Symptom of anxiety or?

Is this a symptom of anxiety? I think it could be severe brain fog. But I feel like I'm 2 steps behind my eyes. It also feels like I'm going cross eyed in a way which makes everything feel less enjoyable and crisp. On top of that I'm very confused all the time and forgetful. Could this be anxiety?

My moms a doctor so I always am getting checked up haha

It is one of my symptoms, I know that. I will get brain fog, confused, and feel like I'm having a stroke. But I've been rain through so many tests, that if it isn't anxiety alot of doctors are wrong. I am almost positive that's what it is though. I have to take a half of xanax to get through mine.

Is it constant or whenever you're anxious

DT,

For me, those experiences tend to come and go, but for sure, they are worse when I'm in high anxiety mode. It's a strange experience to feel them when you're not anxious (it's so out of place!), but it does happen.

I've learned to just roll with them now. They used to scare the bejeezus out of me and make me question everything, rationally and irrationally.

For ages I thought I was the only one who experienced this,....I had no idea this was common. Knowing others were familiar with this experience, actually helped me cope a great deal.






M.

DT,

Your Mom is a Dr., how sweet for you.  Do you talk with her re any of your problems?

What is brain fog:

Poor short term memory

Difficulty learning new things

Poor mental stamina and concentration – there may be difficulty reading a book or following a film story or following a line of argument

Difficulty finding the right word

Thinking one word, but saying another

I have brain fog however I know mine is second degree to the chemotherapy drugs I receive.  I find it difficult finding the right words either to speak or type.

That causes me anxiety as well as embarrassment.  To date, there are no specific medical tests to diagnose brain fog.

Brain fog is not the same as Alzheimer’s or dementia. It is also much different than mental retardation, depression and other mental ailments.   Since the condition comes on very gradual, sufferers are often prone to just deal with it and not look for causes and answers to their condition.

If your problem is anxiety and your like me, if your anxiety sky rockets you cannot even remember your own phone number.

There is a variety of diseases and medicines that may cause brain fog but it truly can be due to anxiety.

"So the best medicine would be to not stress over it and try to limit my anxiety and it should go away until I'm anxious again!?"  I cannot promise you it won't happen again if your anxious but if it does don't let it frighten you.

Kindly,

Kitt

Merrida,

DT said, "So the best medicine would be to not stress over it and try to limit my anxiety and it should go away until I'm anxious again!?"

 

In response to his question I said I could not promise it would never happen again. I support the practice of accepting anxiety and letting it move through you versus getting stuck in anticipatory anxiety or what-if thinking.  It is about letting go.

Letting go means that the individual is not attacking anxiety with all his  emotional might. Instead, he  is surrendering the battle to a power or force outside himself. This means that there is no battle for the individual involved, and therefore, no emotional resources are required of this person.

In fact, all this person has to do is show up – no action is actually required of him or her other than to keep redirecting his or her thoughts from anxious ones to ones of letting go. For example, instead of thinking, “What if I don’t talk to this person that I want to talk to?,” a person is much better served by thinking, “I’ll just go ahead and talk to this person, and whatever happens, happens.” The attitude of letting go does not care at all about the outcome. 

The recipe for success contains the following:

Acceptance - You must accept fear, anxiety and panic. 

Courage - You must face the fear without running or avoiding.

Persistence - You must do it over and over as often as possible.

Patience - You must allow time to pass. 

Wishing everyone a peaceful day,

Kitt

 

Awesome!

Keep up the good work...CBT takes time, but is very effective and worth the effort and wait for the results, which can be several sessions.:)

S.C.

I had a therapist tell me once that most people go through life with blinders on...simply accepting the fact that they are safe, and for the most part, life is stable most of the time.

Those of us with anxiety however (highly intelligent/curious/deep thinking individuals, btw!) do not have this ability

He then went on to tell me that the statement about life being safe is not true! Life is often unpredicatable and anything can happen to us at any time.

I said 'Exactlly! So what is to keep me from having a health episode and dying?' (that was my greatest fear...just some random life ending health episode)

To which he said 'Nothing'

Well this just about floored me! I was expecting him to say something comforting, and instead what he was saying was terrifying.

He said, 'Either one of us could walk out the door now and get hit by a bus...a meteor, for exapmple....but what is the likelihood of that?

...and...

'More importantly, what can you do to change it by worrying?'

He told me simply that I had to let go of the control I was holding onto, and dive right into my fears...thus freeing myself.

So in a way, I guess acceptance is diving in, facing it, and letting it go.

Finding freedom in acknowledging that we don't have control over that which we fear, can actually have the effect of diluting the dread that we feel about them.

I hope this helps, as that is what it is intended to do....I know that it may not seem to be what you wanted or were hoping to hear....it certainly wasn't for me when I heard it! However, let is sit with you for awhile, and see where your thinking goes with it.

S.C.

This did not happen for me right away!! I remember this conversation between me and my therapist like it was yesterday...but it was several years ago, and it was some time before it came to have an impact on me.

That is why I said let is sink in and sit, and see where your thinking goes with this.

Have patience and hope.

S.C.

Thanks guys! I need hope!

That's the anxiety causing doubt and worry. Speak against it by countering that thought with:

"I am taking several healing steps towards recovery. It may take some more time and effort, but I am headed in the right direction, and am making improvement."

You are doing the right things...keep it up, and journal all of your postive experiences. Have a reprieve from your symptoms? Write it down! Use a coping skill and find that it helps? Document it.

Too often we focus on the negatives, and forget to recognize the little steps that are starting to happen.:)

S.C.

This was interesting for me to read, very helpful. I have been trying to accept my anxiety for months, I am not sure which came first the fear or the anxiety! I was never scared of anything before then the anxiety kicked in randomly and I am scared of everything, the physical symptoms are so severe that I think there must be something physically wrong which in turn makes it so I can't be left alone, can't drive, can't bath etc! However through patience, surrender, acceptance, medication, and meditation, I am slowly improving. Some days it is hard to remember that as I am exhausted from the effort and becoming less tolerant of my symptoms. One foot in front of the other I guess! Reading these stories really helps! I hope this was an appropriate response, I have never been on a forum before but thanks for sharing everyone!