Recognising Mental Health Problems

[petergray]

Hello,

I am writing this to try to raise a bit of awareness for a mental health, specifically but not limited to, anxiety.

When I say naivety, a lot of people will read this and just think, oh that people who get nervous or worried about things. Some of you will actually read this and think, oh yeah, I understand what he means. While anxiety can just mean worried, sadly it often means a lot more. So many people today disregard the damage that anxiety can do to people. Simply mistaking it for worry and thinking people are making a big fuss. This is not the case and it can lead to terrible consequences for people suffering from it, as they feel like nobody understands them and they think they are just making a fuss.

It is a horrible mental health condition that affects children and adults and can make them feel secluded, misunderstood and horrible. I am an adult who has been suffering with this for over 10 years, I have never made an effort to try and face it because it has made me feel weak and feel like I am weaker than everyone else, having to see someone to make me feel better about things. It came to a point where I couldn't sit in an exam because I had a panick attack and started shaking in the middle of the exam. People laughed at me behind me. I am learning to drive and I often have to pull over because of a panick attack.

Tbis is is not the most extreme case that happens with people with anxiety, but it was my extreme. That was a few weeks ago, I am not writing this to say I am better because I'm not. This is to show that the effects can be terrible and we need people to be more aware of the issue that this actual mental condition can cause so much pain. Please help me to make this condition more well known about. It will help a lot of people.

thanks,
Pete

Thread moved by Cerys (Forum Moderator) from Discuss Anything

[Evanora]

yes there is big difference between being scared to talk in front of ppl like zoella and having speech problems due to real anxiety

[Bionic...]

Ah Pete! It's a shame that you have to live with that condition and i really hope for your sake that it will get better.
I used to get very nervous myself for exams, i think that it was because of all of the time i'd spent learning key phrases and all of the content. But i didn't have panic attacks in the exams rather i just sat there and didn't do anything - thought about other things and essentially wasted my time. I wish that'd I have been able to tell people about it and try and get it sorted because it didn't do me any favours and looking back now it was a real shame.
I hope for your sake that your condition improves !

[-:Undertaker:-]

Not to put a downer on this or anything as of course many people have serious problems but I do not understand the recent, within the past couple of years, constant attempt to make me "aware" of mental health problems as though I didn't already know. In addition, what does being "aware" actually achieve at the end of the day? I am aware of a lot of things but it seems to me that we're now being led to treat everybody like glass as though they're going to break any second. We cannot expect everybody we meet to never be angry, say the wrong thing at the wrong time or to not joke around: it'll always happen and part of growing up is realising that/coping with it.

A lot of people will always have various problems and especially when it comes to school/younger people you'll never be able to stop banter or even real bullying.

[lawrawrrr]

Not to put a downer on this or anything as of course many people have serious problems but I do not understand the recent, within the past couple of years, constant attempt to make me "aware" of mental health problems as though I didn't already know. In addition, what does being "aware" actually achieve at the end of the day? I am aware of a lot of things but it seems to me that we're now being led to treat everybody like glass as though they're going to break any second. We cannot expect everybody we meet to never be angry, say the wrong thing at the wrong time or to not joke around: it'll always happen and part of growing up is realising that/coping with it.

A lot of people will always have various problems and especially when it comes to school/younger people you'll never be able to stop banter or even real bullying.

The awareness has worked if you are aware then! A lot of people still aren't. I opened up to my parents a bit about it and they said they didn't really know much about it at all. I do feel like some people want to be wrapped in cotton wool (with the excessive trigger warnings on Tumblr etc) and I also equally feel like some people wrap people in cotton wool when they don't need or want to be - I've had people do this to me and it's so frustrating!!

[OldLoveSong]

I've had diagnosed social/generalized anxiety in the past during highschool nd went to therepy and took pills for it, thank goodness i no longer have it, you really have to face the things head on about what ur anxious about which a majority of the time they're just little things that we really amp up in our minds to make them seem like such a huge thing than they really are, in some situations. Once you face those things head on and have support from others, you realise that oh, this isnt as bad as i thought it might be and feel a sense of power and being in control of the situation for ovecroming those obstacles. best of luck to you mate x

- - - Updated - - -

Also in regards to being aware of mental illness i feel that now a days alot of the younger generation are totally aware of things like this thanks to social media and mental health programs. but its the older generation like parents and so on that arent aware- simply because back in the old days these mental illnesses were all hush hush and not heard of or just not treated at all.

[_HeyyItsHannah_]

I've been diagnosed with anxiety, panic disorder, severe depression, some doctors even think SAD. It would get to the point where I would have 1-3 panic attacks a day. I got on some pills, which were then later on taken away from me for issues that could not be helped, and I still have panic attacks from `2-3 a day. On bad days it can get up to 6. After my mum and dad passed things started to get worse. There really is a difference between being a worry-wart and having anxiety.

I'm so glad you're trying to get this more out in the public.

[FlyingJesus]

There really is a difference between being a worry-wart and having anxiety.

I feel this is a hugely important point to make, and probably where a lot of the "awareness" for most people ends. Anxiety and depression as moods are very very different things to anxiety and depression as long-term diseases, but because we still use the same word for each people who've suffered the symptom but not the illness often dismiss these as things that are easy to get over or that will simply pass with time - because their experience with the terms are temporary. We probably at some point need to redefine these terms medically, as it's really not any fun to try explaining to someone why you feel you can't leave the house for days on end and then hear a dismissive "oh yeah I get anxious too sometimes but you just have to push through". ‎

[Artpops]

Yeah sometimes I worry so much I get anxiety. It's so horrible I get a panic attack and it's so horrible.. yeah.

[RuthOnToast]

This is a funny topic with being diagnosed with autism i just take the social anxiety as sort of part of autism. I pretty much spend most my time stressed about simple stuff but nevet severe. Don't think ive ever had a panic attack but mental health is a serious matter not just from a personal point of view but seeing how it can affect people close its nasty.