Ways To Deal With Anxiety And Fear?

[Montiel1984]

So I joined up a little while ago but haven't dedicated time until now to writing more or discussing different approaches to all this mess. I'm having some pretty intense anxiety since I left work and have been trying to calm myself down for awhile now. My mind keeps going to the worst case scenario and this unbearable fear that grows in my head. How do you all cope with anxiety, the fear of death and depression that go along with all this? I know of very generic methods which are open to interpretation but what else is there? Or is it something that we just need to live with? Or is there a real light and happiness within this life? I know I seem all over the place and for that I am sorry. It's been a difficult day.

 

[Marf]

I take medications, have a gym membership, and friends to vent too. Good luck finding what works for you.

 

[LokiBell]

I take a medication on a regular basis but when I feel a panic attack coming on I have a medication that I take to keep me from going into a full blown attack. It works for me. I also see a counselor and I come to this forum. This forum helps me realize I am not crazy, I simply have PTSD and there are others out there like me. I have suffered with anxiety since I was a teenager but it became exacerbated when I was attacked last fall. Personally I noticed that my anxiety increases when I am at home. When I am at work I am constantly busy and my mind doesn't have time to wander. At home, when I get time to breathe is when it increases. Is it like that for you?

I don't know of other ways to help. I hope a fellow member can give you some sound advice to guide you.

And yes, there is light and happiness in this world. Sometimes the darkness that surrounds us can make it difficult to see it, but it is there and I believe things will get better.

 

[Montiel1984]

Thank you and the answer is yes. When I get home and I'm alone, it gets bad and I struggle to find a peaceful medium but it's never complete. It's hard to describe. The panic and pain subside but there's still an empty hopeless feeling afterwards. Sometimes I wish ignorance was a virtue.

 

[franciemarnie]

I don't have a fear of death and depression though I lived with depression for decades, and prayed for death because I did not see any light and happiness within this life.

Now I do...at age 57. It would have been nice to have always seen the light and happiness but that was my experience of the human condition. I carried the diagnosis of depression thru life from before the time PTSD was coined, and then went decades untreated and undiagnosed for what ailed me.

I crawled thru the years with prescribed and unprescribed drugs and the talking cure, which proved a myth.

Finally I was diagnosed and slowly I have found healing solutions that released trauma energy and gave relief, primarily somatic therapy but also energy healers, craniosacral therapists and a shaman too.

What do you love to do? Is there any pursuit or practice that brings you joy? If not as an adult, what brought you contentment or joy - if anything - when you were little? That's one approach to create well being. You have to try and create some quality of life.

It may take a different therapist to help or meds if you aren't functional at the moment to jump start you if you are too low to attempt anything.

We have to be our own detectives and figure out the solution that works for us. We have to become the hero who pulls us out of the dark. Just because you can't see it now doesn't mean it's not there.

Did you ever read Joseph Campbell? The hero always has to overcome unpredictable, overwhelming odds and challenges without any clear path home. Keep searching for what works for you.

 

[LokiBell]

I hear you. Being home is my biggest struggle as well. I do hope another member can advise us both on how to feel less anxious and to see the light that, at times, escapes us. I find myself journaling at times, especially when my anxiety is high or I need to vent. I also like to refurbish old wooden cabinet doors into something new so I do that and it helps as I must concentrate. So if there is anything crafty you can do with your hands, maybe that would be an option. My avatar is actually a sign I made from an old cabinet door. I also like to keep the television on, even if I am not watching. For me, it helps me to feel not so alone.

I don't know if any of my suggestions or observations help, but there are wonderful members on here that are very supportive and make us realize we are not alone. Just know that I am listening and I know how you feel, as far as anxiety and hopelessness goes.

 

[Montiel1984]

It's for me like that as well lokibell. I journal quite a lot throughout the whole day. I started doing it when my mind just broke a few months ago. It feels like someone or something is listening and not judging or making you feel like a sympathy whore. Just an ear to listen, even though you end up being your own receiver. But it does help to clear your mind and make sense of it to a certain degree.
And what you said francie means a lot. I used to have plenty of hobbies and interest that kept my creativity and spiritual side in tune with my mind but now a days, I have no joy in what I used to love. Even harder to get the motivation or kick start to even try. I had a whole list of things to do when I got home today. I ended up in bed with no drive and trying to not let dark thoughts dictate my thought process. I know I have to push myself harder but it's so difficult. And it's worst when you take into consideration your pain versus everyone else's. Makes everything seem bleak and insignificant.

 

[franciemarnie]

I so feel for you. Here is a big hug if okay (Montiel).

Of course no one can diagnose you here but if I did - I would say you sound like you have a severe depression. I was 29 when I was at my worst depressed wise. I had no interest in anything. I had no energy. Every single thing was an effort. I would debate if I could hold off going to the john because I was so exhausted. Then all my muscles and bones began to ache so bad without organic cause. I couldn't go to my job anymore. I had been anti pills but I had no choice I felt and got on meds. They did help. It's just that as time went by I needed more. I had to deal with the traumas.

Keep researching. Be gentle with yourself now. Maybe no to-do list except what is necessary. Watch movies. Listen to music. Stuff that won't take energy but will give something back.

 

[Montiel1984]

Thank you. I'm trying my hardest and this forum does help. Makes things alittle more clearer. Not feel so alone or different or pathetic or whatever other word my mind throws at me.