/jp/ - Otaku Culture

>>34239239
A couple of points:
* If you know your triggers, I suggest giving yourself permission to avoid them, and trying to arrange your life so that you can do so. Yeah, this can feel like escapism, but it's totally ok to escape your issues sometimes as long as you're still working on them. In the beginning you're going to progress slowly and that's ok.

* If you know that you have to do something that is likely to trigger your anxiety, commit beforehand to not letting yourself think about this stuff. You have to be really firm with yourself. Whenever those thoughts arise, you have to tell them "shut up, I'm not going to think about this. Thinking about that stuff isn't going to help in any way, it'll just make things worse."

* I think you should not dismiss therapy. Maybe I'm wrong, but to me it sounds like you are just inventing an excuse to avoid therapy because it makes you uncomfortable. In the long term therapy is one of the only ways to deal with these sorts of issues in a lasting way. If you are not comfortable talking to a therapist, you could try a Cognitive Behavioral Therapy workbook and work through the exercises yourself. As long as you actually go through them, it should be about as effective.

* Unironically take your meds. This is another one of those really uncomfortable decisions that really works. Anxiety medication is quite good nowadays, in fact it's one of the most treatable issues around. Anxiety medication doesn't really affect your personality in any way, if that's something you're worried about. You should get in contact with a psychiatrist (not a therapist), describe your symptoms and they'll give you a prescription.

* Lastly, meditation is something I've found personally helpful, but your mileage may vary. If you decide to try, I recommend going on a retreat once you have some practice under your belt. This can really help you gain new insights that can help you understand the source of your anxiety better.

Obviously I'm not expecting you to immediately do everything on this list, but hopefully you got some ideas for how to proceed. It's a struggle but if I could make it, then you can make it too.