Crazy Anxiety

[rutland]

I cant tell you how frustrated I am right now. My anxiety is through the roof, I thought a sky vodka martini would help soothe my nerves (Ive been alcohol free for months). I really enjoyed the drink and I got a nice buzz, but when I went home to bed, my heart started pounding, and my body felt wired, I cant sleep now.

I feel like crying because I just want to be able to ease my stress somehow. I used to love to have drinks and socialize. I thought a little alcohol could be medicinal, but no.

Does anyone else experience this with alcohol? What do you do to ease the stress and anxiety of day to day life?

[Nantzie]

Skyy is a wheat-based vodka. The filtration process is supposed to purify it to the point where it should be completely gluten free. And from what I've seen on the board, most people, even those with official diagnoses, can drink wheat based vodka with no problems. I'm one of the unlucky ones who will get zapped every time by a wheat-based vodka. It kind of sucks. My previous favorite cocktail was Absolut Mandarin and cranberry juice. Sigh...

With the anxiety and wired feeling, it sounds like you're getting a reaction similar to what I get sometimes when I get glutened (not just with vodka). I always call it "brain-buzzing" insomnia. If I close my eyes I swear I can actually feel the vibration. When I get this type of reaction, I get anxiety attacks and nightmares. It can be very upsetting. But knowing that it's the gluten does make it easier to get through.

I used to get that type of insomnia 3-4 nights a week since I was quite little. It went away after I went gluten-free, and now I only get it when I'm glutened. Over the years I developed a couple tricks to help myself fall asleep.

What I do when I get that type of reaction at night is to not try to fall asleep. Just get in bed, turn on the TV and relax. Sometimes giving your mind something else to focus on will help you relax enough to fall asleep. I find that something like an old familiar movie or a documentary works well. Something enjoyable but predictable. Not anything new where you'll want to stay awake to see what happens.

I hope you feel better and are able to get to sleep soon.

Nancy

[Guest cassidy]

I had problems with anxiety before going gluten-free. I finally went to the doctors and got some xanax. 20 minutes after taking a pill I would take a deep breath and feel so much better. It never made me feel drunk or weird, just not so anxious. I found that my anxiety is a symptom of when I'm glutened so when I do get glutened I don't hesitate to take one.

I really don't like to take medication but sometimes it is necessary. Have you tried any type of prescription? I liked this because it worked with the first dose and only lasted for a few hours so it wasn't something that I had to take everyday - just when I needed it.

Since going gluten-free I really can't tolerate alcohol. I don't know if it is a coincidence or not, but I don't drink anymore.

Hope you feel better. It seems like you have been going through a lot lately and there is no shame and getting an rx to help you a little.

[plantime]

When the depression started getting to me, I went to the doctor. She gave me Lexapro. It helps me deal with anxiety and stress as well. When the stress starts getting to me now, I run a tub full of comfortably hot water. I sink into the tub while the stereo plays some of my favorite music. After 30 minutes of that, I am usually ready to sleep. If I can't take a bath, I do some yoga stretches and deep breathing exercises.

[Fiddle-Faddle]

I don't have anything officially helpful to contribute, but just wanted to say I'm sorry you're being hit by a rough patch, and I hope that sending you positive energy and "good vibes" helps.

Take a deep breath. Blow away all the stress. Take another deep breath--this one has all the good stuff I'm sending!

{{{{{{{{Hugs}}}}}}}}

P.S. You can breathe normally now!

[Fiddle-Faddle]

Would it be getting too personal to ask what is CAUSING so much stress? Seems to me that that should be the place to start. Of course, not being able to sleep is an awfully vicious circle--you start the day exhausted and unable to deal with the little things that normally don't phase you, and then they keep you up at night so you can't sleep, and then you're exhausted the next day, too...

You might not want to put it all out there for everyone to know--but then again, it could be really amusing to see how we would all disagree on how to fix it!

Anyway, if you feel like I might be able to help, feel free to pm me.

Hang in there, it really does get better, and there are lots of people here who care and can help, in many different ways.

(My own personal stress-reliever is chocolate, but that might not be the healthiest thing around....)

[JerryK]

Alcohol depletes your brain of serotonin, or so I've read. Assuming that what I've read about Celiac

compromising serotonin metabolism is true, then you already probably have a serotonin problem.

One would hope this would get better the longer you are on a Gluten Free diet.

In addition, it now seems plainly obvious that for ME, gluten causes or exacerbates depression and anxiety

for about 24 hours after I consume it.

I

[olalisa]

Would it be getting too personal to ask what is CAUSING so much stress? Seems to me that that should be the place to start. Of course, not being able to sleep is an awfully vicious circle--you start the day exhausted and unable to deal with the little things that normally don't phase you, and then they keep you up at night so you can't sleep, and then you're exhausted the next day, too...

You might not want to put it all out there for everyone to know--but then again, it could be really amusing to see how we would all disagree on how to fix it!

Anyway, if you feel like I might be able to help, feel free to pm me.

Hang in there, it really does get better, and there are lots of people here who care and can help, in many different ways.

(My own personal stress-reliever is chocolate, but that might not be the healthiest thing around....)

I agree with Fiddle-Faddle. Understanding the source of the stress and anxiety is the place to start. You might want to try massage therapy for relaxation (I'm a massage therapist so I'm a firm believer in that), and if needed, an anti-depressant. I'm also partial to chocolate. Dark chocolate in moderate doses works wonders for me.

[kbtoyssni]

I also question what is causing the stress. Is it your job? Personal life? Newly gluten-free status? Simply too busy to get everything done? I think you really need to identify what's causing you the anxiety and try to change that part of your life. Adding more "me" time to your life can help, too - like working out, vegging out in front of the TV for an hour, knitting, reading a book.

Although I've pretty much said that anxiety is somewhat controllable here, that's not always the case. I get very anxious when glutened, and it's not something I have any control over. I can do things to try to lessen it, but the fact is that gluten=anxiety for me. So if trying to change things in your life doesn't work, I'd look for additional food intolerances or CC or talk to a doctor about a possible chemical imbalance.

[rutland]

Thanks for all your support. Its greatly appreaciated.

My background is that Ive always had high anxiety since childhood. Also going to a strict catholic school traumatized me, due to what some of the teachers did to me. I was diagnosed with post traumatic stress syndrome. Anxiety for me had always been an issue however I notice a direct correlation to what I eat and how bad my anxiety gets. Ive been fairly strict with my diet since the summer. Last night was my first drink in months and my body couldnt handle it. As far as my personal life causing anxiety... I just started nursing school, a new part time job, and one of my teachers at school is stressing me out. I have performance anxiety and I dont like to be randomly put on the spot in front of my classmates and asked to do a talk about something Im not prepared for. The teacher has done this to the students (not me yet) and it freaks me out. When I do presentations I have to be very well prepared and take a tranquilizer. I cant do impromtu discussions. So this is causing me stress. I may have to let her know my problem with it. Last class she actually made every foreign student stand up and talk to the class about their culture and hygiene habits????

Im seeing a pyschiatrist in two weeks, I need help.

[Fiddle-Faddle]

Ah.

Do you have a group of friends in nursing school that you study with? Might you be able to do little practice "performances" for them? Or maybe for family or other friends?

I see this sort of performance anxiety in music students (I'm a violinist, in case you couldn't guess by my screen name), AND in professionals. Some of the professionals swear by beta blockers--that might be better for you long-term than tranquilizers.

But the violinists who consistently have the fewest anxiety problems are those who studied via the Suzuki method, which meant that they had tons of group classes and on-the-spot play-by-themselves-to-demonstrate a piece to the younger students, and tons and tons of little recitals where everyone had to get up and play a very short piece, and it was totally okay to make mistakes, or even have to start over, because everyone made mistakes at one time or another. The other thing that these students did that non-Suzuki students did not do was to learn to play everything from memory (without reading the music), which gave them a very solid sense of confidence.

The reason I'm dragging this music stuff inito the discussion is that I think the same principals can apply to your situation and help you out a little. Maybe it won't totally fix the problem, but it could give you a sense of control if you memorize the sort of thing that your teacher might ask.

Oddly enough, I don't get at all nervous when I have to perform music in front of an audience--but I used to get TERRIBLY nervous at having to talk, so much so that I used to write down AND rehearse what I wanted to say when I would make a phone call, for example.

Gradually, that nervousness did disappear.

It sure does sound like you have a lot of stress! No, I don't think you are over-reacting. You've got 2 new situations that would be stressful to anyone without an anxiety issue! And then you have past demons to contend with. Is there some kind of support group for the survivors of your school?

About your teacher--can you approach her and explain your anxiety to her? Maybe if you write it to her in a letter or email, that might be easier? And I would stress asking for her help in dealing with this in class, rather than informing her that you can't do it--that way, she won't misunderstand and think that you are hysterical (you are NOT) or trying to get out of anything.

[cathzozo]

School can be really stressful. I was high anxiety my whole life, but always under control. And then grad school took it to a whole, new unhealthy level. I also think that was when my celiac disease was triggered, and I was working two jobs, and my mother had a heart attack and almost died. All of this took me to a point where I realized that I was no longer just my normal high-stress personality, but not healthy. In a way, I'm glad I got there because I realized I needed to see a psychiatrist, take meds for a few years, get therapy (after three tries I found a great psychologist). The combo of meds and therapy allowed me to make real changes. I don't think I could have done as much in therapy without the meds, but I don't think the meds helped me change my ways of thinking. It was the two together. And now, I have much less anxiety then I ever did, even when it was under control. I've recently weaned off of all my meds, but I was on three psych meds for 2.5 years. Although I understand some people's resistance to psych meds, I think it was 100% necessary for me.

Also, I fully understand getting a drink. That's a natural desire to escape, but it easily backfires because alcohol is a downer, and if your anxiety is your personal response to depression and problems, alcohol's downer qualities is not what you need.

Anyways, this was really long-winded. But I just want to let you know that I think it's great you've got the psychiatrist appt scheduled. I think it would be appropriate to email your professor and carefully explain your current anxiety, that you are seeking treatment, and that you'd be glad to come in to office hours to talk one-on-one as a replacement for answering questions on the spot in class. I think in nursing school, of all places, this should be understood by the professor.

Good luck!

Catherine

Thanks for all your support. Its greatly appreaciated.

My background is that Ive always had high anxiety since childhood. Also going to a strict catholic school traumatized me, due to what some of the teachers did to me. I was diagnosed with post traumatic stress syndrome. Anxiety for me had always been an issue however I notice a direct correlation to what I eat and how bad my anxiety gets. Ive been fairly strict with my diet since the summer. Last night was my first drink in months and my body couldnt handle it. As far as my personal life causing anxiety... I just started nursing school, a new part time job, and one of my teachers at school is stressing me out. I have performance anxiety and I dont like to be randomly put on the spot in front of my classmates and asked to do a talk about something Im not prepared for. The teacher has done this to the students (not me yet) and it freaks me out. When I do presentations I have to be very well prepared and take a tranquilizer. I cant do impromtu discussions. So this is causing me stress. I may have to let her know my problem with it. Last class she actually made every foreign student stand up and talk to the class about their culture and hygiene habits????

Im seeing a pyschiatrist in two weeks, I need help.

[tarnalberry]

alcohol is a central nervous system depressant. it doesn't surprise me that it caused that sort of reaction; some people are simply not 'happy drunks'.

[Looking for answers]

Ah.

Some of the professionals swear by beta blockers--that might be better for you long-term than tranquilizers.

I totally agree. I take Inderal before I have to do public speaking. It takes the edge off, dosen't make me tired, and steadies my nerves so I can focus on my presentation and not my anxiety.