Anxiety Help...

I recommend reading Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain by John J. Ratey. It describes how it's been shown that exercise is as effective as the vast majority of commonly prescribed anxiety medications in relieving anxiety.

Running has been my anti-anxiety, anti-depressant treatment for 27 years.

You feel like the world's worst mom because you took your son in to be checked out?
Don't give it another thought.
Some people don't to anything when their child is actually visibly hurt.
Okay now having said that.....maybe you can relax at little.
Don't "look" for things to be wrong or to go wrong.
If you can't do this on your own, then do it through counseling.
If you're not accomplishing it through counseling, look for a different counselor.
Relax.
Breathe.
Don't look for trouble or for problems.
What made you know the word "petechiae"?
Please tell me you don't look up problems/issues/diseases on the internet
The best thing you can do for your son AND for yourself is to "not anticipate devastation or tragedy".
Take your life one day at a time.
Maybe don't even watch the news.
Look for the best in your day: for example the sun came out, your mocha from Starbucks was made quickly & you were the first in line, you got every green light on the way to the store etc.
Count your blessings: your son's health, your health, your lives, your job, money, a warm place to lay your head every night.
Do not look for problems
Do not buy into conspiracy theories
Give yourself a chance to enjoy your daily life sans tragedy.
I wish you the best and hope this helps a little!
Edit: not sure what you have if anything but some things are not passed on genetically.
Don't let your son see you constantly freaking out or living in fear.
Live by example! Best wishes

I have tried talk therapy, EFT, hypno-therapy and meditation.. What I have found that works BEST for anxiety.... and is more long lasting.. EXERCISE... to me, it's been the most helpful... get yourself on a program today. I have found that it's exercise with CARDIO that helps the most.. secondly, nutrition.. Years ago, I drank a lot of coffee from 24 to 32 oz a day.. I now drink about 4 oz.. Also, sugar and other insulin raising foods that cause me to become jittery are now down to a minimum...
I truly believe that via diet and exercise, you can gain some control over your anxiety... (Esp the exercise) give it a try and see how you feel

best of luck

Awwwww...if it makes you feel better, I freaked out a few years ago when one of my sons had petechia-like spots on his legs and took him to the pedi on the Fourth of July because I was convinced that he had leukemia and needed to be seen that day! And I don't have anxiety (well actually I have recently developed a bit, but it's situation-specific). We never figured out what it was - he probably squeezed himself through a tight spot but couldn't remember doing it - and he was fine. Yeah, I felt like an idiot :-). I also spent a night in the ER recently with another son waiting for them to rule out appendicitis and it turns out that he just had a virus and some gas. So you're not alone, and the docs would rather be safe than sorry. Does your son's pediatrician know about your anxiety? Perhaps it would be helpful if they knew, so that if you call, they can do more over the phone to alleviate your concerns and then you would only have to go in if there is something that they can't figure out over the phone (for example with petechiae, there is a blanch test they can do where you press the skin and see if it turns white or not to determine true petechiae vs something on the skin). Best of luck to you!

I hope this encourages you. I thought our child would pick up on how my husband and I have to monitor health issues and she might become a hypochondriac. So far, she is ten and takes our medical issues in stride.

You are me. We are our own worst enemy. :( I take lexapro and it has helped me greatly.
Im sorry if you have tried that and it hasnt worked for you. Dont give up, you can figure out relief. Just know that you are not alone.

Oh honey I have been where you are. I also have generalized anxiety and after having my daughter had similar post parturm anxiety that you are experiencing. She was colicky and cried a lot. It was really hard on me because she was never content. She had stomach problems. I was a googler. I had her diagnosed in my mind that she had everything. Autism, aspergers, Rhetts Syndrome, Mrsa, Lymes disease, diabetes..the list goes on. I would cry all the time. Was unfocused and was just getting by. I was afraid that everything in the environment would give her cancer or nuerological disorders and researched vaccine, food and bath products relentlesly. My best friend got me into therapy and I was put on Lexapro. I stopped googling symptoms as well. If I have a concern I take her to the doctor. No GOOGLE. Hey I still have some issues. Over the summer I rushed her to a sick appointment for mosquito bites. Yes mosquito bites. You will always be anxious and worried but it sounds like you need some professional help.

My daughter did have some slight delays (borderline for services) and is in OT and PT but otherwise a completley Atypical 4.5 year old. The difference between a mom with anxiety and not is that we go over the top assuming the absolute worst.

Good luck and please go see your doctor. I feel like I didnt enjoy my daughter as an infant...not until I got help and i can never get that back.

I can't begin to tell you how many times I've taken my kids into the doctor/ER and been lucky enough that it's never been serious. I've always told the doctor that I'd rather they laugh at me & have my kids be safe than sorry. I don't know how much of your anxiety is playing role (since I don't have anxiety), but I do know you are being a caring mommy. If you continue to be concerned for how your anxiety is impacting your son's life, I suggest you get back into therapy. Your therapy should help sort that out and give you signs to look out for in your son's behavior. Good luck and try not to worry.

I feel your frustration. I suffer from severe generalized anxiety disorder, PTSD and paranoia(to name a few.) I'm the mom to a brilliant 8 year old little girl and a just as brilliant, though in a different way 5 year old nonverbal little boy with autism.

I've found that although I often feel guilty for becoming anxiety ridden or obsessed over some little thing that I need to allow myself to feel the way I do. That in my case, at least at that moment or time I am not in complete control of my processes. My daughter has learned how to help me through panic and anxiety fits and of course my son knows nothing about it. Some of the time I find that recognizing my mindset and irrationality later while reflecting can help when I'm in the midst of another similar situation.

I do also tend to write things down constantly to help myself feel better about either my paranoia or anxiety. I read what I've written almost daily just to remind myself again of what happened and what I was able to do about it. You are not alone and try not to stress yourself out over your reactions.

Years ago I suffered from anxiety and depression. I did not have children then, but the way it was diagnosed in me was that I was always at my doctor's for symptoms of my own -- headache, rash, backache, whatever. Most of the time it was nothing.

What worked for me is therapy -- I was lucky enough to be referred to a wonderful therapist who allowed me to talk out my feelings in a safe, non-judgmental forum. At the same time, my church offered a group therapy which was wonderful in that it was also non-judgmental and it did not force to talk about things that made me uncomfortable. The two together helped me to realize that I was not alone in my struggle with anxiety. I pass that on to you....YOU are NOT alone! There are many moms just like you who struggle with this condition. It does NOT mean that you are weird or stupid or the world's worst mom, although I totally understand how you can feel this way.

Along the way, discovered meditation helped me tremendously -- I created my own mantra which I change from time to time depending on my situations. My mantra always has to ends with, "it will be OK, no matter what." And, really, that is true, isn't it, especially when your heart is in the right place. It sounds corny, but when I combined my mantras with breathing, calming exercises that I pulled out of a yoga magazine, I found that it helped a great deal in helping me to get to the next day, half a day, or even minute, whatever I needed.

I developed horrible GAD after a back injury that left me at times unable to drive or get around (some days meeting the bus at the end of the driveway was a challenge).

It was like my mind could not turn off all the horrible things that could happen requiring me to get to my son's school or my daughter at home getting sick and me being unable to get her to the doctor. Round and round and round it went in my mind and I just could not turn it off. I became depressed and it just got worse...

I could not even explain how I just could not turn off the thoughts or pull myself up out of the darkness and sadness. There were several things that helped me...first of all was finally telling my husband I needed help and making an appointment with my doctor. I have a great doctor who really listened to me and I was very honest with him about what was going on with me. We decided to take a three pronged approach...he told me he would prescribe some medication to help but I had to promise him to do two things on my own to help myself. Those things were nutrition and exercise (basically he told me I needed to start taking all B vitamins, vitamin D w/ magnesium and calcium, and start doing whatever exercise my back doctor allowed me to do EVERY day)...also he told me that I needed to find the right spirituality for me and start practicing it (prayer, meditation, etc) he said he didn't care what it was but I needed to start doing that EVERY day as well. (He told me talk therapy would do wonders as well...but I could not afford a therapist so I tried everything he told me)

I did do all of the above medication, vitamins, exercise and prayer. I now check in with him every six months it was every month at first. I am a different person the cycling of "what if" thoughts are gone...the feelings of helplessness are gone. My back has healed and I am no longer in constant pain or unpredictable pain...that has helped as well.

You are not alone!! I realized I was anxious before the injury but was just better at hiding it. There are a lot of options...if you don't want to see a doctor for some medication...try the vitamins, exercise and spirituality...if you do have a great doctor, talk to him/her and see if they can offer some additional help.

Sending you a BIG HUG!!!

Are you seeing a therapist currently? I have seen a therapist for PTSD and anxiety, and she has worked out good strategies for me to deal with some of this. I don't know if you are married, but in my case, it helps to give over some control to my husband and realizing I can rely on him to be the voice of reason and not trying to overly control things.

For me, not upsetting my kids ITSELF is a huge motivator - my daughter, age 7, can get anxious about a lot, and I feel like I did her a diservice early in her life by being a "no, be careful, don't do that" kind of mom too often.

The other thing my therapist has done is helped me learn to "sit with the anxiety" - Not every scary thing re quires immediate intervention. Let the fear sit with you and do nothing for a while. Usually, the anxiety peaks, and then declines. It is in the decline, that I feel a bit more rationale. Truth be told, you likely know when you are cycling through an anxious period. If you can identify those, then you can be in charge of them.

Hope these ideas help. But ultimately you need to worry most about adversely affecting your child - so worry about that, and try to give up some of the control over other things.

PS - The other thing that helped me is recognizing that when I am anxious, I am not enjoying my kids and I am not being the best mom I can be to them. The anxiety becomes all about me, not really about them. Lookign at it that way, was really eye-opening. Good luck!

Not sure how much time you spend outside but whenever I get over the top, I go for a walk in the sunshine and feel TONS better. Simple but if you are regularly dealing with anxiety you need to make sure and get enough exercise and outside time. Make sure you spend time doing things other than focusing your son! Eat lunch with a friend, get out!
I think lots of us get so wrapped up in our kids sometimes that we neglect ourselves. You would probably benefit from regular appointments with a therapist to help you release your concerns and anxieties. I applaud you for recognizing your weaknesses and reaching out...Go take a walk! :)

You should not feel like the worlds worst mom for being worried about your son that is your job. Maybe schedule regular therapy sessions to talk to someone about it. It helped me. Join a play group & be social it helps tremendously. You will find out that you are not alone in your situation & hearing other peoples problems will make yours feel smaller. A little exercise doesn't hurt either. I know it's cold, just bundle you & your son up. Make sure you wear layers that can come off if you get warm & take a walk 10 minutes is the smallest I recommend pack him snacks if you can. The longer the better.

Worlds worst mom?!?!?! You sound like a fantastic mom! You are so in tuned with your child and super aware of whats going on for him. Just keep the focus on being happy about life while your around him and that way he picks that up instead of our (all us in tuned moms) normal worries. I know where your coming from.

Jaime go to a homeopath. She will give you a remedy that will forever quiet your anxiety. Go to one who practices Classical Homeopathy.

Start a gratitude journal and/or a diary of your own successes. At least once a week (if not daily), write down something, anything, that you feel proud of or thankful for. Read through your journal often to remind yourself that not everything is bad.

Continue therapy (and be totally honest with yourself and your doctor), try different medications and exercise, and find yourself some support at home, so you're not feeling overwhelmed by raising a child, which I suspect is compounding your anxiety...

If you can, find someone whom you trust to be honest with so you can share your fears and anxieties (is your husband aware of what you're going through?). Make a pack with this person that you can say anything without judgement but also that they can tell you you're worrying needlessly. Decide together what kind of concrete steps you can take to ease your fears and then let it go. I know, easier said than done...

Hang in there and stop beating yourself up. This job of raising children is hard enough without having an anxiety disorder! I pray you'll find peace soon.

Oh, and PS. I don't have an anxiety disorder but there sure are days I feel like the worst Mama in the world too. We are all there with you.