hello hoffnung. welcome to ds.

i have suffered anxiety my entire 69 years and if i caught THE VIRUS, i missed it, but the covidic politics sent my anxiety to unexplored levels and shapes. those levels and shapes are still shifting in this global silence after the fact. add in the inflation, etc., with which we are still paying for those covidic solutions and? ? ?

will ^it^ ever be over? flu season is an annual event. do we have to do this every flu season?

I had anxiety prior to covid, but covid certainly made it worst for a long time. I imagine there are plenty of people who started experiencing anxiety for the first time as a result of a global pandemic. I know someone who was diagnosed with PTSD over it.

My Covid anxiety hit "before it was in the US". Unbeknownst to me, I had already gotten it and gotten over it. I have had it 3 times and it is just like getting the flu, maybe a little worse but not much. High anxiety has always been a part of my life, learning to deal with it and survive with it in my life has been the trick. So far I think I'm handling it pretty well.

Thanks, I too have had it three times. With each infection the anxiety has gotten worse. What are you doing to control your anxiety?

I use breathing techniques and a medication in case of an emergency. But mostly I breathe through it and remind myself that whatever emotion I'm feeling is normal and okay. Oh and I come here for support and advice.

i'm another who uses breathing techniques as the front line coping mechanism for anxiety attacks. i then follow up with emotional channeling. the channel varies greatly with the emotion i am channeling. oddly enough, the most effective channel i've found for the covidic madness is getting my hands dirty and leaving them dirty enough to scare a maskite. i live on a farm, so that is easily done from a safe social distance. the quarter mile to the end of my driveway is **my** safe social distance.

Welcome to DS and glad to meet you.

Yes, the virus actually can cause a sort of brain inflammation and many people experience anxiety and depression while being sick. Some carry this on for a month or more after the main illness is over. I've had the "bird flu" do this also, that strain was wicked and I was terribly depressed for a month. Like deep depression which I knew was from this strain of the flu so I gave myself one month to see how it went. And then after about 4-6 weeks, that depression just lifted and was totally gone.

Now the news tended to sell the fear of getting covid and with shut downs and losing friends over whether to get the vaccine or wear a mask, it was very fear inducting. Anxiety inducing. I know many older women who got very depressed and anxious being alone and unable to "socialize" and they all said "I know I will die if I get Covid". And I told them not to engage in this unhelpful thinking style. None of them died from covid. I realize some people did die with covid but I am talking about my friends who engaged in such catastrophic fretting from watching the news selling fear that their mental health went down down down.

Try Ashwagandha for anxiety. You can get it at Walmart. I get the Equate brand gummes. I also take Magnesium.

Thank you; I’ll give it a try!

You're welcome! Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

I had COVID about a little over a month ago, And yes it definitely did have a immense impact on my anxiety.

Hi Hoffnung - I have had the vid at least x4, and the only anxiety I experienced was the last bout, because the associated cough lasted like 6 weeks and was SO annoying. What helps me manage related anxiety is understanding that the vid is here to stay, and we all will contract one variant or another, in perpetuity. Now I can focus on prevention, managing symptoms when I do get it, and healing. Best to you.

I am not anxious about COVID specifically, I know it is just a fact at this point. I have long haulers with memory issues, constant headache and generalized anxiety.

Big hug Hoffnug...I became septic from a Staph infection laxt year
I was sick and hoslitzlized for months
I'm still not back
I lost my hair due to trauma and it's caused me a lot of anxiety as well
I get it
We have several of the same symptoms
Another hug and a blessing..xo