I’m having bouts of Anxiety – Need advice .

[jippytum]

Im impressed at the genuine responses to this post. Makes a change from the sarcasm and trolling. 

[1FinickyOne]

Blackmores Hyperiforte... which as I understand is St. John's Wort - - 

 

I have had some occasional event induced anxiety - - when I feel the nervousness coming on, I pop one of these and within an hour, it is gone. Last time I took one was probably 2-3 months ago... 

 

good luck. 

[JimTripper]

Sounds like a mid life crisis. Men can have them later on, but normally happens in 50's. Get books on it and try to work it through. Take a vacation away from family and home to fish with guy friends of mid life crisis age and get out of your head.

[scubascuba3]

15 minutes ago, JimTripper said:

Sounds like a mid life crisis. Men can have them later on, but normally happens in 50's. Get books on it and try to work it through. Take a vacation away from family and home to fish and think alone or with guy friends. Some nice beaches and cabins on koh tarutao island.

 

If you feel suicidal though, don't go into nature alone, but stay around others (for most people).

Your advice is pretty lame, reminds of a mother in law who used to tell her grandkids to play in the road and give them knives to play with

[JimTripper]

 ????

[mamypoko]

google:  holding thumb for anxiety

I saw a video about this the other day. If it helps, great. If not, no big waste of time.

Good luck!

[cdemundo]

I think there are a lot of good suggestions here.

IMHO often there is no one "silver bullet" that cures anxiety or compulsive worrying.

 

As others have noted, not all professional interventions involve drug treatments.

The "talking therapy" can be helpful in my experience.

 

I attended a seminar on the "Common Cognitive Distortions" for my work and it helped me.

With a little reading on the topic I found that there are a small number of these errors in thinking

or perception that are generally recognized.

"Catastrophic thinking" as another poster has discussed is a very common one, and one that has plagued me all of my life.

 

But awareness can help.

 

Quick search returned some examples:

 

"A List of the Most Common Cognitive Distortions

• All-or-Nothing Thinking / Polarized Thinking. ... 
• Overgeneralization. ... 
• Mental Filter. ... 
• Disqualifying the Positive. ... 
• Jumping to Conclusions – Mind Reading. ... 
• Jumping to Conclusions – Fortune Telling. ... 
• Magnification (Catastrophizing) or Minimization. ... 
• Emotional Reasoning."
• https://positivepsychology.com/cognitive-distortions/

 

You might check out some articles on the "Common Cognitive Distortions"; no need to shell our for a seminar unless you think it would help.

 

Best of luck to you.

[cdemundo]

1 hour ago, scubascuba3 said:

Your advice is pretty lame, reminds of a mother in law who used to tell her grandkids to play in the road and give them knives to play with

I would be reluctant to make a judgement like this.

It seems that any solution that you can think of works for somebody.

[stoner]

getting old and seeing the fragility of ones own life is challenging for all. 

[Moonlover]

6 hours ago, save the frogs said:

tackle each problem individually.

 

you are worring about putting on weight? are you? get a treadmill. 

 

growing old ... find some literature to prepare yourself for the inevitable, maybe some buddhist texts ...

 

rising cost of living - be more frugal. read up on minimalism.

 

marital situation - we have some relationship experts on AN.

 

Some good suggestions here, but I don't agree with the treadmill idea. A daily walk in nature, if possible, is I believe much more beneficial. I walk for at least an hour every  day, weather permitting. 

[CenThai]

Neurofeedback is a non-invasive therapy to regulate brain waves states, which could be a cause for stress, anxiety and an over-activated amygdala. Feel free to PM me.

[OneMoreFarang]

22 hours ago, Captain Disorderly said:

At this stage I’m not really interested in going to see a psychiatrist , who would no doubt prescribe some Antidepressant drugs .

A psychiatrist will likely give you drugs.

A psychologist talks with you and tries to make you feel better without taking drugs.  

[OneMoreFarang]

I learned the following system many years ago, I think there are several names for it.

 

A) What is the problem? 

Don't answer with things like "the traffic outside". Answer with something like: I feel angry and helpless when I see the trucks drive by fast in front of our house. I worry about my health and I worry about the dangers for children.

 

B) Is it important for you?

If no, then don't think about it anymore.

I.e. maybe you read about a war somewhere in the rest of the world. Yes, it is sad. But is it important for you? Likely not.

 

C) Can you change it (in principle)

I.e. if it rains every day, accept that you can't change that. It doesn't make sense to think about something you can't change.

I you can change it, then think about how. And do it! That will make you feel better and if maybe you will solve the problem.

 

I learned this when I started working many years ago and I internalized it. I don't worry about unimportant things and things which I can't change.

And if there is a problem to solve, then I think about how to solve it and do it.

Is that always successful? No. But I try, and just that makes me feel better. And maybe after a while I start with A) (see above) again.

[JackGats]

L-Theanine before going to bed.

 

DHEA in the morning (but read the litterature about possible risks first).

 

Some sun exposure every day for vitamin D.

 

Avoid cannabis or take only in very low dosage.

 

Getting plenty of sleep - if necessary with naps in the middle of the day - is essential, but alas difficult in Thailand. I'm writing this bracing myself for yet another day with the din of grinding machines. 

[fittobethaied]

20 hours ago, ChaiyaTH said:

I have the exact same symptoms any time my extensions are due. When i leave thailand to another country, its gone like snow with full sun.

 

why? Because all uncertain and potential issues are due to TH.

 

i know many who have same.

A companion to high anxiety is OCD, obsessive compulsive disorder. People with OCD do not like "change", and we don't function well in an environment where there is total chaos around us. This country is full of uncertainly, inconsistency and out and out lawlessness. Nobody has any respect for rules and regulation and laws, and nothing ever goes as planned. Murphy's Law is alive and thriving in Thailand....namely, "if anything can go wrong, it will"! Anytime I tackle a task of any sort, I always have a Plan A, B and C because I know that when I'm dealing with people that live in a bubble and don't understand critical thinking, reason or logic, then my plans are destined to be thwarted.

There is also a spiritual component to the anxiety caused by living here in the Land of Scams. Less than 5% of the population claim to be Christians, and most of those believe in a Heinz 57 type of Christianity that is laced with ancestor worship, superstition, belief in ghosts and Animism. By in large most of the population have "hearts of stone", cannot be trusted and we are surrounded on all sides by evil which can affect our peace from day to day. 

I too recently flew out of Thailand for a two-week vacation in the US, and as soon as I boarded that plane, the anxiety left me as if a millstone had been taken from around my neck. 

[fittobethaied]

I too suffer from high anxiety, and I found relief by taking Propranolol 10mg 3 times daily. It is a beta-blocker that is prescribed for heart disease but has several off label uses including anxiety. Even if you don't take it regularly, try taking one to two pills an hour before going to a stressful event like renewing your extension of stay. It certainly works for me. You can buy it at any pharmacy for 1 Baht per tab. 

https://psychcentral.com/anxiety/is-propranolol-recommended-for-anxiety-symptoms#does-it-work

[Captain Disorderly]

First a big thank you to every one who took the time to comment , your recommendations and suggestions are really appreciated and valued . 

 

After reading every comment posted , I think the first and easiest option I’m going to try would be to take some natural supplements .

From what Ive now read it seems that there are several recommended natural supplements that help to reduce anxiety .

1. Ashwaganda
2. L-theanine.

  

Should the above turn out no to help my personal situation then I will of course try other options that were posted here. 

 

This morning as soon as I got out of bed , my mind and thoughts were racing about things that I had to do later in the day , my wife as normal asked me how was I feeling  , and I blurted out that I would have felt a lot a  better if I had just stayed asleep and never woke up. 

 

As we sat eating breakfast , my mind was still racing constantly having thoughts , and at one point my eyes started to well up and I felt like crying . 

Again thanks every one for you kind advice , In the future I will post back on how the natural supplements option works out .

 

 

Again Many Thanks 

 

[JackGats]

3 hours ago, Moonlover said:

Some good suggestions here, but I don't agree with the treadmill idea. A daily walk in nature, if possible, is I believe much more beneficial. I walk for at least an hour every  day, weather permitting. 

Where do you find walkable "nature" in Thailand? Walks in nature trails in national parks are expensive for foreigners. Not to speaks of the stifling heat.

[Moonlover]

11 minutes ago, JackGats said:

4 hours ago, Moonlover said:

Some good suggestions here, but I don't agree with the treadmill idea. A daily walk in nature, if possible, is I believe much more beneficial. I walk for at least an hour every  day, weather permitting. 

 

11 minutes ago, JackGats said:

Where do you find walkable "nature" in Thailand? Walks in nature trails in national parks are expensive for foreigners. Not to speaks of the stifling heat.

Let me first say that I did qualify my suggestion with 'if possible'. I do appreciate not everyone has access to nature. I'm fortunate in that regard. I live in the countryside and have plenty of options. Where there's farmland, there has to be access and where the farmers go, so go I.

[Sheryl]

Unhelpful/trolling posts have been removed

[ChrisKC]

There are a number of things you can do:

 

Think about if the "problems" exist at this time or if they are about fears of the future.

 

If the problems are real, at what level of severity.

 

Discard those "problems' that are outside of your control - they won't resolve by just worrying about them.

 

Prioritise the most important of the problem(s) and consider what you can actually do to minimise or even resolve it/them

 

One of the biggest effects of anxiety is insomnia and/or sleep apnea - when you reduce anxiety, sleeping patterns can be expected to improve; the benefits

can be much more than you would think.

 

Three suggestions:

 

Try short periods of time, simply sitting still and totally relaxing. Sit on an upright chair, close your eyes, be completely quiet; say nothing, do nothing for a minimum of just 5 minutes. If this works, do it three or four times a day. Then try for 10 minutes. If you wish, do some deep breathing. Inhale through the nose, hold for three seconds, exhale slowly through the mouth, repeat for about two minutes.

 

Go to YouTube, there are thousands of people there with videos by professionals and those with similar situations as yours. that are keen to help, keep going until you see what seems to help and that resonate with you.

 

Try some light walking exercise: you don't need to go anywhere. Whatever space you have around you, use it to just get your circulation moving and some oxygen to the brain. Start with five minutes, build up as you become accustomed to it.

 

Develop some self belief that you can overcome your feelings of anxiety - the most difficult person in the world to beat is yourself!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Enoon]

2 hours ago, Captain Disorderly said:

First a big thank you to every one who took the time to comment , your recommendations and suggestions are really appreciated and valued . 

 

After reading every comment posted , I think the first and easiest option I’m going to try would be to take some natural supplements .

From what Ive now read it seems that there are several recommended natural supplements that help to reduce anxiety .

1. Ashwaganda
2. L-theanine.

  

Should the above turn out no to help my personal situation then I will of course try other options that were posted here. 

 

This morning as soon as I got out of bed , my mind and thoughts were racing about things that I had to do later in the day , my wife as normal asked me how was I feeling  , and I blurted out that I would have felt a lot a  better if I had just stayed asleep and never woke up. 

 

As we sat eating breakfast , my mind was still racing constantly having thoughts , and at one point my eyes started to well up and I felt like crying . 

Again thanks every one for you kind advice , In the future I will post back on how the natural supplements option works out .

 

 

Again Many Thanks 

 

Everything about your thoughts sounds very familiar.

 

Seems to me that many men at, or getting to, your age have similar experiences......I know several......me included.

 

Nothing you stuff down your throat will deal with the core issue(s).

 

Get some therapy or take the time to check some of the many online articles that outline the basics and will point you in the right direction.

 

Unfortunately for men therapy is the most difficult pill to swallow....at least one of my friends seems to be gradually cracking up (accelerated during the last six months) because he thinks he is too tough for it........"I KNOW WHATS WRONG WITH ME!".

 

I think he may need to get worse before he comes round to it.

 

 

 

[TimeMachine]

On 10/9/2023 at 4:58 PM, proton said:

Tramadol and whisky helps, but not very day

Tramadol opiate is very hard to stop if you've been on it for a while. I'd not recommend that to anyone unless an obsolute last resort because it does work well. At 73 you've had a good run. My over the top problems started 40's. 

[Bangel72]

It took me a while to recognise I had certain anxiety triggers, normally other people and I didnt deal with them, then  other smaller things that should not cause anxiety also started building up.

 

Dealing with the primary causes are key even to the extent of completely moving some people out of your life if they are the trigger, that can be tough as even that step can bring more anxiety but it was the only thing that worked for me.

 

Health, fitness and avoiding alcohol could also likely help. If you are a regular drinker that is tough as initially your brain can go into overdrive and you feel you have even more anxiety as you shift physical state.

 

I also tried CBD to take the edge off and help sleep, good nights sleep was also a significant factor for me.

 

talk to someone about dealing with the concerns you have, try and establish if you have any specific triggers or patterns, maybe do it one by one to remove those or get comfortable with them if you cannot do anything about them.

 

I still get anxiety but its not the shaking debiliating type like a witch devil is sitting on my shoulders going on and on the world is woe any more, the witch is not completely gone but the distance made the world of difference to find a bit of peace and deal with the things in my control.

[Tookea]

Make a list - the stuff you have no control over goes to the bottom, sort the other stuff easy at top, hard at bottom. Work on 2 every day (even if it walk to 7-11 and back).  As  others have said work on your posture.  The point is to get aimlessness out of your life.  And to the extent possible get negative people out of your life. Youll be surprised how soon this begins making a difference.

[daveAustin]

4 hours ago, fittobethaied said:

A companion to high anxiety is OCD, obsessive compulsive disorder. People with OCD do not like "change", and we don't function well in an environment where there is total chaos around us. This country is full of uncertainly, inconsistency and out and out lawlessness. Nobody has any respect for rules and regulation and laws, and nothing ever goes as planned. Murphy's Law is alive and thriving in Thailand....namely, "if anything can go wrong, it will"! Anytime I tackle a task of any sort, I always have a Plan A, B and C because I know that when I'm dealing with people that live in a bubble and don't understand critical thinking, reason or logic, then my plans are destined to be thwarted.

There is also a spiritual component to the anxiety caused by living here in the Land of Scams. Less than 5% of the population claim to be Christians, and most of those believe in a Heinz 57 type of Christianity that is laced with ancestor worship, superstition, belief in ghosts and Animism. By in large most of the population have "hearts of stone", cannot be trusted and we are surrounded on all sides by evil which can affect our peace from day to day. 

I too recently flew out of Thailand for a two-week vacation in the US, and as soon as I boarded that plane, the anxiety left me as if a millstone had been taken from around my neck. 

Reverse for me… any anxiety lifts when I board that plane for here. 
 

Op, easier said than done, but observing one’s thoughts (as if the one doing the listening is higher than the one doing the babbling, and not judging them) to quieten the mind can be really powerful. The human mind has become an utter egocentric monster always trying to take one away from the present and you cannot stop it thinking, but merely watching what you are thinking can take the power away from sour thoughts. Have a read of Eckhart Tolle’s Power of Now. 
 

Basics like hydration, exercise, diet, sleep and decent nose breathing are a given. 
 

 

[Somjot]

On 10/9/2023 at 11:29 AM, Captain Disorderly said:

 

Over the past few months Ive started to have bouts of ongoing anxiety , where my mind is constantly racing non stop and thinking about many things in my life. I seem to be fixated and continually worrying about things like money / health / martial situation / Visa / daughter / rising cost of living / growing old at 74 / putting on weight / not sleeping well / Etc Etc .

It feels like my brain is a glass of water that is full and constantly overflowing over the side of the glass .

Ive talked to my Thai wife about my concerns and her answer was to go and see a ‘’ Head Doctor ‘’ 

At this stage I’m not really interested in going to see a psychiatrist , who would no doubt prescribe some Antidepressant drugs .

I was wondering if any one here has had any anxiety issues and if so what did you take to help the situation .  I was wondering about natural supplements as a possibility .

Thanks . 

3 hours ago, Captain Disorderly said:

First a big thank you to every one who took the time to comment , your recommendations and suggestions are really appreciated and valued . 

 

After reading every comment posted , I think the first and easiest option I’m going to try would be to take some natural supplements .

From what Ive now read it seems that there are several recommended natural supplements that help to reduce anxiety .

1. Ashwaganda
2. L-theanine. 

Should the above turn out no to help my personal situation then I will of course try other options that were posted here. 

 

This morning as soon as I got out of bed , my mind and thoughts were racing about things that I had to do later in the day , my wife as normal asked me how was I feeling  , and I blurted out that I would have felt a lot a  better if I had just stayed asleep and never woke up. 

As we sat eating breakfast , my mind was still racing constantly having thoughts , and at one point my eyes started to well up and I felt like crying . 
Again thanks every one for you kind advice , In the future I will post back on how the natural supplements option works out .

 

Again Many Thanks 

.

First, you must understand that your anxiety does not necessarily have to be any kind of disease or malfunctioning hormone system.

 

Let me explain that:

 

We live in a modern world, with convenient shops at every corner and at least in our countries social systems that will protect us from the worst, but genetically there is no difference between us and our ancestors from Thousands of years ago.

 

And this is by the way the main reason for a certain problem between many Thai – Farang couples: while the Farang is constantly trying to plan and to secure their future, the Thai has more of a laissez-faire attitude, which will drive the Farang crazy and make him think that the Thai is stupid, which again results in the same thoughts about the Farang on the Thai side.

 

But both couldn't be farer from the truth.

 

Thailand is a warm tropical country and if you are healthy and agile you just can`t die from starvation. There is always some fruit, animal, or nutrient-rich root you can eat and that all year long.

 

Not so in other countries.

 

Those with the devil-may-care attitude who did not hunt and gather enough food in summer and autumn to survive the hard winter, well let's say, they never reproduced and disappeared from history.

 

Keep this in mind for the next time you want to accuse your Thai wife of being too carefree.

 

Your anxieties are most likely a genetical survival instinct, which are trying to tell you something.

 

Maybe, as it has been said before, you should try to deal with every problem, starting with the one that bothers you the most.

 

Or maybe you are just feeling too worried because your life partner does not worry enough from your inner point of view.

 

If all these points can be excluded you might be suffering from a hormonal problem, because the symptoms you described are a textbook example for testosterone deficiency, which is very common in your age.

 

Forget those natural supplements you mentioned; they're not going to help you. They're just food supplements.

 

On 10/9/2023 at 2:21 PM, ChaiyaTH said:

I have the exact same symptoms any time my extensions are due. When i leave thailand to another country, its gone like snow with full sun.

 

why? Because all uncertain and potential issues are due to TH.

 

i know many who have same.

I hope I'm not being impolite, but since I read your post there is a nagging question I can't get out of my head:

 

Why do you and those you know, who have the same symptoms, keep coming back?

[save the frogs]

4 hours ago, JackGats said:

Not to speaks of the stifling heat.

need to wake up early

[swimmer]

On 10/9/2023 at 11:29 AM, Captain Disorderly said:

 

Over the past few months Ive started to have bouts of ongoing anxiety , where my mind is constantly racing non stop and thinking about many things in my life. I seem to be fixated and continually worrying about things like money / health / martial situation / Visa / daughter / rising cost of living / growing old at 74 / putting on weight / not sleeping well / Etc Etc .

 

It feels like my brain is a glass of water that is full and constantly overflowing over the side of the glass .

 

Ive talked to my Thai wife about my concerns and her answer was to go and see a ‘’ Head Doctor ‘’ 

 

At this stage I’m not really interested in going to see a psychiatrist , who would no doubt prescribe some Antidepressant drugs .

 

I was wondering if any one here has had any anxiety issues and if so what did you take to help the situation .  I was wondering about natural supplements as a possibility .

 

 

Thanks . 

 

.

So, those are appropriate existential concerns for an Ex-Pat male age 74 in SEA. Security-Money, Health, Marital Situation/ Daughter.- Let's be frank; End of Life. Sometimes , there are incurable problems.  Please be smart- Consult a Mental Health Professional with an EX-PAT Clientele. You probably need an Anti-Depressant which targets Anxiety. Your problems may not go away but your fixation on them may subside.  

[bignok]

2 hours ago, Tookea said:

Make a list - the stuff you have no control over goes to the bottom, sort the other stuff easy at top, hard at bottom. Work on 2 every day (even if it walk to 7-11 and back).  As  others have said work on your posture.  The point is to get aimlessness out of your life.  And to the extent possible get negative people out of your life. Youll be surprised how soon this begins making a difference.

How do you get 90% of people out of your life?