Anxiety Support Group

Anxiety is a physical condition marked by intense and persistent feelings of distress, fear, angst or dread. General anxiety caused by routine day-to-day stresses usually passes quickly and is experienced by almost everyone at one time or another. However, such feelings that linger over time and are very difficult to cope with, and which lack a clear cause, may indicate...

23,095 Members
43,242 Posts
1 Online
Anxiety Disorders
/ Anxiety Support Group

Exposure therapy not working/what helps you?

Rippelk2
Rippelk2

Driving to work has become nightmarish for me. My panic and anxiety have sky rocketed within the past 2 months. I re started my Prozac and use xanax as needed. It has only been once, last Monday, that I had such a severe panic attack I could not drive...I honestly don't know how I made it through a 12 hour work day. I've been okay enough to force myself to drive to and from work since then. I take 1/3 of a 0.5mg tablet of xanax when I wake up to help but it makes me really sleepy. It either helps me drive a lot or it makes me so sleepy that I get anxious about how tired I am driving. 


So a lot of people believe in exposure therapy, the more you do it, the more you de-sensitize yourself to it and the more comfortable you get. I drive all the time and it's not helping at all, it's only making things worse. I am constantly anticipating the drive, I am always uncomfortable driving and suffer from severe anxiety doing it and panic attacks on/off. 


Does anything help you guys cope with this?? I use the xanax as I've described above on/off, put lavender essential oil on a tissue in my car to help calm, and I have a mantra I say out loud "I am safe and in control". 


I'd love some advice of anything that might help. 

Community LeaderMid
Mid
Basically, you control your anxiety. That's how you get it in balance. You've been doing the physical part of driving, now, do the rest of the driving. Focus completely in the moment through each part of the drive. Take time to notice where you are in relation to other vehicles, to the next light, to the next turn, and be "in the moment". This will help you push through the usual thought pattern.
Best wishes.
question
question
Exposure therapy usually involves allowing yourself to feel that fear over and over again without any comforting tactics (saying you’re in control or using other comforting items to remind you of that) but exposure therapy is brutal. It can definitely work but it’s downright brutal. It sounds like maybe you’re trying to do systematic desensitization in a way. But for your situation, I think it would be best to have a therapist guide you in what to do, whichever path you choose to take with your treatment, it’s hard to do therapy by yourself.
Rippelk2
Rippelk2
well I keep forcing myself to drive and it's awful every day..doesn't get any easier. It down right SUCKS
cachetteen1
cachetteen1
how about a practice run? for example, drive to work when u do Not actually Have work, and there isn't any traffic or pressure to be there at a specific time- in this way u remove the time constraint, and traffic, this may help.. either way I hope u find a resolution, I don't believe in exposure therapy, I believe in the comforting techniques to help- the lavender scent as u mentioned, perhaps relaxing music (Tibetan singing bowls etc) having the windows open helps me too (even if its freezing) controlled breathing techniques like pranic breathing, alternate nostril breathing- breath control really helps with anxiety, so try a few different ways and see what works for u. Good luck :)
Rippelk2
Rippelk2
Thank you, it’s not the time constraint. It’s literally driving just in itself. Although traffic is terrifying for me- I feel so trapped and go into immediate panic, but there’s no traffic on my way to work since I have to be there so early unles there’s an accident, roadwork or something unexpected. Traffic, the highway and bridges are my panic attack nightmares
Posts You May Be Interested In
  • serenityspeaks

    Anxiety

    Posted by: serenityspeaks
    Last Reply: serenityspeaks
    4
    I don't really know how to label this but I having a rough week and I can't say it's one thing.... I have a lot on my plate which is nothing new and I try to cope in many positive ways and do but I still have my moments.My kids more so my daughters talk to me about everything which I know it's cause of comfort and we are close.... however I really struggle with the venting about their dad which...
  • GreenEyes727

    Dummy Me

    Posted by: GreenEyes727
    Last Reply: GreenEyes727
    6
    I did the dumbest thing today.  I charged my earbuds, unplugged the block and put the block in my little bag instead of the earbuds.  I wasn't happy about that when I got to the gym.  What a dummy!