Severe Anxiety

[Doikers]

I am Severely Anxious.
Partly due to My Chronic Anxiety , Partly due to My BPD , Partly Personal Circumstances .
I am trying to get in touch with the CMHT but they don't get back to me.
My GP Phoned them 3 weeks ago and they didn't get back to him.
My SW is on Annual Leave.
I have tried every grounding technique I know from biting into Citrus fruit to walking around barefoot to Ice squeezing and nothing helps.
I get a Set amount of Benzos a Month but not enough to even take one a day and I'm pretty tolerant to them as been on them since 2009.
I am barely Sleeping and GP wouldn't give me Zopiclone. (I understand why but I had to ask as I am desperate)
I don't want any more scars.
I am Lost.
Help?

[Wonderland.]

It does sound in terms of meds you may need a review if the anxiety is still impacting your life so much. And that can look at a regular sleep medication that isn't addictive, as well as looking at anxiety medication.

Grounding is something to keep persevering with, it's not the easiest thing to pick up. But is helpful when you have found something that works for you.

Have you ever tried mindfulness? Many people find that useful.

[Stellata]

Are you having any therapy? Due to the causes you mention, I would think that's the best course of action.
I'd second the Mindfulness option. Buddhify is a particularly good app.

Meds can indeed take the edge off. I don't know if you're on an anti-depressant, but there any many that can help with anxiety, too. It's just finding the right one for you.

Can you explain more about what the anxiety is like for you? I then might be able to offer more perspective from personal experience. :) [Since I also have severe anxiety, related to complex trauma and also current life situations].

[Doikers]

Anxiety is , to me .
Mentally Thought racing all the time to negative conclusions of completely made up situations but my brain , Sadist that it is, Makes them feel so real.
Get really scared over tiny things.
Not being Able to Think Straight at all.
Not being able to be around anyone at all.
I can feel the adrenaline . Does that make any sense , My Head and Arm,Hands ,Legs are all really sensitive (For lack of a better word) , I can feel my heartbeat in all my fingers.
I'm on Buspirone For anxiety but that might be a placebo for as far as it helps.

I recently got my Olanzapine Halved then had Lithium bloods and an ECG (My First ECG as they never did them at the old GP's) And the test showed that the Halved dose was borderline harmful for my heart ! I was on Double it for about 10 years . This may be a Factor.

I am not in therapy and there is little chance of getting any here.
I was taught Mindfulness , I found it so frustrating.
I am meeting whoever is on duty at the CMHT 10am next Monday.

[Marshmallow.]

I'm sorry to hear you're feeling so bad hun.
I can relate completely to what you're saying. The main thing I remember from CBT 5 years ago is challenging your thoughts. I found writing them down helped, challenge them, are these bad conclusions really going to happen?

It sounds like you may need a medication review. I'm currently on propranolol which seems to take the edge off a bit. The change in your olanzapine may have heightened your anxiety. I'm not sure if that's maybe a side effect.

I was told by my CPN that we weren't going to be doing mindfulness exercises until I was emotionally stable enough to concentrate. Maybe all the other thoughts going round your head are making it difficult.

That's great news you have an appointment on Monday. Perhaps you should request a medication review. It's clear that what you are currently prescribed isn't doing much good. They will hopefully give you some strategies to manage the anxiety and thoughts you're having.

Sending love and hugs to you in this difficult time Mark.

[Dataunit]

Vitamin B3 binds to the benzodiazepine (GABAA) receptor - have you tried taking that for when you don't have enough benzodiazepines?

[Selicera]

Hey,

I struggle with this as well and I haven't found an ideal coping mechanism yet, BUT something which has helped me in quite a few situations where the anxiety level was really high was to focus on random objects around me & answer questions about them, e.g. "what is its color", "what is the structure of the object, is it soft" etc and to only try to describe the thing you're focusing on.
This can be tricky when you feel like it's already hard to concentrate, but sometimes it can distract you from the racing thoughts.

Other than that, you might still find a better combination of meds?
How are you at the moment?

[Doikers]

I have an appointment with some unknown Locum Psych.
I am going to explain how anxious I am , It is awful right now.
But I won't come over as anxious because I will not be able to attend the appointment with a stranger unless I double up on Diaz first.