Vitamin Question

Mike,

A phrase you posted caught my eye as it is my own cry for help when I am really down and out ~ " I miss the old me so bad."

When I went through a really bad time,  I would cry and pray for the return of the "old me".  My therapist helped me to see that the "old me"  was history and that I needed to live in the present and not mourn the old me.  She taught me that the present me was a pretty good person but a person with a mental health disorder. 

Learning to accept who I was and to not beat myself up over not being the " old me"  was the best route to take.  Learning how  to accept your emotional anxiety or panic is not easy but you can do it.

First, rate how strong your anxiety is. Notice any tension you feel, especially in your chest and stomach. Then repeat to yourself “I may not like this situation but I accept it... I accept that I’m anxious.” If you have trouble believing those words, say “I accept that I’m having trouble accepting my anxiety.”  this works for me most of the time. 

As for supplements,  I am sure other members will have info to share with you.

Again,  welcome aboard.

Kindly,

Kitt

 

Thanks for the responses. I have accepted the fact that I have anxiety though, thats the part that all the therapists always tell me to accept, accept, accept. I do nothing but accept, but it doesn't get me anywhere. I know better then anyone in the world that I'm an anxious person, I am 100% aware of that. I just don't want to be. I don't know if that want and desire will ever change, I definetly don't think it will. I want to be relaxed, I want to be the best I can be. I don't want to be this. And yea, I guess the old me is a kind of a weird statement because then I'd be relaxed but immature. I'd like to be able to have my mentality now, but be able to be relaxed and at ease. I'm constantly tense, my shoulders and neck are in knots and I grind my teeth like an idiot all day. At times I get these wicked ridiculous tension headaches that make me feel like I'm floating and not even here or in control.

But for me personally, the antidepressents weren't the way to go. And I'm 100% against using them WITH an abilify or something like that. I don't believe thats the answer. People have lived millions and millions of years and I'm sure a lot of them had anxiety, so why the heck do I need some drug that is not supposed to be in my system to dull me out and make mea zombie? I didn't enjoy that cymbalta feeling at all.

Sorry for my negative post here, I try to stay as positive as I can (another therapist tip), but it's so darn frustrating sometimes. Find myself reading all these self help books and seeing therapists and trying everything, and I just feel like its all complete BS sometimes and that I'm just gonna be like this forever.

Mike619er said...
Thanks for the responses. I have accepted the fact that I have anxiety though, thats the part that all the therapists always tell me to accept, accept, accept. I do nothing but accept, but it doesn't get me anywhere. I know better then anyone in the world that I'm an anxious person, I am 100% aware of that. I just don't want to be.

Please don't take this as a criticism Mike, but when you say you've accepted your anxiety, but still don't want to be anxious - have you really accepted it? When you truly accept your anxiety you don't care if you're anxious or not, you don't care when or where it comes up. I know that's easier said than done. I'm in the same boat.

I've learned a number of "techniques" to use for dealing with panic attacks. But when I have one if I think "gee, this trick better work" -- it won't. When I just allow whatever to happen, which includes taking the risk that things might get worse, the anxiety (in time) starts to decrease. Anxiety is part of your body's natural defense mechanism. If you want to take a natural approach then you can't fight your body. Instead you need to retain your mind to better understand the difference between a real threat and a false threat (anxiety). Look around and ask yourself "what here is a threat? What here is trying to hurt me?"

I'll give you an analogy that uses the same natural approach. When you get a cold you cough and/or sneeze. Your body is coughing and sneezing because it's trying to get the virus, infection, whatever out of your system. If you take medication to keep from coughing and sneezing you may suppress your symptoms, but you're also keeping the germs inside. Anxiety is similar. Your body needs to express it in one way or another. If you fight it, it will just come out in another way. This is where things like therapy, talking to friends, writing in a journal, etc. can help. Don't suppress your anxiety - get it out of your system in a healthy way.

As far as vitamins, many people talk about the B-vitamins. For me it wasn't enough. A holistic doctor gave me Magnesium, but that made my heart race and I stopped taking it. I have tried herbs which helped a bit, but only so much. St. John's Wort (mentioned already) can affect serotonin levels (like many western medications), Kava Kava and chamomile also have a calming effect. I drink these teas on a regular basis. Again it helps, but only so much. I've had better results with GABA and taurine which you can get at a health food store. But be careful about combining things and look into potential interactions first. Good luck!