Do you ever fully recover from anxiety?

[FortyFacedFuckers]

I am currently 4months into councelling & 6 months into setraline and starting to feel a little better but wondering what better will actually be like.
Is better completely rid of the anxiety or is it something that I will always have to some extent?

I fully believe it is possible to recover from anxiety, although I suppose like many things, it doesn’t make you immune from getting it again in the future.

Also, anxiety is actually a normal human emotion as well. It’s sort of a bit like why so many people are overweight - everyone has to eat. As opposed to alcohol or drug abuse where you can complete avoid.

I would not dwell on the question too much.

As for what better looks like - I think it’s when anxiety is not your first and last (and every) thought of the day. So getting better is when maybe it’s not your first though of the day, even if it then is the second of third. So the length of time you feel “well” gradually lengthens. Completely better probably isn’t zero anxiety.

Not sure if any of that makes sense.

I agree.

Try reading the chimp paradox and doing yoga as often as you can. I feel like a different person when I do yoga. If you can’t do a class try Adrienne on YouTube

Good luck

I’m on my 6th year of medication for anxiety. At its worst I couldn’t leave the house. The physical symptoms were debilitating. Took me 3 months to do the school run, and another year till I could actually go out and about like “normal”. The panic attacks slowly decreased.

A lot of mine was situational. I was heavily medicated to begin with. Now I just take beta blockers as and when I need them, however I’ve had an extremely stressful few weeks and I’m back on regular daily medication for it but far less than when I was first diagnosed.

Thank you that makes sense.

Now that I am not 100% anxious at every waking minute I feel pretty good but I am still avoiding doing anything that makes me anxious and I started thinking if I would ever just get up and go to the shop without feeling anxious or is it enough that I can go to the shop with the anxiety, if that makes sense?

I think I’ll always have a tendency to anxiety. But I am building strategies that help me manage. I am no longer on any medication and have found books based on ACT (acceptance & commitment therapy) much more helpful for me than CBT based advice.

I think going to the shop with the anxiety will help reduce the anxiety about going to the shops next time. Even just a little bit.

I am a few years on from you. I would say it is easier for me to become anxious nowadays but I am much better equipped to recognise and cope with it. I am certainly not spending every waking moment running from a permanent state of anxiety as I was before, I can breathe, does that make sense? I did EFT and found it immensely helpful

I have recovered. Counselling and ADs did the trick. Also mindfulness, exercise and a supportive partner. My life is a hell of a lot better than it was. I'm sure yours will be too.

For me personally, I got fed up of being anxious and stuck at home and thought fuck it, I’m gonna be anxious anyway so may as well go out. It was hard. But absolutely necessary for my recovery. I did some CBT to help with getting out and about again.

I would say yes.. because I did. Took 7 years from first panic attack but I got there.

My 'cures' - book by Claire Weekes called 'self help for your nerves'. Written years ago, so simple but a brilliant explanation of why you feel the way you do when you are going through an anxiety disorder.

Secondly - the biggest holy grail for me -

www.cbt4panic.org

COMPLETELY free cbt programme written by an Irish psychotherapist who suffered from panic disorder himself. He overcame it through CBT and then decided to train in psychotherapy himself to help others.
His voice alone is soothing! Highly recommend the video section. Without him I would have quit Uni (Midwifery degree - v stressful!) and would not be where I am now.

Its two steps forward one back but it is entirely possible once you have the knowledge/ understanding.

Also make sure you have had bloods for iron levels, ferritin levels (iron storage) b12 and thyroid function
as any problems with the above can cause racing heart, breathlessness etc that can trigger adrenaline and panic symptoms

At worst point with mine I thought I would never get better and over time I did . Still have the occasional bad day but can apply coping strategies , identify triggers and move on. It takes time and to learn to be compassionate with yourself.

My top tip . A list of helpful articles , quotes etc which I keep on my phone as a self care tool . Very useful as you can look at it in all settings and no one pays any attention to someone looking at their phone .

@Tweety2016 thanks for mentioning bloods. I’ve been eating all the crap due to stress. Totally forgot about those deficiencies. Will get myself checked out this week.

Thank you all of these replies are so helpful and definitely give me hope that I can continue to feel better. I will look at all of the books etc suggested
Thank you