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Posted 11/10/2010 8:50 PM (GMT 0)
Hi, I've been living with chronic anxiety since I was in high school, about 5 years ago. I don't think that doctors really know what is wrong with me. I've had prescriptions for all different kinds of antidepressants. Cymbalta helped me quite a bit, but I don't have health insurance so I can't afford it anymore. So I've been using natural remedies, like limiting my intake of caffeine (only one cup of coffee in the morning). Sugar and salt seem to make my symptoms worse, so I try not to consume too much of that either. regular exercise and yoga help too. I keep a diary to track my symptoms. I'm thinking about maybe trying some homeopathic medicine.
I recently moved about 16 hours away from the only place I've ever called home. I have no social support system here except my boyfriend. My boyfriend doesn't believe that my symptoms come from an illness. He doesn't believe in mental illnesses like generalized anxiety disorder and bipolar disorder. He says that it's just an excuse for people who want to take pills. He's absolutely wrong, of course, but this is what I deal with on a daily basis. I live with someone who doesn't believe that I am sick. It makes my illness extremely hard to deal with.
It's really weird because some days I'm just great, and then other days, like today, I can't even pick up the telephone when someone calls.
I just need to talk to people who know what I am going through because I have no one who understands. That's why I'm here.
Posted 11/10/2010 9:13 PM (GMT 0)
Hi :) Welcome!

Have you tried drinking decaf? I noticed that my symptoms used to skyrocket when I'd drink coffee or tea, but now I drink decaf and I don't feel any worse afterward! Not a bad trade off.

That's really rough about your boyfriend, though. Some people who have been lucky enough to never experience any kind of mental illness just can't understand how much your brain can work against you. Have these just been off-hand remarks and general statements, or has he said this to you directly addressing your problem? I know some people are very vocal about their opinions, but as soon as it is something affecting their life or the life of a loved one they find their minds very much changed.
Posted 11/10/2010 9:25 PM (GMT 0)
Hi I'm a newbie too! Welcome! That is bad about your boyfriend! I don't know what I'd do if my boyfriend didn't belive me! I guess he'd have to tho I go to the ER alot and I need someone to understand what I go through.

But anyway, welcome!

Posted 11/10/2010 9:45 PM (GMT 0)
Hello SSQ,

Welcome to HealingWell. :-) I have found the support, validation and encouragement that I receive here, to be so helpful and healing. I hope and trust that will be your experience as a member of the HW family.

Coming here and taking the step to join the forum was a brave thing for you to do and definitely a step in the right direction.  I am glad to see you found several of our new members that you identify with. 

You will find the members are wise and wonderful,  warm and caring so stick with us and we will do our best to help you.

Gentle Hugs,

Kitt

 
Posted 11/10/2010 10:06 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Sweet, love the name! My family's originally from the south too. (Tx) I am so glad that you found us. Anxiety can be such a lonely disorder, but this family has helped me to feel surrounded by care and support! My husband is similar in your boyfriends way of thinking regarding A/P. He thinks that I could just get over it if I wanted to, or tried hard enough. I think that this comes from a lack of understanding about the problem. Well that's why this is such a vital community. We are here to undersand each other and feel not so alone in our fears. Post anytime you have something to share, have a question, or just want to talk or vent. Hope to hear from you again!
Take care,
Scaredy Cat
Posted 11/10/2010 10:34 PM (GMT 0)
Hi

Welcome to HW you have found a great forum. Keep posting and you will find all the support you need. Nice to meet you.

Ben
Posted 11/11/2010 1:44 PM (GMT 0)
Thank you all for the warm welcome! It's nice to know that there are people out there going through what I am. It's nice to finally hear some words of understanding and validation. I look forward to getting to know you all. To Lululiya, I have tried decaf. I drink decaf tea all day. I do have to have a little caffeine in the morning because I'm always really groggy when I first wake up. I limit it to one cup though. Anymore than that and I'm a nervous wreck about all day. And about my boyfriend, these statements have been directly to me when discussing my anxiety symptoms.Scaredy Cat, I agree. I think it's just a general lack of understanding. He's never really known anyone who's had an anxiety disorder. He's going to be able to put me on his health insurance in January. I'm hoping he'll go to the doctor with me then. I think that that will help him understand that this is real, that's it's not a plea for attention and that the last thing I want to do is take a bunch of pills. Oh, and Scaredy Cat, us southern girls are the best! =]
Posted 11/11/2010 6:03 PM (GMT 0)
hello i am totally new to this stuff.. never really used one of these before.. im dealing with anxiety and ive only really had two panic attacks but really bad ones where i smashed alot of things up untill i wore myself out..(i am sorry for the spelling).. evry day from the moment i wake up untill the moment i got to sleep i am anxious...i constantly have thoughts of life afta death and beath going round in my head.. and i hate it.. i sometimes goto sleep so i dont have to think about it.. just tocut off from evrything.. and i feel like im wasting my life because of this stupid dissorder..i have lost all emotion.. well thats what it feels like.. and i just moap around allday feeling crapty lol.. i guess i have a hint of depression aswell. but the anxiety wont go away.... does this ever get better? please help
Posted 11/12/2010 12:13 AM (GMT 0)
Hi southernqueen and welcome.

As the others have already stated, it's tough when a loved one doesn't understand what we're going through. Unfortunately your boyfriend doesn't know how lucky he is not to have this. As you learn more about A/P you may want to share some of what you learn with him (books, articles, feedback from a therapist, the stories of others...). You may need to educate him about the reality of A/P as well as your own personal experiences with it.

There are a lot of treatment approaches out there. If you want to try homeopathy, that's certainly an option. I used it myself for about a year. Just be sure that you find a trained and qualified doctor. There are people who sell homeopathic remedies without any credentialing. What you get in a health food store is not the same strength nor are there as many options as you'll find through a doctor. And with respect to health insurance... check out this thread that Kitt started: www.healingwell.com/community/default.aspx?f=9&m=1914533
Posted 11/12/2010 4:10 AM (GMT 0)
Hi sweetsouthernqueen. :]

I've had chronic anxiety my whole life too. Started off as social anxiety disorder mostly. Then it just got into general anxiety over everything in middle school and high school. I think back to those days and the nightmare is still very vivid. I graduated about 2 1/2 years ago.

I don't know your boyfriend, and I don't want to sound like I'm judging him or anything, but he's wrong on his stance on anxiety. It's a real, physical thing, and definitely not an excuse to take pills. For me I tried so long not to take anything. Though when you quit cold turkey you get back to where you started, or worse. And that's scary.

Know that you're not alone. Millions of people have anxiety disorders (15 million maybe? I read somewhere around that). I have my good and bad days too. I actually had quite a while of good days, and an awesome summer that made up for all the bad summers I've had, but school has been kicking my butt, and for the past week I've been in a state of constant anxiety. Panic attacks and all that. I've been feeling so alone cuz my teaching class tells me, you're a professional now and you can not crack under any circumstances. Funny thing is, we're not even in the program yet. And the stress is craaaazy.

I'm happy that you're here. Please feel welcome to share as much as you're comfortable with. I just rejoined after 2 years cuz I've needed someone to talk to with no bias. Sometimes talking to a stranger can be so therapeutic. But also do therapy on your own too and try to find a good professional you can talk with. It's good you recognize the things that make you more stressed (like coffee - not good for anxiety at all, I found out the hard way!). You seem like a smart person and I admire you for recognizing these things. :)

Hang in there hun.
Posted 11/15/2010 3:05 PM (GMT 0)
Sorry it's taken me all weekend to get back here. I haven't quit. =] It's just my family came to visit and I wanted to spend as much time with them as possible. They surprised me actually. I had no idea that they were coming. Thanks for the advice, Fugs. It seems like maybe my boyfriend is coming around a little bit. I told him that I joined this forum. I also think that my family coming to visit had a positive effect on how he views anxiety disorders. See, my dad has GAD too. I think talking with my dad about it made Ben (my boyfriend) see that anxiety disorders are a real illness. At least Ben seems a lot more willing to listen and to try to understand. So hooray! There's one small victory!
Nice to meet you, MoreAmor. I understand about school kicking your butt. Thinking about the pile of homework I have to do always triggers anxiety symptoms for me too. I just try not to procrastinate. That only makes things worse. And hey, we have something else in common...I'm studying to be a teacher too. I haven't started my education theory classes yet, not til next fall, but I'm super excited. I'm glad you decided to come back. I agree, talking to someone with no bias can help so much.
Hope everyone is doing well.
Posted 11/21/2010 8:16 PM (GMT 0)

It must be hard that your boyfriend doesnt understand and you dont have anyone else close by. Alot of people dont unless they are like us and suffer from it. I just found this site last night and already I feel relief knowing that there are people just like me and we can help each other and nobody judges anyone. Keep working on therapy, you will be ok

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