First post? :D

[emmolee]

First post jitters haha    I'm 21 and from Connecticut. I don't have like any diagnosed anxiety disorder. I've always wanted to see a doctor for it, and i've actually mentioned it to my general doctor. He referred me to someone and I kind of freaked out after making the appointment and cancelled it right away because the woman sounded snippy ( even though she was kind of like, not I realized this way after the fact ). I get really nervous or anxious thinking about talking to someone mostly because of the fact that I feel like im completely normal. I don't have these attacks everyone talks about, though when I get nervous I do sometimes get funky chest pains or i'll pick at my nails or chew on my lip. This all seems like normal and functional to me though, like sometimes I feel sort of like a functioning alcoholic, but functional anxious? If that makes any sense. I noticed it's gotten like, worse though. My thoughts kind of pick at me all the time and i'll freak out about the silliest stuff even if I don't voice it. My girlfriend gave a homeless man her dunkin donuts gift cards and for some reason this picked at me for a long time and I continually had to ask her over and over again if she was okay with doing that. I don't know if that could really, stand for anything? I don't know haha. Even writing this makes me feel dumb. I feel like it'll be swept under the rug and no one will respond or that I don't know. This is way too long for a first post I didn't know what to write. I'm sorry. 

[cutecat25]

Hey, welcome to AZ :)
No matter how silly or small you may feel like your anxieties are, they are still important. If it affects you, it matters :)
I had anxiety for 7 years before i started getting panic. Like you I didnt feel comfortable talking to anyone (especially a professional) about it.
But then i developed panic and I had no choice. My last psychologist said that if i had seeked help before the panic started it may not have gotten to that stage.
I'm not saying you have to seek help (especially is you dont feel comfortable), but even just talking to friends, family, teachers could help you in more ways than you can imagine! I've learnt now that everyone needs to talk about their feelings, whatever they are.
This site is also a great way to talk about anything, no matter how big or small, that may be worrying you! :)

[emmolee]

Ah! You have no idea how much your response meant to me :) Thank you so much! I'm really excited to be here as I kind of feel like its the first step to admitting that I have a problem and that I need to address it and take care of it, you know? I really hope it can be a gateway to help me talk to my family friends and maybe even some day a professional about it. Thank you so much again <3 

[camel]

Hello there, welcome to the site

Glad you found us. I know you will find plenty of information and support here.
Lots of people going through similar things here.

There is plenty to do around the forum as well as a great chat room (once you have 3 posts, and is for 18's and over only)

If you have any questions feel free to ask.

I look forward to seeing you around the site :-)

[emmolee]

Thank you muches Camel! I look forward to being here 

[Bekzie]

I think one of the best things about this place is the fact that so many people experience things in so many different ways and they are shared here.
For ages I thought I was alone but reading peoples stories on here gave me comfort knowing it wasn't just me. If you read through i'm sure you will find the same