Diagnosed anxiety sufferers, can you tell me..?

[PolkaDottyRose]

I am just thinking about going back to Church tomorrow, after a long absence, and my heart is pounding, and anxiety is rising. ..but I don't feel this way about every situation I encounter, though I definitely am feeling it today... fighting the urge to give up and not go..Do you feel anxious about everything? or just some things?

[NolongerAnxiousCarer]

I found the supermarket and workplace particularly difficult, but was fine withthe gym. Anywhere there were a lot of people was difficult really. I also found that gradually building up to something helped. Would it help to go to church at a quieter time rather than to a service to start with. Or meet up with a few people from church seperately.

[eyeswideshit]

Some days I'll be generally anxious about everything, but mostly it's around certain certain situations.

I feel the physical symptoms of anxiety pretty much all the time though.

[Wolfiefan]

Not everything. That one would make me anxious. So I haven't been in months and months. Some things are fine. Some I can't face.
Is there anything you're particularly worried about? anything you can do about that? (So walk in with someone?)
What would calm your nerves? A walk before?

[Launderetta]

Hi. I found my C of E Church really calming, DD & I quietly sat down & took part in our own way, saying a soft Hello & smiling as we went in.
Do try to go if you can, Polka it will be so pisitive for you
I also faced my fear & went to a couple of their Community cafe sessions recently, on my own. Nothing to fear, I just quietly had a cuppa & was included in a few group chats.
I find the gentleness really helpful, there's no over-eager intrusion thankfully - that would put me off.
However the gym & work both terrify me!

[IJoinedJustToPostThis]

I had something like that - returning after an absence. I thought it was going to be awful but people were lovely, said they'd missed me and it was nice to have me back etc. I expect you'll get similar. Most people are pleased to see people they haven't seen in while. It might be helpful to plan a vague, general response to 'where have you been all this time?'

I get anxious about things involving other people (so just a few things then), especially phone calls. I write down what I need to say before I call, and if I don't have an audience present I practise saying it too.

[Dauphinoise]

I'm generally socially anxious, so I'm not a fan of large parties, gatherings etc. I really don't enjoy crowds - so very busy supermarkets, packed festivals and concerts, the train at rush hour etc is a massive source of anxiety. I'm also anxious if I'm centre of attention - job interviews are the worst, my wedding day was a nightmare I endured for the sake of family, I could never do anything that required me to be on stage, do public speaking, presentations etc. Driving can be awful for me too if I'm going somewhere new, I need to plan the route well in advance.

I get awful physical symptoms, which vary depending on the severity of my anxiety at the time - tension headaches, sweating, flushing, shaking, stumbling over my words and having a shaky voice, feeling 'foggy' and unable to focus, mood swings that range from being overly giggly to being easily irritated and snappy, a constant feeling of needing to 'get away' which makes me unable to sit/stand still and I'm extremely fidgety, palpitations and hyperventilating, panic attacks.

However, meds have helped with making it all a little less extreme. And facing the fear and pushing myself to be out of my comfort zone. The more I do something, eventually the less anxious I become about it. I have a tendency to massively overthink things and imagine the worst case scenario all the time. If I do the thing I'm anxious about a few times, and realise the worst case scenario hasn't happened then I begin to relax a little.

However, some things will never change and I can't get past no matter how hard I try to push through it (crowds with loud noises for example)

As nolonger suggests, maybe start returning to church when its less busy. I imagine Sunday's are one of the busiest days to go?

[Launderetta]

• Positive, I meant!!

[PolkaDottyRose]

Thank you all. I went, and I am glad I did, but my goodness I was shaking and dizzy/nauseous, heart racing as I went in and as I left. Left last verse of the last hymn so I didn't have to speak to anyone.

[IJoinedJustToPostThis]

Well done!