Something to share...please read

[nursegirl6572]

Hello all!  Hope you're all having a good day.  There is something I would like to share with all of you.  For years now, I have been SLOWLY writing a book...about panic and anxiety.  It's meant to be a humorous look at the very real things we go through dealing with panic/anxiety.  It sort of takes those scary moments, and puts them into a funny context (cuz, admittedly, some of this **** is funny).  This is still a work in progress, but I would like to share with you all the first chapter.  Mostly because I think it will give people a well needed chuckle, as I'm sure so many can relate.

This is written TRULY about a day in my life, as a Mom, wife, nurse and anxiety sufferer.  While I approach it from a humorous standpoint, I'm sure you guys will recognize and relate to the racing thoughts, the "what ifs", the struggles, the small victories.  

I always say I think laughter is truly the "best medicine", and I still feel strongly about this...which is why I chose to illustrate my anxious life from a comical view.  I'm going to post this as a journal, but would love input and for people to share how it made them feel reading it, as a fellow anxiety sufferer.  Did you find it helpful?  My goal would be to try to take the "power" away from the anxiety through my words.  I know re-reading my own words, and lol at the ridiculousness of some of the thoughts, it really knocks the impact of anxiety down a few pegs for me.

Keep in mind, it obviously has not been professionally edited yet, so there will certainly be more improvements to be made.  It's still very much an ongoing project.  I have several other chapters done with more to come as well.  Not that I ever expect to be an award winning author, but I would love to pursue publication, so I need to say that from a legal standpoint, I retain all rights to these writings, and respectfully ask that people do not copy/paste this to other sites.

I'm "anxious" to share it with you....so now I'll go post the journal.  I'll come back to this thread and post a link to it.

Thanks for reading.

[Chud55]

I like that you made it humorous. Theres nothing better than a good laugh at yourself once in a while! Plus it is a silly disorder so you can laugh!

[nursegirl6572]

Hiya all!  Since I got such an overwhelming amount of people asking for another installment (alright....alright...it was two people...and one of them was me).....I wrote another journal.  This one isn't from my writings...just thoughts as I sit here.

Hope it brings a chuckle or two...enjoy.

http://www.medhelp.org/user_journals/show/283946/More-reflections-about-anxiety-panichopefully-with-some-laughs

[nursegirl6572]

Megan, thanks so much for your comments.  That's an excellent idea...maybe for the final chapter...to reflect on the content in the book and explain that while shown in a humorous light, that these thoughts/feelings/worries are all very real to us in the moment, and can cause life altering stress.

I really appreciate your input and think that would be a very valuable addition that so many could relate to.  We never quite get the validation we so desperately need...except from fellow sufferers who understand.

Thanks again.

[MeganPixel]

Sounds right about where I live most of the time right now. :)  My kids are 7 and 2 and I have similar struggles/thoughts.  I also often find that on retrospect, the anxious thoughts are pretty silly and can make me behave sort of silly as well, that was really spot on.  I clearly see that approach here and I found it really entertaining.  

However, maybe because I'm still going through this now, I often try to describe that sense of urgency / altered reality that I get when I am feeling anxious or panicked to others, and it's very very difficult.  Example, my husband can't understand why something so obviously silly (even to me) would bring me to tears every night??  Why can't I stop acting that way when I rationally 'know' that these thoughts are not right?  When I'm in the midst of an anxious period, the thoughts and feelings are super urgent and almost hopelessly inescapable (until I finally get ratcheted back down... THEN I can laugh about it).  In a future chapter, will you also be showing the other side of the story, to give a sense of how it's "real" the anxious thoughts feel when you're in the moment?  I could really relate to something like that...and reading it in anecdotal form may help others around me relate better to what I'm feeling, too.

[nursegirl6572]

Thank you beema, I appreciate the kind words!

Actually, in that first chapter, I don't actually describe a full blown panic attack.  Just a lot of anxiety.  In subsequent chapters, I do share the experiences of a severe panic attack.  In those chapters, I also branch off a bit and discuss what a PA is, causes, symptoms, and other factoids about them.

The 2nd chapter goes into the horrific planning and TRYING to execute a trip to the dreaded grocery store, complete with details of long hours spent making lists (procrastinating) and finding reasons to go to the store "later" or another day.

Again, thank you for reading and sharing your thoughts!  :0)

Enjoy your day!

[beema36]

U did,a great job and yes it made me laugh. Reminded me so much of when my kids were that age and the morning routine. I will say u seem to gave much calmer panic attacks than I do though.
Think your book will be great.

[nursegirl6572]

OKey dokey....I've posted Chapter One....let me know what you think (feel free to leave comments on the journal page).  Some feedback I'm most interested in is:

Did it make you laugh?
As anxiety sufferer, could you relate?  If so, did you relate a LOT?
Did it make anxiety seem a little "less scary" to you?
What other feelings you had while reading it?
Could you create an easy mental picture while reading the story?

Any other comments are more than welcome.  I really wish to create something that would help people with anxiety be able to appreciate the lighter side of it...making those very dark moments not have such an impact.  I think that's possible if out of some of the moments we can appreciate some humor in that situation.  It's also very cathartic to share my own experiences.

Journal:
http://www.medhelp.org/user_journals/show/283603/Excerpt-from-my-writings-about-anxiety-panic


Thanks again for taking the time to read it.