Anxiety

[superbatranger]

or how I learned to stop worrying and just live.

Anyways, I tend to suffer from pretty bad anxiety problems. Now, I'm on this natural medication for my anxiety attacks, but I don't feel like they're doing anything. I've been taking this stuff for about a month now, but I still feel like my anxiety is getting the best of me and it's leaving me with nothing but contempt for myself. So, I ask you all this. What would you do to get control of anxiety? Because I am sorta at my wit's end here.

 

[Zero47]

Medication wise there's two routes, natural and chemical. You don't want chemical untill it's your last option most of these chemical drugs for prescribed for anxiety are anti-depressants, anti-psychotics or benzo's. These carry extreme side effects.

Natural medication doesn't work to the fullest if you eat or live unhealthy.

Do you just have anxiety attacks or do you get steadily more anxious in situations?

 

[Rin Little]

I honestly just kind of deal with it and go to my relaxation points, mainly music, reading, writing, and drawing. I do take vitamin B12 which is meant more for depression than anxiety, but think my drawing and stuff helps more than anything.

 

[superbatranger]

Medication wise there's two routes, natural and chemical. You don't want chemical untill it's your last option most of these chemical drugs for prescribed for anxiety are anti-depressants, anti-psychotics or benzo's. These carry extreme side effects.

Natural medication doesn't work to the fullest if you eat or live unhealthy.

Do you just have anxiety attacks or do you get steadily more anxious in situations?

For me it's like I frequently get more anxious in situations, and when it goes unchecked, I get an anxiety attack.

 

[dmase]

"natural medication" Don't expect natural medicines to work and be cautious of possible side effects and quality issues. The natural label makes people feel better about putting something in their body that wouldn't do if it was made by a doctor and hard on your kidney's.

You need to get rid of the stress factors.

 

[superbatranger]

Well, it would be easier if the factors were things I could actually get rid of.

 

[Slash Dementia]

I can control mine most of the time. I have panic attacks, and just being around people would give them to me. My social worker told me to just think to myself "What's the worst that could happen?" and I learned to answer that with "nothing." Nothing bad is going to happen and there's no reason to have anxiety besides it being something that's out of control in our head.

Don't think so much and, like Kaulen Fuhs said (above me): stop caring.

 

[mikey7339]

You don't want chemical untill it's your last option most of these chemical drugs for prescribed for anxiety are anti-depressants, anti-psychotics or benzo's. These carry extreme side effects.

What Zero said, even if your doctor suggests them, don't go this route unless every other option has been exhausted.

I was getting anxieties really bad almost every day when I moved out. It took a combination of things to get over them. My dog helped a ton, consider getting some kind of pet that is laid back that you can mellow out with. A bit of it was also getting more exercise and mentally forcing myself to put my mind on other things.

Can I ask what natural medication you are talking about exactly that you are using?

 

[BloatedGuppy]

Do you exercise and get enough sleep?

This. And add "eating right" to this equation as well. That should be everyone's first stop on the route to solving any health problem, physical or psychological.

1. Am I eating right?
2. Am I exercising?
3. Am I getting enough sleep?

Once the answer to all those things is "yes", then you start exploring other avenues.

 

[WolfThomas]

There's a bit of medication bashing in this thread, yes they can have side effects and yes they're not the first line of effective treatment, but medication does help, anti-depressants in higher doses can be used quite effectively for anxiety and sedatives can help initially to improvement sleep and relaxation patterns. But these should be used alongside things like cognitive behaviour therapy and other forms of counseling (vocational, social, finiancial, recreational, nutritional).

The best advice? See a doctor. They can perform test to eliminate possible organic causes(eg. Hyperthyroidism, atrial fibrillation), provide treatment and refer to other health professionals.

 

[Galletea]

Well I'd see a doctor. Most doctors won't give you drugs unless you've tried other things.
If you aren't sure, tell him/her that you'd rather not go down the chemical route unless necessary, and ask them what you can do. You'll be more likely to stick to a plan if it's recommended by a professional. I don't know the causes of your issues so it would be presumptuous to prescribe a remedy.