Stress Center Peer Support

Hi Folks,

First, let me thank everyone who may read this that I have found reading and posting to this forum has been of great help to me. Thanks!

Well, on this beautiful Sunday morning (at least here is SE Michigan it's nice), I thought I'd share a story of what I considered a victory for me yesterday.

I rec'd my program Friday afternoon and decided to watch the intro and 5 steps to feel better fast video yesterday morning. What a great thing to provide people just starting the program! Well, anyway, it helped a lot cuz a big day was plannned by my wife and I that I knew would be hard for me.

I agreed to go to my wife's office with her yesterday to help her get caught up on some work so she'd not be burried on Monday (she'd been on a bus. trip during the week). I felt very anxious about this cuz her office is far from the house, it's not one of my "safe places", and I wanted to be able to help her like I said and not have a panic attack or something instead. Well, I felt anxious but ended up OK and able to keep my promise of helping her.

After working, my wife suggested that we stop in the large outlet mall next to her office for a little shopping. Oh crap! A mall?!! Since my panic attacks have started, I have not been in one. Now, I am a man, so I normally don't like hours and hours shopping , but I do like to shop some. Plus, I needed a couple new dress shirts for work. I said, "OK, I think I'm OK for that".

Now this is one of those very large malls where most stores are outlets, but it's indoors. To walk all around it, it must be 1.5+ miles. If you live in SE Michigan, it's called Great Lakes Crossing. It's one of the Mills malls. Like in Philly, it's called Franklin Mills or in Nashville it's called Opry Mills. Anyway, it's BIG and there were a lot of people.

As we walked to entrance and into the mall, I could feel some of my anxious symptoms starting (weak knees, a little derealization, etc.), but I plowed on. I remember Lucinda saying in the intro DVD, "Don't run from the panic. What is it that's really bothering you?". I kept repeating these things to myself as we strolled the mall. I got into the moment, trying some things on, etc. My wife ended up getting me a couple nice shirts for work from Brooks Brothers for helping her at work. What a treat! I can do this. Well, we continued walking the whole mall talking and enjoying a day at the mall like we used to. I was glad I did it and made it. I can't say I was "100% normal" through the whole thing, but it was good to accomplish.

The rest of the day we planned to exercise some and have some friends over for dinner and cards. I felt so good after "surviving" the mall that I didn't really feel much anxiety the rest of the day. (The rollerblading we did when we got home went a long way for that!)

This may not seem like much, but it felt really good to have a "normal Saturday" full of activity with my wife. That's the first one we've really had in the last 1 1/2 months. I really think just watching that intro DVD helped me yesterday. I cannot wait to see what the full program will do for me.

Thanks for listening!

"They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint." Isaiah 40:31

That was awesome. I can relate after the 1st videos i started to feel better too. This is the start of a new you! Way to go! Keep posting , we love to read about positive things!

Hi NBGuy,

Welcome to this website and to the program. Let me congratulate you for your successes yesterday- you did truly awesome and inspired me to want to do the same.

For me, going to my wife's office across town, going to the huge mall and to a restaurant is a challenge due to my anxiety/panic troubles. I am more limited than you are it sounds like but this just means I have more work to do on myself and the program is definitely the way to go in conquering this stuff.

Unfortunately, my limits make it hard for me to 'be there' totally for my wife and I feel like a lead weight she has to drag around. I know I disappoint her a lot because of my lack of willingness to do things but she is also a great coach and supporter to me. I am so blessed to have her with me and it motivates me more to want to overcome my challenges.

I think you will come to see that it is how we think that causes all our problems. Yes, you feel weird, spacey and afraid of the symptoms of anxiety- but they are just feelings and you can let go of them. It takes practice to turn things around because it took a lot of practice to get ourselves in this anxiety/panic mess to begin with. It doesn't make us 'flawed' or mean something is wrong with us basically. It is a human thing that many many people go through all the time. And you now have the tools to understand it as well as overcome it.

For me I see anxiety as a blessing. It's just a speed bump I ran into in the course of living and it is helping me to grow in a more positive way. You have to keep moving ahead despite the fact that this process is like "two steps forward, one step back". Just keep the faith and keep pushing out there. Moreover, keep pushing the thinking toward positive and don't beat yourself up about this. It is just anxiety and won't last.

I can tell you are going to do great with this- best of luck to you!

yay! I am so proud of you =) that is so great to here that you enjoyed a day with you wife! I am so happy for you and I hope things keep getting easier and easier for you!..You inspired me to want to go to the mall agian lol..Keep up the good work and God Bless!

Congrats NBGuy!

Hey engine 2, just wanted to say hello. You work on 2 way radios, or are you an EMS type. I started the program recently, and am understanding things a little better. My goal is to beat the depression, get off the meds. and begin getting on the planes again. (I work for the Dept. Of State) and we have 260 embassies I support. I'm on a desk job in DC for now, but hope to get rolling again soon.
Hankster

Hey NBGuy,

That is fantastic!!! You sound like you were downplaying a little. Don't! It sounds like you had a HUGE victory! I loved hearing it!

NBGuy
Good to hear about you accomplishment. Congratulations.

Wow! You should be so proud of yourself. It's hard to go out there and do things with anxiety and you went and did it! Congratulations. You should log this into a journal. Keep it up, it can only get better from here on out.

Congratulations on your victory!

Yay you! Look what you can do and what we can accomplish! Keep up the good work...and you will keep moving in the right direction!