i have general anxiety disorder too.....sometimes at parties, like family parties, i get really anxious and freaked out sometimes......sometimes at those parties i get so anxious that i have to excuse myself from the room or the house....but my parents know when my anxiety peaks and i can calm myself down......that's how i get through it.....using coping techniques...hope this helped!!! you're not alone

Thanks valgal18. I appreciate it!

Hi AllenRR,

I have found that for me, anxiety is worsened by an external 'stresser'. Most of the time my anxiety is under control (as much as it can be), but every now and then, something happens - like a fight with someone at work, or a rude cashier at the grocery store - that just sets of anxiety that can last anywhere from an hour to a week. If I can keep this in mind (which is not always easy because thinking clearly during an anxiety attack is not the easiest thing to do) I can identify a 'stresser' and apply a coping technique to lessen the anxiety.

However, my biggest problem is that it makes me very anxious to deal with my anxiety, which kind of defeats the purpose of 'dealing with it' treatments.

Also, it helps to have something I can focus on during an anxiety attack. I get very - I want to call it violent anxiety attacks, and sometimes it helps to find something (or someone) that you can anchor yourself to.

Every situation is different and every person experiences it differently. I hope you find something helpful. Like valgal18 said: 'you're not alone'

I also suffer from social anxiety and right now my social anxiety is really strong and I am not sure why. If i am going to have a panic atack I will excuse myself, go to the bathroom or somewhere I can be alone and practice deep breathing and I just tell myself to calm down and that everything is going to be OK :)