A bit of a personal post today- whether this blog will make its way out of the drafts folder is, of yet, undecided. I hope it does as I really do want to write about this topic. But at the same time: a) I don’t want to be seen as jumping on the bandwagon as every blogger and their dog is writing about anxiety at the moment. Do we need another one? b) I find it a bit embarrassing talking about it and I know there’s going to be people saying that I shouldn’t label it as embarrassing at all and perhaps even be offended by that. But what can I do? I can’t pretend I am super confident in talking about it.
So, assuming I do indeed decide to publish this blog, let’s think about what triggered me to write this now- on a miserable Wednesday evening? Well, last night I read Amelia’s blog post about anxiety- if you haven’t already read it, then do have a read! I absolutely love Amelia’s vlog and the fact she talks about her counselling and anxiety (as someone who always looks so flawless and together on camera) so openly is fantastic. Today I had also scheduled a counselling session- and the 2 together made me think about being more open. This is something I have done one and off over the past few years; ever since my Crohn’s diagnosis (I have blogged about anxiety with IBD here). Sometimes every month, sometimes having months and months without any sessions at all. But since I moved house and started blogging a lot more (more on that here), I felt like a lot of my anxiety has come up to the surface: partly because of change and partly I guess because I’m worried I’m ‘too much on to a good thing’
So, what exactly, do I worry about? My anxiety naturally started off with my IBD diagnosis (although I’ve always been a ‘worrier’- which feels much better to say than having anxiety doesn’t it?) I was diagnosed abroad and quickly put on medication (Infliximab) This quickly set me into a cycle of anxiety about my body. Namely…
- If there was one thing wrong with my body, what if there was another that doctors weren’t spotting?
- What if the side effects of the medication gave me a horrendous disease?
- Why was my body a failure?
If you have crohn’s or any chronic illness, then these will sound familiar (I hope so anyway- surely I am not alone with this?) I am ashamed to say that I let this get out of control and soon became totally at odds with my body. I would either obsessively check or zoom on things that were there all along, looking for new illnesses or the opposite: avoid looking at my body altogether. That sounds absolutely ridiculous to type but as someone who likes to be in control; anticipating what may lie ahead makes sense I suppose. This is something I still might do sometimes if I’m going through an anxious period. Although I recently blogged about how I am almost happy I have Crohn’s in that it has brought my so many opportunities, I know that those irrational thoughts are lying dormant somewhere.
However, once I started going to counselling and trying various other strategies, I realised this wasn’t really about my body and it wasn’t really about my crohn’s (poor bloody thing, it gets blamed for everything!) I was trapped in a cycle of not feeling good enough and this was just one part of it. Another aspect was my blog- I would check my traffic or social comments all the time and wonder am I good enough? Maybe people weren’t reading my blog or just clicking on by mistake? Why were so many of my readers new readers; where had the old ones gone? Being online is amazing but it is also difficult if you need validation like I sometimes do- when a post does well I am over the moon but when traffic is slow for a day then I’m convinced I’ve lost it and that I’m out of the game! I completely respect those bloggers who say they genuinely don’t care about the traffic because I do care (although to be fair, the less people that read this rambling the better). Perhaps it seems incredibly narcissistic but I have always loved to write but never 100% believed in my abilities to do so (despite, you know, having a small thing called a book out next week) . Monitoring analytics or checking for comments is one way of reinforcing that I am good enough. However- it’s only fleeting as I promised myself I’d stop when I’d get to 5000 monthly page views, 10,000 page views and now I’m almost averaging 20,000 monthly page views (god, that’s mad!) and I still get that feeling that this blog is crap. I realised that no number was ever going to be enough if I couldn’t just have the confidence in my writing.
It spills out into other things too. Weirdly, I am remarkably chilled about the everyday things- like being stuck in traffic or a meeting. It’s the unthinkable, intangible things that cause me the most worry: what if my blog breaks and I lose it completely? What if my husband leaves me? What if something happens to my lovely, dream house which I just moved into? Is my dog sick or did she just eat too much? The counsellor says this is because I prefer to worry about things I can’t resolve, so I can keep worrying about them on and on (After all, a traffic jam or a failed meeting are essentially fleeting and therefore easily resolved. Why worry about that when you can create an imaginary scenario where you’re unloved, poverty stricken and completely alone? That’ll keep you going for months!) She also suggests it may because I just don’t feel I’m worth it and I think she might be right. In reality, my life just ticks along but I know I am lucky to have my family, my dogs and my husband. I can’t help but feel that something bad could be right around the corner? Because of this, I’ll sometimes even ‘self-sabotage’; whether it’s not putting my best into a blog pitch as I don’t really feel I’m capable of it or not committing to a new exercise regime- just because I feel that’s easier than actually trying and failing.
Don’t get my wrong, lots of the time I am completely fine. When I’m working or writing, I’m often so engaged and in the zone that the anxiety just melts away. I can have a good few months ticking along nicely and then bam: it’s back again.
So, the moral of this blog post is that I do not have this anxiety game figured out just yet. I try yoga, meditation, no phone time, writing everything down and a lot of talking. But sometimes it feels like it’s just ticking in the back of my brain waiting to come along again. It is exhausting at times but what can I do? I don’t expect to be ‘anxiety free’ any time soon but hope that this post might help you in small way. Because when it comes to anxiety, and indeed any mental health issue, all we really want to hear is that we’re not alone.
But don’t you think there really is always something the doctors aren’t spotting? After all, they don’t really know the full story yet about IBD. And wouldn’t this naturally affect your mental health? I’ll give you an example. I used to faint on the train quite regularly, for no particular reason. It got so bad that I still have a train phobia, and I spent a couple of years suffering from agoraphobia because I didn’t have confidence going out – would I come back in one piece? Eventually, with some counselling and hard work I overcame this, but it ruined my life for too long.
I found out that the fainting was IBD-related. Yet no-one took me seriously at the time. Sometimes you really do just want to give up 🙁
i know exactly what you mean- that must have been horrible! but tbh most of my stuff is almost imagined; like I’ll look at a mole and convince myself it’s changed or i have a mosquito bite and i’ll monitor it obsessively thinking it’s lyme. So most of my stuff- touch wood- is just completely over the top! :/
Hi Jenna,
Thanks for sharing. It sounds like you are very frustrated by all the different approaches you have tried to deal with it – some bringing success for a while but it still hangs on in there in the background. I totally understand. My health journey began over 25 years ago when I contracted a virus affecting the brain , central nervous system and muscles. I was wheelchair bound for a year or two.Diagnosed with Myalgic Enchephalomyelitis I wasn’t supposed to have 2 amazing children , a fulfilling life with purpose but crucially a contented life where my mind is at peace. Living with a chronic disease brings challenges on a daily basis – anxiety is a normal bodily defence mechanism – the flight or fight response . This is great if you’re in the jungle facing a tiger and you run to escape and burn off all that adrenaline. Thing is – our ‘tigers’ Jump at us while we are sitting at our desk, worrying if we are good enough or perfecting the work we do etc etc………..
The key is to become the master of your thoughts rather than your thoughts being the master. Drop intellectualising on the why . Talking about your anxiety has its place in your healing journey but talking about calm and focusing on and concentrating the mind on the state you do want like calm, quiet, peace of mind – tells your mind what you actually want . Here’s the science – scientific studies at Harvard have shown ( FMRI scans) that meditating actually reduces stress/ anxiety . See Sarah Lazar’s work on the amygdala.
Equally, it’s not just about the mind-
I hold a total integration of a mind/ body approach to healing ourselves to full health. Each one of us is totally unique – we just need the key to our own wellness.
If you want to know more , feel free to get in touch.
http://www.purisity.com
Congratulations on the publication of your forthcoming book. Well done! ❤️
thanks sandra- i shall definitely have a read of your site!
Wow you’re so so brave for sharing this!! I honestly feel like I really need someone to talk to sometimes!!
I developed anxiety problems around the time of my Crohn’s diagnosis. Was very sceptical but GP persuaded me to try meditation and CBT and to my surprise this has helped.
Great blog! Thanks for sharing importance of self care and meditation. I have recently found a psychotherapist clinic in Lake Geneva, they are very famous for their counseling sessions.