It has been lovely to see you post. There are a few of us here who experience high levels of anxiety and PTSD. I don't know your story, but Nate you may well be experiencing accumulative stress, grief and loss. It is reasonable and expected that we would experience a certain amount of stress from M difficulties and BD, maybe for you there has been other unresolved issues from the past, that is making you more vulnerable to a more severe response. Your account of being in warzones, suggests that this could be a possiblity.
It is also not uncommon for people who have high levels of resilency and power and can compartmentise emotions to become overwhelmed when a significantly emotional crisis occurs. The loss of control over a situation is very challenging because they usually have the skills abiliities and wherewithall to influence any situation into the positive for themselves. DB drop whips that power away from us faster than lightening.
This potentially will be a steep learning curve Nate. But keep doing what you are doing. There are some amazing men on the boards here who have been where you are. They have been emotional and vulnerable and as overwhelmed as you are feeling. But they have prevailed!!!! They a good solid, caring masculine men who now have open and emotionally available to themselves, their partners and children and to others. I really don't understand at times, why they don't see what I do. I would be snapping them back and never letting them go.
The reward of this work Nate is high. Hang in there.
I will keeping popping by to see you now that I know you are another sufferer of this dreaded thing called anxiety. If you read my most recent posts you will see that I am on the bounce up from an epsiode earlier in the week.
You will find Nate that the attacks reduce in severity over time. Panic attacks first - which BTW are one of the worst experiences and would never wish them on anyone. They will become anxiety, and then attacks will become further and further apart. You may indeed be lucky and they may resolve quickly once you feel more in control over your sitch.
I don't know if you have done any reading on mindfulness. But this has been a life saver for me. Sometimes I am far to triggered to practice what I know helps but if I get it in good time I can reduce my symptoms considerably. I have found hypnosis incrediably helpful.
Keep coming here, someone is always here to talk you down, even if its just some casual chatting about nothing.
I see the people who are posting on your thread. You have good people already watching over you Nate. You cared for and supported here.
