Health More Personal Stuff About Anxiety

[Ishna]

Ugh. For the last couple of weeks I've been so highly anxious it's annoying.

When I get like this, I tense myself from the shoulders up. I'll be doing something, and realised I'm hunched over in a tight little ball while I'm doing it, and have to exhale, straighten up and relax. And then, 60 seconds later, I'm scrunched up again.

Also, as I sleep, my shoulders, neck and jaw tense. I grit my teeth but more on the right side, which makes my jaw hinge on that side swell and its painful to open my mouth to yawn or take a decent bite of food.

And that's just the subconscious anxiety.

Consciously, I'm aware of a constant 'amber alert' status throughout my body and mind. I feel like something could go wrong at any second. And countless times during the day I have 'anxiety spikes' where I get a rush of nauseating fear that radiates out from my solar plexus and makes me feel profoundly uncomfortable.

Yes, I have medication for anxiety, and yes, I've been taking it as directed. Usually it works to smooth out the edges. But sometimes (since it's such a low dose) it's just not enough to keep the dogs at bay.

 

[chazSingh]

Hi Ishna

Have you tried meditation or mindfulness for a decent amount of time?

I took my wife to such a course...and she said it helped...but I don't think she is following it up and doing it regularly to see the full benefits.

If your willing I can share with you the guided meditations that you can try. Would be interesting to see if it helps you.

God bless you

 

[Ishna]

Chaz Ji

I am terrible with meditation and mindfulness. Mindfulness works... I am my own worst enemy for not studying it seriously. My psychologist has helped to give me activities, and my partner is studying psychology and social science so he's good at reminding me to process these feelings consciously. Although I can ride the waves of my anxiety with conscious awareness (I can have the anxiety spikes and think my way through them without falling to pieces), the *feeling* that permeates my body is, quite literally, sickening.

I would be grateful if you could share the guided meditations to try. It may help a lot to soothe my body with some conscious relaxation activities.

Meanwhile, I can't help but think that, in some way, I fail as a Sikh by carrying such anxiety. I read my sehaj paath every night before I go to sleep, which puts me into a lovely frame of mind as I drift off to the land of nod, but it doesn't stick.

 

[chazSingh]

Chaz Ji

I am terrible with meditation and mindfulness. Mindfulness works... I am my own worst enemy for not studying it seriously. My psychologist has helped to give me activities, and my partner is studying psychology and social science so he's good at reminding me to process these feelings consciously. Although I can ride the waves of my anxiety with conscious awareness (I can have the anxiety spikes and think my way through them without falling to pieces), the *feeling* that permeates my body is, quite literally, sickening.

I would be grateful if you could share the guided meditations to try. It may help a lot to soothe my body with some conscious relaxation activities.

Meanwhile, I can't help but think that, in some way, I fail as a Sikh by carrying such anxiety. I read my sehaj paath every night before I go to sleep, which puts me into a lovely frame of mind as I drift off to the land of nod, but it doesn't stick.

ahhh..my wife also had trouble meditating...
but the good thing about the course was that they spend a portion of the session actually doing the meditations...well actually, the course was 6 sessions...and they started with 5 mins meditation whilst in class, and built it up to the final session being 30 minutes of meditation....and everyone including my wife started to feel the benefits and by the last session 30 minutes seemed like a breeze for them all.

she also found that as her mind is very active, the guided meditaition helped keep her mind in check better than having just complete silence.

its worth a try

but there were also mindfulness exercises which you can use throughout the day, whilst at work, stood in a shop queue, eating etc...which top up your awareness and relaxation during the day

you are already living as a sikh because you have recognized how the mind can take over and make you think and behave in ways you don;t like...and more importantly you are attempting to battle it and overcome it..

if i'm not mistaken...Gurbani says if you overcome your mind you overcome life...

 

[Gurpreet24]

Reading what you experience is the thing I've been dealing with about a year, the intense fear and uneasiness in my solar plexus. I tend to experience it more when I'm exhausted not sure if you noticed that as well?