[edgpavl]

Hey, I've posted this in anxiety subforum, but that was before I realized this is a form of OCD, maybe here I can get some better feedback.

So I became overly aware about my breathing exactly a week ago. It just started out of nowhere, but when it started I knew I was f*cked, it took up the pace, but in a course of 2 days I was in full blown anxiety mode. I could't funcion, eat, relax or anything, because I was(and still am) focusing on my manual breathing all the time. I've been reading a lot about this on the internet and just wanted to open up the dialog here, has anyone experienced or is still experiencing this? From what I understand I can't get rid of this thought, I just have to accept it as a part of my life. This thought is really frightening at the moment...

[cincidak]

I'd not heard of this, but with ocd it doesn't surprise me. I try everything I can to refocus on something else. If I'm going to obsess I try to make it so it's something that is not to intrusive, or harmful. It's hard to retrain your brain, but you can fight it. Is your ocd worse when you are anxious? Mine is. Often times if I discover the source of my anxiety my ocd symptoms subside. I don't know if you are comorbid, but I'm also bipolar, and agoraphobic. Once they put me on an antipsychotic my ocd symptoms subsided. I hope this helps.

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[MusicLover82]

With OCD, you can become obsessed with anything, really. I've found it's usually something that is important to me, and health is very important to all of us. Breathing is something that can actually HELP anxiety. I wonder if you first became aware of it because you were feeling anxious. When we get anxious, it's hard to breathe fully.

Perhaps instead of trying to ignore your breathing, maybe do some meditation where you focus on breathing more slowly and fully (into the belly, not the chest only). I like the guided meditations in the app "Stop, Breathe & Think", particularly the "Relax, Ground and Clear" meditation if you have an iPhone. If not, I would find a guided meditation on YouTube or something that can help you breathe deeply and relax.

What would probably help you the most is seeing a psychiatrist for medications to calm your anxiety and obsessions. What helps me most is Xanax and a natural supplement called NAC (recommended by my psychiatrist):https://www.amazon.com/Source-Natura...1&keywords=NAC

I agree with cincidak, antipsychotics help, too. Latuda and Abilify have both helped my anxiety immensely. Good luck!

[coyotee]

I know what you're talking about. I've been through that. But never for nearly as long as you've been dealing with it.

Please seek prompt help if you are getting to a point of hyperventilating.

Like other things, for me it just kinda went away. Distraction for this particular thing is a good way to get away from it.

They have plenty of different deep breathing techniques on youtube. Lamaze - like for pregnancy. Yoga is another one. I wonder if that in some way might help? Atleast maybe lead you physically to a point of relaxation following a specific type of recognized breathing technique? Just an idea.