WeWillHeal wrote:
Hi NoProblem. Not sure if you are around these days anymore, but I just wanted to say thanks for all of your posts. I read every single one of your posts from the beginning of your journey until the end and it really helped me.
I am on day 84 since I had a horrific anxiety or panic attack that made me stop marijuana cold turkey after about 8 years of consistent use (A few months long breaks in-between).
I especially identify with your agoraphobia that you described and fear of flights. Flights were never fun for me, but I never truly feared them. Travel during holidays was always something I looked forward to and the thought of that now gives me waves of anxiety. Just 5 months ago I spent 30 days straight hiking and backpacking in the wilderness and the thought of that now also is a little unnerving. I also experience this as the passenger in a vehicle now and the furthest I have been away from my hometown since this all started in about 70 miles.
It has now been 3 years since your last post and I am curious how your phobias are today? Do you still go to therapy? Wishing you well, and thanks for all the posts. They really helped me today.
If anyone else who has successfully overcome a marijuana induced anxiety disorder/PAWS wants to comment on whether therapy worked for them or not, I would love to hear your story.
Have a great day!
Hey WeWillHeal,
I'm not around on these forums, but I do still get emails if someone replies to one of my posts.
You're more than welcome! I'm glad my experiences can provide some level of comfort during tough times. I remember going through the same looking for someone, anyone, that had a similar experience which lead me to share my own. I felt alone and afraid to be honest.
Since my last post, my phobias are generally manageable. The feelings of agoraphobia faded away around a year later (2017) through the help of therapy and exposure. I now travel long distances with comfort; however, I'm still randomly reminded of those anxious feelings from the past, but they have little control over me.
I've been on a few flights (some short, some long distance) since that point. In 2018, I flew to around 4 destinations. Each had it's own anxiety challenges; however, they all ended up going well! Nowadays, like most of us, the pandemic put a damper on any travel so I have some doubts about me flying and any anxiety that may arise in relation to it. Kind of a, "we'll cross that bridge when we get there" type of deal.
Today, my life is very different since that moment in 2016. I had a brief break from Therapy in mid-2019 and returned to a different therapist this past July. I have had some health issues arise that brought a whole different beast of anxiety to the surface which resulted in me finally trying some SSRIs (anti-depressants, Lexapro) to help. Overall, they've provided relief for many of my symptoms, but they also brought on a few of their own. I am not sure I will stay on them for long (doctor suggested 6 months, currently been 4 months), but they helped in the moment. Everyone's experience is different.
The reason I bring up medication is because I battled with the thought of trying them between 2016 - 2019, ultimately deciding not to. Therapy alone was doing great things for me. This present challenge felt different and I needed the extra help to assist with my current situation. Since 2016, I feel that anxiety has become a part of who I am and that's not a bad thing, but my life has definitely changed.
If I can make some suggestions to help, if you feel you will benefit, please explore your options for therapy. On the days where I felt like I had no hope, therapy worked to pick me up and motivate me. It provided validation and direction during the tough times. It made me set some concrete goals to help overcome and manage the symptoms of anxiety and the thoughts associated with it. I am confident it can also help you in the same ways. It takes time to find the right therapist, but once you get going, positive changes generally do happen.
There is also a book that I read during some tough times that made me feel in control of my phobias and anxious feelings. I still apply some of the things I learned in it to this day. It's called "At Last a Life" by Paul David. Give it a read some time. I'm sure it'll help out a little bit.
I hope this helps. I can go into much more detail about my therapy experiences, etc. if you would like. You might be able to PM me and we can discuss that there.
Take care!