anxious all the time

[haulk]

I have always been someone who over thinks things.  When I was younger I would lay awake at night thinking of everything I had done during the day.  

Now though I am almost 21, and I have had full blown panic attacks and anxiety.  I think it all started after I got in a car accident last summer.  A friend was driving my car while I was in the back seat sleeping, and I was woken up to the car spinning off the road and the air bags bursting.  I experienced my first panic attack about 6 mon after the accident.  It was the worst feeling ever. I have had about two or three full blown attacks.  But mostly I have become very anxious.  At first it was before I would go to bed.  I would have a feeling that something  was medically wrong with me, and I would worry about my breathing.  But recently my anxiety has been getting worse.  I think bad things are going to happen, and not just at night during the day too.  The worst is still at night.  I have issues falling asleep.. I am worried something will happen or that there is something wrong with me.  I have mentioned how I feel to friends, and they have suggested cognitive therapy,  is there anyone who has felt the same thing as me?  What have you done to relieve their anxiety?  I am just concerned that it will get worse and worse>

[babyface477]

i've been suffering with anxiety/panic attacks since i was 16, i'am now 24. i have had many people telling me that im just over reacting to things but i know its not as simple as that. I have been through therapy & i have to admit that it has helped me to pin point what has caused my panic attacks & they have lessen alot. i will admit that im still suffering with them but i have alot more control over them & i can sometimes stop them from happening.
my advice is to get help, you have nothing to lose but something to gain. at first it was really uncomfortable for me to open up but i've realised i have nothing to be ashamed of. talking through your experiences will def help.
good luck

[cj29]

I just want to echo JS here.  Many times, it is an experience that can trigger this in so many people.  A death, accident, other stress factors, etc.  Getting to the bottom of why you are in this cycle is the next step.  Go and see someone to talk this over with; you will be very surprised how much progress you will make once you start talking about it.

[JSGeare]

It would seem, facially, that the auto wreck is a sort of direct cause of the panic. And it may, in fact, have provided such a profound mix of brain chemistry that it opened a new and very scary way for your brain to send up trouble messages -about material that really has nothing to do with the event. Think of it this way: a house catches fire, the fire department puts it out, and then two weeks later the house collapses. Why? The fire weakened it? Maybe. But upon inspection, we see that there were termites! I'm not saying this is your situation specifically, because I don't know. But for more on this approach, see my journal entry, "The Stain on the Floor."

Now, as to where you go from here: the cognitive therapy might be helpful, but for right now, get a thorough psychiatric evaluation -with a psychiatrist and map out your program from that point forward. Don't limit yourself to a chat with your doctor and some pills -get the brain "work up." And don't fuss about uninsured cost. People happily sign themselves up for cars costing tens of thousands of dollars and drop a couple of bills at dinner. You are investing, in this case, in YOU.

Please lets us know how all this works out. Helluva story. Bad enough to wake up to the sound of an auto collion. WORSE to wake up in the back seat of the car!