High Anxiety Levels...

Hi R., You and I are kindred spirits. I am always freaking out that something will happen to me. Since my son started daycare, we are always dealing with colds, stomach flu, and my crazy thoughts that something is going to happen terrible. I spoke with all my friends about it and they all suffer some form of the worries all the way to full anxiety attacks. Some are getting help because they feel it stops them from being able to function and get basic things done. I feel it keeps me up at night, so I am on the way to finding someone...but so far, i feel I am still functioning during the day. I also feel it comes in waves. Some days, I am a bit blue and other days I don't notice it at all. You say that it has not significantly affected your day to day yet...but do consider if this is affecting you from being the happy mommy you really want to be. It has started to affect my sleep and that will later affect other things for me so I need to talk to someone.
Otherwise, just so you know. You are not alone. We are out here and suffering in silence because who wants to talk about their anxiety every day and all day to their partner. Good Luck and I send you a big hug, You will figure this out for yourself.

It does sound like postpartum, but it may be depression manifesting in the form of anxiety. I strongly urge you to speak with your doctor about your feelings of anxiety and especially about the thoughts of death and impending doom. Please don't wait and speak with your doctor as soon as you can.

go to your doctor and get on some meds for post partum depression. it takes on many forms, just because you arent sitting in a chair all day crying doesnt mean is isnt PPD. I get angry after having babies, I have to take meds for awhile then everything balances itself out. now, this next thing I am going to tell you is not to scare you, it is just what happned to me, okay??? I got a staph infection from a bug bite. so, I would just not scratch it and make sure you wash your hands, not freaky like 50 times a day or anything just as a precaution. but seriously, you probable just have a touch of PPD, talk to your doc and get it figured out.

When my second son was 12 months old, I was the same way. Every little lump, bump, or pain I had, I had myself convinced that I was going to die. I started to have panic/anxiety attacks when I would go out (afraid, that I would lose control of myself, and then who would take care of my kids.) I finally did go to the doctor (because my lymph node was swollen and I was sure I had cancer) and she did suggest PPD. She suggested some meds, I told her that I don't like to take meds, and she then suggested that I go to therapy. I was in denial. "I don't have depression, my son is already 12 mos old, how could it be PPD" Needless to say, I didn't follow her advice and suffered silently for a while longer. Eventually, the feelings did subside. Not sure if it was just time or I started to become more physically active (the dr. did suggest exercise.)

Now, I only occasionaly feel the feeling creeping up. After reading more about PPD and looking back on it, I'm sure I did have it. Still, I don't think I would take meds for it. I would go to therapy and not suffer silently. Even when I did tell my husband, he just didn't get it.

Do not look up health symtoms for yourself or your children on the internet. You will eventually come across something with your symtoms that is fatal and it will freak you out even more.

So, you are not alone. If the panic attacks start to become more frequent, I would def. call the Dr. to see what they suggest. Don't suffer like I did. There are other options than meds. (esp. if you are breastfeeding.) Go to the therapy if you need to. Bundle the kids up and go out for a brisk walk. Also, planning for my kids care if something ever did happen to me helped ease my mind a lttle too (Life ins. , who would take care of them, etc...)

Just wanted to share my experience. HTH C.

I sympathize with you. My DS is going on 10 months months and I also had a traumatic first delivery. I am so thankful he is healthy and growing but I also dealt with it but also felt like you alot of anxiety and always thinking something was going to happen to me. I went to see a therapist who was wonderful and helped me thru these feelings. My therapist did some light therapy or E.M.D.R ( I would recommend it to anyone that has had a traumatic delivery). My anxiety was due to the traumatic delivery I went through and therefore causing all those negative thoughts in my mind. I am so much better now and can go see the therapist again but these days I'm so grateful I did seek help. I didn't want to take any mediciation as I am still breastfeeding but feeling much better after doing therapy and the therapy also did help me as well.
I wish you better relaxed days! Take care of yourself.

I've dealt with anxiety most of my life but nothing as stressful as what you describe. I empathize with you.

You said no solutions but I want to tell you that there is help for this. It is thought that much of anxiety is a biological/chemical deficit in our body. Yes, we can control some anxieties by changing the way we think but when the anxiety is as severe as yours I suggest getting some chemical help with managing it. Make an appointment with your family doctor or seek out a mental health practitioner and ask about medication.

My life is so much better now that I'm taking medication.

I urge you to talk to your doctor. Don't suffer, it sounds like PPD from my experience. If you don't want to go the medication route, try acupuncture. I see an acupuncturist (Dr. Soheila Vahabi, chiropractorchicago dot net) in the downtown area for stress relief and it helps tremendously. A former co-worker of mine used to see her for anxiety and stress as well. A good acupuncturist can help. There are a lot of natural herbs that can help as well, but may not be the best route if you are breast feeding, if not, there is a wonderful acupuncturist and herbalist in China town.

OH MAN, I know the feeling :(

My major anxiety trigger: shopping. I hate spending money. I told another mom on here earlier in a PM, that I was dreading buying a new vacuum because I didn't know if I'd make it out of the store okay!!

It does get better as your hormones settle. For me, this didn't happen until about 2-3 months after I stopped breastfeeding... but it's gotten more manageable. I can't stand the thought of taking medication every day, but I do have anxiety meds to take as needed.

It helps SO much that my husband is also a fellow anxiety sufferer (his trigger is long car rides)... so he understands what's going on. It's still pretty scary getting so worked up you can't breathe, your hands and feet go stiff, and you can't move your tongue!! UGH.

I hope you can find something that works for you. Just know that it DOES get a bit better as your child gets older. PM me anytime you need to get something off your chest, I can try to help talk you down :)

It's ok. I have always had anxiety and things happen in life that can make it a little difficult to cope! Talk to your doc about it. It's ok to ask for help. Also try keeping diray or journal of how you are feeling and what triggers the anxiety. I know that sounds kinda little kid like, but sometimes putting your feelings down and seeign them can help you assess them and take control! give yourself some time, and maybe join a moms group, your not alone!

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It's ok. I have always had anxiety and things happen in life that can make it a little difficult to cope! Talk to your doc about it. It's ok to ask for help. Also try keeping diray or journal of how you are feeling and what triggers the anxiety. I know that sounds kinda little kid like, but sometimes putting your feelings down and seeign them can help you assess them and take control! give yourself some time, and maybe join a moms group, your not alone!