Anxiety and Depression

Ahh, I’m the opposite :joy:

I have to really try to get organized. My mind is all over the place.

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If it’s time sensitive, I get it done, according to my planned schedule, and not a minute more.

Worrying about shit not getting done is not helpful.

If it’s not time sensitive, then I get it done, when I have the time to do it.

I actually don’t know why but in the past year I’ve become quite anxious when flying. Just during the first few minutes when taking off gaining altitude. I used to not fear flying at all and not even blink at turbulence.

But recently I really get nervous once the plane takes off. The sound of the engine worries me if it sounds “strange” and every little bump freaks me out.

I don’t get anxious about the flight before or just cruising or even landing. Just that part after take off. Not sure why I’ve developed this as I fly pretty much monthly now for business.

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It sounds like you have a full life and you’re nearing a goal, so you don’t want to miss any of the good stuff. Hence the anxiety. Blue is your color and 13 is your number.

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I’ve heard they have VR simulation to help with fear of flying. Maybe you can look into this.

I fear heights now which is weird because I did all kinds of crazy things at great heights as a kid, like jumping off our roof into the pool. It’s not too bad (doesn’t stop me from doing normal things), but it’s strange that I developed this when older.

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Well you knew you could make it then. Now, not so much maybe? :laughing:

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I share the exact same experience. I get palpitations when I’m near a window or ledge if I look directly down. It started in my 40s. It’s bizarre.

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When you’re so upset and caught up in thoughts you accidentally end up burning your hand on a pan :smiling_face_with_three_hearts::smiling_face_with_three_hearts::smiling_face_with_three_hearts:

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I think this is the same course I did 20+ years ago, and it worked: https://www.fearofflyinghelp.com/

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Sometimes we just need we just need a good friend to encourage us through anxiety.

Encouragement

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That started for me in my late twenties - not so much about engine noises, but more about claustrophobia. Crowded elevators also became an issue. First time ever was a flight out of Davao in the Philippines - and I suspect it’s not a coincidence that I was taking the anti-malaria drug Lariam / Mefloquine at the time (link for PDF about the drug). I certainly had the most vivid dreams of my life while I was taking that drug; I suspect it also opened a door to mild anxiety issues. In the decades since, that door’s always been a little bit ajar: usually not a big deal, but little waves of panic/anxiety will appear and then dissipate, usually within a minute, although unfortunately the 2am waves, while cresting quickly, ensure that I’m not getting back to sleep in a hurry!

I dunno, maybe the mild anxiety would have happened anyway, but I always wonder if that drug was connected. There are articles out there (e.g. Guardian) about how the drug seems to cause serious issues in some.

Bummer, too, that ever since the anxiety started, marijuana has no longer been enjoyable.

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Check out this sleep cocktail by Huberman. @Andrew0409 also mentioned the first of the three supplements in this thread. I will buy the three supplements soon. I just keep putting it off. It can be bought on iHerb.

I stopped enjoying marijuana in my twenties. Made me think too much and I started to feel some paranoia coming down. It’s not an issue in Taiwan and never was when I was in Korea. I was never big into it, but had a hard time turning it down when it was being passed around at a party.

My sister tells me that my mom is taking half a gummy bear for sleep. I would be interested in that if it was available. I guess no feeling, no munchies, just puts you to sleep.

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Something I just shared in the Costco thread:

Bought a pack of 6 bottles of kombucha at Costco. I can’t remember how much it cost. I’m doing this to improve my gut health/bacteria. Heard about kombucha but had no idea it was available in Taiwan. Had my first small glass this morning. Together with uncooked garlic, dark chocolate, lots of veggies, some fruit every day, and some kimchi now and then, I’m thinking my gut microbiome is getting better and better. (I’m doing this to help my mental health, in case anyone’s wondering).

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For me it’s when they finish the initial ascent and level off a bit and dial back the engines. I know it’s totally normal, but I always think “the engines are failing and we’re starting to fall!”.

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That is me exactly. I’m always looking up and down and sometimes I’m convinced the nose is lower than the tail. Panic for a few minutes while trying not to say anything to my family about it.

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My lemon tree failed :disappointed: I will try again. Maybe another life lesson in this life gives you lemon story.

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I was introduced to a very good book by another forumosan. I hope to provide instructions on how to download the book soon. But for now, here’s a summary:

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The Book in One Sentence

  • You can change your moods by learning how to restructure your negative thoughts.

The Five Big Ideas

  1. Your moods are created by your thoughts.
  2. Thoughts that are dominated by pervasive negativity cause depression.
  3. The negative thoughts which cause depression nearly always contain gross, cognitive distortions.
  4. There are 10 cognitive distortions that twist your thinking.
  5. The most usual mental distortion to look out for when you are feeling worthless is all-or-nothing thinking.
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Yup, I’ve found that author useful - plenty of exercises for making mental habits more helpful and less self-destructive. He’s got several books with similar ideas; the one I’ve got is called The Feeling Good Handbook. I don’t know if one is any better than the other.

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In the book I have (it’s a 680 page monster), the handbook is mentioned as a book for doing the exercises, etc. described in the textbook. So I guess you can use the handbook as a standalone book. Interesting. I might purchase it if I feel I need more than the textbook.

A lot of the textbook is related to depression, which I don’t have, but anxiety is discussed and I think many of the basic principles still apply to anxiety. For example, catastrophizing is explained as a cognitive distortion of a depressed person, and this definitely still applies to my situation. And of course all of the following can be very useful for someone with anxiety:

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Can’t negative thoughts come from moods? I’m sure it’s a helpful positive mental attitude approach, but it seems to deny the possibility of an underlying mental health issue.

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