Hello 👋🏻

[SJA22 1]

hey everyone! i’m pretty sure i’ve had anxiety my whole life - i was always a very nervous and anxious kid, worrying about things that most kids don’t even think about - as well as OCD. but it really only became a hindrance on my daily life about nine years ago now. my sister fell down the stairs and had a traumatic brain injury and ended up being in the hospital in a medically induced coma for four days. after that, i could barely function, so i started going to therapy and they diagnosed me with GAD and OCD. i am currently on 15mg of Paroxetine and it helps a lot. 

a majority of my anxiety is health related, probably because i spent a good amount of the first 10 years of my life in and out of the hospital for surgeries. i have convinced myself of having a myriad of different things - diabetes, breast cancer, an un-ruptured aneurysm, colon cancer, just to name a few. it feels silly looking back and typing all of this out, but one of my biggest fears is getting sick and dying. i figured being able to write things out and have somewhere to vent and talk to others who are going through similar things would be good for me. 

[Ironman 198]

16 hours ago, SJA22 said:

hey everyone! i’m pretty sure i’ve had anxiety my whole life - i was always a very nervous and anxious kid, worrying about things that most kids don’t even think about - as well as OCD. but it really only became a hindrance on my daily life about nine years ago now. my sister fell down the stairs and had a traumatic brain injury and ended up being in the hospital in a medically induced coma for four days. after that, i could barely function, so i started going to therapy and they diagnosed me with GAD and OCD. i am currently on 15mg of Paroxetine and it helps a lot. 

a majority of my anxiety is health related, probably because i spent a good amount of the first 10 years of my life in and out of the hospital for surgeries. i have convinced myself of having a myriad of different things - diabetes, breast cancer, an un-ruptured aneurysm, colon cancer, just to name a few. it feels silly looking back and typing all of this out, but one of my biggest fears is getting sick and dying. i figured being able to write things out and have somewhere to vent and talk to others who are going through similar things would be good for me. 

SJA22,

A lot of us seem to have that extra sensitivity factor - prone to the anxiety.  Fear, fear of lack of control, fear of losing control, fear of something coming that I have no control over - they all start up that vicious cycle.  I was on 50mg of Paroxetine and 20mg of Geodon (an antipsychotic!) at my worst simply because I was up all night worrying and couldn't sleep!  The Geodon was too strong and was in capsule form, so I couldn't split it.  I wouldn't relive that time, but I unfortunately have the experience with it.  You aren't alone with the Paxil fat, the bruxism (teeth clenching), the random brain zaps of withdrawal.  lol

There is a lot of good information here, so welcome to Anxiety Central! :)

[Doug97 19]

Welcome to the forum. I'm new too, and it seems that everyone here is very friendly and helpful.