Aa
Sick + anxiety
My brain knows what's going on, but my body is miserable. I've been suffering from a bad sinus infection for the last week, for which I got steroid injections & an antibiotic. Dr. ordered that if I'm no better by today, back I go for head x-rays. And, I'm no better. Head is full of congestion from my eyes to my neck, and my ears are very plugged. My hearing is off, as is my equilibrium, after a week of plugged ears, adding to the fun.
On top of that, I've had a very stressful week at work, so I've been more frazzled/amp'd up than normal. Also, I was supposed to go up from 37.5 to 50 mg. of zoloft this week. My allergist told me that I needed to be aware that the steroid injections could impact my anxiety. And, one side effect I experience when I up the zoloft is increased anxiety.
I went ahead and upped to the 50mg yesterday. And yesterday was a very rough anxiety day. This morning, I woke up & it hit me right away, along with the head congestion. My head knows the deck is stacked against me right now - it's perfectly normal & understandable that I'd be experiencing increased anxiety. I'm just feeling so miserable and tired of it. Plus, my psychiatrist's goal was to get me off my xanax (0.5 twice a day), so a few weeks ago, I started cutting back on that (AM dose to .25). But the anxiety is just bad enough that I'm tempted to take a whole one instead of a 1/2 again. But I don't want to backtrack, either.
I'm trying to be gentle & understanding with myself; I'm sleeping well, I'm eating and drinking plenty of fluids. I just want to feel better.
On top of that, I've had a very stressful week at work, so I've been more frazzled/amp'd up than normal. Also, I was supposed to go up from 37.5 to 50 mg. of zoloft this week. My allergist told me that I needed to be aware that the steroid injections could impact my anxiety. And, one side effect I experience when I up the zoloft is increased anxiety.
I went ahead and upped to the 50mg yesterday. And yesterday was a very rough anxiety day. This morning, I woke up & it hit me right away, along with the head congestion. My head knows the deck is stacked against me right now - it's perfectly normal & understandable that I'd be experiencing increased anxiety. I'm just feeling so miserable and tired of it. Plus, my psychiatrist's goal was to get me off my xanax (0.5 twice a day), so a few weeks ago, I started cutting back on that (AM dose to .25). But the anxiety is just bad enough that I'm tempted to take a whole one instead of a 1/2 again. But I don't want to backtrack, either.
I'm trying to be gentle & understanding with myself; I'm sleeping well, I'm eating and drinking plenty of fluids. I just want to feel better.
I would go to a good health food store and buy a good probiotic from the refrigerated section to replenish the organisms killed off by the steroids and the antibiotics so you don't end up with chronic sinus infections. Hopefully that won't happen, but always best to play it safe.
Thanks, everyone. I won't say it was easy.....but I survived!
One tendency I've noticed on my anxiety when I get the blues is to want to hibernate. Which I try to keep in perspective as needing peace, quiet, and rest....but also try to balance out to avoid becoming reclusive. I ended up calling in sick to work Friday because I was so miserable. Congested, headache, dizziness, AND anxiety was just bleah. I stayed on my couch in my jammies & watched Disney movies all day.
Saturday, I was determined to try and bust my funk. I put on my favorite christmas tshirt, & set out to do a "random act of kindness" day. Then I used my anxiety energy and did some baking. I still struggled with the blues - - some plans I'd been looking forward to for weeks got cancelled. But, I called up another friend and spent the evening at her house getting hugged, fed, and loved.
By Sunday afternoon, the congestion was finally clearing up and my anxiety/zoloft side effects had turned into super-amp'd/couldn't sit still. And today, I'm back at work, with my head 50% cleared, and distracted enough that my knee isn't bouncing frenetically.
What's hardest for me this time of year is being single. Everyone in my life is married and/or with kids, so they have someone in their life that - rightly - comes first. And I'm nobody's "first". I struggle with feeling left out and forgotten. But I'm trying to focus on all my blessings, on how precious & important I am to those that matter, and keep asking the Lord to give me His peace & love.
Your encouragement & validation have been awesome - many thanks. Not 100%, but I'll get there. I'm praying all of you feel some peace, too.
One tendency I've noticed on my anxiety when I get the blues is to want to hibernate. Which I try to keep in perspective as needing peace, quiet, and rest....but also try to balance out to avoid becoming reclusive. I ended up calling in sick to work Friday because I was so miserable. Congested, headache, dizziness, AND anxiety was just bleah. I stayed on my couch in my jammies & watched Disney movies all day.
Saturday, I was determined to try and bust my funk. I put on my favorite christmas tshirt, & set out to do a "random act of kindness" day. Then I used my anxiety energy and did some baking. I still struggled with the blues - - some plans I'd been looking forward to for weeks got cancelled. But, I called up another friend and spent the evening at her house getting hugged, fed, and loved.
By Sunday afternoon, the congestion was finally clearing up and my anxiety/zoloft side effects had turned into super-amp'd/couldn't sit still. And today, I'm back at work, with my head 50% cleared, and distracted enough that my knee isn't bouncing frenetically.
What's hardest for me this time of year is being single. Everyone in my life is married and/or with kids, so they have someone in their life that - rightly - comes first. And I'm nobody's "first". I struggle with feeling left out and forgotten. But I'm trying to focus on all my blessings, on how precious & important I am to those that matter, and keep asking the Lord to give me His peace & love.
Your encouragement & validation have been awesome - many thanks. Not 100%, but I'll get there. I'm praying all of you feel some peace, too.
I know what you mean. I had a terrible sinus infection not long ago. Ended up on heavy duty antibiotic and it still lingered. I felt like I was going crazy. I think sinus trouble is anxiety inducing even for people not usually prone to being anxious, so for those of us that are it's terrible. With your Zoloft side effects as well, you are going though a lot but you're brave to follow through. And the fact that you realize you need to be gentle with yourself during this makes perfect sense. Please keep us updated.
Hey sweetie! YUK! I'm sorry you've been sick, that stinks! Being ill, even with the common cold, a respiratory infection, sinus infection most definitely can increase our anxiety levels. Just NOT feeling well adds to our anxiety.
You also have a bunch of other factors contributing to your anxiety, the work stuff, steroids, and the Xanax taper. I am very proud of you for trying to keep it all in perspective, I KNOW how hard that is to do! We're so "trained" to just explode with massive anxiety at the first sign of FEELING anxious, even if the anxiety is completely appropriate and understandable in the situation. We're very reactionary that way. You're trying hard to keep your head straight, which WILL go a long way. You're essentially retraining your brain not NOT jump to conclusions any time you feel anxious. So, not only will it help you in the moment, but it will help you long term.
I hope and pray you start feeling better soon hon. Remember, like EVERYTHING else (ugh), this too shall pass. We're here for you, post when you need some encouraging words or support.
Hang in there!
You also have a bunch of other factors contributing to your anxiety, the work stuff, steroids, and the Xanax taper. I am very proud of you for trying to keep it all in perspective, I KNOW how hard that is to do! We're so "trained" to just explode with massive anxiety at the first sign of FEELING anxious, even if the anxiety is completely appropriate and understandable in the situation. We're very reactionary that way. You're trying hard to keep your head straight, which WILL go a long way. You're essentially retraining your brain not NOT jump to conclusions any time you feel anxious. So, not only will it help you in the moment, but it will help you long term.
I hope and pray you start feeling better soon hon. Remember, like EVERYTHING else (ugh), this too shall pass. We're here for you, post when you need some encouraging words or support.
Hang in there!
Oh mele48! I'll pray for you, so you can feel better ASAP! You are doing such a great job on keeping your head straight! Your sinus - I got those,too, they suck big time! - will get better and your body will follow your head pretty soon! You are doing all the right things! I think you are so strong!
One thing that really helps with the sinus infection, it's that nose wash thing. Do you know what I'm talking about it? It's like a tea pot, where you put warm water and the solution that comes with it, it's natural, and you wash inside your nostrils. It really helps!
I hope you feel better! Let us know how you are doing!
Xx
One thing that really helps with the sinus infection, it's that nose wash thing. Do you know what I'm talking about it? It's like a tea pot, where you put warm water and the solution that comes with it, it's natural, and you wash inside your nostrils. It really helps!
I hope you feel better! Let us know how you are doing!
Xx
Stress and being sick can definitely exacerbate and increase anxiety in my opinion. First of all, give yourself credit for handleing all of this. It is difficult to do and quite often I find that we don't focus on the positive aspects (and their are positive aspects event though they can be hard to see at times) and forget to give ourselves a pat on the back when we deserve it. What you are doing takes courage and will to confront...and you are doing it.
In my experience, whenever my medication was adjusted, I would notice a spike in my anxiety. It was probably due to me just being nervous about it and my body adjusting to it as well. But after a while, I found it helped in the long run. Also, I always advise people to try to see a therapist about this if possible. By learning about it, it gives you the long term knowledge to confront it and deal with the anxiety....keep us posted!
In my experience, whenever my medication was adjusted, I would notice a spike in my anxiety. It was probably due to me just being nervous about it and my body adjusting to it as well. But after a while, I found it helped in the long run. Also, I always advise people to try to see a therapist about this if possible. By learning about it, it gives you the long term knowledge to confront it and deal with the anxiety....keep us posted!
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