Yes been irritable is a major symptom of anxiety- i am just about of my meds completely (after many previous attempts) and i do feel really irritable…. like i cant relax but dont want to sit still. It is perfectly normal.

I am having it mainly due to coming of my meds, but not to worry others coming of them… my meds are not propper anxiety meds- they are old school and addictive.. the ones they dish out these days are much easier to come of. Some stupid doctor gave me them in a moment of madnes 2 years ago and i relied on a high dose for way too long! The good thing is each 25mgs i am lowered the side effects only usually last about 5 days… i dont feel anxious… just irritable and a bit spaced out. I know this time im of them for good, my whole attitude has changed and i just know i dont need them anymore. I still have symptoms but no anxiety or adrenalin with them- i think these symptoms are like what paul still had after he recovered, your body still holds a few habits but nothing that makes you anxious or panicky! Mine will fade eventually i am positive of it. I was on 6 tablets a day which was 150mg… im now on one tablet which is 25mg and i can honestly say i feel much better. I have started noticing things that feel so normal but i havnt felt for a long time, normality can seem so foreign when you have lived in an anxious bubble for a couple of years!

Wishing everyone the brightest pink of days over christmas x

Hi Scarlet,
went to london yesterday for an interview. it was good, nice peaceful area. the anxiety was there but manageable in the morning, but in the afternoon i went to the busier areas around the british museum and that was too much. mind went very loud and busy and found it hard to concentrate, went into mild d.p. but didnt realise i had until it left me back at home. mind is much clearer today, with all the worrying and obsessing that went on yesterday seeming a little silly now. but at the time it felt right to be worrying about those things (it got stuck on my feelings of irritation). oh well, black times happen without warning sometimes, it was hard trying not to cry all afternoon though. feel like i’m in majoriity grey/blue days now. prob still focussing on it too much as well, but more brain training should get that going. its odd, but sometimes when my mind gets into thinking and obsessing, at the time its hard but it feels like its the right thing to be doing. even though it stops me being able to concentrate or enjoy things. is that because i’m so used to thinking/obsessing/d.p. that it has become more normal for me?

pink days for everyone now its nearly Christmas! -x-

I consider myself 99% cured now; haven’t had any symptoms for almost a month, apart from frequent waking up at dawn… So, just a heads up for everyone: recovery is within reach, and in your hands.

Stomach problems from last couple of months turned out to be my first gastritis rather than some strange IBS… I’ve never had stomach problems (even during the anxiety days), but then, I had never had anxiety either… and I’ve never been 35 before . It’s gonna pass, too.

Uh, re-reading the above, it turned out a bit bluer than I intended to… Let it be. But again, heads up everyone, this year was bad for most of us. The next one will certainly be better; just have patience and acceptance. All of this is part of life. And Merry all!

I’ve been having tension headaches. Sometimes I’m not sure if it is triggered by my anxiety or the other way around. I had this several years ago, but back then I didn’t realize it was the anxiety that fueled my headaches. Sometimes I wish I didn’t know about anxiety and panic attacks. Knowing a lot is power and good, but sometimes it gets you into trouble too. Mainly my anxiety is triggered by physical symptoms like tension around the head or my mind wanders especially when I’m watching television or a movie.

Hi Scarlet- work finishes this monday thank god! Im only an xmas temp so im looking forward to the rest lol. I did think that i would stop checking if im ‘checking’ eventually- as it just feels like things will pan out that way! I know its going to take a while for the habit to fade but its ok….. i feel a 100 times better now then previously! I know things will still be up and down but a lot less. I am having bright pink weeks now, and the majority of the other days are mostly pink too! I am going to re-read pauls book and look through a few of his posts tomorrow as i arnt at work till five- every now and then i like to refresh my memory as it sort of keeps me on track too lol. I love to gossip too! I am really bad for it on the phone to my friends, its a female thing isnt it lol! I think you should get yourself into the christmas spirit… watch xmas movies with your kids and do festive things- you may not have miserable weather but you can still be festive I have been trying to learn Paul to accept christmas, i am his christmas therapist… slowly we are getting there, who knows by next xmas i may even get a festive e-card from him! Haha he sooooooooo hates xmas.

I just wanted to share a symptom which i’ve had about 4 bursts of over the past couple months.
By where i suddenly go into really deep thinking of either dreams or events that have happened in the past. I can achieve this state by not even feeling anxious or tired at the time.
I get very confused and try to work out if it was a dream or reality, then the thought links into another one, then another one, till i feel like my mind has gone to sleep and i’m dreaming ( but i’m awake) It is quite scary when it happens but now it’s not bothering me as much.It would be good to maybe have a bit of reasurrance as i would like to nip this one in the bud and not let it worry me anymore.

I hope you’re all having a good day!

Natalie

“The universal antidote for all anxiety disorders is acceptance. Acceptance as a cure for many anxiety disorders means acceptance of the feeling and the thoughts that are automatically produced in the anxious, sensitized brain. But acceptance does not mean accepting the limitations in your life that anxiety is trying to force upon you. You become fully in control of your anxiety when you are able to acknowledge the feeling of anxiety, give it a quick nod to show that you know it’s there, and do the task despite the fear. Remember the old saying, “We have nothing to fear but fear itself” and see your anxiety as a worthy adversary, but one that is not stronger than you, and you’ll be on the path to self-mastery

Oooo enjoy your last week of work hun. Are you working in the New year, or relaxing now that you are ‘with child’.

“Hey Scarlett- iv been catching up on some of the posts lately and saw one which you replied to… its about being about to stop yourself thinking a certain way. I have found recently that i can stop myself ruminating in any negative obsessive thoughts- infact for the past week i have not engaged in a single piece of secondary thinking! Every so often my mind will bring to my attention the fact that i havn’t checked my thoughts and i sometimes feel like i should be checking them- but i dont and i must say i feel 100% normal for it. I suppose i have just about cracked it now, eventually did your mind stop focussing on the need to check too?”

Yes there comes a point when you are able to do it without checking. At first you have to force yourself to do it, then you tend to remind yourself once in a while that you haven’t been checking yourself, then it becomes second nature and you don’t think about the checking at all. You are at that stage. I call this the 99% stage.. I was there for a good few months. These days I can stop myself thinking, it’s almost like meditation, but whilst doing household chores (LOL). I keep myself in the present moment most of the day really, unless I have a good bit of juicy gos to analyse (being from Hull ha! ha!)

Like you say, it is possible for us all to be fully rid. When you look back on those who have suffered (on this blog and other forums) and see them go from rock-bottom to almost recovered, then fully recovered, you realise that anyone can do it.. and to be honest, when I was suffering, it did spur me on to see others that have been through what I was going through come through the other end. This alwsys lifted my mood, if only for a brief second at times.

Take care Candie and have a lovely weekend.