Stress Center Peer Support

I finished the program over a year ago and off my Xanax too. I'm doing ok. Knock on wood,no panic attacks. But I still have my moments where I get episodes. These consist of anxious feelings or thoughts. I then get myself obsessed on a feeling or thought. When will I be recovered from this condition and how long does it take? When someone is considered recovered do they still have these feelings and thoughts?

I'd say you are recovered not when you don't get the feelings and thoughts, but when you DO, but you don't care and don't let it stop you from living your life, so you do what you want even tho' you have those feelings.

As newrunner says, it's not getting these feelings and thoughts, everyone gets these at some point or other, it's how you (or we) react to them.

If we get an anxious or obsessive thought and dwell on it, compulse over it, to the extent that it interferes with our normal living of life, then we have not learned to cope with these thoughts and are not "recovered". If we get these thoughts (and everyone does) but they don't interfere with our lives then we can say that we can handle anything that comes our way and could be considered "recovered".

I hate using the word "recovered". Is an ex-alcoholic ever "recovered"? Is an ex-smoker or ex-drug addict ever "recovered"? Is an ex-gambling addict every recovered? They will tell you NO. It CAN be a life long battle, a struggle. I'm not trying to group people in one big bunch but, hey, there is always the chance that people with anxiety and/or depression can "fall off the wagon".

This has happened to me. I had severe agoraphobia twice in my life and severe panic attacks. I overcame, but now I am retaking the program as I have had much anxiousness and stress in my life over the past few years. I am not where I was before (thankfully) but I need to revisit some coping skills. Was I "recovered" before? I thought I was, but probably was not fully "recovered", but who is to say. It is such a tough thing to describe.