Anxiety and the fact that I' might be completely insane

Wonder if anyone else has felt like this:

It started out as just school stress, but as I started worrying about holiday homework, I started worrying about everything...literally EVERYTHING. Sometimes its the stupidest, weirdest, tiniest little things I start questioning, for example:

Does my outfit make me look fat? Am I fat? If I wear pants does that look weird? If I've never had a boyfriend do I seem gay? If I don't get good marks in school, am I ******ed? If I like video games, is it weird? If I prefer purple to pink, is it weird? Is it okay that I like rock music? Is it okay to have a lot of guy friends? Is 2012 real? Is the fact that I'm asking so many questions weird? Am I paranoid? Do I have anxiety issues? Why the hell am I so scared of everything? WHY ARE THERE SO MANY DAMN QUESTIONS?!

What sucks about it is that I know these are completely irrational thoughts, but I have become so anxious and scared of absolutely everything. The majority of these questions are about how people look at me, something I havent worried about in literally years. You can understand why this is freaking me out then. How do I know how bad it is? Christmas Day I was getting chest pains thinking about my presents.

I'll be talking to the school counsellor as soon as I get back, because this stuff is getting out of control. I was just wondering if anyone else has ever felt like this? And what they've done to help it?

 

I've been pretty close to this. I over think things a lot. It used to be a lot worse. What worked for me was going to a psychiatrist and being put on medication. It's really helped to calm my mind down a lot.

 

I'm currently suffering from Anxiety and Depression (They go hand in hand). I occasionally get panic attacks, and I worry about things that are completely illogical. My sister has it, as well, my aunts have had it and my cousin has had it. I'm not certain what my aunts and cousin did, but my sister is currently on daily medication. I am currently on "as needed" medication, but I will most likely go over on daily due to annoyance and necessity.

The best way to handle it is by going to counseling and if it is out of hand, as you say, to get medication for it. Have you ever had panic attacks due to this or is it just a constant underlying fear?

 

Thanks. My Aunt and cousin have something similar to this. It is basically just a 'constant underlying fear' as you put it, but I will see a counsellor about it :)

 

Im very similar to this. I suffer from Anxiety and Severe Depression. My doctor sent me to a therapist. Things get better, somethings get worse, but it's good to know that there is someone to talk to if you need the help. She suggested medication once, but i declined. But, maybe you should talk to your doctor and see what they think as well.

 

lol, I know this post is a bit tl;dr, but if you have the time to sit through it, I think you might find it at least a little helpful. If not, than may I just say I hope you get through this, and best of luck to ya!

I experience something like this a lot, and like you said, it mainly revolves around what people think of me. I've probably asked myself every question you posted, and maybe a few others as well.
I've never talked to a counselor or anything, so I can't give you advice there, and I have a semi-rational fear of medicine, so I've never even considered getting on something to deal with it. But I can offer you some general advice on how to cope with things on your own.

First, whenever these questions start going through your head, just try as hard as you can to stop thinking them. Try to occupy your mind with other things that will keep it busy, write a short story if you wish, listen to some music, lol, you can even try and do math if you want, I know it really makes me have to think hard.
I know it's not always possible to ignore these thoughts, but if you keep practicing, you might avoid a lot of stress and sleepless nights.

Second, if you have a question that keeps coming back to you, and you simply can't ignore it, face it head on and ask yourself "Is this true?" For example, some of your questions that you posted were things like "If I don't get good marks in school, am I ******ed?" "Is it okay that I like rock music?" and "Do I have anxiety issues?"
If you can find an answer to these questions, you might stop worrying about them.

If you don't get good marks in school, it does not mean you're ******ed. There is a list of possible explanations for why you might not get good marks. Sometimes people get bad marks in school because they are actually too smart for the work they're given, and are just too bored to put in the effort that comes with good grades. Some people get bad marks because they simply have difficulty in a subject, not neccessarily making them a ******, sometimes things just come more gradually for some people than others. Sometimes, people get bad marks because they procrastinated on an important project or failed to study for an important exam, and their grade was affected because of this. Sometimes, people get bad marks because they weren't taught properly. Now I'm not trying to shift all the blame on teachers, but nobody's perfect, and sometimes they screw up pretty badly, resulting in a student getting a bad grade. There's lots of different reasons for getting bad grades, so it's very likely that you aren't a ******.
If you can logically analyze a problem and find a suitable answer, you won't have to worry about that problem as much anymore.

As for the rock music thing, that's a question that can't really be answered. Personally, I don't think liking rock music is weird at all, I like rock music myself. I like pretty much all kinds of music except countr, and I don't think this is strange in any way. But really, with this question, the matter is a matter of preference, and there is no rock-solid answer for questions of this type. My best advice to you on questions like this: Put them behind you. There's no logical answer, you can never know wether it's weird or not, so just try and accept that there's no answer, there's no point in deliberating over unanswerable questions.

And then for the final example: "Do I have anxiety issues?"
Well, and I mean this as well-meaningly as possible: The answer, based on your first post, is probably yes. You say you worry about everything, and are afraid of most things, this sounds a lot like an anxiety problem. But there's nothing wrong with feeling anxious, as long as you recognize it as a probem and try to overcome it, both of which, you are currently doing. So answers to questions like these are sometimes hard to face. If you ask yourself a question like this and it turns out that you do have a problem, than again, I can only offer you this advice: Accept that you aren't perfect and try to move on. And I know, this is even harder than simply ignoring a question, but if you can find your faults and accept them, and maybe even change them, than you won't have to worry about them anymore.

So yeah, that's my advice, I hope it helps. I know it helped me a lot.

 

Well... I have somewhat similar problems to this, but it didn't get up to the point of anxiety, per say. As people told me I had depression, ADD, I could have my mother's mental illness and be just as sick as she is in the future, and going on antidepressants and just going through hell for at least four years (and still trying to come out of it), I have come to this conclusion:

Live just for you.

Based on the questions, seems like you have lack in confidence in yourself. Don't question it, just tell yourself you are good enough and what you're doing is the right thing. You'll know what's right and what's wrong, and if you make mistakes, that's what life is all about. It's about growing, it's about learning, it's about being human. It's okay to screw up, it's okay if you're not pretty, it's okay if you are, it's okay if you're a klutz, it's okay that people love you or hate you for the way you are. You can't please anyone in this world but yourself.

And for what is to come in the future? None of us can really see that. Just take the punches and go with it, ya?

Know that you got friends here who love ya, and based on what I've seen, you're a pretty good kid and you're just fine. Everything will be fine.

Hey, when you think of something negative again, or question something in a negative light, make yourself find at least THREE positive things that could come out of that question.

Like when I had to go to work the other day and I was dreading it, I said, "I really don't want to go to work. Am I really good enough for work since I really screwed up this much so far?" Then my family here told me, "Say three positive things. I'll have a great day, I'll be able to make someone else's day to make sure someone feels better than what I'm feeling today, I'll be able to help others in my own special way." And after that... I found myself smiling more instead of being introverted. I was able to help a women out to her car with her two cart loads of groceries and she tried to pay me but I smiled and said "Happy New Year and Belated Christmas.", and even though I was yelled at by one customer, I was able to make others laugh with stories I had to share about my family and Christmas and they got to share their stories with me. Eventually, I forgot about myself and my mistakes after a while. You see where I'm going here?

I dunno if this helped, but I hope it did. I did counseling before myself, and it was just fine. It actually helped me out a bit. I think it's very wise of you to seek for help, and seeing that you need help is the step in the right direction I believe. So what ever happens, happens. Everything happens for a reason, whether we love it or hate it. Everything will be okay in the end though. Behind the clouds, the sun is always shining.

Best of luck to you my friend~

:glomp:

 

I have thoughts like that all the time and just like you, I know that they're completely irrational. However, it's just a part of life for me. I think, question, and stress about the answers, even when such activities will not benefit me in the least. It's probably the same for you. Try just accepting that you have those thoughts and run with them! Search for answers even when there are none. Use that illogical thinking to make every day the adventure that it already is. If you're completely insane, embrace it! Wake up every morning, look at yourself in the mirror and say, "Screw reality. I'm too good to see the world for less than what I want it be." You'll be much happier once you do so.