Good days w/out stress, bad days with stress and worries...

[Warbirdwf]

I feel very greatful to be experiencing some good days. The bad news is, it makes the days that are not so good, worse. My best days are on the weekends w/no commitments, plans, etc. The worse days are when I have stressful things going on. I had four pretty good days starting last Saturday and included, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. By mid-week, the stress was building and my anxiety was breaking thru. This was highlighted by a mild panic attack at work this morning. I have a bunch of things going on right now that are out of my routine. This includes an event tonight, a company picnic tomorrow, a trip to another location next week and then another trip later in the week w/my bosses.

How many of you have tingling in your arms or legs and muscle tension/tightness in your trap muscles when your anxiety rises? I'm also realizing that worrying about future events (anticipatory anxiety) helps my stress overload, thus causing anxiety. I don't know. I just seem to still not be handling stress very well. Any additional stress causes an overflow of anxiety. I've been on the same meds (Paxil, Remeron) for 2 months. I wonder if I need to up my dose of Paxil. I'm only taking 30mg.

Oh well, I'm rambling on but would love to hear some thoughts from others. :)

[Warbirdwf]

**Bump**

I woke up this morning with quite a bit of anxiety for the first hour or two. I was stressing about going to the company picnic. There's was no reason to stress either. I love anxiety. Well, I went anyway and although my anxiety was high thru the 3 hours I was there, I got thru it and enjoyed the visit.

I'm wondering if my Paxil is pooping out on me? I wouldn't think I'd have so much break thru anxiety while on Paxil. Hum..I'm wondering if I should increase the dosage or consider another med. Anyone experience an SSRI poop out?

[heavyonhealth]

Hey Warbird

I'm new to this, but I can definitely relate.  I get anxiety before my soccer games on the weekends.  NO REASON to stress.  Once I get there and start playing, everything is fine for the most part.  Gotta love it, right?

My arms and legs get tingly when I am about to have a panic attack.  This seems to happen many times per week.  As soon as I recognize what is going on, I do some breathing exercises/try to focus my attention on my breath.  If I'm at home, I'll watch a John Kabat-Zinn video on YouTube.  He did a speech at Google, and if I follow along with the guided meditation from that speech, I can usually get through my spell.  If it's too late and I've already gotten too deep into the vicious cycle of anxiety, I'll do all of the above with the help of .5 mg. of Lorazepam.

I'm also on Zoloft 50mg/day for only 3 weeks now, so I can't really comment on the poopout.  How long have you been on Paxil?  I'm doing CBT once a week as well.

I'm glad you were able to enjoy your picnic, even if it was a bit more taxing than you wanted :)

[daisyjukes]

If you've only been on the meds for 2 months it won't have stopped working yet, its probably only just started working.  Medication isn't the magic answer to anxiety, it helps but for me its never been a cure.

Apart from the meds what else are you doing to manage your anxiety?  I would say that you would benefit from CBT and the thought challenging process.  I have a name of a good self help book that follows a CBT course if you are interested.  I would also break down the tasks that you have planned if they are overwhelming you.

I have found relaxation exercises particularly useful, I like the guided ones and you can usually find some for free on the internet.  I've tried meditation but it didn't work for me, maybe it might for you?  I try and go for a walk most evening and then a bath before bed.  I also write a journal.  I have found these lifestyle changes are helping me manage my anxiety.

Give them a go and if you still aren't feeling better go back to the doc and review your medication.

Take care,

Daisy