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...

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Violence in news is ruining my life

deleted_user
deleted_user
I am new here and this will be my first topic. I am very nervous about telling my thoughts and fears right now.

Since May of 2007 when I believe I had some kind of nervous breakdown I have been suffering extremely, terrible, frightening anxiety and obsessive compulsive thoughts about violence in our society.

My exposure to the news has caused me to constantly fear the world. My biggest fear is of home invaisions, car jackings, and hostage type situations. All of which I have seen on the news.

I am a mother and a wife and this is ruining my life. I can't sleep and am afraid when I am out and when I am home. I live in a constant state of fear.

Prior to May 2007 I was fine. I never had anything like this. I have tried both lexapro and prozac and both made my symptoms worse and caused me to be phyically ill. As of right now the only thing I can take without being sick is Xanax. Thank god for Xanax.

Is there anyone else out there with these same fears and worries?

Has anyone else had problems with not being able to handle the medications?

Does anyone have any advice for me and my situation?

Thank you all for listening this was a big step for me..
deleted_user
deleted_user
I also became ill on lexapro. Xanax is the only thing that I can take. Can I ask though, what is the amount you are taking and how much do you take a day. I am curious because I think that now that I am not doing as well as I was that I need to increase my meds.
deleted_user
deleted_user
Thank you for responding. I take .5 or the peach colored ones on an as needed basis and so far that dose works well and seems to be all I need. Can I ask what kind of thoughts cause your anxiety?
Marigolds
Marigolds
I think perhaps you might bear in mind that it is only a very small fraction of the population that are exposed to the crimes you describe and the perpetrators are cowardly individuals who tend to pick on the aged and or infirm. It is highly unlikely that you will ever experience anything like this. But..i do know how you feel as i fear those same things myself..but i am a senior and more vulnerable. I tell my self that it's a well known fact that 90% of the things you worry about...never happen. You might want to talk to a local law enforcer about your fears and ask him for some reassurance. they are very good about this. When you find yourself imagining these things...make yourself stop immediately..and think about something pleasant and ordinary...like whats for dinner...or new shoes..etc etc I'm afraid i cannot help you about meds as i am not taking any...yet !
MOooser
MOooser
I worry about things happening to my hubby and kids. There was floodin in the UK a fwe months ago and I asked my hubby if we needed to put the kids in life jackets to sleep in case the floods hit this area. I was extremely ill at the time and attended an anxiety awareness group. The professionls liatened to my story above and said that I am catastrophising situations and have taught me how to manage this.

I have to write down my thought such as hostage in my own home.

Then the fear of what could happen such as kids be hurt

Then... I have to write down if I believe this will happen and challenge the reasoning.

Then look at it again and do I believe it will happen now.

This really helped me and I hope I ve put it across in a way you can understand babes
MOooser
MOooser
Is there any way you can watch other things rather than the news... I stopped watching the news which helped also. Only an idea
deleted_user
deleted_user
Yes, I did stop watching the news back in may and I try to avoid TV almost completely because even the shows on regular TV can be disturbing when my OCD is really bad. I will even walk away if I hear people talk about news. It has helped but unfortunately what I have areadly seen in the past is enough and I pray that my mind would just let it go. It is the worst feeling in the world to not feel safe in your own home.
deleted_user
deleted_user
I have the same fears, especially living alone. I use a lot of relaxation exercises. Such as hot bathes, reading good books, watching an uplifting movie or being in the comfort of my animals. At night is when I notice it gets the worst. But I put on some backroundround noise and replace the "whit if" thinking with "so what" thinking. I also pray and that keeps me at peace beacause I know I am not alone. My meds help tremendously. I take klonopin and Lithium. The klonopin lasts much longer in your system. Have you tried Zoloft? I take that too and it helps with my Ocd. I too, get real paranoid about break-in and so forth. So much that I got a full alarm system for my house. I even have a panic button. Oye Vay, I know... So know you're not alone.
But also take note, that these crimes do not usually happen to the majority of the population as Marigolds pointed out. Take long deep breathes and think of possitive things when those thoughts enter your mind. Think of your favorite place, or an event that made you very happy. Close your eye's and take yourself there. It does work for the most part.
I wish you all the best!
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