Overcoming fear can seem impossible, especially if you suffer from Generalized Anxiety Disorder like I do. Sometimes fear feels so completely overwhelming that we’re paralyzed. Sometimes it feels like fear’s got us by the balls and won’t let go. What do we do then? It’s a hard question to answer, especially when your heart is pounding, when your mind is racing, when you feel like…
“My greatest weakness is that I’m a perfectionist, haha.” How many actual perfectionists have said this in job interviews before? If only that was a joke. If only my fear of imperfection (an outgrowth of my OCD) didn’t cause me to procrastinate so much that I don’t get anything done in the first place. It’s taken a lot of work over the years to try…
MDD (Major Depressive Disorder) is something I’ve suffered from my entire life. We always talk about MDD as a disease, but what does that mean really? Does the disease model make a difference in how something like this affects my life? It does. MDD as a Disease Defining MDD as a disease means that it has nothing to do with circumstance. It means that I…
Anxiety neurosis, also known as free-floating anxiety or Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is easily the worst kind of anxiety you can have. Here’s what it looks like. Something’s wrong. Something’s wrong and I can’t breathe I can’t breathe I can’t breathe I— I just need to go outside. Maybe I need a drink. Damn I need a Xanax. Maybe it’s nothing. Maybe it’s because I…
Boundaries are rules that we set with other people. These rules govern what they can and cannot do to or with us, but they also describe the consequences of what will happen if those boundaries are crossed. Setting boundaries is healthy, and for most people, this is just sort of done naturally. They’re happy to tell you what’s okay and what’s not okay with them.…
Since I was a kid, I’ve had OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder). OCD and intrusive thoughts can manifest in a variety of ways. Here’s what mine looks like. This house isn’t clean. This house isn’t clean. I need to write. I need to work. I need to make money but it’s not clean it’s not clean it’s not clean it’s– I have to clean. Did I…
If you’re a tweaker, you probably have a pretty damn good idea what substance-induced anxiety feels like. Anxiety and addiction are as closely related as depression and addiction. One usually follows or causes the other. Many of us use to self medicate and get rid of the anxiety, and the addiction follows. For many more, anxiety is the result of using way too much, and…
“I don’t want to exist,” is so much different from “I want to die,” and actually being suicidal, but normal people… well, they’ll just never get it. Depression is a bitch, and I’ve suffered from it my whole life. It’s hard to explain to someone who’s never suffered from it. It’s hard to explain the difference between being depressed and being suicidal. It’s even harder…