The Mental Health Thread

[clean]

Do you snore?

I have sleep apnea (corrected by a CPAP).  Before I was diagnosed with apnea and got the CPAP though, i was sent to the ER with back spasms.  I was given large doses of  the addictive narcotics that no doctor will write prescriptions  for now.  They were relatively large doses as well, and the worst part was that they made my apnea worse, so I would go to sleep and wake up every few minutes.  So I had something like what you seem to be experiencing... The pills made me very sleepy, but the side effects prevented me from actually sleeping.  Anyway, I know what it is to be drugged to sleep, and unable to get any sleep!!


Just a suggestion... IF your SO indicates that you snore, perhaps a sleep study would be in order.  A CPAP machine may resolve the not being able to sleep issue.

Of course IF you DONT snore, or if Apnea is not an issue, then please dont worry about paying my bill!!  (2 cat stories in the Herding Cats Thread).

Good luck, and I hope that you feel better soon!

[Cheerful]

So glad to see your post SCR, was wondering how you were.  I and others are always rooting for you, wishing you the best!

Sometimes it's hard to admit to doctors I'm still having issues because it feels like a personal failure at this point.

Your feelings matter. That said, avoid negative self-talk.  You are smart and tough and persevering.  There is no failure in your case.

I need some wins soon....

Getting one thing done a day in these times is a win! 

Clinging to the fact I was able to give a presentation today and stayed coherent enough to respond to questions and comments. If I can get a decent amount of lab work done tomorrow, so much the better. Might give me some momentum going into next week.

Hooray on the presentation -- major WIN!  Celebrate this, smallcleanrat!  Great to end your post on a positive note.  Have a good weekend.

[evil_physics_witchcraft]

Does anyone have tips on dealing with panic attacks and anxiety? I know these topics aren't the kind of things to be injected into casual conversation, but I just need a remedy. There's probably no easy answer. Look for 5 things you can see, 4 you can touch, 3 you can hear, 2 you can smell and 1 you can taste. Grounding. It's hard to remember when I'm in the middle of it. I guess I just want someone to tell me that I'm not a horrible person for being weak. Logically, I know that I'm not, it's the emotional twist that wrings me out to dry.

I had a major one yesterday and lost the entire day. I can't really talk about it with anyone other than SO. Family (biological) is part of the reason I have them.

[smallcleanrat]

Does anyone have tips on dealing with panic attacks and anxiety? I know these topics aren't the kind of things to be injected into casual conversation, but I just need a remedy. There's probably no easy answer. Look for 5 things you can see, 4 you can touch, 3 you can hear, 2 you can smell and 1 you can taste. Grounding. It's hard to remember when I'm in the middle of it. I guess I just want someone to tell me that I'm not a horrible person for being weak. Logically, I know that I'm not, it's the emotional twist that wrings me out to dry.

I had a major one yesterday and lost the entire day. I can't really talk about it with anyone other than SO. Family (biological) is part of the reason I have them.

Ugh...sorry you're going through this.

It's definitely hard to engage coping skills when you are in high distress. Are you familiar with TIPP? It's an acronym for distress tolerance techniques, especially for when your level of distress is too high to use techniques that require some level of concentration.

T is for temperature (I personally find this most useful) - a lot of people find cold useful for grounding; some dunk their face in a bowl of icy water (triggers a fast, physiological reaction that can help break you out of an anxiety feedback loop); I usually hug a large ice pack

I is for Intense Exercise

P is for Paced Breathing (something like inhale for 4 beats, hold for 4, exhale for 4, hold for 4, repeat)

P is for Paired Muscle Relaxation

And, for what it's worth, I want to tell you that struggling with anxiety does not make you a horrible person.

This thread is here if you want people to talk to.

Wishing you the best, epw!

[evil_physics_witchcraft]

Does anyone have tips on dealing with panic attacks and anxiety? I know these topics aren't the kind of things to be injected into casual conversation, but I just need a remedy. There's probably no easy answer. Look for 5 things you can see, 4 you can touch, 3 you can hear, 2 you can smell and 1 you can taste. Grounding. It's hard to remember when I'm in the middle of it. I guess I just want someone to tell me that I'm not a horrible person for being weak. Logically, I know that I'm not, it's the emotional twist that wrings me out to dry.

I had a major one yesterday and lost the entire day. I can't really talk about it with anyone other than SO. Family (biological) is part of the reason I have them.

Ugh...sorry you're going through this.

It's definitely hard to engage coping skills when you are in high distress. Are you familiar with TIPP? It's an acronym for distress tolerance techniques, especially for when your level of distress is too high to use techniques that require some level of concentration.

T is for temperature (I personally find this most useful) - a lot of people find cold useful for grounding; some dunk their face in a bowl of icy water (triggers a fast, physiological reaction that can help break you out of an anxiety feedback loop); I usually hug a large ice pack

I is for Intense Exercise

P is for Paced Breathing (something like inhale for 4 beats, hold for 4, exhale for 4, hold for 4, repeat)

P is for Paired Muscle Relaxation

And, for what it's worth, I want to tell you that struggling with anxiety does not make you a horrible person.

This thread is here if you want people to talk to.

Wishing you the best, epw!

Thank you, scr! One of the most difficult things for me is just talking about it. Growing up in my family was difficult as they had a very negative view of any kind of mental distress and shut it down as 'being weak.' Not the healthiest attitude in the world... I know.

Funny, I have not heard of TIPP, but found through experience that temperature adjustment is effective (to a point). Cold helps me as well. I was driving at the time and rolled down the windows- it was in the 30's F outside. :)

[mamselle]

With all that's going on in the world, an anxious response is probably a sign of sanity at some levels...it's the people who pretend everything is hunky-dory that I worry about.

That said, I just want to post as a well-wisher and ally: I think it takes tremendous courage to face issues that consistently affect one's very core: Know that people do not view you as weak but as strong.

Having to overcome so much in order to function speaks to a depth of power in your soul that many would benefit by having.

All good thoughts.

M. 

[evil_physics_witchcraft]

With all that's going on in the world, an anxious response is probably a sign of sanity at some levels...it's the people who pretend everything is hunky-dory that I worry about.

That said, I just want to post as a well-wisher and ally: I think it takes tremendous courage to face issues that consistently affect one's very core: Know that people do not view you as weak but as strong.

Having to overcome so much in order to function speaks to a depth of power in your soul that many would benefit by having.

All good thoughts.

M.

Thanks mamselle.

[Puget]

Caveat that I'm a clinical researcher but not a clinician --

Of course having panic attacks doesn't mean you're "weak", but if you are "weak" sometimes so what? It doesn't make you a bad person, just a human. To quote Leonard Cohen, there's a crack in everything, that's how the light gets in.

It can be helpful to know what is going on during a panic attack. Basically, a panic attack is your autonomic nervous system getting activated when it shouldn't be -- i.e., your brain is telling your body to get ready for flight or fight when you aren't in a situation where that applies. They can be triggered by something you are anxious about (panic attacks in the context of other anxiety disorders or stressors), or come out of the blue for no apparent reason (panic disorder). In either case, they are self-limiting-- the intense symptoms will subside within 20 min. or so-- so knowing that may help you ride it out.

One of the reasons the cold or intense exercise methods SCR suggests can be helpful is that they are also things that cause an autonomic response-- that may seem counter-intuitive, but it gives your brain a different, benign, interpretation for your body sensations (e.g., I'm breathing hard and my heart is racing because I'm exercising), which can help interrupt the cycle of body sensations of autonomic arousal spiking anxiety which in turn increases autonomic arousal.

You would probably really benefit from a few sessions with someone who specializes in CBT for panic disorder. This is not long drawn out therapy where you talk about your family etc., but rather coaching on specific techniques to manage and reduce panic attacks and tolerate them more easily when they do occur.You may find this useful: https://adaa.org/finding-help

If you don't want to/can't do that, there are some good self-help resources here as well:
https://adaa.org/understanding-anxiety/panic-disorder

[OneMoreYear]

Sorry to hear you are struggling e_p_w.

You are brave. You are strong. You are worthy.

[the_geneticist]

Caveat that I'm a clinical researcher but not a clinician --

Of course having panic attacks doesn't mean you're "weak", but if you are "weak" sometimes so what? It doesn't make you a bad person, just a human. To quote Leonard Cohen, there's a crack in everything, that's how the light gets in.

It can be helpful to know what is going on during a panic attack. Basically, a panic attack is your autonomic nervous system getting activated when it shouldn't be -- i.e., your brain is telling your body to get ready for flight or fight when you aren't in a situation where that applies. They can be triggered by something you are anxious about (panic attacks in the context of other anxiety disorders or stressors), or come out of the blue for no apparent reason (panic disorder). In either case, they are self-limiting-- the intense symptoms will subside within 20 min. or so-- so knowing that may help you ride it out.

One of the reasons the cold or intense exercise methods SCR suggests can be helpful is that they are also things that cause an autonomic response-- that may seem counter-intuitive, but it gives your brain a different, benign, interpretation for your body sensations (e.g., I'm breathing hard and my heart is racing because I'm exercising), which can help interrupt the cycle of body sensations of autonomic arousal spiking anxiety which in turn increases autonomic arousal.

You would probably really benefit from a few sessions with someone who specializes in CBT for panic disorder. This is not long drawn out therapy where you talk about your family etc., but rather coaching on specific techniques to manage and reduce panic attacks and tolerate them more easily when they do occur.You may find this useful: https://adaa.org/finding-help

If you don't want to/can't do that, there are some good self-help resources here as well:
https://adaa.org/understanding-anxiety/panic-disorder

A cold compress on the forehead or back of the neck invokes the "diving response" and will make your heart rate slow down.  Putting your face in a bin of cold water does the same thing, but most of us don't have a sink on hand.  You can keep a chemical cold pack in your bag or car.  It can help convince your body to "reset" at least some of the physical symptoms of anxiety and panic.

[evil_physics_witchcraft]

Thank you everyone so much. I've been wary of posting about this topic for numerous reasons. I really, really appreciate all of you.

[AmLitHist]

EPW, about a decade back, people here on the fora were very supportive of me when I was having anxiety issues.  I'll PM you, but I'll second the support for you.

[smallcleanrat]

Of course having panic attacks doesn't mean you're "weak", but if you are "weak" sometimes so what? It doesn't make you a bad person, just a human. To quote Leonard Cohen, there's a crack in everything, that's how the light gets in.

I struggle with thoughts like this as well. I do see my mental health issues as weaknesses, but I try to remind myself that having weaknesses doesn't necessarily make you a weak person. It is not the totality of who you are.

Anyway, is there any human being alive who has no weaknesses?

Epw, I don't know if my experiences are at all reminiscent of yours, but I can sympathize with the frustration of not being able to turn to family for support with this kind of thing. I've made about a dozen almost-posts with thoughts about family stuff I'm trying to make sense of, but it's difficult to hone in on individual issues when the relationships are complicated by so many factors.

[Charlotte]

Does anyone have tips on dealing with panic attacks and anxiety? I know these topics aren't the kind of things to be injected into casual conversation, but I just need a remedy. There's probably no easy answer. Look for 5 things you can see, 4 you can touch, 3 you can hear, 2 you can smell and 1 you can taste. Grounding. It's hard to remember when I'm in the middle of it. I guess I just want someone to tell me that I'm not a horrible person for being weak. Logically, I know that I'm not, it's the emotional twist that wrings me out to dry.

I had a major one yesterday and lost the entire day. I can't really talk about it with anyone other than SO. Family (biological) is part of the reason I have them.

When I was having bad panic attacks, I was told to try meditation. I did, and maybe it helped a little, but I didn't notice much of anything. Until I tried a mediation app that walked me through how to do several different kinds of meditation. I used the Balance app because they have several 10 day courses on learning to meditate in addition to several singles to use in specific situations.

It's not a quick fix, but it has helped me and turned me into a believer. I was very skeptical of meditation having much benefit before but now that I've been meditating for two months (63 day streak!) and have worked through so many of their courses I have found a lot of benefits.

One thing I didn't know was that there were different kinds: body scan, breath control, etc. the app taught me which ones worked for me and which ones did not.

In a way, I think part of the benefit is that I feel I gained control by meditating. I've learned to recognize a physical sensation and accept it. (Well, working on it but making progress!) In a panic attack, you lose that control and just working on regaining control at other times made me more confident.

I also started practicing yoga and although it took awhile, I'm starting to see some parallels with meditation and beginning to learn how to relax. I use free YouTube videos from Yoga with Adriene.

I was told many times to try both of these and I did a little, but not seriously. It wasn't until I began practicing both daily and had been doing it for awhile that I began to notice it was helping.

Again, not a quick fix but it may help.

A more quick (temporary) fix may be asking your doctor for medication. It helped me just knowing that I had it available should I need it. That takes some of the fear of having a panic attack out of the equation.

As others have noted, temperature can help. I like a shower if possible. Depending on the situation, cold or hot. Avoiding caffeine and sugar might be helpful as well. Sometimes having a little ritual helps me. If I feel one coming on and I'm home, I make some herbal tea. I got some beautiful little tea cups and I sit in a specific area, surrounded by my plants, I'll light a candle, and focus on how lovely the plants are or the flickering candle flame, or sipping hot, yummy, tea out of such a beautiful cup.

You might find your own little peaceful ritual that helps. Preferably one that translates well to other locations like work or the car rather than just being available at home.

Much of this is just personal experience and may not help but I wanted to try and offer some support. I know how terrifying panic attacks can be and debilitating. I also grew up in a home where my issues with panic attacks were not considered real so I understand the lack of support and how it can interfere with your perception of yourself.

Sending good thoughts your way and please let us know how you are doing. Remember to take care of yourself and give yourself what you need in this time.

[evil_physics_witchcraft]

Of course having panic attacks doesn't mean you're "weak", but if you are "weak" sometimes so what? It doesn't make you a bad person, just a human. To quote Leonard Cohen, there's a crack in everything, that's how the light gets in.

I struggle with thoughts like this as well. I do see my mental health issues as weaknesses, but I try to remind myself that having weaknesses doesn't necessarily make you a weak person. It is not the totality of who you are.

Anyway, is there any human being alive who has no weaknesses?

Epw, I don't know if my experiences are at all reminiscent of yours, but I can sympathize with the frustration of not being able to turn to family for support with this kind of thing. I've made about a dozen almost-posts with thoughts about family stuff I'm trying to make sense of, but it's difficult to hone in on individual issues when the relationships are complicated by so many factors.

I understand this in a logical, rational way, but when it comes to emotional response (most likely due to familial messages that have been passed down) everything goes out the window.

Weakness is part of being human. We're not superheros, X-men or immortal- though we may wish to be. I just need to find a way to stop beating myself up when I have an attack and just accept that it's part of my history and human experience. It doesn't have to be something that is shameful, it just is.