hey girls,
time for a new thread!

I have some good news since I last posted, I finally joined the gym!!!

Talk to you soon,
mygirl

pulling up

Hi MyGirl,

Our thread has been pretty slow lately. Great news on going to the gym again. This time of year is really hard with the winter still hanging on. I know spring is on the way but why does it have to take so long to arrive? How is the anxiety doing? I been holding pretty steady, but I have been feeling a little depressed lately, it always seems to hit me around March and April. My one dog had been acting like she had another bladder infection (this is her 4th one since last Aug) so I took her to the vet again, and they did an x-ray of her bladder and found bladder stones. So she had to have them surgically removed and she is now home recovering. Animals get the same things as humans, I can hardly believe it. We had an ice storm last night and lost several trees in our yard. I am thankful we didn't lose power, there are 100,000 people in our area that did. Take care,

Daytona

hi daytona!
good to hear from you...are thread is ALIVE again!!!

What about a warm welcome to ANYONE who shares the same feelings, problems as us...you are most welcome to jump in and join us at anytime.

I've been busy and have been handling the anxiety a little better than usual...doesn't mean there is less stress in my life but the way I handle it has changed...let's see how it works out.

Sorry to hear about your dog, hope she is feeling better real soon, it is amazing how dog's have the same stuff as we humans do, if only they could talk...they would make the best companions.

The gym is going well...slow but steady..I'll keep you posted on my progress.

Talk to you soon,
mygirl

p.s - hey old members...what you doing...should I name you all? you know who you are...we miss you and want to catch up, when you get a spare moment drop us a line.

Hi Ladies! I didn't know about this thread! I've had panic attacks off and on for about 5 years. They aren't as bad this last year as they have been in the past, but they still are responsible for a lot of avoidance in my life.

Out of curiosity, do you think your panic attacks would be less if you lost pounds to your goal weight? I have thought that. I think the rise in self confidence might get me to my avoided situations, and then maybe I can conquer more phobias that way.

Hi Jennifer! welcome aboard this board!

Sorry to hear you have suffered from panic attacks...pretty awful aren't they? I read somewhere that most of people will experience significant anxiety and/or panic attacks at least once in their life...it's more common than what we think!

I also read that it is indeed the most treatable of the "disorders" (I do hate that word).

Avoidance behavior (as my doc told me) is still a part of the anxiety...and getting past this is something that still poses a real challenge for me.

To answer your question jen, yes I believe that getting to my ideal weight will contribute significantly to my self esteem...when I feel confident I feel like I can do almost anything!

Thanks for asking a very thought provoking question...I guess when it comes down to it...yes, weightloss does help in our quest for a happy and healthy mind and body.

mygirl

Hi girls,

Welcome Jennifer, I too believe that my anxiety has been helped a lot by my weight loss. For me, I have a depression issue along with the anxiety so I kind of go between the two. Being at my goal weight has given me much more self esteem and self confidence and when you feel better about yourself, it really plays a big part in your mental out look on life and your ability to cope. I just had to convince myself no matter how much I ate, it wouldn't take away the anxiety or depression but it made me feel worse in the long run. You know like I was a failure for not following my plan. It is such a spiral.

Mygirl, how have you changed the way you handle stress? I am always looking for some tips. I read a great quote on stress and it makes so much sense. Here it is, I don't know who wrote it, but I am trying to keep it in mind. "Stress isn't something that just happens to us. It's created by our own thinking". Now that is something to think about!

Take care,
Daytona

Hi folks .. wow, I didn't even know this thread existed. I've suffered from anxiety/panic attacks (I go by how severe it is as to what I call it *g*) for ... ever. I didn't even know what they were 20 years ago, I thought I was insane. In any case, I've never sought much in the way of treatment, though I did go to counseling at a couple times in my life to avail myself of some coping tools. I've never really thought about these attacks as a "disorder."



I agree HUGELY with that. So I spend a lot of time trying to figure out why I'm doing this to myself.

Now on that one... I have found that my recent losses have started creating more anxiety attacks. I wake up in the middle of the night with them many times. I do believe in my case that it's a simple matter of starting to really address issues which I have simply buried in food before. It doesn't mean I'm going to stop losing weight, though! It just means I have a lot of insecurities to deal with. *sigh*

Nice to meet you all!

just a quick note to say hi & welcome to RavenToy!

sorry to hear you have suffered from panic attcks for so long. How do you deal with it, apart from the counseling?

I guess when we start peeling back the layers and have nothing to hide behind that can be very confronting.

mygirl

Hello everyone! I too have been to the ER with panic attacks. Unfortunately, after losing 50 pounds they did not get better. But I have a scientific explanation for mine, and that helps me tremendously. I don't panic anymore, I just wait them out (I'll have palps for up to 45 minutes!), knowing that I am not going to die.

Mine are caused by Mitral Valve Prolapse - I am very tall and now, at least, willowy (long legs, long arms). This body type is struck especially hard by MVP syndrome. You MUST avoid caffeine (that is my downfall and every attack is brought on by caffeine and stress, either mental or physical), and stay hydrated. That's it - that's all you can do. They also say meditation etc. is good, and I play the Celtic harp which does WONDERS for my stress levels.

I think my attacks are worse because my body is affected more by caffeine now that I'm at a lighter weight (BMI 22).

HI and welcome Yaseta!

Sorry to hear that you too have panic attacks...at least though you know what causes them.

Keeping away from caffeine is so hard for me too...it's like I can't get thru my day without that morning coffee. I know I should cut back to one cup a day and then to zero but it's easier said than done. I can feel the difference when I don't have caffeine, I'm much calmer and less on-edge.

Walking is a great de-stressor for me and dancing to music (when no-one is watching) works wonders!

Hope everyone else is doing great!

mygirl


p.s - My attendance at the gym has been pretty good so far I am averaging about 3 times a week ( I even got dh to come with me last week - added bonus!)
Trying to get the scales to shift in the RIGHT direction has and still proves to be a challenge for me...I refuse to give up without a fight.

I had pretty severe panic attacks for quite a while in the past. I still get the early warning signals of them, but then they fade out. Losing weight didn't help me with mine -- in fact, I felt more self-conscious and scrutinized, which seemed to make them worse! What got me through them is acceptance. I will be embarrassed again in my life, I will blush deeply, my breathing will be affected. What I do now when that happens is I make a joke out of it and say to whomever I'm speaking with, "great, now you've gone and embarrassed me. Tee hee."

Hi and welcome Surely!

Great to hear you have your panic attacks under control.

I know losing weight may not help with panic attacks and you're right about making you more self conscious but don't you think that is part of the problem...that we have to learn to deal with being self conscious or whatever it is that is holding us back from true freedom from anxiety?

I think though that you have hit on an interesting and thought provoking point about weightloss leading to feelings of being self-conscious and scrutinized.

Hey daytona, Raventoy, jennifa, Yaseta & Jennifer 3FC,
how are you doing? How are things going your way? Hope to hear from you soon.

calming and relaxing thoughts to you all,
mygirl

Hey all,

Sorry I've been MIA. Having horrible effexor withdrawals for like 8 or 9 weeks now, evil devil devil drug don't ever take it, they say it is worse than heroin to get off of. (wouldn't know, but man it's tough.) Yeah, some of these meds are good for people but this one in particular is FROM ****. Just imagine being depressed and being hit with a cattle prod every 20 minutes or so and you'll know what my life has been like the past month. I almost quit my job and every day has found me crying uncontrollably. This is a bad bad bad bad drug, please don't take it, I hope this post can save even one person from this ****.

Yaseta, I'm MVP also but I would be immobilized if it weren't for caffeine. Yes it makes things tough but you do what you have to to get by. Doc wants me to quit completely but realistically I'd be a slug on the floor and homeless. Can't get there yet but you are inspiring me!!

I had lost 12 pounds because the ritalin was helping me stay OP but now it seems it's not working as well as it was, I probably need a dosage change. I hope that someday I will get back to goal.

Meanwhile I am so hard on myself trying to exercise. I am such a gross fat cow, I can't believe it and I am really pissed at my doc for putting me on the stupid SSRIs. THey should call them SStomach Rapid Increasing pills.

Sorry this post is such a downer. Back to work.

Jennifa
242/238/170

hey jennifa,
good to hear from you...looks like you've had it real tough these past few weeks...you poor thing! a special {{{HUG}}} for you the fact that you have come thru it and can tell the story is testimony to your true inner strength...feel proud that it's behind you.

Don't be too hard on yourself about the weightloss sometimes we move one step forward and two steps back (I know I do) the key is to perservere especially thru the challenging times.
Trying to focus on weightloss while dealing with a major health concern seems almost impossible. When you are feeling better you will get back on track...don't feel discouraged.

I haven't been to the gym this week - feeling lousy but next week I hope to get back into it...trouble is that I tend to lose momentum pretty easily...ugggh!!!

Hope everyone else is doing ok.

hey daytona long time no see!

talk to you soon,
mygirl