[supertech]

i get so scared of dying and going to a bad place or place unknown! i feel unsecure not having a religion since my logic and heart goes in opposite directions. i want to believe in GOD but i know he doesnt love me if he does exist. i feel so hopeless and full of anxiety. a lot of days i wake up like this and the feelings are so extreme i cant use cognitive reasoning to combat it. would meds fix this??? ive been on so many but nothing really works. please help me

[wildflowerchild25]

Meds might help with anxiety but I think cognitive behavioral therapy to challenge your thoughts would probably help too.

[Woolly Bugger]

I take Latuda to help control my anxiety and obsessive thoughts. It helps a lot. Good luck -- I hope you feel better.

[theenemywithin]

Yes, CBT could help you to identify how irrational your thoughts are, so you could seeing they are not factual/irrational. I have used CBT and it works. Sometimes, I encounter emotions and must identify the responsible thoughts first and this takes some degree of awareness. I also do not fight with my thoughts. Emotional reactions to thoughts and thoughts about them seem to make them stronger. I get calm and observe the thought from a non-judgmental perspective, kind of like a spectator, without emotion. The thought is allowed to pass and recognizing it is irrational is also helpful. Your thoughts only hurt you if you give them that weight.

Meds could also help reduce the anxiety associated with your fears and make it easier.

As far as "knowing" God does not love you, if He exists, Christianity teaches God's love and forgiveness is unconditional. You are spiritual, so start there and seek what beliefs fit you best, if you are so inclined to seek a religion, faith or a form of spirituality.

[gina_re]

I really feel uncomfortable going into religious topics, but your post reminded me of what happened to me about seven years ago. It was after my last inpatient "visit" when my mom told me I should try and think of religion, but not in a condescending way. She knew I didn't really belive in god, but she thought maybe I should figure something out. I figured why not. I looked into the various religions and eventually became a buddhist.
It has changed my life for the better, but that doesn't mean you should neglect treatment of meds and therapy. I still do both, but it helped me find peace in my life.

[seoultous]

I think when you are in crisis, CBT has limited impact. I know when I am extremely anxious or depressed, all the irrational, intrusive thoughts bombard me. My skills learned in CBT just don't seem to work very well. That is not to say CBT is pointless. My therapist is wonderful and she points out the skills I did acquire through CBT and how that made the episode easier to handle. Can you tell I am a big fan of CBT.

I am also a big fan of meds. Better living through chemistry is my mantra. There are a lot of good meds out there for anxiety. Also, when I feel good, I can internalize more of the skills I learn in CBT. That way I will have even more ammunition in my arsenal for the next episode.

It's kind of an iterative process. I handle each subsequent episode (and in my future there is likely to be another episode) better than the one before.

[wiretwister]

Originally Posted by supertech

i get so scared of dying and going to a bad place or place unknown! i feel unsecure not having a religion since my logic and heart goes in opposite directions. i want to believe in GOD but i know he doesnt love me if he does exist. i feel so hopeless and full of anxiety. a lot of days i wake up like this and the feelings are so extreme i cant use cognitive reasoning to combat it. would meds fix this??? ive been on so many but nothing really works. please help me

I am really concerned "why" you are scared of dying at this time ... are you considering hurting yourself ... that you have concerns I totally understand ... it's the urgency that concerns me ... you will have to stupidify yourself for meds to work ...

[LorrieTorrie]

I too have an irrational fear of dying. I also have an irrational fear that someone is going to come into my home and hurt my family and me. Depending on how severe the mood is I sometimes think that someone is in my house and I search looking for them all over. I just started the meds again, and while I still have those fears, I notice they are getting better. For example, when I have those thoughts I can actually identify that they are irrational. I believe that both therapy and medicine have helped with that.

[Paracelsus]

I also have the fear of death. I experience panic attacks and believe that I am dying frequently. The uncertainty of pre life and post death can be unsettling. Is there a hell or will I be reincarnated as a male baby chick at an egg hatchery ready to be minced by a big metal machine. It depends on eastern and western religion and to which you subscribe.

1 realizes other people with anxiety fear death constantly. Personally I always feel like I’m physically sick and going to die soon. Find comfort in knowing you’re not alone.

2 medications have risks and sometimes medication isn’t right for everyone. At best drugs can ease things a bit.
3 you need to enjoy each day as if it were your last. Be happy and mindful. Enjoy what you do have and be grateful for everything.

When it comes to death I would consider that you are 1 of many upon many. You’re not some evil person and you’re probably not the most moral being in the universe. You’re just an average ordinary person with an average ordinary fate.

Hope that helps

[B2008]

I feared death for many years and used to make deals like if I don't do this I will die or if I don't touch this or check this walk her look here I will die. It was an ocd. It wasn't until I worked as a cna on a very good hospice unit for a year that i found peace. ( prior to my diagnosis, work the only thing kept me sane) we worked with the families and patients. It became a beautiful and honorable thing to move a patient on comfortably. Now I'm at peace and ok when my time comes. I don't obsess anymore. If your the type of person that can face things head on try volunteering with a hospice program. You wouldn't have to do any of the care just visit with patients on your time. It's just a way to gently face death and kinda come to terms deep within that eventually it will happen. Good luck however u do it I hope u find something that works. This phobia is the worst I believe as u cannot run from it just accept it.

No matter how small, a positive change deserves to be celebrated!

Originally Posted by supertech

i get so scared of dying and going to a bad place or place unknown! i feel unsecure not having a religion since my logic and heart goes in opposite directions. i want to believe in GOD but i know he doesnt love me if he does exist. i feel so hopeless and full of anxiety. a lot of days i wake up like this and the feelings are so extreme i cant use cognitive reasoning to combat it. would meds fix this??? ive been on so many but nothing really works. please help me

i think at some point, we all have/ have had, the fear of death

when will our time come, where do we go, what will we leave behind, how will our friends cope, etc etc

i know it's a big thing for me... not actually dying itself, but when it will be- and leaving behind all the stuff i know and love

i could live for a week, i could live for 50 years. truth is, no one knows the answer to that- and i think that's where a lot of my fear comes from- itt can happen sudden without anyone knowing

it's not helping with all the latest outbreak of dead music stars. bowie, the guy from the eagles, black, yeah.. okay so they were all in their 60's (well i'm not sure about black, but think he was). but still

[NoIdeaWhatToDo]

My therapist loaned me a CD that really helped with my fears about death (both my own and the death of others):

Clarissa Pinkola Estes' "The Radiant Coat: Myths and Stories about the Crossing Between Life and Death"

I found it really useful and comforting, particularly as a person that doesn't have a particular religion. It has helped reduce my anxiety and my perserverating thoughts on the topic of death in general.

[Takeshi]

The immediacy of the matter concerns me too. Anxiety grows, maybe it is feeding into the thoughts of death and further thoughts. I have sort of taken care of all the negative emotions that I get by now, I just don't give them any names, I chase and try to find the exact point where those emotions arises, I don't call it caging the emotions, I negate the negativity, so when something like anxiety, fear hit me, I feel less and I can think that they affects me less. I have worked on my change of perspectives a lot last year, it's starting to pay off a bit. Using cognitive reasoning. That happened yesterday, or maybe it was today. I just don't usually listen to myself so that was a great feat for myself. Any point in the future is unknown, coping with and working on my own emotions are all I can do.