I doubt it's on the scale that you are experiencing because I don't take medication, but I do have bouts of anxiety which last from a few hours to a couple of days. I think it dates from the birth of my second child when I was 36. I had never suffered from any kind of anxiety or depression up until that point but after his birth I had post natal depression, and also after my third child. After the post natal depression had abated I gradually realised that there is at least one point every month when I feel noticeably anxious and stressed, it normally lasts a day, so for me I think it is connected to my monthly cycle. I have started tracking it on an app on my phone so I can try to be more aware of when it is going to happen. I also have a couple of relaxation apps which are sometimes helpful.

Mine build for days and have lasted all day as well. It wipes me out when it happens, fortunately I take buspirone now and don't get them as often.

As stupid as this may sound, firstly, yes the all day and even waking up through the night anxiety happens more that we realise. Try adding to your medical regime, breathing slowly and deeply into a brown paper bag.

Also, just keep an eye on the anxiety about becoming anxious. Sometimes when we start to feel okay, we start stressing about the next time it will happen. In the good moments, try to push the worry about the next attack out of your mind and just enjoy the moment. 5 good minutes are better than nothing at all. So make the most of them.

It will pass, but it does take time. Most traumas take a couple of years for you to learn to live with. But PTSD will always have it's triggers. Over time, the symptoms will become easier and easier to handle. Just try to live in the moment more. Take it one day, one morning at a time. Whatever you can manage. Don't put added pressure on yourself. As I said, be glad of 5 minutes and appreciate that, eventually 5 will become 10 and so on.

Rest assured it will not always be like this. But do become aware of your breathing. Make sure you take nice, slow deep breaths whenever you think about it. This also helps prevent infection.

Oh, and don't put a time frame on this, you don't need the pressure.

Beaccountabke, I think your right. I had a physical reaction to my husbands daughter. Still fear her ever attempting to come back into my life via my husband. Everyone is clear that, that will never happen, but I still have the fear. After two years of course it is not a debilitating fear, but it will always be inside of me. To this day a bleached blonde,with her hair do, especially one with a ponytail swinging off the side of her head gives me a physical reaction in my gut. It just passes through, doesn't linger on like it did, but it's there. There is good reason for this i am sure.

I have referred to this girl on here as the evil one, or spawn of Satan. Not to be flippant or disrespectful to her, but because she is the first person I have come across in my life that is truly evil. Now, I've dealt with some hateful, wicked, nasty and spiteful people, none of whom did I fear like this one. My body physically cannot be near her. There has to be something in that. I am 61, not a kid, have life experience, went into this prepared to like her, she was my husbands daughter. Sure she treated me badly, but there is something more than that going on to cause me the fear.

Her boyfriend once told my husband he was afraid of what this woman would do to me her hatred was so great. My husband of course flipped it off. That only served to confirm the fear I already had in my gut, a fear that was there years before her boyfriend brought this up. I used to wonder how terrified he must have been, how real the threat, for him to come here alone and tell us this.

My sentiments exactly Sandy. No more chances, no more doormat. I know in my heart and mind that I will never hav her in my life again. But the fear of dh having one more go at it because "she's my daughter you know" bullshit, is still there. I know she has no shame, it will be a year on the 11 th of next month since she hung up in his ear, and hasn't spoken to him since. But I know she is shameless, I know she is cruel, I know that she could pick up that phone anytime she felt like it and ring dh to guilt him, to demand something, because I am your daughter, you owe me" whatever. I'm not 100% sure dh would let her back in, because he is well aware he would be out with her, but I know he'd want to try. The uncertainty is the nagging fear that I have. Will it happen, when?

I know she wants me dead. She is the smiling assassin. I know she herself wouldn't do anything. She wouldn't be prepared to do the time. But I also know that she has always dictated to her brother and his partner how their son, dhs oldest grandchild would be raised. She runs their home too. I haven't seen that child since he was 11, he would be 16 next January i think, but he was wild then. If trouble is coming I feel it will be through him, she could get him to do anything.

If you met dh you'd think butter wouldn't melt in his mouth, you would never believe such hate, vindictiveness and desire for vengeance could come from the fruit of his loins. They are all feral white trash. All three of his kids. Dumb as dog shit (let's get my medical training from a TV drama) dirty white trash. This from a man who loves things to be clean and tidy, is well presented, likes to be seen as always doing the right thing. I know now why he lies to everyone, especially his family about his kids, why he refuses to tell his family the truth about his daughter, his constant defence of all their wrong doings and dishonesty. He knows what they are, he is ashamed of them, he is protecting himself as a father. Throwing them to the wolves really because of his selfishness, and putting me at risk. So no more. I will do my best to protect myself, whatever it takes, and I will never have anything to do with his family ever again.

I've been dealing with anxiety every day since SD25 told DH that she wants to move back in with us. DH immediately gave her the green light because she's his "baby girl" and also because the family members that she's currently living with want her O.U.T. and she's "got nowhere else to go".

Did I mention that it won't be just her but also her 2.5 year old wild, undisciplined, monster of a kid??!?

The anxiety does not at all help my BP. I'm 6 months postpartum and my doctor is trying to wean me off my meds. (I had pregnancy-induced hypertension). I can probably be kissing the weaning good-bye as ill most likely still need to continue taking the meds and probably at a stronger dose too. SD makes my blood boil!!!

When you have anxiety all day, it is said that you suffer from GAD (Generalized Anxiety Disorder.)

In my early 20's I lost my best friend in a horrific accident and while it seemed like I was dealing with it, I obviously wasn't. Within 2 months of this loss, I began having panic attacks. Out of the blue and for no apparent reason. After a few of these, I ended up with GAD. Basically what that means is, your body (every organ, every bodily system) is so full of adrenalin that you end of with this free floating anxiety that stays with you on a constant basis. If you're like me and have actual panic attacks on top of this, (I could have 3-4 panic attacks in one single day) it ups the amount of adrenalin in your system which fires off the body to do some pretty wicked things, which then fires off more panic and more adrenalin. The key to overcoming it, is to find a way to burn off the unused adrenalin OR find a way to control the attacks. Once you get to where you're having daily floods of adrenalin, it can take months for your body to rid itself of this excess adrenalin. Many times, the strange things that arenalin does to your body will create more anxiety that leads to more adrenalin. Nasty catch 22 there. I had auditory and visual hallucinations, feelings of being outside of my body (feelings of unreality) a host of physical ailments... heart fluttering, tight chest, inability to breathe normally, a feeling of my throat closing up, etc. My gosh, I was a total mess.

My doctor put me on Trazodone and Xanax. Trazodone for depression, sleep disturbances (I only slept 4 hours per day and only in the wee hours of the morning)and to regulate the chemicals in my brain that adrenalin had screwed up. The Xanax was for the panic. I didn't stay on that long b/c it made me feel more depressed than I actually was. I did keep a few for those times when I had to be somewhere and I had no escape, lol.

Agoraphobia (as it relates to panic disorder) happens b/c of the fear that one will have an attack while out in public and people will think you're crazy.(Loss of control.) There are alot of 'what if's' in GAD. You will have to teach yourself not to fall victim to the dreaded 'what if's.' This means reteaching your brain to focus on something other than the impending doom that creeps into your mind. For basic grocery shopping trips, I would count the packages of gum x 3's at the register while waiting. Waiting in that line was always the most difficult part of shopping for me. I just wanted to get my stuff and get the hell out of there. Driving was difficult b/c I would be somewhere I had been a million times before and somehow feel totally lost, like nothing was familiar. I would panic and then that flood would create even more arenalin which meant more panic attacks.

A neighbor brought me over a book, I still have it to this day. I used to call it my anxiety bible, lol. It is an OLD book but, I think you can find it on Amazon. It's called "Hope and Help for Your Nerves" by Dr. Claire Weekes. As soon as I opened it and read those first few lines, I started crying b/c it was like it was written specifically for me. It describes so many of the weird things that arenalin does to your body. Things that will make you think you are suffering some horrendous disease that the Dr's. are missing. Things that make you feel like you're losing your mind. It also gives you exercises that help to deal with the flood of adrenalin. It's done in layman's terms and is great at explaining the why's behind anxiety. I have loaned my book out to numerous people who have all felt better after reading it, (including my therapist from back then.)

You can conquer this. You have to have faith and be patient. Sometimes a difficult thing when dealing with anxiety, I know.

Best wishes to you.

Hi there....I posted on your other forum "has stress(step life) affected your health negatively".
I too have suffered panic attacks all day...mine was unfortunately due to the Mirena IUD but BM and her kids definitely enhanced the panic in me....I am not sure if there really is a cure to get rid of anxiety.. I was on 25mg of Zoloft earlier this year but it did nothing for me.
Apparently to get rid of anxiety, we have to reframe things in our minds, change our thought processes and inject fun back into our lives....sometimes you have to embrace the attack and say "Hey Im ready for you to attack me again, go ahead...try"

Whenever SO brings up BM(which isn't often) but man when he does...it sets me off with rage...as her only concern is money, always needing more...I don't mind helping out, as contradictory as that maybe but this is her only concern for updating...I need more money. She has said a few things about me, which set me off...and perhaps fuels the rage and the anxiety. I don't want to see her, Im disengaging from her toxicity...we got into it last night, that I made the mistake by saying when SS turns 18 I don't want you to f-ing talk to her again...(anxiety can make you controlling if that makes sense?)

The key to a stress free life, as some have mentioned here, is getting rid of the toxic waste. Your SD is toxic, she causes you much grief....stop letting her control your thoughts and start lowering your expectations of her(right now unfortunately she isn't going to change), that way she cant disappoint you...because you already knew what she was going to do...F-UP.
You will get over anxiety, I don't think there is a cure for it...sometimes we are genetically predisposed or we are too modest...I typically think those of us that are more givers tend to suffer the most anxiety.

The reason I say there is no cure is, I don't think there is a magic pill that makes it go away.I think it is changing our thought patterns positively, she took away time in your head too much(which BM did for me so don't worry) and start reclaiming your time with your daughters. Make up for what you lost, read a few self help books anything to help you get back to the way you were...the good news is, you were panic free once before, so you know you can be panic free again!

F her, if she wants to be a bad person..let her, the onerous is on her not you!

You will get better, just let time heal! And you are definitely not a lone!