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niceNickel4218
332 M Embraced 3
PathStep 11 Compassion hearts18 Forum posts15 Forum upvotes26 Current upvotes26 Age GroupAdult Last activeJanuary, 2017 Member sinceJanuary 21, 2016
Recent forum posts
Getting Help
Anxiety Support / by niceNickel4218
Last post
 May 6th, 2016
...See more So, normally I can manage my anxiety, but lately it's been spiraling out of control. I'm dealing with a lot of "new" experiences (mostly school/internship related), and that seems to trigger my anxiety even more. I talked to a listener a few days ago because I needed to vent, and it made me realize that I needed to get professional help. Whenever I've had physical problems I went to the doctor, so why shouldn't I take care of my mental health as well? Back in 2014 when I was still an undergrad I had group therapy, individual therapy, and I was on medications, but I stopped. I didn't feel like my group therapy was a good fit for me, I had trouble coming up with things to talk about with my therapist, and I was afraid of my psychiatrist (because, you know, social anxiety). After some googling, I found out that my current school has free counseling and psychiatric services for all full-time students. Say what??? Sign me up (although the only way to make an appointment was by calling on the phone so I was shaking and had sweat dripping down my arms). Putting my tuition to good use here.. I just need to promise to myself that I'm going to commit to this. If I feel like something's not working, I'll discuss it with someone, but I won't quit. There, I've written it down so now I have to go through with it. I've made a list of things that I'm struggling with just in case I blank out during my first appointment tomorrow. I like reading about other people's experiencies, so please feel free to share.
Presentations
Anxiety Support / by niceNickel4218
Last post
 February 3rd, 2016
...See more I'm taking a class this semester where I have to do a class discussion every week, and a presentation every other week. The horror, right? Now my professor wants to add in debates to spice things up. I had my first presentation today, and I had been feeling surprisingly calm all day. I meditated, which is something new that I'm trying. I had some tea. I even walked to class instead of taking the bus, because walking is more relaxing. I managed to make small talk while I waited in the hallway. And then it began. I felt like I had cotton balls in my mouth. I was sweating (hyperhidrosis, yay!). Worst of all, I was visibly trembling. I was getting weird leg tremors that I couldn't stop. I was like this for an hour and a half while I sat silently through our class discussion and the three other presentations. Throughout this whole time, I was imagining my classmates judging me. I imaged my professor asking me a question that I wouldn't know the answer to. I imagined fainting, which is what happened during my last presentation. I imagined losing my voice completely, which happened during a horrifying presentation that I gave in high school. And it went perfectly fine! I worried for an hour and a half, but when I finally got up, I felt nervous, but not on the brink of blacking out. All of that worrying for nothing. Next time I'm volunteering to go first.
Social Anxiety and Hyperhidrosis
Anxiety Support / by niceNickel4218
Last post
 January 26th, 2016
...See more I have hyperhidrosis, "a medical condition in which a person sweats excessively and unpredictably." Mostly in my hands and feet. I don't think a lot of people take it too seriously, but you can imagine how much fun this is for someone who also has social anxiety. When I'm 100% calm, my hands will be damp at best, though sometimes I'm lucky and get a half hour of normality. When I'm anxious...oh boy. My boyfriend affectionately calls it my superpower. Here's a typical first interaction with someone: Me: *generally content, sweating mildly, slightly fast heartbeat*. I smile and introduce myself. So far so good . Other person: Introduces themselves and extends their hand for the dreaded handshake. Me: *completely betrayed by my body* (What's with all the handshaking that goes on in our society, anyway?) It turns into some crazy thing where my anxiety makes me sweat more and my sweatiness makes me more anxious and then that makes me even sweatier and....... Just the other day, I had to take a class photo with a group of people that I had literally just met 10 minutes before. I'm fairly short, so I was placed front and center. And my professor asked me to face the girl to my right and hold her hands!?! wtf kind of picture is that?? That poor, sweet girl. Sometimes I just have to laugh at how ridiculous life is.
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