I am in first year university and I am dealing with a lot of anticipatory anxiety. I get so many thoughts doubting my major choices, questioning what I am gonna do with my life after uni, worrying about what I should be doing to get ahead, stressing over a job market I am still a minimum of 3.5 years away from entering, worrying about ending up in a career I don't like or living in a place I don't like in order to work etc etc etc.

It has been interfering with my studies as often when I try to sit down and study, my brain spirals into these thoughts and I spend hours of my week researching things related to these questions. it is an endless circle I find myself in.

Advice for staying in the moment and dealing with this kind of anticipatory anxiety?

Does anyone have any suggestions on how to soothe your body after a panic attack? I was shaking uncontrollably for 4 hours in the ER and now that the panic is gone and I am home, I am completely exhausted, sore and am having ovary pain (my anxiety makes my endometriosis flare like crazy). It’s preventing me from sleeping. Any words, tips or advice is so greatly appreciated❤️

It’s late to change class, the professor is quite strict, I normally like to sketch or doodle during class but she makes me so nervous that I just don’t know exactly what to do to “pleases” her.

does anyone know any good ways to regulate your nervous system and calm anxiety in general that don’t involve breathing exercises? i’ve tried my hardest with them but i’m asthmatic still at my big age so it is harder with ones where i have to hold my breath since it just seems to increase the anxiety.

Hello! I was wondering if anyone had any advice for me, as I've been struggling quite badly with my anxiety recently.

I've always struggled a bit with anxiety, and am usually quite good at managing it, but it's come back hard these last couple of months. As I'm sure a lot of people will have heard before, keeping busy is a good way to combat feelings of anxiety and distract your mind. This works well for me, but the problem it creates is that I literally cannot relax.

To keep the anxiety at bay, I have to always be doing something - I work, I go to the gym, I hang out with friends and family, I read, I write, I sew, I bake. I enjoy all of these things, and generally like to be a busy person, but sometimes I want to just chill and have a quiet night watching TV. The problem is that as soon as I'm not focused on something, my mind wanders and I start to feel very anxious all over again.

For context, a lot of my anxiety lines up well with symptoms of OCD, I specifically become stressed about my health, potentially being ill, or panicking about the death of my loved ones.

I'd just like to watch a movie without feeling the urge to check my body for lumps lol.

I’m at a loss. I’m emotionally a wreck. I’m frustrated, anxious, afraid, angry. I’ve been dealing with health anxiety for as long as I can remember. There was a moment when I was anxious free, in terms of my health, but since my first panic attack in my mid-20s, I haven’t been able to shake it. I used to be able to exercise but my body is programmed to go into fight or flight the moment my rate increases. My biggest issue is my off balance and light headed feeling. I’ve seen a neurologist but testing isn’t till December. Is this just who I am? I can’t be like this forever. I can deal with the majority of my physical symptoms but not the off balance issues. I don’t know how to fix that. Would be in your debt forever if you found ways to get back to some form of normalcy.

So this is the typical I hate my job post. I wake up every morning with a pit in my stomach because I dread what a co worker will say about me or a customer. I work in a mentally demanding healthcare field and have been here for a year. I’ve called off twice in one month (usually not like me) because I am sick from anxiety. I don’t like doing that, I hate looking like I’m screwing people over. But I don’t know how long I can keep going.

I have a cat, rent, and a car payment. I cannot quit and I am looking for other jobs. If anybody has gone through this or has advice to power through this incredibly miserable, stressful, hell period of life it is welcome. I can’t take this anymore.

It doesn’t make any sense but I’m out on PTO this week and I’m so anxious about my job. I’m trying to relax and just enjoy my time off but I’m so worried I’ll be in trouble when I get back to work. For some context, I don’t have this demanding job nor do I ever get in trouble. So why, as an almost 31 year old woman, do I feel SO anxious and how do I stop it? Some help would be appreciated.

Looking for advice from parents who have dealt with significant anxiety in their children, particularly health anxiety and fear of death.

My 10-year-old stepson has been struggling with what seems to be an increasing pattern of anxiety. Over the past several months, he has become distressed about different things, including the fear of being lethally injected after learning about the death penalty, worrying that a cough meant he had lung cancer, and becoming upset about the possibility of being killed by a nuclear bomb. Many of his worries seem to center around his health and the possibility of dying.

Until recently, his anxious periods would typically last a few days and then subside. However, he has been struggling consistently over the past week, and his anxiety seems to be interfering more with his everyday life. He has cried before school, complained of stomachaches when feeling anxious, and become so overwhelmed that he feels he can’t manage the day. This has led to him coming home from school early, or missing school entirely. He’s gotten to the point over the last few days where he’s afraid to leave the house, with or without a parent.

Recently, the family dog at his mom’s house had to be put down after being diagnosed with cancer. We suspect this may have triggered this current cycle of anxiety.

He does see a therapist and has an appointment later this week, but appointments have been inconsistent. Sessions tend to happen when his anxiety spikes, then stop when he seems to be doing better. I’m concerned that there’s more of a pattern starting to develop and that we’re only addressing individual crises as they arise rather than helping him develop the long-term coping skills he needs to manage his anxiety.

When he’s upset, we encourage him to talk through what he’s feeling. We acknowledge his fears without dismissing them and gently offer facts, reassurance and talk about calming techniques. It seems to help in the moment, but he’ll become upset again as time passes.

Last night, we tried an activity where we used modeling clay to make a physical representation of our anxieties and then we reshaped them into something silly that brought us joy. We talked about how we have the power to reshape our thoughts, just like we reshaped the clay. He seemed to enjoy it, and it helped in the moment, but he was still very upset this morning at the idea of being at school and away from home.

I’m wondering whether we’re approaching these moments the right way or whether there are strategies that work better than repeatedly explaining why something is unlikely to happen.

For parents who have been through something similar, what genuinely helped your child?

Is there a specific type of therapy we should be steering towards?

If you experienced this kind of anxiety as a child, what do you wish the adults around you had understood or done differently?

Any advice is greatly appreciated. It breaks my heart seeing him struggling like this and feeling like nothing we’re doing is helping.

just remember your not alone

Hello everybody!

My anxiety unfortunately has been quite unmanageable lately 😩 it started when I felt kefir going down my throat reaaaally slow. That triggered health anxiety also because I have a toddler. Double fear. Now whenever I drink or eat I feel everything going down super slow especially at the base of the throat (thyroid already checked).

I did an ultrasound for the thyroid and lymph nodes and when the Dr said that the esophagus doesn't show up on ultrasound, I got so worried. I am terrified of throat cancer and now I entered a vicious cycle where I worry, I feel tightening, I worry more, symptoms get worse.

Today specifically I had a big spoonful of custard and it literally got stuck. I had to drink water to get it down.

I don't know how to get out of this.

Thank you for any help you may be able to give 😭

Hi, I’m a senior in high school, and I’ve been struggling with this since March of my junior year. I was wondering if anyone else experiences something similar because I want to know I’m not alone.
It started after an incident that made me anxious about swallowing. Ever since then, I’ve become super aware of swallowing my own saliva. Something that used to happen automatically now feels like something I have to consciously think about.
I also constantly feel like saliva is building up in my mouth, which makes me even more aware of swallowing. It’s like I can’t stop noticing it, and the more I focus on it, the harder it feels to stop thinking about it. It’s honestly so frustrating because I never used to think about swallowing at all.
I’ve been dealing with this for months now, and I just want to go back to feeling normal without constantly thinking about something that should happen automatically. It’s exhausting having to be so conscious of it. Has anyone else experienced this? Especially if it started after a specific incident or you’ve dealt with it for a long time, did it eventually get better? I’d really appreciate hearing your experiences because sometimes it feels like I’m the only one dealing with this.

I (21, F, 130lbs) have been on Prozac 10mg for going on 5 days now along with hydroxyzine when needed. My body temp usually sits at a 97.6-98.4 when taken orally.

Two days ago I noticed a pain right under my jaw. I’m no stranger to my lymph nodes getting swollen because of a cold or something. My throat occasionally feels a little scratchy but no coughing, sneezing, or the fun stuff that comes with being sick. However, my temperature keeps fluctuating between 96.3-99.8. I’ve have blood test for thyroid issues around a week ago and it came up negative. I know neither 96.3 or 99.8 should be cause of concern but my temp doesn’t usually fluctuate like this and I’m getting anxiety over it thinking I might have organ failure or something crazy like that. Someone convince me I’m okay, please. And when do I see a doctor/ know if it’s getting serious?