Weekly Prompt #3: What stigma related to anxiety did you experience?
Hello everyone, I hope you are all being easy on yourself this week.
Last week we discussed What helps shift your mind from anxious thoughts? Thank you to all who participated and shared their thoughts for discussion. I enjoyed them. I hope you all did too. If you didn't share yours, please share them here and I look forward to reading and discussing them with you.
This week's prompt: What stigma related to anxiety did you experience?
There are a lot of stigmas around anxiety and this week's prompt focused to discuss them. We need to reduce these stigmas and for that, the first step starts with talking about them. Let's get started and share your thoughts with us.
Also, you can join the Anxiety Group Support Chat every Monday and Tuesday.
@ASilentObserver,
One peculiar "suggestion"(PS stigma) that stands out is , many around us believe - anxiety is something one can't get over or snap out of , if they try "hard enough". That does happen too. . I might get over anxiety or similar mental illness own my own , I am lucky . But that never means I can , should or need to do it myself.
@ASilentObserver
Hey, ASO,
This week's prompt: What stigma related to anxiety did you experience? My birth family thinks I overreacted to the trauma that gave me PTSD. My so-called friend told me to let it out and get over it. I went to a government funded occupational therapy company who told me that me getting upset when I'm triggered is the same thing as her having a customer is mean to her. My list is long. I was discriminated against because of my PTSD from a job at McDonald's.
@ASilentObserver
I am fortunate (I guess) that I have not experienced discrimination or biased opinions towards me and anxiety. I am told I am always to "sharp" and "angry" too much.
I hide a lot of the things
So I have social anxiety which prevents me from being around a lot of people or strangers or getting stuck in a closed room with people I don’t know. To be honest, I can handle certain outdoor events, but it’s being inside that just shuts me down. My anxiety does not affect my adventurous nature. This anxiety developed due to a rape at work and that’s where my anxiety is debilitating and also why my therapist thinks the fear of indoors comes from (being locked in a room with someone causing me physical harm). I still love to hike and swim and travel. My doctor (not my therapist or psychiatrist) told me there no way I have anxiety if I can go hiking by myself. It’s actually my favorite form of relaxation from a week riddled with panic attacks.
My therapist and psychiatrist thought that doctor was being an idiot and clearly didn’t know anything about anxiety, but it really bothered me. I hate when people lump all forms of anxiety together or act like we all manifest it the same way.
@akay06
O>M>G
I hate doctors like that. My spouse's Doc is like that.
Spouse had a medical issue, found that Hemoglobin was undetectable. No body fluids in the bed (was in bed for a week). No expelling of body fluids. I requested an Upper GI (Endo) and Lower GI (Colonoscopy). Doc did upper, found small issue and fixed. It would not explain (nor was the cause) the loss of Hemoglobin. Then the Colonoscopy, Doc said no. "One was done in 2020, doesn't need one until 2025". HELLO, what part of finding cause of the loss of Hemoglobin are we not understanding!!
So I get it about stupid, opinionated, not listening, disrespecting, narcistic, doctors
I cannot understand doctors like that at all. It’s terrifying…
A lot of the stigma I have experienced has been to myself. Namely, if I see help for anxiety, it's due to a loss of strength and progress from when I stopped treatment years ago. Another one is that I am being selfish if I seek help for anxiety because everyone is experiencing their own problems.
The stigma I grew up with was that anxiety labeled me weird and not part of normal society. I grew up around people who saw those with anxiety as crazy people who lay on a couch and talk to a therapist. I felt like something was wrong with me for a long time. I grieve the loss of my authentic self all the time because I believed that I was not normal and I was meant to be an outcast. I struggle to find people like me and that makes the belief even more believable. Anxiety is crippling. I hope to find support through 7cups and the same for those reading this.
@helloGrapes3117 Thank you for sharing your experience. It sounds like growing up feeling different and believing anxiety made you an outcast took a real toll on you. I can understand why you would grieve the loss of your authentic self. What kinds of support have helped you cope with feelings of not fitting in or feeling normal in the past?
@ASilentObserver This is a delayed response. Sorry for that. Thanks for the question. The highlight of my life, where I felt like I belonged, was in another country where people easily welcomed me into their circle. I felt ok being myself but I can't pinpoint the reason to why I felt that way. Maybe I didn't feel judged or different. Now that I'm back home, I find it hard to find circles I am comfortable with. Taking small steps to talk with people and learning to love myself will probably be the way to go. I find it hard to stay consistent and I end up back to square one. I find myself trashing my efforts, feeling like a fool. Probably falling to delusional thoughts that I'm stupid and ugly.
@helloGrapes3117 Welcome back, Grapes. Good to see you. It sounds like you had a great experience living in another country where you felt accepted and part of a community. Feeling accepted and included is so important for our well-being. It makes sense that you're trying to recreate those circumstances here at home. Consistency can be difficult to establish, and it's okay if you sometimes fall back into old patterns. Please know it is a process and you're learning as you go. It is also important to practice self-compassion when you make mistakes or have negative thoughts.
@ASilentObserver i think i experienced my mom feeling regretful of how she treated me and it caused me ptsd
That you can just be brave and snap out of it. When you are anxious about silly little things you not making a big deal on purpose but it feels like a big horrible thing to you.
My social anxiety makes me look that I don't like people or I'm aloof. That's the feedback I received. And yeah, I can imagine that I give such a vibe. And probably I even embraced this pose, to make it look like it's my choice to be this way, not that I'm fearful and unable to socialize.
@Buzzingbeezon I am sorry to hear that buzzing. It sounds like the social anxiety makes connecting with others difficult.You're not alone in struggling with social situations, and it's understandable to want to protect yourself. How does it make you feel to receive that kind of feedback?
@ASilentObserver
Now it's not that bad. It used to hurt me as a kid; I was ashamed that I couldn't fit, I thought I was lacking in some way or plainly stupid.
Now, I partly accepted that. Partly, couse it can be really a pain in the neck and I'd like to work on it, someday. But I just consider myself an introvert and I try to see the benefits of being this way..