Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Can't think at the moment re my own moment but I still recall how my dad would worry himself sick over a basic traffic ticket- he would have trouble sleeping and worried as if it were some type of criminal court case. He was high strung type A personality with many strengths but no amount of reassuring him not to worry it to calm down worked much-- he stressed constantly over the smallest things, his doctor actually said his personality issue of being a stress case was the main factor for his heart attack
I have dealt with anxiety for a long time...sometimes, I've dealt with it better than other times. But, overall, I can't say that any of the things that cause me worry are silly things, or irrational to worry about. They're generally all plausible things, things that represent actual risk, etc. They might not be incredibly LIKELY, but they're also not so unlikely as to be easily brushed off as worries.
In seventh grade I was in the bathroom with my mom. I was looking at the full-length mirror and suddenly exclaimed, "Mom! My head is too big for my body!" For weeks and weeks I kept worrying that everyone would notice that my head was enormous. And then one day I looked in a different mirror and saw that my head wasn't really as big as a weather balloon, after all.
Hahaha!!!! One time I was worried that my head was TOO SMALL for my body...I heard someone on the school bus say something related, probably not even about me, but my brain twisted whatever was said and for months after I would be paranoid whenever I looked in the mirror. LOL, good times!
Hahaha!!!! One time I was worried that my head was TOO SMALL for my body...I heard someone on the school bus say something related, probably not even about me, but my brain twisted whatever was said and for months after I would be paranoid whenever I looked in the mirror. LOL, good times!
I guess you and I wouldn't be able to share hats.
My uncle commented on a school photo of mine when I was about 12. He said, "You look like you swallowed a goldfish." I didn't even really know what he meant by it, but it launched me into my "Practice Smiling Until You Look Normal" phase. Funtimes. FUNTIMES.
Those are called intrusive thoughts, and it's part of OCD, which is an anxiety disorder. Glad the meds helped.
I used to be certain after I hit a pothole or a bump in the road that I had just run over and killed someone. I would turn the car around and go back to see if anyone was lying in the road or at the side of the road that I had killed. Sometimes I would look in the newspaper the next day to see if anyone had been killed in a hit and run.
Later I found out that other people with crazy brains like mine do this same thing. That hasn't happened to me in years now, I'm happy to say. Still have problems with other things, like leaving the house and being SURE I left the coffeepot plugged in and the house will burn down and my cats will die. I try to resist, but sometimes I simply have to turn around and go home and check one more time. And then I miss a train. I found that saying aloud "I am unplugging the coffeepot" as I do it helps me remember that I actually did (when I remember to say that).
A psychiatrist told me a story about a woman who did this when driving - I had never heard of it before - and that this woman spoke at a conference to let people know about the different ways OCD can manifest. I had some pretty weird thought patterns too (now that I think about it, I remember having an extreme driving phobia on highways because I was certain I would fall asleep and crash the car - that kind of thought will surely keep you awake, but it might cause a panic attack or two), but I didn't perform any rituals so I was ALWAYS dx as just having "anxiety" and many of the medications I tried didn't help all that much until this woman correctly concluded that I had an undercover form of OCD - I didn't even realize it, even though I was a psych major in college. Thankfully she got me started on a supplement called NAC which helps tremendously, and I am so grateful to her and to this woman who spoke at this conference and enlightened her. I just thought I'd reply as this was the second time I've heard of someone doing this specific thing.
Everything. All the time. the reminder that most of what I worry about never happens. I also have a 'worry' book. If a worry is getting in the way of my brain working on doing what I need to do, or in the way of relaxing, I write it down to attend to later. Then I don't worry that I will forget to worry. Usually the old saying of a good night's sleep resolves most of them. Our sub-conscious works on things while we sleep and often give us clarity upon waking.
I remember times where I would get a voice mail/missed call and speculate over why that person had called me, then freak out about it. Then it would turn out to be something incredibly minor.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
