Has anyone had a SA relapse?

[froghat]

By that I mean, you improved your anxiety to an acceptable level and were pretty much enjoying life again, but a few years later you started losing it again and had to start from point a again. Cause, that's where I'm at right now. I had a real bad case of anxiety in high school. Through therapy and medication I really turned my life around. Then 5 years later I started having trouble again and things just kept getting worse. Now, I'm back in therapy and on meds again and fighting SA for the 2nd time. Anyone else have a similar experience?

I'm kind of bummed. I mean, I was 15 when I first started having problems. By 18 I was much better and still felt like I was in control of my life. Now, I'm almost 27 and I feel so socially retarded. I mean, I've never had a GF, no career, and I just feel like I wasted so much time doing nothing and missing out on all the fun. Now I'm 26 and I feel like I should be married and have kids now. Instead, I feel like an 18 year old.

Not only do I feel the pressure trying to overcome my problems, but now I feel like I'm racing against the clock. It blows big time!

 

[recluse]

Over the past weeks i have been more anxious than ever. I was doing ok, not exactly outgoing but i could just about tolerate being with people at work and now i am a wreck. I feel like i have lost all my confidence...Not that i had a lot of it in the first place.

 

[Carstuar]

I was doing better, but had an avoidance relapse. Now I'm back to avoiding everything again .

 

[Carol]

Yes, my SA comes and goes. It's never completely gone, but there are certainly times when I'm doing pretty well and don't think about it too much. Usually those are the times when I'm really busy and don't have time to worry about what other people think, or to feel sorry for myself.

 

[Doomed2Die]

All the time, I thought I was making progress... and well you know the rest.

 

[recluse]

I'm worried because my online friend has asked me to go and visit her again soon but i feel more anxious than i did when i first went to meet in March. I'm so worried incase she'll not like me anymore and not want to see me again. I have a real fear of abandonment because it's happened to me before in the past.

 

[dan_e]

I'm so worried incase she'll not like me anymore and not want to see me again. I have a real fear of abandonment because it's happened to me before in the past.

I had a relapse. What you described happened to me too, Recluse. At one point in time I began to feel great, normal. Suddenly things became clearer. My SA was melting away because I thought I had real friends, there was so much to look forward to.......then the 'abandonment' occurred and I slid back into despair. If it hadn't happened, I swear I would have been 'fixed.' People without SA can be so thoughtless and self absorbed. Especially when they know better. It was like the carpet was yanked out from under me. I've yet to get back to that point :? .

 

[noblame4]

Me too. I alternate between being motivated to try to live a little, and swinging back into full on rucluse-dom (like, boo radley level. ha) The changes dont even coincide with anything particularly. It's pretty annoying.