My Diagnosis: Panic and Anxiety Disorder with Agoraphopbia
Since this blog is about Panic Attacks and Anxiety, I will start with mentioning that I was diagnosed with a severe anxiety disorder, with panic attacks and agoraphobia about 8 years ago. I also have a tic disorder and an obsessive compulsive personality.
Who I am
This is not how I define myself, but my main purpose for writing is to discuss anxiety and panic attacks and so I thought I would get that out-of-the-way! I do, however, define myself as a mom, a wife and a professional in the Corporate World. Maybe that’s why I have an anxiety disorder! My three main loves are my 12-year-old son, my 9-year-old daughter and a pretty patient husband, whom I have been married to for 16 years.
Call me “Jill”
My husband calls me Jill, like Jill of all trades. I like to do A LOT of different things, but none are truly my passion. I am still trying to figure out what I want to do when I grow up! Not surprisingly, Accounting is not my life’s passion (insert more anxiety). I don’t mind it and I like working with numbers and spreadsheets and analyzing data several different ways, but it’s not like I can say “Wow, putting that spreadsheet together and analyzing that data today, really made me feel complete!”
My Coping Mechanism
To cope with every day life, I joke around all the time. I do not take many things seriously and will make a joke about anything and everything. While I was going through the worst of the anxiety, I would still make jokes (while I was crying). I think that helped me, although the doctors thought I was just a little more insane – laughing, then crying, then laughing again, all in the same minute! Sobbing: “Why am I not feeling better yet??”, Laughing: “I don’t know why I am crying!” Sobbing: “This really sucks!”
What I Like to Do
I like to cook/bake, practice yoga, go for walks, write, plan fun adventures with my family and take a lot of pictures! I love looking at old photo albums to relive all of the fun things I have done and interesting places I have visited. My happy place is the ocean. I am most relaxed in the ocean, on a paddle board, reggae music in the background and a cocktail in my hand!
Inspiration
For inspiration, I watch a lot of cooking shows, read a lot about exercise, overall health and wellness and of course, ANXIETY. I am obsessed with figuring out what works for anxiety and what doesn’t work. I want to know why anxiety disorders exist and be able to understand the science behind it all. I read a lot about this and also like listening to podcasts.
My Mission
My mission in life is to provide information about anxiety disorders to not only create awareness, but also make a positive difference in the lives of people suffering. I have “diagnosed” several people with anxiety (call me Dr. Google) and when I can convince them to seek professional help and take action to feel better, it makes me very happy!!
To start reading about where my anxiety started, click here: Health History
