anxiety

A look at anxiety in its many forms and manifestations; what is the nature of this specific pattern of extreme fear and worry?

My Room Doesn't Have More Elephants than Yours
An elephant trying to cross a tightrope on a unicycle. Not sure if it was safe, no certainty whatsoever if he could, should, would make it to the other side. The elephant knew, though, once on the tightrope, there was no turning back. He convinced himself it was worth it but his legs did not seem to respond. He did not understand it. They were working a minute before.
By Fernanda Grether Zdanowsky8 years ago in Psyche
Just Get Over It
"Just get over it." "It's all in your head." "You could stop it if you wanted to." These are just some of the many things people with anxiety or panic attacks hear so often from people who don't understand this condition. I have lived with this mental illness for many years now and before I had my first panic attack, I too said these things. I had no idea what anxiety or panic attacks were like so I just thought they were just being dramatic or it was all in their heads. The first experience that I had that began my journey with this condition came a day after a horrible near-drowning accident. I jumped off a 25 foot cliff and when I hit the water, I had my mouth and nose wide open, so water rushed right into my lungs. I surfaced and could not breathe. Luckily there was a friend there who grabbed me and helped.
By Somer Michalski-Jones8 years ago in Psyche
Mental Illness: The Demons Within
Anxiety is an illness that has the least in common with possession or the occult, but it still has some similarities. This chapter will most likely be more about the illness itself rather than similarities to possession but hopefully it will still be helpful to others. Based on people I have talked to and some research I have done it seems that like depression, anxiety is one of the most common of the mental illnesses.
By Alyssa Lactin8 years ago in Psyche
The Life Of An Anxious Brown Girl
I wake up exhausted because no amount of sleep is enough to make me feel rested. My mind is always switched on even when I'm asleep. As if it wasn't already exhausting enough when I was awake. I remember when I was still taking my meds and I felt so amazing when I woke up. Like a brand new person ready to take on the world. Now I just feel groggy and barely human. I know the meds just gave me a false sense of happiness and I chose to stop taking them but I have to admit I miss them sometimes.
By Pooja G8 years ago in Psyche
Coping With Anxiety In The Midst of Anxious Situations
Nothing is worse than anticipating the worst case scenario before you get up on stage to speak in public, sing, or perform. Experiencing that first wave of nerves before going on a date or jumping in to a job interview can be just as bad. All of these situations can bring anxiety to anyone, but those who deal with anxiety on a consistent basis will find these situations almost unbearable.
By Joel Junior8 years ago in Psyche
"I'm Sick of Reading About Anxiety"
"Oh great," you say, as you scroll along the newsfeed and see another annoying post about anxiety and "raising awareness." It's just a bunch of millennials who are wet behind the ears right? Everyone's jumping on the mental health bandwagon these days. It's trendy to have anxiety. Why can't they just get over it?
By Eve Tawfick8 years ago in Psyche
What It’s Like to Be “That Girl” at the Party
When you go to a party or gathering, what do you expect? Most of the time, you see people interacting, catching up, or chatting in groups? But what about the girl in the corner, off to the side, face in phone, pretending to be busy, or even worse—hanging out with the owner’s dog. That girl is me.
By Deserae Manning8 years ago in Psyche
The Anxiety Elf
Here comes Santa! It's about a month until Christmas, so half of us are wetting ourselves with excitement whilst others are wishing it would be over already. I am one of those people who wishes it could be Christmas everyday—yes, like the song. I have been given a wonderful opportunity to be an elf at Santa's grotto at my local farm shop for the month running up to Christmas (and get paid for it), which is great —I love Christmas, I love the film Elf, and I love singing Christmas songs. So it sounds perfect right? BUT how do I go about that when my anxiety is so bad sometimes I struggle to even leave the house...
By TheAdventuresOfRoo8 years ago in Psyche
Really Alone
Have you ever been alone? Not just by yourself or single. I mean really alone. Like the type of alone where you are surrounded by people and at the same time you’re scared and in your own head to the point you can’t even hold a conversation without saying something so ridiculous you walk away feeling like the biggest idiot thinking, “why did I say that?" I said that because my brain was thinking about 10 different things at once and I didn’t have the time to stop and think about the conversation being had. My mouth just shot out the first thing that came to mind. At that moment I was thinking about the perfect girl I saw at the mall last week and how if I looked like that maybe that boy would love me or maybe this person would respect me or maybe I would get that job. I was thinking about what I said the night before to that friend that she answered but not in the way I thought she would so now I don’t know if it was taken the wrong way. I was thinking about that boy I’m madly in love with but can’t manage to 100% let people in without lashing out because of deep insecurities I want to fix. And I’m also thinking about how I need to go to the gym but a Big Mac would make me feel a lot better right about now. My mind is never silent, never quiet, never calm. It’s constantly racing, wondering why that person just looked at me like that. And it causes me to think about it for the next 2 hours and get defensive in my own head because they don’t understand, they never will. The truth is, how can they understand? How can I expect anyone to understand what I cannot even begin to understand myself? I can’t, it’s not fair. And here I am, back to feeling like a terrible person. But why should I feel bad about something I’m struggling with trying to fix? I shouldn’t. I want to be happy; I want to be normal. Either one would suffice. It’s like there is a wire electric fence 10 feet high in front of me and I can catch a glimpse of who I used to be, who I want to be. I don’t know how I ended up on this dark side of the fence... I just want to figure out how to get back over, because it’s almost like I start to find a way to climb it and it starts to feel good, like I’m close; I hit a wire and it burns me and I fall back down. I have to start all over, only this time, every time I fall and get burned, people start to see just how damaged I really am. That scares me even more. I want to be happy, I want to be normal. I need to first figure out what caused me to wake up on this side of the fence. Maybe just maybe once I figure out what the underlying problems are; just maybe I’ll be able to break the fence down instead of trying to avoid it. That’s the hard part though, isn’t it? Figuring out what really screwed us up so bad? Which problem, which heartbreak, which comment really did hurt you this bad? After you’ve trained yourself for so long to not let it get to you. Which knife was it that struck through the armour? First I have to find that knife. It’ll take some time, I know it will. But one day, eventually.. I’ll make it to the other side of the fence.
By MCKP8 years ago in Psyche
Middle of the Night Anxiety
It 00:47 on a Wednesday night/Thursday morning and after the busiest and soul destroying day at a job I hate I have found myself lying in bed scrolling the endless threads on Facebook, Instagram, News Feed, and Tinder profiles in the hope my precarious mind will finally go to sleep.... Safe to say this will not happen.
By Siobhan Cha Cha8 years ago in Psyche
No Bright Side with Anxiety?
What is anxiety? Anxiety is a feeling. A feeling that can drive a person mad. A thought that can convince someone it's true and a thought that will rest in the back of your head and come out when you're not ready. It's also deep in your gut that can make you feel nauseous and even physically sick. You'll feel terrified and your brain will be completely overwhelmed. You can feel your stomach churn and your brain pulse, it can feel like it's being crushed. Anxiety will make you over think every little detail and situation. Anxiety is a thought, mutated in your brain, and it'll convince you something is wrong. Something terrible can happen or even will happen. That maybe you caused this problem or mistake, and you'll wonder but how can you fix it. And you can. By seeking help. Bluntly. That's the truth. I hadn't, and there's been many times in my life I needed help, but didn't. Anxiety isn't just fear. It's so much more than a feeling. When it's happening, everything feels very real. Your fear will be the truth. And your thoughts will rule you.
By Danny Flow8 years ago in Psyche
Mom's Anxiety
Struggling with a high functioning anxiety disorder causes individuals to change their routines, how they handle social situations, and influences the patterns people make for themselves — Everything from timing when they go to the grocery store to avoid the crowds to what social gatherings to attend. Everyone has their coping strategies, some that work and some that make their anxiety worse. (Great article here about some unusual ways anxiety can affect behavior).
By Ember Phoenix8 years ago in Psyche