[zonama]

This is my first post here. I don't have a particular question per se, but if its ok I would just like to say some things about me incase anyone anyone can relate. I have done some searches here and couldn't find anything quite like what I what I want to say.

So I will start at the beginning. I have always been quite shy - probably since primary school. Nothing unusual, alot of kids are.
I always did my best to avoid 'limelight' situations such as when I was asked to captain a football team or lead in a school play. I simply got by by avoiding situations I didn't like.

My first real anxiety symptoms were when I started going to pubs in my teens. I would get anxious about going out. At this point I would be physically sick. I wouldnt say it was agoraphopia, it was probably more of a social event thing - even though I was with people I knew and liked.
I also think I was afraid of being sick - which is a very vicious cycle!

I like to consider myself a rational person - so when the nausea was triggered by something that I knew was irrational, it becomes quite frustrating.

I saw a doctor and got help. I now take medication and have been doing so for about 15 years now. Mostly this helps tremendously with my day to day life.
I also had councelling but I didn't find this helpful at all. The councellors focused on finding a trigger and then reassuring me that the trigger wasn't a rational thing to fear - I KNEW THIS! lol.
My mind knew it as completely irrational, making my body understand this was a completely differant story.

I found this forum today after having a rare recurrence of anxiety. I was a bit poorly over the weekend and so felt sick - then my fear of being sick kicks in.

This is my problem - once I hit the anxiety, I really struggle to get over it. I can go for years absolutely fine but when it does hit me, my symptoms totally take over.
I feel sick, so I get anxiety, the anxiety makes me feel sick, I can't eat. Not eating makes me feel sick blah blah blah.
I know its completely irrational - I want to get up and move about but it's like my brain just want's to shut down, my eyes just close on their own. I curl into a ball with my eyes shut and I just shiver. This isn't great when I have things to do like go to work etc!

Seeing people here dealing with anxiety helped me out this morning for some reason. Although Im still tense and feel a little nauseous, I think I'm going to try to go out later - which I know will help. So thanks everyone here!

So I guess my question is this - how can I break my anxiety cycle once it has started?

[zonama]

hah :/ For no apparent reason i've dropped back into it. Havent been out yet. My wife is going to try and make an appointment at the docs for me. Just want to sleep.

[Sisyphe]

Oh boy, I can totally relate to almost everything you wrote.

For me, the feeling of nausea is basically the same as the feeling of anxiety. My body cannot tell the difference. So when I feel the tiniest bit nauseous, I get very anxious and so the feedback cycle begins. It really sucks. And as you said, the fact that you know it is irrational on an intellectual level does almost nothing to help the physical symptoms of anxiety. I find that the breathing exercises and calming self-talk sometimes makes the problem worse because I just focus on the fact that I'm feeling sick. So distraction for me is the best thing to do. Unfortunately, when this feeling strikes when I'm on a crowded bus at rush hour, there isn't much I can do to distract myself.

Sometimes a pill is really the only thing that will help and remember that there is nothing wrong with that.

[zonama]

It's nice to see Im not alone and other people understand what Im trying to say.

I left work early today to go and see a doctor and has recommended upping my dose of peroxatine for a short period until I can get over the worst. I spent the rest of the day in bed.

Out of curiosity how long do your attacks last? Mine seem to hover constantly for days.

i'm the type of person who will get anxious over the slightest of things... so usually, people will say to me- awww, you're anxious over nothing.. but to me, it's a really big thing

[OrangeMoira]

Welcome to PC! Glad you found us! For me, I can best attack the cycle through the part related to irrational thoughts.

For me, the cycle goes: scary event-->flash of memories-->scared feeling-->nausea, sweating, choked feeling, etc.-->thoughts like "I can't handle this" and "gotta get out of here" -->more painful feelings-->memories of other anxious times-->continued nausea . . .

Some people get good results by attacking the physical part through slow breathing, chamomile tea, rituals, visualizing, and relaxation. Getting enough sleep, meditating, exercise, and other daily ways to lower stress help in the longer term.

Since my anxiety starts and increases because of social fears, I have to try to get to the thoughts. I can calm my body, but then more thoughts pop up to start the cascade again.

I usually start off not realizing there are scary thoughts. I really have to slow down and listen to myself instead of curling up and trying to force things out of my brain (or escaping the situation or distracting myself). This is not easy, and I can't always do it. My first instinct is to try to make it stop, not face it.

For me, it helps to journal, to do affirmations that say the opposite of what my brain automatically generates, and to read parts of self-help books about anxiety so I can identify irrational stuff that seems sensible during an attack. Therapy helps the most: having someone else identify the irrational stuff and make suggestions is a lot easier.

I hope this is an isolated incident for you and that you are able to keep managing your anxiety with medication, since it has worked for so long. Would going to a doctor about the actual illness you were afraid of help you to knock out those irrational thoughts that started this? Hope you keep posting and feel stronger soon.

[zonama]

Thanks for all the helpful, encouraging replies. New day today and am much better (not 100%). I guess I struggle so much because my incidents are so rare and I don't get to practice any techniques. (which, to be fair, I'm greatful for!)
On the whole my meds take care of everything. This time though I felt I had enough warning signs of an attack, and had I some useful techniques I might have been able to stop the attack altogether.
For me I seem to struggle with the physical symptoms more. My trigger is a physical one, not a mental one. I can't shake the nausea. I forced myself to eat last night which was very hard work but I felt so much better about 30 mins later.
I'll really just take any advice I can get!

Originally Posted by zonama

Thanks for all the helpful, encouraging replies. New day today and am much better (not 100%). I guess I struggle so much because my incidents are so rare and I don't get to practice any techniques. (which, to be fair, I'm greatful for!)
On the whole my meds take care of everything. This time though I felt I had enough warning signs of an attack, and had I some useful techniques I might have been able to stop the attack altogether.
For me I seem to struggle with the physical symptoms more. My trigger is a physical one, not a mental one. I can't shake the nausea. I forced myself to eat last night which was very hard work but I felt so much better about 30 mins later.
I'll really just take any advice I can get!

glad you're feeling a little better

keep us posted- and keep asking us for advice if that's what you need

[zonama]

Last night I was completely back to normal and I thought I had it beat. I'm finding that the mornings are the hardest, I wake up with it and if I can get up and moving about and eat, can sort of keep it at bay.
Im not sleeping well though, which cant help.
3.20pm now and Im functioning but have this hovering mild anxiety.
I dont want to ruin Christmas for my family!

[OrangeMoira]

I hope Christmas went okay for you and that you're doing better again this week! Even if you weren't doing as well as usual, that doesn't mean you ruined Christmas in any way. You can only do the best you can in any situation. Hugs to you.

Also wanted to let you know that you helped me by posting here. I have been trying to focus more on my physical symptoms since you started this thread and it is helping me a bit. Thank you for that!

[RJ78]

Yes, it also helped me as well. I'm taking new meds and they seem to help quite a bit with my anxiety, but for some reason I've been slipping over the past few days, and I woke up this morning with more anxiety than I've felt in the past few weeks. I'm scared and worried, but also reminding myself to breathe and keep up with my day.

Thanks,

RJ