Stress Center Peer Support

Over the last few years I have had most of the obsessive scary thoughts that are so common to those who have shared them hear. I have come to realize that they are not so weird or uncommon as I originally thought.

My current issue is that I am in a men's therapy group that is led by a PhD. I have been encouraged by the therpist to deal with alot of the old issues I have from childhood. I have been doing so but now I am struggling more than ever with anxiety and OCD thoughts. They have never been this bad. I remember Lucinda talking about how it is not necessary or advised to deal with old issues like this when you are dealing with anxiety. Anyone else have any experience they can share that is similar to my delimma?

Hi...while in therapy for anxiety disorder, I also ran into the same thing as you. We seemed to always be dragging things up from my past. Doing this actually made me more anxious than I already was and I then began to obsess about these thoughts. The therapist also told me that I did not need to just feel the panic, which made me afraid to panic again. I have found that Lucinda's way works the best for me as far as anxious feelings go. My point is that therapists mean well, but there is a big difference in having went through anxiety problems and just studying about them in books. Different things work for different people. Sometimes when forced to look at the things in our life, it is enough to produce anxiety on its own anyway. I am not telling you to quit therapy, I am just telling you there are other options and you have a choice to pick the one you feel works best for you. Have you shown the therapist the program? Maybe he/she could incorporate that into your sessions. Good luck and best wishes!