Anxiety is driving me crazy

[AMcSwain]

I was off my meds got back on like 2 months ago. I have been doing just fine but last night I had a bad panic attack and I still feel it lingering today. The thing is I don’t know what caused it.

 

[E.B]

I was off my meds got back on like 2 months ago. I have been doing just fine but last night I had a bad panic attack and I still feel it lingering today. The thing is I don’t know what caused it.

You don't have to know. Panic attacks form many times subconsciously...can be having a normal day then boom.

Also the transition in meds can cause this as well.

 

[AMcSwain]

You don't have to know. Panic attacks form many times subconsciously...can be having a normal day then boom.

Also the transition in meds can cause this as well.

I thought that also but it’s been 2 months since I got back on it and idk if I should give it more time or if I need to be upped. When you have a panic attack do you have intrusive thoughts and does it linger on for a couple of days?

 

[E.B]

Yes both of those things are common

 

[MATD]

Ask yourself if it really matters what caused your panic attack. You have anxiety so having a panic attack is no real surprise. Is searching for a cause going to make a difference? Or will the added stress of needing to know just add to the anxiety state? Something else to stress about? I ask you this in the hope that you can realize your “need to know” is adding to your existing anxiety. It took me a while to realize that “needing to know” just wasn’t beneficial, in fact, it is part of the over reacting mentality we have with anxiety. After learning to accept that every thought and resulting reaction was a manifestation of anxiety and nothing to fear, I was able to gradually stop “needing to know.” It’s a “normal” anxiety reaction. I learned to float past those moments and not react. I hope you can too.

 

[Jonathan123]

I was off my meds got back on like 2 months ago. I have been doing just fine but last night I had a bad panic attack and I still feel it lingering today. The thing is I don’t know what caused it.

Triggers!! They can be very subtle so that we don't notice them, but the effect can be awful. Something we see, hear or even smell can trigger an anxiety attack. We come back to cause and effect. But as MAT says, looking for reasons can so often lead to more anxiety.
The basic causes of anxiety can run deep, but what we experience in an attack is but the surface effects of something much deeper.
What are 'triggers'? They are effects that cause us to go into the fear mode because they remind us of something we think we have forgotten, especially from childhood. The emotions arise from those memories but not the actual cause, which may be deep in the unconscious. That's why anxiety can be so confusing. Why, why we ask ourselves. There is always an answer, but so often we need professional help to find the cause. But that can be expensive and is not always possible. So we come back to that inexpensive form of therapy, acceptance.

 

[AMcSwain]

It’s so hard not to look for the triggers and I think another thing is wondering when my next one will be. I always thought people with anxiety had a bad experience during their childhood but mine was fine I had both parents and still did. I had a good home life. My dad also has anxiety so I guess I got it genetically. Also how do y’all not think about the future? Like while I’m anxious all I can think about is how the hell will I deal with this when I’m old.

 

[Jonathan123]

It’s so hard not to look for the triggers and I think another thing is wondering when my next one will be. I always thought people with anxiety had a bad experience during their childhood but mine was fine I had both parents and still did. I had a good home life. My dad also has anxiety so I guess I got it genetically. Also how do y’all not think about the future? Like while I’m anxious all I can think about is how the hell will I deal with this when I’m old.

What makes you think you will have anxiety when you get older? That is a very negative way of thinking. Anxiety is not genetically inherited. The fact that your dad had it may well be the cause of your anxiety. Although your childhood memories may be good, it does follow that anyone in the household who is an anxious person can pass it on in their behaviour. As kids we tend to emulate our parents, so that we may unconsciously regard anxiety to be normal. I am not saying this is with you, but it's a possible cause.
But anxiety can also be had in adult life by something that has happened in our life such as a bereavement or a divorce, etc. Stress at work is another common cause. Going to work everyday to a job we dislike can also be a cause. Relationships can be a major cause of anxiety. If we fall out with those close to us it can be a big factor in causing anxiety. Guilt and shame can be causes. Anxiety is very complex, and it's causes are many.

 

[Phillies Phan]

I was off my meds got back on like 2 months ago. I have been doing just fine but last night I had a bad panic attack and I still feel it lingering today. The thing is I don’t know what caused it.

Don’t even try to understand

It’s so hard not to look for the triggers and I think another thing is wondering when my next one will be. I always thought people with anxiety had a bad experience during their childhood but mine was fine I had both parents and still did. I had a good home life. My dad also has anxiety so I guess I got it genetically. Also how do y’all not think about the future? Like while I’m anxious all I can think about is how the hell will I deal with this when I’m old.

I once saw a psychiatrist. After I gave him my background, and we had a few sessions, as I was leaving I asked him whether it might helps to via psychoanalysis determine what my triggers were that got me to the hell I’m in. He said for me to imagine that we determined why I have HA. What good would it do in treating the condition. He felt I’d have spent thousands of dollars and be no closer to helping myself.

 

[AMcSwain]

What makes you think you will have anxiety when you get older? That is a very negative way of thinking. Anxiety is not genetically inherited. The fact that your dad had it may well be the cause of your anxiety. Although your childhood memories may be good, it does follow that anyone in the household who is an anxious person can pass it on in their behaviour. As kids we tend to emulate our parents, so that we may unconsciously regard anxiety to be normal. I am not saying this is with you, but it's a possible cause.
But anxiety can also be had in adult life by something that has happened in our life such as a bereavement or a divorce, etc. Stress at work is another common cause. Going to work everyday to a job we dislike can also be a cause. Relationships can be a major cause of anxiety. If we fall out with those close to us it can be a big factor in causing anxiety. Guilt and shame can be causes. Anxiety is very complex, and it's causes are many.

When I feeling anxious even just a little bit everything I think of is in the future. Like my son has one year of middle school then he’s going to high school and graduating and leaving me and will I still see him as much as I want. I’m getting older which means my parents are getting older and they won’t be here for ever. I just think of all of this and my anxiety gets so much worse but I can’t stop thinking that when I’m anxious. It’s all in the future I can’t just live for today

 

[Missy]

When I feeling anxious even just a little bit everything I think of is in the future. Like my son has one year of middle school then he’s going to high school and graduating and leaving me and will I still see him as much as I want. I’m getting older which means my parents are getting older and they won’t be here for ever. I just think of all of this and my anxiety gets so much worse but I can’t stop thinking that when I’m anxious. It’s all in the future I can’t just live for today

I know how this feels! I do the exact same thing. You really have to work at being in the moment. Sometimes, I can and sometimes I can't. My therapist has suggested grounding and breathing relaxation. You might try that. My thinking always goes to the negative and that is a hard habit to break. What helps me, is that I do have moments where I do feel calm and less anxious. That gives me encouragement that I can let go of the anxious thoughts. Do you think about the same things over and over? It is hard to break the cycle. Every little step is an achievement. The unknown really scares me.

 

[AMcSwain]

I know how this feels! I do the exact same thing. You really have to work at being in the moment. Sometimes, I can and sometimes I can't. My therapist has suggested grounding and breathing relaxation. You might try that. My thinking always goes to the negative and that is a hard habit to break. What helps me, is that I do have moments where I do feel calm and less anxious. That gives me encouragement that I can let go of the anxious thoughts. Do you think about the same things over and over? It is hard to break the cycle. Every little step is an achievement. The unknown really scares me.

Yea it’s usually the same thing over and over and before I stopped taking my meds I was good so I know I can be back there it just sucks when your down you don’t think you will ever be up again.

 

[suzzeeb]

My mom had anxiety too. I remember her constantly telling everyone she was a nervous wreck and her nerves were shot and she was always uptight about the house having to be clean. It was not a fun childhood. Mix that with alcohol and parents fighting, and that was a perfect storm for me. I'm sure I learned mine from my mom, but I have a sister a year older who doesn't have anxiety at all. I guess we are all different, and I am a lot more sensitive than she is. My sister's husband has anxiety and they have twin girls, one has anxiety and the other just the opposite. I do think we are born genetically more sensitive to things. My daughter has anxiety and I noticed early on that she was super sensitive, even as a newborn she was colicky and super hard to calm down, so who knows if we are born with it like most other disorders or if it's learned. Probably doesn't matter much. I just always think if it is genetic then are we trying to feel better for nothing - like maybe we can't control it at all anyway so why bother? I don't know. Its a confusing thing to figure out.

 

[AMcSwain]

My mom had anxiety too. I remember her constantly telling everyone she was a nervous wreck and her nerves were shot and she was always uptight about the house having to be clean. It was not a fun childhood. Mix that with alcohol and parents fighting, and that was a perfect storm for me. I'm sure I learned mine from my mom, but I have a sister a year older who doesn't have anxiety at all. I guess we are all different, and I am a lot more sensitive than she is. My sister's husband has anxiety and they have twin girls, one has anxiety and the other just the opposite. I do think we are born genetically more sensitive to things. My daughter has anxiety and I noticed early on that she was super sensitive, even as a newborn she was colicky and super hard to calm down, so who knows if we are born with it like most other disorders or if it's learned. Probably doesn't matter much. I just always think if it is genetic then are we trying to feel better for nothing - like maybe we can't control it at all anyway so why bother? I don't know. Its a confusing thing to figure out.

Very confusing. I don’t remember my dad being really anxious a lot but there was one time when I was a junior or senior in high school he had a breakdown and ended up in the hospital. He says that is was triggered mine but I didn’t start having issues until I was in my late 20s so who knows. I’m feeling better as far as my anxiety today I have been listening to a lot of pod cast and I feel they help a lot. Just listening to people who understand and go through the same things really helps. I am terrified my son will end up having it and I really hope he just takes after his dad and doesn’t. He knows I suffer from it but I do try really hard to keep it away from him

 

[Jonathan123]

Don’t even try to understand


I once saw a psychiatrist. After I gave him my background, and we had a few sessions, as I was leaving I asked him whether it might helps to via psychoanalysis determine what my triggers were that got me to the hell I’m in. He said for me to imagine that we determined why I have HA. What good would it do in treating the condition. He felt I’d have spent thousands of dollars and be no closer to helping myself.

I gave up on psychiatrists years ago. Most of them are a pain in the butt, and some are worse psychologically than their patients! They may be excellent at dealing with the severe forms of mental illness, but I do not regard anxiety as being one of them. Anxiety is very curable, other forms of real mental illnesses are not. There are many schools of psychiatric thought. Jung, Freud, Adler and many others all with their particular theories. I tend toward Jungian methods, because he recognised there was more to mankind that just mind and body. There was the 'ghost in the machine'. That almost indefinable something that sets us apart from the animals. For a psychiatrist to say that reviving past memories would do no good is strange. 'What good would it do in treat the condition? A lot! To me the recovery of the cause of our anxiety from childhood lets us deal with it as adults. As a child we can't reason when something bad happens, so it is repressed to pop up later in life in the form of anxiety, but as adults we can. When I began to realise what was causing my GAD it began to diminish, but it took time. It was childhood issues repressed. The human mind is very complex. While investigating causes with my counsellor, I also practised acceptance. The two can go hand in hand. Dr. Weekes, who came up the acceptance method, was constantly at odds with psychiatrists about memory being the cause anxiety. She felt the now needed to be dealt with first. While I agree with that, at the same time there is some good to look for reasons behind our anxiety and resolve them as adults. This is controversial and maybe the jury is still out, but in my experience it works. If we can find the cause we can deal with the effect.

 

[youcanhelpyourself]

I've had anxiety for over 30 years. But I overcame anxiety and panic attacks few years ago. Now life has new meaning for me. I even wrote an article on how I cured my anxiety. I have uploaded a pdf file. I think you will enjoy reading it!