3 months in... Please tell me it gets better

I'm 3 months into my setback and have had a huge reduction in every symptom except anxiety.  It's causing sleep issues at night and intrusive/irrational thoughts and worries during the day.

 

I had extreme anxiety all night because I was afraid I'd relapse due to smelling burning plastic after something was left on the stove.  I latch onto something fearful like this every day.  I'm afraid of everything and I can't seem to calm down at night once these thoughts set in.  I just end up shaking and trying to fight panic all night.

 

I'm so depressed and in need of reassurance that the anxiety will eventually fade.  It's not receding like all my other symptoms.  It's still so intense at 3 months, so I worry that it's permanent.  I'm having a hard time dealing with this.  :'(  For those of you who have felt healing, can you please tell me it gets better?  Were you still struggling heavily with anxiety at 3 months?

I had the fear you describe - it was brutal.  Here are some tips that helped me and many others:

 

Healthy eating, drinking plenty of water everyday to stay well hydrated and flush toxins

 

Moderate exercise - walking in nature 30 minutes every day can help give you a sense of wellbeing.

 

Distraction - Put all that anxious energy into distracting activities like, tidying, household projects, puzzles, drawing/painting, funny TV shows , etc. - anything that absorbs your attention so you stop focusing on your symptoms. This is probably the most effective tools of all.

 

Guided meditation apps like Headspace or Calm

 

Sticking to a routine each day, getting as much rest (not necessarily sleep) as possible

 

Warm bath with Epsom salts and a few drops of essential oil (lavender is calming but whatever you like) for 20 minutes

 

Soothing music

 

Funny shows/movies - laughter is good

 

Chamomile tea is very soothing for many of us; others think it isn't helpful - you may want to experiment and see if it works for you.

 

Avoid stress as much as you can.  Stress is hard on our already overburdened CNS and can rev up symptoms

 

Breathing techniques:  4-7-8 breathing  Inhale 4 counts; hold 7 counts; exhale 8 counts

                                Box Breathing:  Inhale very slowly for count of 4; hold count of 4; exhale count of 4; hold count of 4

 

Positive statements/Prayer - repeating I will not feel this way forever I am safe. I am healing. I am okay

 

This piece is really helpful to understanding why you feel gripped by fear.  I found it incredibly comforting and returned to it over and over:

What's happening inside your brain

 

You will get through this - it just takes time, but healing happens!

Brighterday 

Brighterday - Thank you. How long was it before your anxiety became more tolerable? When did you start feeling like you had a handle on it?

I started experiencing longer and longer windows after about 4 or 5 months.  During the windows I still felt some anxiety but it wasn't all consuming.  Then I'd get hit with a wave and be in the grip of awful anxiety until the next window.  It was all sporadic and unpredictable but the windows kept me feeling hopeful that I wouldn't always feel dread every waking hour.  I'm 13 months off now and have a brief wave every so often if I get overly stressed. Most of the time now, I feel like I've found equilibrium and anxiety isn't in the driver's seat!

This whole journey takes much longer than any of us would wish - it helps to accept it and keep moving forward.

Take care

Bright ,

Did you take benzo for anxiety initially ?

 

Xx

 

It gets better.