Stress Center Peer Support

I am having a really hard time right now. I woke up yesterday morning with a flu and felt terrible, like my body is shutting down.i feel hot and cold and get chills. slept only 4 hrs and felt very out of it. like derealization. . . a lot. I also felt VERY depressed too. I wonder if it was because of me being sick?? so than i made myself get out and do something because when i am depressed i need to get out . that was probably a bad idea. I felt worse. when i came back home to rest and sleep my flu was way worse. I felt.feel very achey all over, so fatigue very weak, nauseated and i threw up and totally out of it. . more so than usual. . . the derealization and feeling like i am going crazy was super high. worse than ever really. I was feeling unfamiliar to myself and everything. So not only am i very sick but now my anxiety is super high. I took a Dayquil and than an hour later an Ativan because i felt panicy and i cant take Nyquil because it makes me feel weird. . my friend mentioned that Ativan is a downer and Dayquil is an upper and maybe that a reason why i feel so bad too.. . i don't know but is it possible to get a lot of unreality feelings during a flu?? I think my depression today really made me feel worse too because my depression leads to anxiety and panic. . I am just totally scared and sick here. Its 4 am and i have hardly slept. is this normal????

Hi Holly, I think it is the flu. When I feel "sick" I always relate it to anxiety/panic/depression. The feelings are so similar. Try to do some positive/realistic self talk. It is flu symptoms, it's ok to get sick and feel bad, it will go away in a couple of days, the flu gives you these feelings, etc. Good Luck

thanks iwasgohn,
i just hate feeling mentally weird because of being sick. .

Holly,

Hi,
First off, you are sick! Lots of people are getting the flu right now. Your going to feel awful, plus it just magnifies your anxiety and depression.
Also Dayquil can make some people more anxious...you just might be one of them... I am. Plus then you took the other stuff...no wonder you feel bad.

Be patient, we need to keep working on our negative-positive dialogue. It's gonna be a process but in due time we will reap what we sew.

i guess now i am just scared that it isnt the sickness and that its something else that is making me feel out of it and derealization and i just want it to go away!!! I hate this feeling. its scary. what if nothing ever feels familiar again??

Holly, I know it is easy to say but hard to do.....Try to stay positive...I am very sensitive to medication too. If I take anything with psudophed in it I feel very jittery and that makes everything worse..I have tried Corricidin HBP. It is over the counter and it does not make me feel jittery...give that a try. It is good to push yourself during this program, but not when you have the flu..Your body needs rest now so tell yourself that and get better....Gamer

yeah its very hard to stay positive right now because i am able to work on the program and i feel quite hopeless for some reason. . like my depression has sky rocketed since getting sick. that is so weird to me. does that happen?

I think that makes sense...if you are physically sick, then you also feel sick and depressed inside...Us anxiety people always can feel bad inside and when it is a physical illness that makes it worse!! I think it would be like not sleeping at all during the night and then feeling like crap mentally the next day. The snowball effect sort of....as I stated in the last post the Corricidin HBP was great and it is made for people who are sensitive to decongestants..mainly people with High Blood Pressure--HBP. I dont have High Blood pressure, but it does help when I feel achy and do not want to take anything that will make me feel amped up. I also think your friend is correct when they said it might have been a mistake to take DayQuil and then Ativan because they have the direct opposite effect. We are super sensitive people and this is one of those times when that is not the best thing. you will get better..Hope this helps...rest and use the relaxation tape that came with the program...Gamer