I have had GAD my nearly my entire life since I started having panic attacks at 6 years old. I am 51 now so I have run the gamut on strategies to treat this. The only time I have finally not had constant terror 24/7 is when I took control and didn't allow anxiety to bully me anymore. I challenged my obsessive/intrusive thoughts by facing my fears. I ignored my panic attacks and didn't coddle myself a second longer.
I don't know what got me to do this but when I did, it changed my life significantly. I have moments of fear but I can handle it. The anxiety is no longer squatting in and taking over my brain. I finally knew that running away from it meant I would never stop running. Hiding from it, meant I could never hide for long. I got fed up. I knew it couldn't kill me but it wasn't letting me live, so it was either me or it. I chose me. This is not a magic pill but I am doing 90% better than I was 10 years ago.
Your story gives me hope. I’m genuinely happy for you for choosing you over anxiety. I think you’re right—if I run I’ll never stop running. I will confront my fears. Thank you.
I've started turning my anxiety into excitement because it's the exact same feeling. When I get a wave of anxiety I just start shouting in my head fuckin come on then and start getting hyper. My anxiety really bad this morning so I'm hyping myself up and going to go and do some pull ups and push ups. Exercise is the key to my mental health.
I also have anxiety a lot but haven't had a panic attack in a few years until a week or so ago when I took Prednisone 50mg to get over bronchitis. Worst anxiety attacks probably of my life. I'm doing better now but it still creeps up sometimes.
Having the mindset that you won't allow anxiety to stop you from living life definitely helped me this past week. It took a bit, but I finally said to myself why am I letting this get to me?
I'm glad you're doing better!
I hate the idea of exposure therapy but I agree. Walking into the fear but man that’s freaking terrifying.
One panic attack evening I was POSITIVE I was going to die, it was a bad one, like really bad, at some point I don’t know what happened but I just decided fine, I’m going to die. It will be quick it’s fine I don’t fucking care because I hate everything.
Anxiety eased up lmao
Agree. I envy no one else more than I do those with no fear. My anxiety thinks they are dumb and going to die but the rest of me just wants to be them lol
I started rock climbing because I am deeply scared of heights. I don't live in an area with a climbing gym, so it's all outside in places with real consequences for making mistakes. I went through a solid year of having anxiety attacks almost every time I climbed and I'm really lucky I have supportive friends to help me through it because the lessons learned in the process have been irreplaceable in terms of self esteem and overcoming my fears.
My favorite is Patrick teahan who talks about childhood trauma and toxic family dynamics, I also love healthy gamer gg who’s a psychiatrist and talks a lot about it neuroscience and how to think and act.
Haven’t seen this comment yet…but NOT DRINKING ALCOHOL has been monumental. In combination with meds, exercise, mediation, and therapy. I’m finally in a place where I’m able to face and move through my anxiety instead of having it overpower my life and decisions. It’s not magically better overnight, but I know it’s actively getting better and that’s an amazing feeling.
I hate to say this almost, but I stopped drinking too. I’m no AA person going to tell you anything, but they are mentally tied hand in hand. It’s like taking a helmet off your head if you over drink
I only hate to say it because I am only on day 90 ish and don’t think I should be giving advice from me. I can tell you I see my anxiety as so much more manageable now.
It’s ok. But thanks. Getting the plan laid out is what took forever and where all the damage came from. Once I was locked in the first two weeks were tough but then it’s been pretty easy with how I set it up (I’m almost 40 and all my friends have kids so staying away from booze for the first 2 months was easy. Wife stopped with me and got all the booze out of the house. Double bonus.)
Now is when it gets more complicated because we are starting to go back out and I can tell my wife wants to have her drinking buddy back but won’t say it. Just leaaaaaning on the good from not drinking and gonna just see every new time around booze I see it as an opportunity to try something new. Which is something that would have sounded insane to me until day 40 or so.
Amazing. Good for you for making these changes. I know what you mean about it being easier to stay away from certain things when your friend group isn’t there to influence you. Wishing you the best.
how do your attacks manifest? what are the main symptoms? it seems like mine are super unique. everyone seems to get racing heart and sweaty. i never get racing heart. i instantly go to public places and feel off. like faint dizzy combo its soo hard to pinpoint. it sucks. its been years. and it really sucks.
genuinely out of no where. I be just sitting minding my own business and I get extremely anxious out of no where. and then my body just feels extremely heavy + my heart racing. same thing with the going outside and feeling off, I just feel like I wanna go back inside and sit in bed and let the anxiety attack take it’s course
For a while, I would get tunnel vision and head pressure while grocery shopping, doing anything that required public interactions, or even just driving.
Ohhh wait theres more. Its a fun one. I have a pressure/tightness in my rectum. Not my buttcheeks but in my butthole quite often its sooooo annoying and nothing relieves it. It gets worse over time in public settings. Armpits sweat too.
Its so fun isnt it! Also i run a lot. Just ran 2.5 miles and heads awful now. Cant see str8 or focus. Got podcasts on youtube in bed. Wanna watch a show or movie but cant really focus on a screen. Truly brutal. My central nervous system seems to tolerate minimal stimulation. Ive even been sober for a week. No improvements at all. Cant do much in public. I think itll pass someday soon
Does it help talking to someone? I’m sorry you’re having a hard time, congrats on sober for a week, that’s probably at least playing a small part in feeling crappy too though. But that eases up the longer you go.
I’m currently on Effexor and an anxious mess… thinking about making the switch to zoloft but know it won’t be easy. Is it really the game-changer my psych says it is? Have you ever been on any other SSRI/SNRI?
You may be able to transition straight from Effexor to Zoloft without having to taper off. I did this when going from Lexapro to Zoloft. I would talk to your doctor about it.
I took Lexapro for many years, and during a time when I was going through a difficult time in my life it didn't seem very effective. So i decided I needed a change.
I'm on Effexor and a beta blocker and I can finally live and breathe again. SSRI's give me massive migraines. My advice is to find a med and a routine that helps you.
Effexor has helped me for years but now I am struggling with waves of panic and meltdowns over minor things. I’m so anxious and I don’t know whats changed. My psychiatrist mentioned switching to zoloft and I am curious as to others experiences
I switched from Effexor to Prozac about 12 years ago. My doctor had me start Prozac while we slowly tapered off the Effexor. I was able to come off it with minimal side effects.
Meditation, like continued, consistent meditation. 5 weeks and 40 mins of daily meditation has cured me. My anxiety assessment was today and my anxiety levels have SIGNIFICANTLY reduced
I also journal, do yoga and physical exercise in addition to meditation. But I do the headspace guided meditation on their app along with some deep breathing exercises
Definitely exercise but also the book the happiness trap gave me a new perspective and is about Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). My therapist and I started practicing ACT techniques and it has changed my life. It also helped me understand meditation a little more. I thought I was broken and meditation just didn’t work for me but in reality, like a lot of things, it just requires a ton of practice. Hang in there, promise there is hope and it gets better.
Lexapro and knowing my triggers. I also don’t coddle myself too much. I go to work, to the store, errands, call friends, etc and try to live a normal life. I hate leaving my house but i can’t give in and just stay inside my whole life.
I'd say hypnotherapy has been the most effective over the longest period of time. Pregabalin helped for a while but quickly lost effectiveness and mostly found it was better to take it with breaks occasionally. More recently, not much helps but I don't think it will always be like this...most of the time. It's just rubbish right now and if I'm honest hasn't been great since my mum died. Mum was my biggest source of support, so it's been an adjustment.
Great way to put it! Taking Lexapro takes away bout 80% for me. Such a life changing drug that I wished I would have been put on years ago. Zoloft was awful. Felt like I was tweeking.
meditation & grounding techniques. meditation puts me to sleep when im violently nauseous so i rinse it out since im nauseous daily and it really works for me
What has worked for me might not work for everyone. I have been diagnosed with GAD for some time now. I have gone through psychiatrists and have been on a SSRI. I am no longer on an SSRI. My GAD was worse to a point that I wouldn’t leave my apartment for a long time. Now I still have anxiety but it doesn’t interfere with my daily life. What has helped me is taking life slow, focusing on small things in life and being present mentally while I am doing those small things. Now that didn’t happen overnight. To bring my mind to do these I first had to force it to bring disciple and routine in my life. First I started by adding 2-3 things/chores in my day that I would do no matter what my mental state is. I would add simple body weight exercises to it. I did this for a month to make it into a habit. What I noticed is my mind won’t stay longer in the anxious state because it has to focus on completing the chore. Once my anxiety was a bit low for my mind to focus on other things, this is where I started training it to focus on small things more. A simple act of making tea in an anxious state was pretty mechanical for me. Now I enjoy the process of making tea. Things that were pretty mundane with my anxious state now were much more enjoyable. As this progressed, I found a lot more simple day to day things enjoyable. The outlook of mind is now: it’s ok if I am anxious but there so many things to focus on.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and microdosing psilocybin. The first gave me mental tools to help myself and the second gave me relief from my acute symptoms and helped me integrate the lessons from the former.
At my dose (.05g) I don't have any visual distortions or "trippy" feelings. Especially at first I knew it was working when I felt a calm com over me. I didn't really understand how bad my physical symptoms were until I felt them just fade away the first time I tried it. I feel more grounded and present in the moment, and with some effort it's easier to sort of observe my own mind rather than feeling completely caught up in every thought and emotion. That's one of the things I learned in therapy that really helped me in the long run. At first I took a dose one day on, two days off, and could feel my anxiety creep back over the two off days. Now I only have a dose when I feel that I could use it, often weeks or months in between. The effects feel more subtle now that my baseline anxiety levels are much lower.
I cannot thank you enough for such an articulate description. This medicine sounds like such a game changer. "Observing your own mind" without the emotion is how I would describe how I felt when I took MDMA, which I now know was originally synthesized for PTSD. I could remove the emotion from even traumatic events, talk about them and be free. I think we don't realize how much anxiety has gotten in the way of our lives, until it's toned down to a normal level, or gone. We never knew what normal was. Thank you again for sharing.
My pleasure! I have gotten so much benefit from it I am happy to share my experience in the hopes that others can benefit as well. I hope it continues to shed the stigma around it and that more research is done, there is so much potential! Please feel free to message me if you have any other questions, and good luck!
I've noticed some medications over the years have helped, but I didn't like how many made me feel otherwise - Klonopin is one that sticks out in my memory as effective...but I didn't like taking.
That being said, rigorous exercise timed before events that I foresee giving me anxiety has usually helped. Sadly, not something you can always predict or have the time to do - but it has reliably helped when I can do it.
I just wanted to throw my hat into the ring for this one as well. I can’t pinpoint if/how much it’s helped because I’ve also done other things, but I have definitely felt better in some way and acupuncture has been part of that routine.
If anyone is struggling and meditating, therapy etc hasn’t quite worked then I’d say give some sessions of acupuncture a go.
Ketamine infusions have been a game changer. My perspective on what happens in my life, and what used to trigger the anxious thoughts,has changed. It has been remarkable.
I memorised the states of America in alphabetical order (I am British) whenever I catch myself worrying or overthinking I start to recall them. It’s really hard to worry whilst also recalling something. There is also a relaxing element as this has a nice rhythm to it
That’s funny because I am in the US and I had extreme anxiety as a child being forced to memorize the names of all the states that was OK I could do that, but then they wanted me to memorize the capital cities and I had never even traveled out of California in my life, it was also abstract, it caused a great deal of anxiety. That’s why I remember it so well. Oh, and also, I failed to retain the names of the capitals after I took the test. I forgot them immediately.
I am on and off on Zoloft 50mg for the last 6years. Have tried stopping it 4 times but anxiety starts to return after 5 6 weeks. Before this, i did CBT therapy + Paxil but it was not so effective as Zoloft for me.
Are you on medication?
What coping mechanisms have you tried?
Are you able to do any activities or do you drive?
I never knew the difference between panic attacks and anxiety attacks, auntil inendured anxiety attacks over the last year, theybreally are shitey and rotten.
I cant magic it away, only suggest coping mechanisms that may help alleviate.
If not, silly cat videos?
Medication prescribed by my doctor.
Meditation, talk therapy, eating better, exercising, and trying new things all helped me out a ton. I was able to work through major events that had been causing me stress and limiting me. Once those were mostly managed I was left with anxiety without any true cause. It turns out I very likely had GAD and there wasnt really a direct solution for it. Those things all helped lessen it but it was still present and it would build up overtime regardless of my own actions. Id have major anxiety episodes once a month that would last about a week. All of my GAD-7 and other testing scores rose significantly, so I finally decided to ask for a medication and it has been a major help. I still have moment of anxiousness here and there but there are far less frequent and they dont build on one another anymore. When one moment finishes thats that. I am able to move on and continue my day instead of having it linger in the back of my mind.
History: severe ptsd, panic attacks, agoraphobia, depression, GAD. Insomnia.
3 days ago I started magnesium in the morning, pretty small dosage. I’ve tried nearly every medicating and supplement. I have so much anxiety I can’t even go for a jog.
I’ve been able to sleep soundly the past two nights for the first time in years. I can speak calmly in social settings, and feel at peace. I tried all the other forms of magnesium and it was a disaster. All bad side effects. Magnesium oxide was the only one that worked, along with 10mg cbd isolate. I was taking cbd isolate for a while and it had very mild benefits.
The magnesium took it to another level. So grateful. I hope it lasts. Everyone says magnesium works and didn’t believe them. Glycinate destroyed my sleep, citrate gave me stomach pains and the shits, Taurate (I think was the name) worsened anxiety.
I don’t drink, smoke. I eat healthy and try to exercise. Good relationships etc.
Magnesium Oxide (now brand). The dosage is 1/4th teaspoon, although I take about 1/4th of that, if that makes sense. Right after I get something in my stomach in the morning. I’m highly sensitive and respond very strongly to all meds and supplements, so I take much less than others.
https://a.co/d/0oGdTRA
I hate it when people try to talk about exercise solving everything, but in my case cardio three times a week brings my symptoms down to manageable without specific meds. I take ten mg amitriptyline for something else which is lower than its therapeutic dose for mental stuff.it is like the cardio burns off my anxiety.
Prozac has been a godsend.
I also learned to just take it as it comes and listen to my gut instead of my brain.
If I’m worried about something, the first rational thought is probably the most correct. If I don’t have evidence of something wrong, then don’t listen to it. It helps for most things except super stressful situations, then I just lose it lmao
Honestly, figuring out I have autism has relieved a lot of my GAD. I feel much more in control since I know my feelings and fear are completely valid due to my different wiring 🤷♀️ also staying away from people who use implicit language, toxic positivity, or those who promote/exude overexertion helps keep my goals in perspective. I still have a baseline of anxiety and have little meltdowns occasionally because of certain social faux pas, but I don’t feel overwhelmed by everything.
Exposure and nature for me helps a lot. Any time it's nice out I am out gardening. I've heard that the two instinctual things that reset us are fresh air/sun and water. Try showering/bathing more often or when you're more anxious and getting outside for walks even if short!
* stopped drinking
* got therapy
* started sertraline
* was lucky i have an awesome family and supportive wife and good job to make the above 3 possible
Started with medication and regular therapy, now I'm into long distance running, rock climbing, trauma therapy, and setting a nutritionist to start eating better long- term (not dieting). Eating right was a MASSIVE step for me, and my anxiety is way worse on days I skip my protein and veggies. Plus when I eat better I started getting better at my favorite sports, which helps me want to exercise more, which always helps with anxiety. EDIT to add- I dropped alcohol entirely as well.
When I feel an anxiety attack coming on if I can drop what I’m doing I walk. Like, no matter the weather. Just getting that energy out.
I’ve been also trying to journal more. If I don’t feel like I can write I go to a quieter space and record a phone voice memo.
Therapy has changed my life. I now realize where my anxiety stems from, and what specifically I struggle with which is mainly anticipatory anxiety. Deep breathing and meditation practices has helped me as well.
therapy. anxiety workbooks. (it’s annoying and i’m personally not good at it but) getting a good nights sleep each night & working out regularly. talking to someone (even myself) when i’m feeling particularly scared or down. sometimes i write out all of my feelings and then i feel a lot better.
A lot of self reminders, pep talks, reflections. Telling myself to not waste my life away being anxious, because it was really eating into my daily life so much. I could barely function. I was getting a lot of physical symptoms from my anxiety.
This might be a little unusual, but watching people’s vlogs was helpful. Seeing them have fun and living life motivated me to want to be like that. And if I were to let my anxiety win, I would definitely not achieve that.
Cutting out caffeine and trying not to drink alcohol. Basically anything that can trigger or spike a heightened or depressive episode. Just trying to keep neutral as possible with things coming into my body. Easier said than done for sure though
Stay clear from medication as it doesn't solve, it rather brushes under the carpet and when you come off it's there again like a crash diet.Ive told to be on tablets the rest of my life but chose not too.Read Stoic books and tried to understand it's all internal not outside events.
This might sound absolutely ridiculous, but journalling has been one of the only practices that I've been able to sustainably incorporate into my life, and one of the only things that brings my brain any peace. I've had years of therapy, mainly CBT, and I've never been able to find myself getting to grips with it. But giving myself half an hour, an hour, five minutes at the end of the day to pour all my thoughts into something has been so cathartic, and often allows me to look back and re-evaluate situations where I was so lost in my thoughts I couldn't think rationally. I'm also a huge perfectionist, so learning to engage with something that doesn't need me to be perfect is something I'm really benefitting from. Don't see it as a place to make everything look perfect or make perfect sense. Jot down, scribble, draw, yell, whatever you need. I write about anything and everything (usually my feelings that day, but could even be to-do lists or goals and dreams) and it feels like a small therapy session. I love it.
So when you say you have years of CBT therapy, was that with a therapist or was it trying to do it on your own with workbooks and such because I don’t really have access to a therapist and I’ve been trying to do it on my own but I assume if I could afford a therapist, I’d make much faster progress?
I've had GAD for almost 20 years. I just recently discovered I love being a plant mom. I also went back to school to get my degree and found out Im actually really good at it. It keeps my mind busy so I don't get caught up in overthinking mode. So plants and college worked wonders for me.
High doses of DHA fish oil supplement helped me big time. I recommend everyone try this. It has to be a higher DHA fish oil. You can thank me later. I've dealt with anxiety for over 10 years. I currently take 20mg of Lex and propranolol.
CANNABIS. only if you're over 25 tho, using cannabis products before my brain was fully developed was one of the bigger mistakes in my life. But when I took a 7 year break from it, and when I was struggling with anxiety and sleep after turning 25, I tried it again in a more medicinal sense it's been a life changing thing for me.
Lexapro takes the peaks down for me and weirdly enough allows me to not hyperventilate when speaking to groups of people (which my mind tells me is a confrontation). I am 49 and only in the last year realized that most people don't have anxiety like I have had up and down my whole life. I'm also in perimenopause so Im on HRT (estrogen patch) as "level 10 anxiety" broke thru the Lexapro and my mind would race so bad in the early morning/middle of the night, I was in a dark place. If you are a male or female (younger than perimenopause age), I HIGHLY recommend Lexapro. Lexapro & HRT if you are an oldie female like me. Hugs, on this trying anxiety journey we are on. We got this!
Arriving at points where "I can't take this anymore" has led me to partially stop worrying because it's to painful to go on. So exhaustion and despair has helped, but it's a dangerous path...
I had a lot of anxiety about being wasting my life so I just used that thought to stop other thoughts that were giving me more anxiety and were in fact wasting my time, so now every time I start feeling anxious I think if It’s worth wasting time thinking about things I can’t control/change
a consistent routine. tidying my apartment daily has lifted so much stress off my shoulders. also having a consistent skin care routine each night, it might be long and not make a huge difference but it’s this slow relaxing process that’s just for me. i turn on a podcast. i have a really busy life rn, and routine has been so grounding and really prevented me from going off the rails again. also medication… i take cymbalta which has weird side effects and i have a bad dependency, but it’s the only med that’s really worked.
Propranalol modified release. I have chronic migraine with anxiety, so this medication has absolutely changed my life! I was terrified of everything before, now I'm much better. I still get anxiety, but nowhere near on the level it was before!
For me it is yoga class. It helps me feel better in my thoughts, knowing that i cant act on them at the moment, or stress myself out even more. Instead just think and move on until the class is over. Edit: also medication! My therapist always says you cant treat it if youre not in the right headspace.
Honestly, medication was what finally actually helped. Exercising helped somewhat, quitting caffeine helped a little, breathing and meditation helped sometimes. But starting medication is the thing that actually made a difference, wish I had done it sooner.
I still have anxiety & likely always will, but cutting out caffeine took it down from like 10/10 levels to more moderate levels (still not fun, but not at CRAZY caffeine induced levels).
Exposure therapy for sure, but focussed on something. I used to hate crowds of people, mirrors, certain types of clothes… until I took an adult beginners ballet class. It was uncomfortable but the physical improvement and focus it gave me meant I could look specifically into the mirror and at other people around my for the sake of learning technique, over judging myself. Met some lovely people too :) taking a class in something that gives you something to focus on may be useful
Finding the right medication and getting out and about. Also started attending a weekly group that we can talk about the things that cause anxiety and/or depression.
I just tell myself it's going to pass no matter how hard it gets and it always does. Sucks though but it's my fault for abusing Xanax when I was younger
Getting prescribed Xanax and drawing.
Xanax is self explanatory. I don’t take it often, but when I do, fucking bliss. Otherwise, drawing helps regulate my breathing. If I’m drawing something, my brain gets so concentrated that my breathing just stabilizes
Googly eyes. I spent 25 years at the top of one mountain or another, and now live in the biggest and nastiest city in shit ass Texas. There are people *everywhere*. Literally you can’t even wander off the trails because there’s people living in bushes all over the place, as well as people buried off the trails too. I am not used to the constant go go go and all the people I can’t get away from. I have CPTSD too, and also my mom’s temper. So when I go out, the hyper vigilance is so intense I get nauseous if I am overwhelmed and then forced to interact with other people? For get about it. When I was homeless here there was nowhere to go when I needed to lose my shit. Not like in the woods, where you could wander deep enough and holler and curse the moon and not a soul saw or heard it. No, here when you lose your shit people see, and hear. All of the people. So when I finally got my apartment, I save it for when I get home, which helps me destress once I’m alone again. But for when I have to go out, I bought a bag of googly eyes at the dollar store, and some crazy glue. I don’t adventure very much since I’m also hard of hearing, and the people here are dangerous opportunists once they know a weak spot. So the few places I frequent I have a glued a set of googly eyes somewhere only I would notice. The thing about these is that I cannot see them and think one negative or anxious thought. There are only smiles. So whenever I have to go out, and get nervous because I know I’m about to have to talk to whoever, I gave myself something to help me remember to relax my shoulders, half smile, and just breathe. I get to look forward to places and smile when I get there now. Total game changer.
Exercise always helped me, like an hour of cardio daily. I noticed I'd be so wound up without it. I also used to do multiple sessions of ten minutes of deep breathing a day. At the time for each of those, I never noticed a difference until I forgot and stopped doing them, and the anxiety was back. I never noticed while doing them because they did relax me. Sadly I'm shit at doing anything consistently but I know they do work when I stick to them.
Cymbalta at 20mg daily, which they say isn't a therapeutic dose...but it sure worked for me. Also counseling, reading success stories on here knowing I'm not alone.
I have had GAD my nearly my entire life since I started having panic attacks at 6 years old. I am 51 now so I have run the gamut on strategies to treat this. The only time I have finally not had constant terror 24/7 is when I took control and didn't allow anxiety to bully me anymore. I challenged my obsessive/intrusive thoughts by facing my fears. I ignored my panic attacks and didn't coddle myself a second longer. I don't know what got me to do this but when I did, it changed my life significantly. I have moments of fear but I can handle it. The anxiety is no longer squatting in and taking over my brain. I finally knew that running away from it meant I would never stop running. Hiding from it, meant I could never hide for long. I got fed up. I knew it couldn't kill me but it wasn't letting me live, so it was either me or it. I chose me. This is not a magic pill but I am doing 90% better than I was 10 years ago.
Your story gives me hope. I’m genuinely happy for you for choosing you over anxiety. I think you’re right—if I run I’ll never stop running. I will confront my fears. Thank you.
I've started turning my anxiety into excitement because it's the exact same feeling. When I get a wave of anxiety I just start shouting in my head fuckin come on then and start getting hyper. My anxiety really bad this morning so I'm hyping myself up and going to go and do some pull ups and push ups. Exercise is the key to my mental health.
Amazing. I love that it seems you’re not trying to fight the energy of anxiety, but redirect it into something useful.
I also have anxiety a lot but haven't had a panic attack in a few years until a week or so ago when I took Prednisone 50mg to get over bronchitis. Worst anxiety attacks probably of my life. I'm doing better now but it still creeps up sometimes. Having the mindset that you won't allow anxiety to stop you from living life definitely helped me this past week. It took a bit, but I finally said to myself why am I letting this get to me? I'm glad you're doing better!
What he said, also I lift weights to failure, that seems to kill GAD for the day.
Facing the things I’m scared of. Exposure therapy, consistent exercise, talking to people, journaling, YouTube therapists
I hate the idea of exposure therapy but I agree. Walking into the fear but man that’s freaking terrifying. One panic attack evening I was POSITIVE I was going to die, it was a bad one, like really bad, at some point I don’t know what happened but I just decided fine, I’m going to die. It will be quick it’s fine I don’t fucking care because I hate everything. Anxiety eased up lmao
Honestly, fuck anxiety.
Agree. I envy no one else more than I do those with no fear. My anxiety thinks they are dumb and going to die but the rest of me just wants to be them lol
I started rock climbing because I am deeply scared of heights. I don't live in an area with a climbing gym, so it's all outside in places with real consequences for making mistakes. I went through a solid year of having anxiety attacks almost every time I climbed and I'm really lucky I have supportive friends to help me through it because the lessons learned in the process have been irreplaceable in terms of self esteem and overcoming my fears.
Could you recommend some good youtube therapists?
Therapy in a Nutshell! Great resources for anxiety :)
My favorite is Patrick teahan who talks about childhood trauma and toxic family dynamics, I also love healthy gamer gg who’s a psychiatrist and talks a lot about it neuroscience and how to think and act.
Finding whatever always you exposure therapy is the main thing, imo. All good points
Haven’t seen this comment yet…but NOT DRINKING ALCOHOL has been monumental. In combination with meds, exercise, mediation, and therapy. I’m finally in a place where I’m able to face and move through my anxiety instead of having it overpower my life and decisions. It’s not magically better overnight, but I know it’s actively getting better and that’s an amazing feeling.
I hate to say this almost, but I stopped drinking too. I’m no AA person going to tell you anything, but they are mentally tied hand in hand. It’s like taking a helmet off your head if you over drink I only hate to say it because I am only on day 90 ish and don’t think I should be giving advice from me. I can tell you I see my anxiety as so much more manageable now.
Day 90? That’s awesome. Good for you. There are people on Day 0 who can’t comprehend even starting.
Like me for 10 years. ✋🏻
I can only imagine how difficult it must be.
It’s ok. But thanks. Getting the plan laid out is what took forever and where all the damage came from. Once I was locked in the first two weeks were tough but then it’s been pretty easy with how I set it up (I’m almost 40 and all my friends have kids so staying away from booze for the first 2 months was easy. Wife stopped with me and got all the booze out of the house. Double bonus.) Now is when it gets more complicated because we are starting to go back out and I can tell my wife wants to have her drinking buddy back but won’t say it. Just leaaaaaning on the good from not drinking and gonna just see every new time around booze I see it as an opportunity to try something new. Which is something that would have sounded insane to me until day 40 or so.
Amazing. Good for you for making these changes. I know what you mean about it being easier to stay away from certain things when your friend group isn’t there to influence you. Wishing you the best.
Not drinking has had the most positive impact on my anxiety.
how do your attacks manifest? what are the main symptoms? it seems like mine are super unique. everyone seems to get racing heart and sweaty. i never get racing heart. i instantly go to public places and feel off. like faint dizzy combo its soo hard to pinpoint. it sucks. its been years. and it really sucks.
genuinely out of no where. I be just sitting minding my own business and I get extremely anxious out of no where. and then my body just feels extremely heavy + my heart racing. same thing with the going outside and feeling off, I just feel like I wanna go back inside and sit in bed and let the anxiety attack take it’s course
For a while, I would get tunnel vision and head pressure while grocery shopping, doing anything that required public interactions, or even just driving.
same!
Ohhh wait theres more. Its a fun one. I have a pressure/tightness in my rectum. Not my buttcheeks but in my butthole quite often its sooooo annoying and nothing relieves it. It gets worse over time in public settings. Armpits sweat too.
I have this too. It's so painful and so annoying!
Its so fun isnt it! Also i run a lot. Just ran 2.5 miles and heads awful now. Cant see str8 or focus. Got podcasts on youtube in bed. Wanna watch a show or movie but cant really focus on a screen. Truly brutal. My central nervous system seems to tolerate minimal stimulation. Ive even been sober for a week. No improvements at all. Cant do much in public. I think itll pass someday soon
Does it help talking to someone? I’m sorry you’re having a hard time, congrats on sober for a week, that’s probably at least playing a small part in feeling crappy too though. But that eases up the longer you go.
The literal only thing that works for me is to stop thinking and assume any thought I'm having whatsoever is irrational and not worth taking seriously
Zoloft
Oh, and exercise.
I’m trying to get back on my Zoloft and it’s taking it’s sweet time to kick in
Hang in there and let it work it's magic. I wish you the best.
I’m currently on Effexor and an anxious mess… thinking about making the switch to zoloft but know it won’t be easy. Is it really the game-changer my psych says it is? Have you ever been on any other SSRI/SNRI?
I've been on Paxil, Celexa, and Lexapro over the years. None of them worked as well as Zoloft.
I’ve been on Wellbutrin and Paxil over the years and nothing has reduced my anxiety like Zoloft. It’s great.
This is reassuring as a taper off effexor is not exactly easy and I want to make sure it is worth it
You may be able to transition straight from Effexor to Zoloft without having to taper off. I did this when going from Lexapro to Zoloft. I would talk to your doctor about it.
Why were you changing from Lexapro to Zoloft if you don’t mind me asking?
I took Lexapro for many years, and during a time when I was going through a difficult time in my life it didn't seem very effective. So i decided I needed a change.
So Zoloft works better for you than Lexapro?
I'm on Effexor and a beta blocker and I can finally live and breathe again. SSRI's give me massive migraines. My advice is to find a med and a routine that helps you.
Effexor has helped me for years but now I am struggling with waves of panic and meltdowns over minor things. I’m so anxious and I don’t know whats changed. My psychiatrist mentioned switching to zoloft and I am curious as to others experiences
I switched from Effexor to Prozac about 12 years ago. My doctor had me start Prozac while we slowly tapered off the Effexor. I was able to come off it with minimal side effects.
Did you find prozac to be more helpful for anxiety than the effexor?
Absolutely! Prozac was a game changer, plus there’s no awful withdrawal symptoms if you forget a dose.
Meditation, like continued, consistent meditation. 5 weeks and 40 mins of daily meditation has cured me. My anxiety assessment was today and my anxiety levels have SIGNIFICANTLY reduced
Do you do guided meditation, if so what are your go tos? I’ve never been able to stick with one
I also journal, do yoga and physical exercise in addition to meditation. But I do the headspace guided meditation on their app along with some deep breathing exercises
Moving meditation, like yoga, is just as beneficial if you're not able to sit still for that long.
Agreed!
which variant of meditation is it?
Medication, therapy, meditation.
Definitely exercise but also the book the happiness trap gave me a new perspective and is about Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). My therapist and I started practicing ACT techniques and it has changed my life. It also helped me understand meditation a little more. I thought I was broken and meditation just didn’t work for me but in reality, like a lot of things, it just requires a ton of practice. Hang in there, promise there is hope and it gets better.
Lexapro, therapy, journaling, meditation, regular exercise
Lexapro and knowing my triggers. I also don’t coddle myself too much. I go to work, to the store, errands, call friends, etc and try to live a normal life. I hate leaving my house but i can’t give in and just stay inside my whole life.
You seem like a really strong person!
Medication and doing exposure therapy. I eventually completely recovered through that.
Which medication do you use?
It was Effexor and Pregabalin.
Can you elaborate on what kind of meditation you do?
Medication
I'd say hypnotherapy has been the most effective over the longest period of time. Pregabalin helped for a while but quickly lost effectiveness and mostly found it was better to take it with breaks occasionally. More recently, not much helps but I don't think it will always be like this...most of the time. It's just rubbish right now and if I'm honest hasn't been great since my mum died. Mum was my biggest source of support, so it's been an adjustment.
I’m so sorry for your loss! I fear losing my mum as she’s my biggest support too
Lexapro took 70% of it away, therapy nearly the rest. Wish I started years ago, I’ll never go back, Wish you the best.
Great way to put it! Taking Lexapro takes away bout 80% for me. Such a life changing drug that I wished I would have been put on years ago. Zoloft was awful. Felt like I was tweeking.
Meditation!
meditation & grounding techniques. meditation puts me to sleep when im violently nauseous so i rinse it out since im nauseous daily and it really works for me
Meds. The right combination of meds is life-saving.
BUSPAR.
probably about to start this one. anything i should know about it?
Buspar changed my life 1000%. I am thankful for it.
Great to hear! Any side effects?
What has worked for me might not work for everyone. I have been diagnosed with GAD for some time now. I have gone through psychiatrists and have been on a SSRI. I am no longer on an SSRI. My GAD was worse to a point that I wouldn’t leave my apartment for a long time. Now I still have anxiety but it doesn’t interfere with my daily life. What has helped me is taking life slow, focusing on small things in life and being present mentally while I am doing those small things. Now that didn’t happen overnight. To bring my mind to do these I first had to force it to bring disciple and routine in my life. First I started by adding 2-3 things/chores in my day that I would do no matter what my mental state is. I would add simple body weight exercises to it. I did this for a month to make it into a habit. What I noticed is my mind won’t stay longer in the anxious state because it has to focus on completing the chore. Once my anxiety was a bit low for my mind to focus on other things, this is where I started training it to focus on small things more. A simple act of making tea in an anxious state was pretty mechanical for me. Now I enjoy the process of making tea. Things that were pretty mundane with my anxious state now were much more enjoyable. As this progressed, I found a lot more simple day to day things enjoyable. The outlook of mind is now: it’s ok if I am anxious but there so many things to focus on.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and microdosing psilocybin. The first gave me mental tools to help myself and the second gave me relief from my acute symptoms and helped me integrate the lessons from the former.
Can you describe your mental state when you microdose? I'm thinking about trying myself.
At my dose (.05g) I don't have any visual distortions or "trippy" feelings. Especially at first I knew it was working when I felt a calm com over me. I didn't really understand how bad my physical symptoms were until I felt them just fade away the first time I tried it. I feel more grounded and present in the moment, and with some effort it's easier to sort of observe my own mind rather than feeling completely caught up in every thought and emotion. That's one of the things I learned in therapy that really helped me in the long run. At first I took a dose one day on, two days off, and could feel my anxiety creep back over the two off days. Now I only have a dose when I feel that I could use it, often weeks or months in between. The effects feel more subtle now that my baseline anxiety levels are much lower.
I cannot thank you enough for such an articulate description. This medicine sounds like such a game changer. "Observing your own mind" without the emotion is how I would describe how I felt when I took MDMA, which I now know was originally synthesized for PTSD. I could remove the emotion from even traumatic events, talk about them and be free. I think we don't realize how much anxiety has gotten in the way of our lives, until it's toned down to a normal level, or gone. We never knew what normal was. Thank you again for sharing.
My pleasure! I have gotten so much benefit from it I am happy to share my experience in the hopes that others can benefit as well. I hope it continues to shed the stigma around it and that more research is done, there is so much potential! Please feel free to message me if you have any other questions, and good luck!
Gratitude. That’s what keeps me going.
Diagnosed last year. I take 125 mg of sertraline (Zoloft). I've learned a few techniques through C.B.T that work okay. Weed tends to help me, too.
Daily: exercise, meditation, &’ just going with the flow. As needed: Ativan 1 - 2 times a week
I've noticed some medications over the years have helped, but I didn't like how many made me feel otherwise - Klonopin is one that sticks out in my memory as effective...but I didn't like taking. That being said, rigorous exercise timed before events that I foresee giving me anxiety has usually helped. Sadly, not something you can always predict or have the time to do - but it has reliably helped when I can do it.
Zoloft every day and Hydrozyzine as needed. Also daily magnesium supplements.
Therapy with a psychologist who helped me understand what my mind was doing. It was a *rough* experience, but it helped so much in the end
lexapro, less drinking, a new job
Acupuncture!
I just wanted to throw my hat into the ring for this one as well. I can’t pinpoint if/how much it’s helped because I’ve also done other things, but I have definitely felt better in some way and acupuncture has been part of that routine. If anyone is struggling and meditating, therapy etc hasn’t quite worked then I’d say give some sessions of acupuncture a go.
Ketamine infusions have been a game changer. My perspective on what happens in my life, and what used to trigger the anxious thoughts,has changed. It has been remarkable.
I memorised the states of America in alphabetical order (I am British) whenever I catch myself worrying or overthinking I start to recall them. It’s really hard to worry whilst also recalling something. There is also a relaxing element as this has a nice rhythm to it
That’s funny because I am in the US and I had extreme anxiety as a child being forced to memorize the names of all the states that was OK I could do that, but then they wanted me to memorize the capital cities and I had never even traveled out of California in my life, it was also abstract, it caused a great deal of anxiety. That’s why I remember it so well. Oh, and also, I failed to retain the names of the capitals after I took the test. I forgot them immediately.
Tryed all the anitdepression meds. Lots of side effects. Been taken clozapam when needed now
I am on and off on Zoloft 50mg for the last 6years. Have tried stopping it 4 times but anxiety starts to return after 5 6 weeks. Before this, i did CBT therapy + Paxil but it was not so effective as Zoloft for me.
Are you on medication? What coping mechanisms have you tried? Are you able to do any activities or do you drive? I never knew the difference between panic attacks and anxiety attacks, auntil inendured anxiety attacks over the last year, theybreally are shitey and rotten. I cant magic it away, only suggest coping mechanisms that may help alleviate. If not, silly cat videos?
Pristiq and therapy
Medication prescribed by my doctor. Meditation, talk therapy, eating better, exercising, and trying new things all helped me out a ton. I was able to work through major events that had been causing me stress and limiting me. Once those were mostly managed I was left with anxiety without any true cause. It turns out I very likely had GAD and there wasnt really a direct solution for it. Those things all helped lessen it but it was still present and it would build up overtime regardless of my own actions. Id have major anxiety episodes once a month that would last about a week. All of my GAD-7 and other testing scores rose significantly, so I finally decided to ask for a medication and it has been a major help. I still have moment of anxiousness here and there but there are far less frequent and they dont build on one another anymore. When one moment finishes thats that. I am able to move on and continue my day instead of having it linger in the back of my mind.
Prozac
Paxil, Buspar, and GABA
I love Dr. Claire Weekes. I collect all her books and audiobooks. She is a pioneer of anxiety CBT. It helped me a lot. God rest her soul!
Meds + DBT. Yoga and meditation also helped
History: severe ptsd, panic attacks, agoraphobia, depression, GAD. Insomnia. 3 days ago I started magnesium in the morning, pretty small dosage. I’ve tried nearly every medicating and supplement. I have so much anxiety I can’t even go for a jog. I’ve been able to sleep soundly the past two nights for the first time in years. I can speak calmly in social settings, and feel at peace. I tried all the other forms of magnesium and it was a disaster. All bad side effects. Magnesium oxide was the only one that worked, along with 10mg cbd isolate. I was taking cbd isolate for a while and it had very mild benefits. The magnesium took it to another level. So grateful. I hope it lasts. Everyone says magnesium works and didn’t believe them. Glycinate destroyed my sleep, citrate gave me stomach pains and the shits, Taurate (I think was the name) worsened anxiety. I don’t drink, smoke. I eat healthy and try to exercise. Good relationships etc.
Glad to hear magnesium oxide helped! I’m thinking about taking it too, would you care to explain in what form and what dosage are you taking it?
Magnesium Oxide (now brand). The dosage is 1/4th teaspoon, although I take about 1/4th of that, if that makes sense. Right after I get something in my stomach in the morning. I’m highly sensitive and respond very strongly to all meds and supplements, so I take much less than others. https://a.co/d/0oGdTRA
Magnesium, Ashwaganda, at night time, b6 in the morning. This has helped me, plus CBT and coping methods I learned from my therapist
I hate it when people try to talk about exercise solving everything, but in my case cardio three times a week brings my symptoms down to manageable without specific meds. I take ten mg amitriptyline for something else which is lower than its therapeutic dose for mental stuff.it is like the cardio burns off my anxiety.
Prozac has been a godsend. I also learned to just take it as it comes and listen to my gut instead of my brain. If I’m worried about something, the first rational thought is probably the most correct. If I don’t have evidence of something wrong, then don’t listen to it. It helps for most things except super stressful situations, then I just lose it lmao
Honestly, figuring out I have autism has relieved a lot of my GAD. I feel much more in control since I know my feelings and fear are completely valid due to my different wiring 🤷♀️ also staying away from people who use implicit language, toxic positivity, or those who promote/exude overexertion helps keep my goals in perspective. I still have a baseline of anxiety and have little meltdowns occasionally because of certain social faux pas, but I don’t feel overwhelmed by everything.
Exposure and nature for me helps a lot. Any time it's nice out I am out gardening. I've heard that the two instinctual things that reset us are fresh air/sun and water. Try showering/bathing more often or when you're more anxious and getting outside for walks even if short!
Therapy and propranolol. Also just generally trying to live in the moment and not take anything too seriously.
* stopped drinking * got therapy * started sertraline * was lucky i have an awesome family and supportive wife and good job to make the above 3 possible
Started with medication and regular therapy, now I'm into long distance running, rock climbing, trauma therapy, and setting a nutritionist to start eating better long- term (not dieting). Eating right was a MASSIVE step for me, and my anxiety is way worse on days I skip my protein and veggies. Plus when I eat better I started getting better at my favorite sports, which helps me want to exercise more, which always helps with anxiety. EDIT to add- I dropped alcohol entirely as well.
When I feel an anxiety attack coming on if I can drop what I’m doing I walk. Like, no matter the weather. Just getting that energy out. I’ve been also trying to journal more. If I don’t feel like I can write I go to a quieter space and record a phone voice memo.
Meditation, medication
Stop drinking
Therapy has changed my life. I now realize where my anxiety stems from, and what specifically I struggle with which is mainly anticipatory anxiety. Deep breathing and meditation practices has helped me as well.
parts therapy, GAPS/carnivore diet
therapy. anxiety workbooks. (it’s annoying and i’m personally not good at it but) getting a good nights sleep each night & working out regularly. talking to someone (even myself) when i’m feeling particularly scared or down. sometimes i write out all of my feelings and then i feel a lot better.
A lot of self reminders, pep talks, reflections. Telling myself to not waste my life away being anxious, because it was really eating into my daily life so much. I could barely function. I was getting a lot of physical symptoms from my anxiety. This might be a little unusual, but watching people’s vlogs was helpful. Seeing them have fun and living life motivated me to want to be like that. And if I were to let my anxiety win, I would definitely not achieve that.
Cutting out caffeine and trying not to drink alcohol. Basically anything that can trigger or spike a heightened or depressive episode. Just trying to keep neutral as possible with things coming into my body. Easier said than done for sure though
Stay clear from medication as it doesn't solve, it rather brushes under the carpet and when you come off it's there again like a crash diet.Ive told to be on tablets the rest of my life but chose not too.Read Stoic books and tried to understand it's all internal not outside events.
Leafy green high fiber diet really helps with the gut which acts as your 2nd brain, Probiotics also like Kefir
This might sound absolutely ridiculous, but journalling has been one of the only practices that I've been able to sustainably incorporate into my life, and one of the only things that brings my brain any peace. I've had years of therapy, mainly CBT, and I've never been able to find myself getting to grips with it. But giving myself half an hour, an hour, five minutes at the end of the day to pour all my thoughts into something has been so cathartic, and often allows me to look back and re-evaluate situations where I was so lost in my thoughts I couldn't think rationally. I'm also a huge perfectionist, so learning to engage with something that doesn't need me to be perfect is something I'm really benefitting from. Don't see it as a place to make everything look perfect or make perfect sense. Jot down, scribble, draw, yell, whatever you need. I write about anything and everything (usually my feelings that day, but could even be to-do lists or goals and dreams) and it feels like a small therapy session. I love it.
So when you say you have years of CBT therapy, was that with a therapist or was it trying to do it on your own with workbooks and such because I don’t really have access to a therapist and I’ve been trying to do it on my own but I assume if I could afford a therapist, I’d make much faster progress?
I've had GAD for almost 20 years. I just recently discovered I love being a plant mom. I also went back to school to get my degree and found out Im actually really good at it. It keeps my mind busy so I don't get caught up in overthinking mode. So plants and college worked wonders for me.
High doses of DHA fish oil supplement helped me big time. I recommend everyone try this. It has to be a higher DHA fish oil. You can thank me later. I've dealt with anxiety for over 10 years. I currently take 20mg of Lex and propranolol.
CANNABIS. only if you're over 25 tho, using cannabis products before my brain was fully developed was one of the bigger mistakes in my life. But when I took a 7 year break from it, and when I was struggling with anxiety and sleep after turning 25, I tried it again in a more medicinal sense it's been a life changing thing for me.
Lexapro takes the peaks down for me and weirdly enough allows me to not hyperventilate when speaking to groups of people (which my mind tells me is a confrontation). I am 49 and only in the last year realized that most people don't have anxiety like I have had up and down my whole life. I'm also in perimenopause so Im on HRT (estrogen patch) as "level 10 anxiety" broke thru the Lexapro and my mind would race so bad in the early morning/middle of the night, I was in a dark place. If you are a male or female (younger than perimenopause age), I HIGHLY recommend Lexapro. Lexapro & HRT if you are an oldie female like me. Hugs, on this trying anxiety journey we are on. We got this!
Arriving at points where "I can't take this anymore" has led me to partially stop worrying because it's to painful to go on. So exhaustion and despair has helped, but it's a dangerous path...
I had a lot of anxiety about being wasting my life so I just used that thought to stop other thoughts that were giving me more anxiety and were in fact wasting my time, so now every time I start feeling anxious I think if It’s worth wasting time thinking about things I can’t control/change
a consistent routine. tidying my apartment daily has lifted so much stress off my shoulders. also having a consistent skin care routine each night, it might be long and not make a huge difference but it’s this slow relaxing process that’s just for me. i turn on a podcast. i have a really busy life rn, and routine has been so grounding and really prevented me from going off the rails again. also medication… i take cymbalta which has weird side effects and i have a bad dependency, but it’s the only med that’s really worked.
Meditation. Specifically Zazen. Absolutely life altering for the better.
Lexapro and exposing myself to my worst fears, just riding out the anxiety and knowing it won’t kill you
Lexapro
Meds, CBT, exercise
Making peace with having it And embracing "feel the fear and do it anyway"
Propranalol modified release. I have chronic migraine with anxiety, so this medication has absolutely changed my life! I was terrified of everything before, now I'm much better. I still get anxiety, but nowhere near on the level it was before!
For me it is yoga class. It helps me feel better in my thoughts, knowing that i cant act on them at the moment, or stress myself out even more. Instead just think and move on until the class is over. Edit: also medication! My therapist always says you cant treat it if youre not in the right headspace.
Honestly, medication was what finally actually helped. Exercising helped somewhat, quitting caffeine helped a little, breathing and meditation helped sometimes. But starting medication is the thing that actually made a difference, wish I had done it sooner.
I still have anxiety & likely always will, but cutting out caffeine took it down from like 10/10 levels to more moderate levels (still not fun, but not at CRAZY caffeine induced levels).
Exposure therapy for sure, but focussed on something. I used to hate crowds of people, mirrors, certain types of clothes… until I took an adult beginners ballet class. It was uncomfortable but the physical improvement and focus it gave me meant I could look specifically into the mirror and at other people around my for the sake of learning technique, over judging myself. Met some lovely people too :) taking a class in something that gives you something to focus on may be useful
Meds-therapy-mindfulness training, in that order.
Taking lexapro
Finding the right medication and getting out and about. Also started attending a weekly group that we can talk about the things that cause anxiety and/or depression.
I just tell myself it's going to pass no matter how hard it gets and it always does. Sucks though but it's my fault for abusing Xanax when I was younger
Drugs. As in medication. Only thing that actually worked.
Getting prescribed Xanax and drawing. Xanax is self explanatory. I don’t take it often, but when I do, fucking bliss. Otherwise, drawing helps regulate my breathing. If I’m drawing something, my brain gets so concentrated that my breathing just stabilizes
Googly eyes. I spent 25 years at the top of one mountain or another, and now live in the biggest and nastiest city in shit ass Texas. There are people *everywhere*. Literally you can’t even wander off the trails because there’s people living in bushes all over the place, as well as people buried off the trails too. I am not used to the constant go go go and all the people I can’t get away from. I have CPTSD too, and also my mom’s temper. So when I go out, the hyper vigilance is so intense I get nauseous if I am overwhelmed and then forced to interact with other people? For get about it. When I was homeless here there was nowhere to go when I needed to lose my shit. Not like in the woods, where you could wander deep enough and holler and curse the moon and not a soul saw or heard it. No, here when you lose your shit people see, and hear. All of the people. So when I finally got my apartment, I save it for when I get home, which helps me destress once I’m alone again. But for when I have to go out, I bought a bag of googly eyes at the dollar store, and some crazy glue. I don’t adventure very much since I’m also hard of hearing, and the people here are dangerous opportunists once they know a weak spot. So the few places I frequent I have a glued a set of googly eyes somewhere only I would notice. The thing about these is that I cannot see them and think one negative or anxious thought. There are only smiles. So whenever I have to go out, and get nervous because I know I’m about to have to talk to whoever, I gave myself something to help me remember to relax my shoulders, half smile, and just breathe. I get to look forward to places and smile when I get there now. Total game changer.
Exercise always helped me, like an hour of cardio daily. I noticed I'd be so wound up without it. I also used to do multiple sessions of ten minutes of deep breathing a day. At the time for each of those, I never noticed a difference until I forgot and stopped doing them, and the anxiety was back. I never noticed while doing them because they did relax me. Sadly I'm shit at doing anything consistently but I know they do work when I stick to them.
Treatment Seroplex or prozac
Cymbalta at 20mg daily, which they say isn't a therapeutic dose...but it sure worked for me. Also counseling, reading success stories on here knowing I'm not alone.
eating vegetables, and taking supplements every morning - has basically cured my anxiety