# Anxiety, How does your come out in you. I need to know xxxx



## jennyjenny (Dec 18, 2008)

Hi,I have been diagnosed with Anxiety, but i would love to know, what happens to you when you have episodes. I think this will help me realise the doc is right or wrong, and give me peace of mind, Please please replyJenny


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## Guest (Dec 18, 2008)

Hi there - welcome - when you say "diagnosed with anxiety" - what do you mean - clinical depression, panic attacks what? I have had battles with severe anxiety/depression - I was so ill I could hardly get from the sitting room to the kitchen at one point but I've also had much milder episodes of anxiety which was more like a panic attack, particularly in large department stores for example.I'm not sure how you are being treated. You may be able to address the anxiety with proper breathing techniques or some sort of CBT or meditation or have you been prescribed medication?I'm now well, working part-time and getting on with my life very happily - but I was at the sucidal end of the spectrum - sounds like yours is much more manageable - I do so fervently hope so.If you want to PM me with more specifics - I would be happy to help if I can - you have nothing but sympathy from me hun - but I need a little more to go on if I am to be of any help.All the very best to you.Sue (Manchester, UK)


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## baz22p (Dec 1, 2008)

Hi Jenny,I have anxiety/depression linked with my IBS. I find that I become very short tempered, crotchety/grumpy, and I see the downside in everything. I would get very easily frustrated with the simlest of things, and I would lose my patinece with things/people/pets very quickly. Before being prescibed anti-depressants by my doc, my wife said I was not nice to live with. However, I am now a different person - well, my wife is still happily living with me!


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## Guest (Dec 19, 2008)

So it does seem that in thee and me Baz, altering the brain's chemistry in some way does appear to address the problem?Sorry Jen - back to your thread. You are a Brit aren't you - judging by your posting "times"?Sue


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

Here are the symptoms doctors tend to look for when they diagnose someone with anxiety


> * Excessive, ongoing worry and tension * An unrealistic view of problems * Restlessness or a feeling of being "edgy" * Irritability * Muscle tension * Headaches * Sweating * Difficulty concentrating * Nausea * The need to go to the bathroom frequently * Tiredness * Trouble falling or staying asleep * Trembling * Being easily startled


http://www.medicinenet.com/anxiety/article.htmSome people also have panic/anxiety attacks where they get a racing heart or have trouble breathing.http://depression.about.com/cs/pad/l/blanxietyscreen.htm has a self test where you can answer questions to see if you fit with what doctors call anxiety.If you are really worried that the doctors must have missed something much worse than anxiety that tends to be a symptom of anxiety. There are some symptoms of anxiety that can have a physical cause. I get tachycardia (raching heart) from a problem in the wiring in the heart. But I don't have any emotions that bring that on and I am quite able to remain calm and get it under control when it happens. However in people with anxiety that same symptom for the same physical cause can trigger an anxiety attack which makes the physical problem last much longer and be much more severe than it would be in someone who doesn't have anxiety.


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## jms1963 (Feb 23, 2007)

Jenny Jenny,I have had anxiety issues since I was a kid. My anxiety comes out in all the ways Kathleen listed (sometimes I can't sleep, sometimes I feel sick to my stomach, sometimes I have the feeling of a racing heart, etc.) I have no set pattern it just comes and goes as it darn well pleases. I think the symptoms can be different for each individual.My anxiety came to a head about 10 years ago when my father passed. At that time I was barely sleeping, had lost over 20 lbs, had frequent migraines and was just miserable. My doctor put me on a low dose of Prozac and I've been on it since. I combine the meds with therapy (only once a month or so) and I try to exercise and do yoga a few times a week. My anxiety will always be there but I have learned ways to try to keep it in control - although once in a while it just overcomes me and I just have to ride it out.Sending you hugs,Jodie


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## Guest (Dec 20, 2008)

I am sorry you have this battle Jodie. Can I ask, what anti-depressant are you on and what doseage?Sue xxx


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## Sian (Nov 23, 2008)

I was diagnosed with anxiety before depression and IBS. I had always been anxious, but when my mother took me into the doctor's my teeth were chattering. I've been on anti-deprssants, beta-blockers and benzodiazepams. ( Am still on a low dose of Diazepam ) Sometimes my brain would be soundlessly screaming. I have noticed something a doctor told me back in my early twenties has been true, however. My anxiety and panic attacks seem to have a wave pattern of ups ( severe ) and downs ( manageable or almost nil ) of course when something happens like a death, a relationship break up, it is invariably bad and also my IBS is much worse. But in a year when things are relatively * normal * ( hah, define normal )







there will be ' up-down ' periods seemingly for no reason. At times I have coped by not moving from the house and avoiding situations ( such as crowded places ) which caused the anxiety simply because I don't want to go through the stress and the awful IBS after it. I have come to know that for whatever reason, treatment or so forth, it does not remain the same day after day. The depression was the only thing which seemed to have no end.


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## Guest (Dec 21, 2008)

Ah Sian, are you saying you are still depressed - has nothing addressed this at all?I am so lucky - I genuinely believe that my depression is a chemical imbalance which seems to be well-addressed by my anti-depressant medication. I NEVER take my mental health for granted and consider myself in remission - but it does mean that you savour the good times just so much more.Sue


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## Kitty_Cat (Jan 25, 2009)

I have been diagnosed with Generalised Anxiety Disorder or was when I was 12. I think it is linked to my IBS but its probably a combination of issues. I often have panic attacks in which I get a strange kind of cold feeling in my chest which I know is the start of my heart racing. I can usually supress it after this before it becomes too much, but if it gets really bad it can lead to vomiting, cold sweats, clamy palms and restlessness. I have been on diazepam but its an emergency pill only for me now.


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## Guest (Jan 29, 2009)

Oh poor you - yeah those sound like panic attacks and you need some sort of coping mechanism - you need to be taught proper breathing techniques. Have a gander on the CBT part of the forums - folk there are right knowledgeable and helpful.You are quite right - diazepam should only be used as a very short-term measure. Sue


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