Is anyone suffering physical effects from their anxiety?

Posted by blue717 @blue717, May 14 12:54pm

I'm 72. My husband is a narcissist and has mild dementia. He has gotten so mean and miserable to live with, it is affecting me with sweating, pain, jitters, upset stomachs and my mind that is just racing with thoughts 24/7. I go to doctors and they just want to give me drugs! I have finally realized that this man cares nothing about me or anything else unless it involves him directly. I feel like I'm heading for my 19th nervous break down. This isn't how I want to spend my final years.

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Depression & Anxiety Support Group.

I get it! Living with a narcissist can be soul sucking. Do you have the option of being free of it?
Therapy for support?

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@blue717 -

Regardless of what the cause is of anxiety, it is all physical. Always. Emotional and physical are not separate.

I ended up with anxiety after my experience with doctors in the medical system and some of the most useless individuals that are narcissistic by nature and profession. All caused more emotional/physical anxiety.

Best advice is to seek help of someone with whom you feel heard and safe. And work on resilience. Do some type of physical strengthening daily as this will also help you feel good. Both emotional/physical go hand in hand and anxiety is physical.

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I have had terrible anxiety-related physical problems my whole life.

From incredible upset stomachs as a schoolkid to a near-complete physical breakdown from a stressful job (more than once), anxiety is a real killer.

Anxiety was no doubt a contributing factor to the stroke I had in 2018.

What has helped me tremendously is something called Emotional Freedom Technique, or EFT. It uses tapping on certain acupressure points. It has gained enormous popularity in recent years. It's easy, drug-free, harmless, and can be very cheap. In fact, there are tons of free videos on YouTube to help you out.

Here's a good example:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ig6QRNUTdY&pp=ygUcZWZ0IHRhcHBpbmcgYW54aWV0eSBjaGlmZm1hbg%3D%3D

I hope EFT helps you.

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I thought that I was reading something I wrote. I would love to share ideas with you. ❤️

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Resources for Anxiety on SmartPatients.com. You will have to register with SmartPatients.com to read all the ideas.

https://www.smartpatients.com/conversations/resources-for-anxiety#top
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As Viktor Frankl writes, there is a choice in every situation. The choice is how we respond.

I used to choose to get caught up in my mother’s raging behavior. Now I pause, state how I am feeling, and make a choice about how I want to respond.

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@aczatx47131

As Viktor Frankl writes, there is a choice in every situation. The choice is how we respond.

I used to choose to get caught up in my mother’s raging behavior. Now I pause, state how I am feeling, and make a choice about how I want to respond.

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@aczatx47131 -

Emotional=Physical

I allowed a medical doctor to recommend a procedure based off his catastrophic verbiage which then induced anxiety physical feelings in me. I truly thought my physical sensations that were not reall health issues, were something that needed immediate attention from a recommended procedure.

This happens all of the time in Western Medicine and people need to be aware that most doctor visits are based off anxiety sensations. You either have a knowledgeable doctor whom will recognize this or an inept provider who causes more anxiety in this situation.

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@gravity3

I get it! Living with a narcissist can be soul sucking. Do you have the option of being free of it?
Therapy for support?

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It sure can. Nothing would make me happier than to be able to walk away, but at 72, there aren't many careers open to me, and with the price of things I would have to live in a tent. I'm trying to find therapy, but even getting someone to call you back is next to impossible. Everything is so darn difficult. But you for taking the time to respond, good to know someone is out there.

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@blue717

It sure can. Nothing would make me happier than to be able to walk away, but at 72, there aren't many careers open to me, and with the price of things I would have to live in a tent. I'm trying to find therapy, but even getting someone to call you back is next to impossible. Everything is so darn difficult. But you for taking the time to respond, good to know someone is out there.

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While you are waiting to get a therapist onboard. I have found a number of lectures in you tube regarding narcissistic behavior and strategies for those in relationship with a narcissist. Sorry but can't recall exact titles.

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@blue717

You might want to check out the Caregivers support group on Connect for tips on how other caregivers deal with the demands and still taking care of themself.
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/group/caregivers/

Maybe start with discussion on Introducing yourself and mention the issues your dealing with:
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/meet-fellow-caregivers-introduce-yourself/

Do you have someone who can help or at least give you a break?

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