Having to multitask/constant anxiety

I don't know if this is anxiety or what... I do have really bad anxiety and panic attacks right now as I deal with postpartum depression and am taking Celexa and Ativan (which do nothing..) Anyway, I find myself always shaking my legs, picking my scalp or skin, or I always feel like I have a million things to do (even though they aren't important things... they are things like:
Go through and weed out bookmarks/favorites I don't need online

Unify all of my usernames/passwords at different websites

Make lists of books I want to read, realizing I'll probably buy and scan them and be done with it because I don't have the
time/attention span to read a book

Then I put off important things, like doing homework (I'm in college), writing letters, cleaning my apartment, because I'm busy doing meaningless crap.

What the heck?

sounds like anxiety, depression, etc. to me.

how about a talk with your doctor to see if you need a med change?

good luck, pat

My anxiety often comes out in those ways, too. Picking my cuticles, dead skin, scalp, etc. It is gross and I honestly don't even realize I'm doing it until someone (usually my husband) points it out. One thing I find that is helpful is finding stuff to do with my hands. For example, I knit and crochet and if I just feel that anxious energy lurking, I'll sit and do that for as long as I need. It is very theraputic and you really can't bite nails, pick at scabs, etc.

Also, for the studying and stuff, I was recently a student and would try to do things to make it more fun. For example, if I was reading a book I just couldn't focus on, it helped to take notes or highlight the book. But for me, the key to that was having a fun pen or a neat-colored highlighter. Sounds corny, I know, but again, you are keeping your hands busy and sort of making studying creative.

But in my opinion, in terms of just keeping busy doing trivial tasks, I guess I just take that as part of having anxiety. I'll bet everyone on this site has their "things" they do to keep busy in moments of anxiousness- some of mine are: making lists for pretty much anything from the upcoming week to a trip that isn't happening for almost a year, cleaning projects that are really petty such as dusting plant leaves, or watching totally mindless television (one I'm not proud of but it's sometimes fun to watch a funny show or gameshow as an escape).

Just some thoughts... not sure how helpful but good luck!

Yes, I agree with tiodlliwi about trying to make schoolwork fun and interesting. Anyway you can get two birds with one stone? I often use whatever I'm preoccuppied with in my schoolwork. If I catch something on TV I use it in a paper or I research in my school's library online and find my professor's doctoral thesis and get it to read and quote in papers.

Maybe get notecards (or cheap 3 x 5 notepad in colors) and put facts on them and put them various places kind of like a scavenger/easter egg hunt? Then you can wander and figit to your heart's content :-) Make it a game where you put things in 20 places and see if you can retrace the route in the "correct" order and memorize whatever is on the card like you would a poem. Heck, take all the facts/notes and make a poem! I've done that; written an entire paper in verse, getting in all the facts one is supposed to -- you've no idea how hard and focusing that is :-) You learn the material though, let me tell you.

Can you put your picking and anxiety into a "routine" so it tires your body out some? I read where people who grind their teeth, it's like your brain "twiddling its thumbs" and if you eat a bagel or apple before bed it uses that extra energy that gets expressed in your jaw so it's not there anymore. Maybe you can express the energy some way "quicker," or find a "bagel" equivalent habit? Do you know how to stretch/use a towel to stretch? That might help? http://www.humankinetics.com/product...xcerpt_id=4039 I bought a book on stretching that came with a blue "cloth" and taking the weight off my "shoulders" (putting it in the cloth) was a really awesome experience for me, felt great/like a "bagel."