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Please Help Me, Help My Friend

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Anxiety & Panic Disorders
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Posted 9/28/2014 3:37 AM (GMT 0)
Hello all!

My name is Naeem, I am a brand new user.
I joined this forum hoping to interact with everyone here.
I am on a quest to find information to help my friend.
She is suffering from anxiety often, and I am unsure about what I can do to be
supportive and help.

So I am trying to do my due diligence and research on the subject.
What better way to do so, than to ask people who have lived with it.

I will be reading your stories, and commenting on your posts.
Asking a lot of questions, as well as sharing any information I find along the way.
Hopefully you all can point me in the right directions, and help me on this quest.

If you have made it this far through my rambling then I hope you will take the time to answer a simple question.

What is the most frustrating part about dealing with people, who do not understand what you are going through?

Thank you so much for your time.
Posted 9/28/2014 5:01 AM (GMT 0)
xj975,

Your friend is lucky to have such a companion in you!!

Read some of our posts here, as well as checking out our Resources. (see link below) They are full of great self-help ideas that you could pass along to your friend.
https://www.healingwell.com/community/default.aspx?f=9&m=104206


There are also books for loved ones of anxiety sufferers. I can look up titles for you at your request...just let me know.:)

Best wishes for you both!

Scaredy Cat

Posted 9/28/2014 5:16 AM (GMT 0)
Thank you for the welcome and taking the time to reply.
I intend to do research and make comprehensive lists that I will submit in the hopes that they are beneficial to the community.

Cheers =)
Posted 9/28/2014 7:40 PM (GMT 0)
The hardest thing for me (when trying to talk to people who don't have anxiety) is I feel like they can't possibly understand and it's so hard to describe to someone who hasn't been through it. I have issues talking to my closest friends and family because I sometimes feel like they look at me like I'm crazy because they don't understand. When going through a panic attack and trying to get help, people don't know how to help or be sympathetic.
You obviously are a great friend and I appreciate what you are trying to do for your friend.
Posted 9/28/2014 9:56 PM (GMT 0)
xj, the problem is a person who has never had PAD cannot comprehend
what we are dealing with, no offence here but it's like getting hit in the
head with a hammer, unless you have received such a blow, it's not something that a person can explain, my guess is it would be easier to
explain the hammer blow than anxiety. "anxiety makes a person feel like
they are dying, and when the adrenalin kicks in you are not controllable until
the adrenalin is out of your blood stream". Peace

Larry ***
Posted 9/28/2014 11:11 PM (GMT 0)
I have explained my feelings in several ways in dealing with my anxiety....one is that I am trying to act like everything is fine and normal, even though for me, there's a rattlesnake loose in the room and I have no idea where he is or where he's gonna strike!
Another way I've explained it is like I'm looking up at a tall building and I see a toddler walking along the narrow ledge. He's on the brink of falling and my arms are tied behind my back and there's no one there to help! And last, like I'm tied to a railroad track and a train is coming fast and I can't get off.
You can tell yourself all day long that it's not "real", but the anxiety is. It has a life of its own! Trying to keep the beast in line/at bay can be exhausting, especially if it's day after day.
jl
Posted 9/28/2014 11:34 PM (GMT 0)
Naeem,

We all could use more friends like yourself. Good for you for being such a caring person!

You have had a lot of great replies. For me, anxiety is synonymous with fear. Imagine for a second that your chest is hurting, you start sweating, heart starts pounding fast, and your left arms seems to be tingling and there is no doubt in your mind that you are going to pas on.... That death is inevitable . Can you imagine the fear? That's the best I can do to describe it. Keep in mind that we all might have similar but different experiences with this disorder. Some people's throat feels like it is going to close up on them and they are going to suffocate. Can you imagine the panic?

People who hasn't experienced these feelings don't know where we are coming from. Sometimes they just think we are being babies or over dramatic. They know we are not dying but unfortunatly that's not the case with some of us.

Some of us on here have learned to mange our anxiety by incorporating coping skills. I no longer think that I am going to die (unless on a rare occasion). Tell your fiend that this disorder is treatable and you CAN live a normal, happy life.

Try to convince her to drop in here from time to time. It will definitely benefit her. Thanks again for your post, Naeem. Here's to good health for your friend!

Cornell

Post Edited (Cornell) : 9/28/2014 5:40:33 PM (GMT-6)

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