Dealing with anxiety about working with covid

moneymaid

Suffering really bad, both physically and mentally, with anxiety about working and living with covid-19.

How do I deal with this?

I've never had anxiety before. Now I can't sleep, have heart palpipations, lost my appetite, have broken out in coldsores.

Returning to the office and dealing with people is causing the most stress.

Struggling

Mrs OBumble

Call your GP. They may see you, give you drugs and or they may refer you to a counsellor.

moneymaid

GP has diagnosed me with severe anxiety. Signed off work indefinitely.
Need to start counselling.

I've never experienced anything like this before. Feel like a failure.

Seamai

moneymaid wrote: »

GP has diagnosed me with severe anxiety. Signed off work indefinitely.
Need to start counselling.

I've never experienced anything like this before. Feel like a failure.

I was in a similar situation two tears ago but at the time I was mistaking my anxiety (and depression) for stress. I also made the mistake of going back to work far too soon as I felt under pressure to do so and ended up getting a lot worse. Make sure that your boundaries are respected, I was getting phone calls practically every day from my boss with work related questions, he then dropped a lap top around so I could do some work from home. Be clear that you need a clean break for a while and be a bit selfish, put yourself first.

Mrs OBumble

moneymaid wrote: »

GP has diagnosed me with severe anxiety. Signed off work indefinitely.
Need to start counselling.

I've never experienced anything like this before. Feel like a failure.

It's an illness, not a personal failing. You're not first it's happened to, and you won't be the last either.

You're only a failure if you fail to follow through with the prescribed treatment. Call the counsellor, book the appointment, do what they say.

shesty

It can hit anyone.It is not a failure, it is just your brain telling you it has had enough.
Do the counselling.Also I cannot recommend enough - stay off social media and out of the news headlines.For your mental health.

Seamai

I know what that failure feeling is like, I got to a point where I was seriously doubting my ability to do anything including my job. Work with your councillor (and at times it will feel like work) and be completely open and honest with them, even if some of it is uncomfortable.

kathleen37

Anxiety can be crippling, I feel for you. It can definitely be beaten though. Hopefully your therapy will give you the tools you need to deal with it. I still have to "talk myself down" from panic attacks on rare occasions, but there was a point several years ago when I couldn't leave the house. Thankfully, that is far behind me.

All the best. You will get through this.