Rachie P

Just recently moved here to Oz and am currently staying with boyfriends sister and family. I absolutely love it hear and we both have perminent jobs. However just before moving over here i started suffering with anxiety, not as bad as it was in the UK but it is definately getting me down and i feel im never going to be myself again. I am homesick for my family and friends but not the lifestyle.
I think all the stress of the move has finally got to me and now im in different surroundings which doesnt help. I dont have any friends over here and i do feel very isolated, also as im not feeling well i am not feeling very social.
I have been to the doctors and am now seeing a therepist once every two weeks.
I just hope i can shake this feeling because i know this could be a fantastic life for me and my family.
Anyone in the East Maitland NSW area want to get in touch for a chat that would be great. I think it would help to know someone is local that i can talk to.

irishbloo

Welcome to Be.You have done a big more and it can be quiet daunting.Try and think what is making you anxious and rationalize it.Talk to your partner and family.Accept all invites.Perhaps join a club or gym.Get plenty of exercise and fresh air.Give it time.Enjoy and explore your new surroundings.Good luck.

sonlymewalter

maybe also try this part of the forum as people usually place nights out in here http://britishexpats.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=95

Good luck and hope you soon feel well again mate

jmh

The first thing I would say is it is fabulous that you are asking for help. That to me is number one. Great that you are getting to talk to a therapist, and hopefully as you make more contacts you will have more people to talk to. My period of anxiety occurred when I moved away from my mum and wasn't able to talk things through with her. I didn't want to bother anyone else with my problems!

Are there any community activities that you can get involved in? Engaging with others helps. Take care of the basics. Eating good quality food that you find nourishing and don't eat low fat food (fat is necessary for good health, even saturated fat - yes really!!). Get some exercise perhaps in the form of walking. Don't overdo exercise as this can in fact stress your body more. I personally find a weights programme at the gym helps keep stress down (might be all that counting!! LOL). Try to quit or cut back toxic activities like drinking too much or smoking, cut back on sugar and don't drink diet drinks as these can increase stress in the body. Get some sunshine, although of course don't burn your skin - this can help with anxiety and depression. A lot of these tips are aimed at trying to reduce the cortisol in your body which can cause or increase anxiety.

I hope that helps. These were things that I learned over a period of time that really helped me and eventually I managed the anxiety really well.

On a slightly different slant, I have found my moods up and down since I arrived here just over a month ago. I think it takes time for where you live to become your own. Try buying some nice items for the area you live in that will make it feel like yours, not someone else's place. A nice rug for the floor or a wall clock will stamp your own personality on the space. Even a couple of house plants might help. Once you have your own home I'm am sure you will feel happier.

You might not be the same person you were before, but you might be even better once you have gone through this difficult time. It is a cliché that these sorts of struggles make you stronger but my experience has been that there is some truth in it.

Take care

Jo

vickyandrob

Some excellent advice given already, but also consider medication. Depending on how severe your anxiety levels are, having counselling and medication together is sometimes the suggested treatment. Don't know what your thoughts are on that, but it may be worth considering.

Good luck
Vicky

alexa7

Hi, i was in the same situation when we moved here last year and i still occasionally have bouts of anxiety. what really helped me is the book by Claire Weekes, she has several and any of them are good, but the one i read was Essential help for your nerves.
I felt like you-will i always be the same and never my old self etc but it WILL pass, it always does, it's just hard to accept uncertainty, moving away from your family, finding jobs etc. I challenge anyone to say they didn't experience similar anxiety while moving to a different country or even town. Honestly most of the people get it sometimes they just dont realise what it is.
There are many forums on this but i found it actually made it worse sometimes reading other stories unless they were succes stories...
So start with Claire Weekes (you can actually even find her mp3 series, it's her talking through main points in the book, you can google it and download and listen on your mp3)
Also try CBT technique called TEA forms, it's when you challange your negative thoughts, i found a good link to it here.
http://www.dailystrength.org/groups/...s/view/1478155

The main thing to remember-it's just temporary and it WILL pass, just accept everything like it is at the moment and don't fight it, cos it makes it worse, just live as you used to, at least try and dont shy away from it... Accept everything that comes with it and you will stop noticing it, cos the problem is not that only you are anxious and not everyone else, everyone else is also anxious, the problem is in your attitude/feelings towards being anxious, it bothers you while it doesnt bother other people they just live with it. so you're definitely not alone
ps. try NOT to take medication, you will have to get off it one day and it'll not be pretty. Try natural remedies like Sleep ezy pills etc first. but the main thing is to change the attitude, not pop pills

LINZI

Its not a nice place to be in when Anxiety kicks in also makes it worse when you do not have family/friends around too

I have sent you a message

hope you feel better soon

vickyandrob

Like I said, only YOU knows how bad you are feeling, hopefully your counselling and other self-help techniques such as Cognitive Behaviour Therapies will help you .

IF you had to resort to medication, there is no shame in it. The stigma attached to taking these medications still exists unfortunately, but if you had an infection, then you would take antibiotics. There are side effects with all medications, you have to weigh up the pros and cons for yourself.

Again, only YOU knows how you are feeling

Good luck

NigelWaring

I was like that for a few months then one day I suddenly thought, hell no I don't want to go back, I couldn't stand being back there. I've visited UK many times since then but there's no way that I could ever live there again, mind I did leave in 1969 so things have changed quite a lot and I have lived longer in Oz than UK.

Turban Explorer

Acupuncture can work pretty well for panic attacks and depression. I'm a huge sceptic on how sticking a few needles in your body can cure you but I found the results were undeniable.

Rachie P

Thanks to everyone for the kind words of support, i have been trying to be positive but when the anxiety symptoms are phisical (feeling sick) its hard not to think about it. I am currently working but i have had to turn down a better paied job because i am worried that they wont understand when i need to sit down when im feeling a bit faint. My current employers have been great and i enjoy the work but unfortunately the pay is pretty bad, so i think im just gonna have to stick at it until i feel well again.
I am going to try and explore other methods of wellness the acupuncture sounds good, im up for anything as long as it makes me feel better.
thanks again for the advice guys

quoll

You might want to check out a CBT or ACT therapist for strategies to help you though th day. A good book with lots of strategies is The Happiness Trap by Russ Harris - at the end of the day though it will be down to you to use the strategies and manage the thinking. If the feelings dont go away then you might want to consider other alternatives - going to a doctor and getting meds may be one thing you could try, along with signing up for a mental health plan. There is also a good online resource - moodgym at the ANU- which will give you some strategies. If the feelings still dont go away then maybe Aus is not for you - maybe living with the inlaws isnt helping, maybe you need to consider all your options including returning to the life which didnt make you anxious. Good luck!

irishbloo

You are welcome.I hope it gets better for you.Good luck.

odyssey

perhaps it may work to join a gym too or a women only fitness group (not frequented by the bo-derek like of the population).

Fresh air I find is a real invigorator. You need society though and some social time for casual chatting and de-stress. I think missing mates is underestimated - its huge not having girlfriends to unwind with.

It will get better, I am sure. At least you are facing it and that means you are ready to move forward

good luck!

TiddlyPom

Ugh! Anxiety sucks.
Get help, take everything you can. I'm sorry I'm not closer to you otherwise I'd get together for a coffee... so I hope you feel better soon.

My only advice: Keep looking forward and never go back. Ever.

Someone said to me that in a year's time, things would be so different, I wouldn't recognize it.... it took a little over a year, but they were right.
So for you I wish less time, and more courage, and a little Zen in your life.
It WILL be ok.

x