Remedies for anxiety

[Coffeeanddarkchoc]

Is there anything I can do/take without seeing my GP?

If I have to go anywhere/do anything then I feel so nervous and worried that something bad will happen. It all seemed to begin after I had DC 2 years ago and I had PND which I dont think.I fully got over.

Eg every sunday I'm a nervous wreck about work on Monday morning and its ruining my day off work.
I also dreead going to social events and try to get of them as much as I can.

When I took fluoxetine before I was so much more confident and fearless, but I dont want to go back to that yet.

You can get lavender capsules which might be worth a try? Also there's lots of evidence now linking diet with anxiety/depression which might be a factor to consider?

Have you ever considered cbt? I'm a cbt therapist and feel it would do you great, most local nhs cbt services take self referrals via the phone or their website xx

Vigorous exercise, cbt.

The book "self help for your nerves" dr claire weeks

Thanks. I tried rescue remedy at night time and that is helping me to sleep through the night. Before I was waking then staying awake worrying for ages.
I tried one for the day but it didnt really help , but will look at lavender capsules.

Going to look int cbt now thanks. I think therapy is definitely the long term way out of it.

Will try get my hands on that book aswell, thank you

hi @coffeeanddarkchoc im watching this thread with interest as I'm struggling with anxiety too and also dread going anywhere.I'm particularly struggling at the moment with something as simple as going shopping as I suffer with severe indecisiveness over choosing things and It seems to cause me extreme anxiety so much so that I have started to avoid going in shops completely. I now shop online or will ask people to pick things up for me. but there are times when I do need to go in shops but my heart will race and i get in a terrible state over the thought of it. I hate being like this a few years back I used to love shopping. iv also tried rescue remedy but don't really find it helps for me. I'm the same with social events and will try to get out of going if possible. I've even stopped wanting to go on days out with the children. this anxiety is taking over my life and my world is getting smaller because of it. I've tried a few different anti depressant meds over the years but I didn't find they helped to be honest.

Ive started mindfulness.

I thought it would be a load of bollocks but it’s actually really helpful.

It’s like it resets me. Yes I have to keep retuning to relaxing instead of thinking about when I need to get the tea in or did I remember to put that towel in the wash, but it’s made such a difference.

Try it before you make up your mind it’s bollocks! And Minute Mindfulness (literally a minute) helps in situations when anxiety is starting to rise just to get it to simmer down and give me control again.

@Elieza I've heard of mindfulness but never really gave any thought to doing it as like you I thought it would be a load of old bollocks!
where do you access these mindfulness techniques is it a book or online or an app?
glad you've found something that is helping you.

A woman I went to for counselling introduced me to it and they did it at my work on Teams (cameras off, just listening to the voice).

There will be loads on YouTube. It starts with a bell and ends with the same. It’s generally a story that you work through. You imagine somewhere nice like a garden or beach in the summer or a snowy field in the winter and strolling along and seeing the sun rise at the end or whatever if that’s your thing, and you go for a walk and imagine all the sights and sounds and scents in the air etc it’s so nice and peaceful you get really chilled. They lead you through it by telling you to imagine this and that “as you walk along the sandy path and you hear the sound of the sea lapping at the shore”…or whatever so you listen to them and forget your worries.

Or they go through each part of the body and tense it up and relax it until you’ve gone through every muscle you have and are free of tension.

Then you get up and it feels like you’re on meds you’re so relaxed!

Try YouTube until you find one you like. The persons voice can make or break it. It has to be lilting and soft. Pick a story you like. Then you can go back to it. The Minute Mindfulness is just a short version of relaxation. It’s nice too but the bigger one gives me more benefits.

It’s easy to find excuses not to do it but once you make yourself a couple of times and get the peace it gives you won’t have to make yourself any more as you’ll want to!

I take St John's wort and it really helps my anxiety

Very interested in this thread as I'm really really struggling

No supplement or drug will cure your anxiety. They can all provide some relief temporarily maybe but it's hit or miss whether it works for you. Exercise is a little more reliable way to provide some relief but it's not a long term solution and it can be difficult to exercise when you're dealing with severe anxiety symptoms so it's not realistic for everyone.

CBT completely 100% cured my anxiety, I used to have panic attacks every single day, i couldn't work. Haven't had so much as an anxious thought/feeling in 8 years now. I had to try CBT twice to get it work as first psychologist I went to was a bit of a nutjob and I just didn't feel comfortable with him so it didn't work. Second time was with a very calm, sweet woman and it worked! 8 sessions and afterwards I was able to stop my panic attacks from happening, after a couple months of being able to control my response to those anxious thoughts, they just stopped.

Thanks all. Im really struggling this morning. Im 40 mins away from starting work and feel like I need to vomit and have a cry.
Work is the cause of a lot of my anxiety and I think I need some time off to help re-set. I was meant to me on annual leave today but had to cancel it due to it being busy

That’s lousy your leave got cancelled. It sounds like perhaps it’s time to find a new job. Is everyone as stressed as you are in work because it’s busy? If so perhaps you all need to speak to the union and see what can be done.

Our department is extremely busy. Other departments are not so I think even an internal move would be a good option.

When covid came around we all started WFH and the increased hours began then and were meant to be temporary. Then one person after another started leaving and we havent had a full capacity team since. By the time one position is filled, another person leaves and it keeps continuing like that.
We dont have a union

Running is my thing as well as EFT tapping - the Tapping Solution App.

But if it's really causing issues then your GP can give advice as well as drugs.