anxiety
A look at anxiety in its many forms and manifestations; what is the nature of this specific pattern of extreme fear and worry?
Capgras
The cabin in the woods had been abandoned for years, but one night, a candle burned in the window. The Light was a testament to the unknown in Letha Campbell’s life, just as she’d never known where that cabin on her property came from, although it was never a concern for her, her property was worth a fortune. Letha awoke on a Tuesday morning feeling different. Different in a way that she couldn’t put her finger on but knew there was an underlying sense of dread. A sense of despair that wallows beneath the diaphragm and feels like it’s been there her whole life, but she just didn’t notice it until waking up one morning, no pattern or reason as to when or why it was that particular Tuesday. Or maybe it was just forgotten and she’s finally noticing it again, like a trauma that caused her to forget some dreadful thing that happened, so she dissociated but the wheel of time allowed it back into her mind. She couldn’t help but think she’d been reading too much Camus.
By Sims-Houston Collison4 years ago in Psyche
Peanut Gallery
So, I guess it all started in 2019. I did end up finding out something significant because of my chronically online schedule. It all started when I started looking into the “DID community” via YouTube. I found an unnamed YouTuber, because I refuse to give them any more recognition, and I started questioning my whole life. What I found was that most of my life, I had been showing signs of Dissociative Identity Disorder. Now, hang in there, I know this must seem scattered, but I promise it all connects eventually. But back to my symptoms, the most prominent thing in my mind at the time was my unexplainable blackouts. I’d been having them since I was twelve, before I started using substances. I could recall them happening sporadically since I was five, getting rogressively worse as I grew older. The second most prominent thing in my mind was the fact that I heard voices that were not my own occassionally, previously I had thought it was normal and everyone experienced a conscious stream of thoughts that was mixed with your own but definitely weren’t your own thoughts, as they would talk back in response to your thoughts. Kind of complicated, I know. And finally, the third most prominent thing in my mind: I had extreme unexplainable gaps in my memory that had not been created through substances. It led me to think, “hey, maybe something IS wrong with me”. After watching many, many DID-related videos, I decided I’d try to call out and see if there was anybody in my head.
By Peanut TwoFace4 years ago in Psyche
A Letter to My Dad
Dear Dad, It has been almost forty years since you stepped out of my life in the most cliché-ridden manner possible. Not just a bad heart that attacked you; not just on the day that you were to be released from hospital; not just when all the signs were good for you and your health. It was the day itself that stays with me.
By Kendall Defoe 4 years ago in Psyche
I dream the worst
Trigger warning : Death of near people. Theif, etc. When you stare at the empty air, what do you think? You might be thinking of various things. Like, "What should I eat for my dinner today?" "My boyfriend is coming over, what should I wear?" "Ah! I forgot to do my Math Homework!!" All those various thoughts will rise up, eating you up.
By Young Seo Kim4 years ago in Psyche
Keep Your Expectations
Expectations. Everyone thinks of something different when they read that word. Maybe they feel a little bit of dread. Maybe they feel nothing - expectations are just one part of life, and they don't mean much beyond that. Maybe they feel a little bit safer because they know that they have things to do and a structure to follow.
By Jessica Carter4 years ago in Psyche
what are the Right Ways to Naturally Reduce Anxiety?
Some tension is an everyday part of life. It’s an unlucky effect of residing in a hectic world. However, all tension isn’t bad. It maintains your knowledge of any danger, enables you to put together and organize, and is an inexpensive hazard calculator. Still, it'd be fine to behave earlier than matters get worse while pressure begins off evolved daily. Unchecked tension can drastically affect your great of life.
By Global News Hubs4 years ago in Psyche
When anxiety takes control
Anxiety comes in many different forms and it can often feel like you’re the only person feeling that way. I promise you, you aren’t alone. I have struggled with general anxiety disorder for years now, but I’ve made incredible improvements and my life has felt like it’s finally mine again. It can often times be difficult to articulate to others why you’re anxious, and what’s causing it. But let me say this, the way that you feel doesn’t have to be linked to any reason. Sometimes and a lot of the times we don’t know why we feel anxious, but that’s okay. I’m here to give you insight into how I changed the way anxiety ran my life and hopefully help you do the same(: First things first I want to tell each of you that I’m here for you, and you will get through this.. even if it doesn’t seem like it right now. One thing that always bothered me when I opened up to others about my anxiety was the question that usually always followed “well why are you anxious, what’s causing it?” I didn’t know why I felt that way 9 out of 10 times and it made me feel misunderstood. It’s more than okay to not know the source of it, sometimes we know and other times it hits us out of nowhere and we can’t explain it. Either way, I see you and I understand you. For a while I was plagued with the dreadful fight or flight response in my body, canceling plans, staying in, being glued to a very specific routine, and not having any appetite. Anxiety was my prison and I was trapped in it 24/7. I’m here to share with you what helped me take my life back from the prison that I had learned to live in. The first thing I want to mention is definitely finding someone who you can trust to reach out to when you feel that anxiety trapping you. I know it’s hard to open up sometimes out of fear of being a “burden” or someone not understanding. I promise you, it’ll help. Even if it’s a sibling, parent, doctor, therapist, friend, or significant other. It will help you feel less alone in those worse moments of anxiety. The next thing that helped me a lot was learning how to talk to myself during these super intense moments of anxiety that felt suffocating. I used to freak myself out and I would think of the worst possible scenario. I changed that and you can too! When you feel it wash over you tell yourself that the last time you felt that way that it passed and this will too. Did that worst possible scenario happen each time before this one? Probably and usually not, so why would it this time? Instead try to focus on the best possible outcome or scenario and think how awesome that would be! I know I know, it’s easier said than done, trust me I know. If you start to break the habit, each time it will get a bit easier. The next technique that helped me through my most intense moments was having a playlist of music that made me feel good and safe. Kinda embarrassing but mine is Christmas music year round lol! Sinatra and Nat King Cole were others that I often went to as well. You may find podcasts, sounds such as water flowing or birds chirping, or music helps. But it’s good to find at least one auditory mechanism that helps ease your feeling. The next thing that will help is trying to step out of your routine one small bit at a time. For me, routine was my safe space, it felt like one of the only things I had control over. But, if you can teach your body to respond to change differently over time it will do wonders. Take it day by day, you don’t have to do something drastic or try doing this everyday. But at least try once every while in the beginning until you’re ready for more! For me this meant going to a public place where I usually couldn’t get myself to go to, going for a walk around my neighborhood, allowing myself to go somewhere more than 15 mins away from my house. The list goes on but these were some of the things I tried to do, and with time it got easier for sure. Take it day by day my friend. Remember to have patience with yourself, you are doing the best you can and then some. That’s amazing, you’re amazing.
By Madeline McConnell4 years ago in Psyche
