helps the system

Also, herbs? Rhodiola, Swanzda Berry, Licorice etc
I'm currently taking a nervine tonic which is helping

I'd encourage you to keep doing the healthy eating, watering, sleeping, these are the foundations

Sending support and wishing you well
Hi,

Thank you for your response, I’ve explored many techniques with my therapist and none have been too helpful unfortunately. I have to say that I feel like I’ve been given so many techniques and read so many self help books that it’s all becoming a bit of a blur, maybe I should really focus on one method.

I am really eager to get back into physical activity but I just get so anxious about exercising that I rarely do it. I do also suffer from vitamin d deficiency, anemia and sleep apnea so I am quite physically tired a lot of the time. But I will be sure to check out Nadi Shodhana.

No herbs at the moment but I have been considering St. John’s wort for a while, have you ever tried that if you don’t mind me asking?

Thank you again for getting back to me.

hey,
I have OCD.
I can relate to a lot of the anxieties you described and the way you describe them.... like they're not rational, you can't reason out of them etc.

took my p-doc a long time (years) to pick up on the fact it was ocd and not ptsd or other anxiety disorders.

Traditional CBT and medication don't work for OCD.
CBT can actually make OCD worse. way worse because CBT exercises end up turning into compulsions.

I've kinda just started therapy for ocd specifically (kind of) and my p-doc recommended the book Freedom From Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
author is Jonathan Grayson PhD

pretty enlightening for me when i read it

Hi,

Thanks for your response, can’t believe how much I can relate to what you’re saying! I totally get what you mean about the exercises turning into compulsions, I almost obsessively try to do them and say them over in my head but they’ve completely lost their meaning. I’ve also started twitching and stuff out of habit, my partner picked up on this the other day and I hadn’t even realised I was doing it, not sure if this relates too.

I’ve purchased that book and I’m very interested in seeing if I can relate to it, OCD has never been mentioned to me by any medical practitioners so I've never looked into it.

Thank you again for your response.
 
Hi,

Thank you for your response, I’ve explored many techniques with my therapist and none have been too helpful unfortunately. I have to say that I feel like I’ve been given so many techniques and read so many self help books that it’s all becoming a bit of a blur, maybe I should really focus on one method.

I am really eager to get back into physical activity but I just get so anxious about exercising that I rarely do it. I do also suffer from vitamin d deficiency, anemia and sleep apnea so I am quite physically tired a lot of the time. But I will be sure to check out Nadi Shodhana.

No herbs at the moment but I have been considering St. John’s wort for a while, have you ever tried that if you don’t mind me asking?

Thank you again for getting back to me.
Yes I don't get on with that nervine but do use others: skull cap, melissa, oat seed
Its not a quick fix but is a good long term support for me at least. I have been only taking it a few weeks and feeling better in general

Apart from today. Anxious AF!
 
Yes I don't get on with that nervine but do use others: skull cap, melissa, oat seed
Its not a quick fix but is a good long term support for me at least. I have been only taking it a few weeks and feeling better in general

Apart from today. Anxious AF!
Thank you for the tips I’ll be sure to check them out! I really didn’t enjoy SSRI’s so will definitely look into these instead.

I’m sorry to hear that, are you in the UK? If so at least there is some rare sunshine!
 
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