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Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

tdp1205

New member
I suffered from generalized anxiety after a health crisis. Even though I had previously had anxiety when flying, I did not know what was causing the symptoms I was having at first. The symptoms included a generally unsettled feeling, shaking, increased heart rate, and all kinds of GI symptoms like lack of appetite and nausea. These symptoms just made me more anxious, since I thought maybe I was sick again. After a few weeks of this, I finally realized that I was suffering from anxiety and sought treatment. I originally went to a psychologist, who was very good but did not help that much. She recommended I see a psychiatrist to get medication, which I did. I took medication for about two years.

The medication was helpful and necessary, but it made me sleepy and made me gain weight, which I could ill afford.

The thing that helped me to get off the medication was reading a book recommended by my psychiatrist called Feeling Good by Dr. David Burns. The book talks about cognitive behavioral therapy and how it can help with a whole host of disorders. He also wrote a book more specific to anxiety called When Panic Attacks. When I first read the book, I was kind of skeptical. I mean, what Dr. Burns was saying made sense, but would it really work? I decided to try some of the techniques in the book, and I finally felt ready to try going off of medication. I've been off meds for about 18 months now.

My psychiatrist also told me something very helpful. He said that even though my anxiety is much lessened now, it will still return from time to time (which I have found to be accurate). He said it's analogous to an unwelcome visitor showing up at your house. Being polite, you invite the visitor in to sit down, and the unwelcome visitor just gets up and leaves of his/her own accord. That is a good analogy for anxiety. When I get anxious, I hear "Hello, darkness, my old friend" in my head and wait for it to pass, which it inevitably does.

If you suffer from anxiety, what has worked for you?

tdp
 

neoninfinity

New member
Thank you very much for posting this. I have recently become very interested in cognitive behavioral therapy as a way to cope with stress. I will definitely check out the books you mention.
 

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