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Today I had a slight image episode , it cause very much discomfort like always, scares me when I go through these episodes. It will either be an image scenario, auditory or both. Always focuses on me losing my husband 😭 this anxiety is destroying me , like it's trying to take away my happiness. Everytime I have my good days it tries to drag me back down. I love my husband more then anything in the world , hes what I live for everyday day of my life and I couldn't imagine my life with out him. I've been trying to get control of it by doing deep breathing and no it's not real. Any helpful ideas to help me get regain control again and accept my anxiety more.

Hi I am brand newbie here. On the good days, I guess you could say that I am a “high functioning” person who’s been clinically diagnosed with General Anxiety Disorder. I manage an office fairly well most days. However, I internalize a lot and it eats me up internally. I obsess that I am not good enough, but I play the part the best I can. During a bad period of time, I can get fairly dark and depressed. I don’t believe the victim mentality and I’d rather stand tall as best I can. I take medications for GED and depression. At the moment I’m doing reasonable well. I’m here to hopefully learn coping tips and methods. Questions: 1. What are some of your best coping tips? 2. When you see yourself slipping how do you break the pattern? 3. When your at your darkest how do you try to break it? 4. When are you at your best? Thanks a bunch! And strong mental health all!

Hello everyone, This is the first time ever I am posting on a forum, but, like the title suggests, I just don't know what to do anymore. I have been struggling with health anxiety since I was a teenager. However, this last year it has gotten very bad. Seemingly out of nowhere I started getting panic attacks almost every day. When the panic attacks just started happening I was convinced that there was something wrong with my heart and I went to the emergency room twice. The first time the doctor laughed and said I was way too young to have a heart disease (I was 25 at the time, 26 now). He did measure my blood pressure, which was fine. The second time another doctor said basically the same thing, but at my request he made an ECG, which was looking good. He also checked my left breast for lumps (breast cancer was my other fear) but said he didn't feel anything. (side note: my mother had a weird mole on her leg, went to the doctor who said it was nothing. They later found out it was melanoma, but it had already spread everywhere and she passed away. My grandfather also died because of a mistake a doctor made. This has not helped me trust a doctors opinion). After the two emergency room visits I went to my own doctor to ask for therapy. I was officially diagnosed with health anxiety and generalized anxiety disorder and am now doing CBT focused on health anxiety. The therapy is supposed to teach me to think more rational, but I feel like the therapy is not effective because I still just can not believe that some of my physical symptoms are caused by anxiety (even though on some level I know they probably are). Every single day I have pains in the left side of my body; chest pains, stinging or a dull pain in my left breast, pains in my left armpit, my left ribs and pressure on my sternum. I am still so scared that I have breast cancer, a heart disease or bone cancer. I also know that there is such a thing as 'hypersensitivity', and I do know that I focus way too much on all my physical symptoms and probably make them worse, but I keep thinking 'what if I am doing this therapy and learning to think more rational, while meanwhile some disease is growing and spreading inside of me?'. The physical symptoms are really the biggest problem, most times I feel like I am not even stressed but the constant physical symptoms are what's causing me stress and panic. The pains on the left side of my body are my biggest worry, but in the past two months I have also been convinced that I have bone cancer, a brain tumor, a neck tumor and cervical cancer. Meanwhile, the panic attacks are still happening. Every time I get a panic attack I am scared that this time I really am having a heart attack or a stroke (pressure on chest/in head), that the doctors have missed something important and that this time I am really going to die.. even though I've had them so often and it always turns out I was not dying after all. In the past I've also had CBT for social anxiety disorder and that worked really well, but this time the therapy just doesn't seem to work. I keep convincing myself that I have a serious illness, it is almost impossible for me to believe that I am not sick. I feel like this constant fear is paralyzing me and it is definitely affecting my relationships with other people and my career. The constant aches and pains are making me feel like I am on the verge of death (I know this sounds stupid) and very often I don't see the point of living anymore because I feel I am constantly battling myself. My therapist says I am looking for a 100% guarantee that I am not sick or that nothing bad is going to happen, but that (of course) no one can give me that. I understand that, but honestly I don't know how other people can live their lives and NOT constantly be paralyzed by fear or worry. I know everyone here is dealing with similar things, but does anyone have any advice or wise words for me? Or is there someone who recognizes the daily pains and aches, especially those in left breast/armpit/ribs/chest and sternum? Can all these things really be caused by anxiety, even though to me it feels that the physical symptoms are causing the anxiety instead of the other way around? Thank you so much for reading.

I started a blog today. I sure hope it will help someone, even if just one person, it will be worth it to talk about my experiences and journey with anxiety and depression...

Hello everyone. I just signed up here to talk to others who understand what I am going through. I am in Cognitive behavior therapy at the moment I am a student at The Open University (Study from home). I am having a hard time dealing with my anxiety over the last year. When my Nan passed away with me at her side last year my life took a spiral downwards. Although I have always had anxiety since she passed it has affected my life dramatically. I am unable to leave the house by myself and I have constant worries about EVERYTHING. I feel alone even though I am surrounded by a great family & partner. "Getting on with it" is easier said than done & I'm really at a loss on coping with it.