Lived Experience Forum

[Arle]

Hi, I guess I’ve been really lucky and I’ve never really suffered from mental illness although I’ve certainly had some difficult situations in my life. Recently I had an incident that has caused me to have extreme anxiety and I feel at a complete loss. I’ve had to be medicated and suddenly can barely leave the house. I can’t stand loud noises or watch anything on tv that is slightly aggressive or provokes me. I just want to spend the day curled up on the couch with my eyes shut. I get a feeling of cold ice running down my arms which I know is adrenalin and without medication I shake all the time. This is extremely naive of me but I had no idea that anxiety felt so bad and terrifying. I feel like I’m probably in an acute phase that may ease with time. Can anyone share their experiences with me? I’d love to know there is hope that I will recover in same way. Thank you in advance.

[Lunar]

Hello @Arle

A very warm welcome to the forums, it is nice to meet you.

It sounds like your anxiety is really intense of late and effecting your ability to do the things you would normally do, instead you can only stay at home curled up on the couch. Anxiety is something all humans experience, and is usually a flight/fright/freeze response to perceived danger for survivial, but yes you are right can be very debilitating when triggered.

There are many ways to try to cope with anxiety, but it is helpful to have support from a counsellor or psychologist to talk through your worries and work on some helpful ways of coping, are you currently getting that support at the moment?

It is great you are reaching out on the forum for much needed support, good job.

I look forward to getting to know you better,

Lunar

[Arle]

Thank you for responding. I am seeing a psychologist but as everyone here probably knows, a week is a long time between visits. I suppose I just wanted to hear of other people’s experiences of moving from this intense phase. Do I stay like this forever, does it take weeks or months to move through. I’m so clueless about this.

[CheerBear]

Hi @Arle

Anxiety seems to be both my friend and my foe. I live with a pretty high level of anxiety and I find it can give me energy, motivate me to do things, help me make careful decisions etc. - but only when it is at a reasonable level. When it tips into a place where it's extreme, it becomes pretty hard to manage. It really can, as you said, feel terrifying.

Some of the ways my body experiences anxiety feel pretty scary and when it becomes intense, I can start almost fearing the feeling of the anxiety itself. I'm not sure if you experience that in a way too? Either way, it can be tricky to manage intense anxiety.

In your last post you mentioned wondering whether it may stay like this forever. In my experience living with anxiety, really intense anxiety hasn't lasted. For me it seems to come in a big rush, then settle at some stage, then come back again... How long it lasts, how long it takes to settle, how long between rushes of it, how intensely it 'hits' - they all change too.

It has helped me to pay attention to the way anxiety can shift and change, even subtly. I think noticing this helps me when it is intense, to believe that it can (and probably will) pass eventually. Simply having that belief can reduce the anxiety I experience. Not sure if that makes sense, but I do believe, and experience, that it is very possible to move beyond it.

It's great to hear you have support with a psychologist. I hope you can find some relief soon.

[Arle]

Thanks so much for your reply CheerBear. It’s helped a lot to hear of your experience and to know that this intense phase probably won’t last. I feel for you so deeply that you have had to live on this roller coaster that is anxiety. I had no idea and I don’t think people talk about it enough in the wider community. I’m so happy to have found this forum. Cheers

[CheerBear]

You're welcome @Arle ☺

I think often people who don't experience intense anxiety can in a way dismiss it, perhaps because we all experience feeling anxious at times. It doesn't really help those of us who struggle with it at a pretty high/extreme level though!

Good to hear you're happy you found the forum. Anxiety is something so many of us here live with and I hope you find your time here helpful. You can use the search bar to find topics on anxiety (or other topics you might be interested in) and if you feel like joining in, please do. If you put the @ symbol in front of a users name it will tag them and might make it easier to see your reply.

Hope to see you around ☺

[Arle]

@CheerBear - like this

[CheerBear]

Yep - just like that @Arle ☺