Anxiety and friendships
Hi everyone, so i was diagnosed with GAD (Generalised Anxiety Disorder) and social anxiety about a year ago but i have been struggling for roughly 3 years.
I have a lovley friend group but i am constantly worried that i am pushing them away. I know that things like that generally tend to happen to people with mental health issues as the friends don't want to be around negativity all the time. I try to be as positive and optimistic as i can but its really difficult when my anxiety won't leave me alone.
I also can't tell if people genuinely don't want to talk to me or if its just the anxiety messing with my head. For example when i say something on a group chat the conversation seems to die pretty quickly after i start talking, almost as if people thought 'nope don't want to talk to them' and left. I just constantly feel like a burden on others and even with reassurance from others that they don't dislike me, my brain still tells me otherwise. Does anyone have any tips for managing these thoughts?
@enthusiasticSea1000 If their really your friends lobe they'll understand!The struggle is real!Youll her through this!❤️
@enthusiasticSea1000 I have felt like this a lot in the past - have you tried talking to your friends (perhaps one on one) and telling them how you feel? I told my friends one at a time that sometimes my brain tells me things like "everyone hates me" or "I have let my friends down" etc. and that it isn't anything they've done but that's how it is sometimes. And when this happens (not all the time, but when it feels really bad), I send a really short and simple message of "hey, my brain is telling me that you're upset with me, can I just get a quick message saying that you aren't?" and my friend will be like "hey, I can assure you I'm not upset with you!" and that's reassuring. I would say I don't do this very often, but even just doing it once can give that reassurance that even if your brain is telling you one thing, it's not neccessarily true.
@helloBeechwood1519 Sorry, I just re-read your post and you wrote "even with reassurance" so sorry if what I've said isn't helpful! I don't know how to delete that post haha.
@helloBeechwood1519
Don't worry about it lol, what you said was actually really helpful 🙂
I love that you are full of awareness. You're making huge steps in the right direction. You will be fine. Remember the things that you love to do and try your best to unwind; that's all I can say because whenever I step back (from chatting and being ignored by friends, etc) and focus on doing a puzzle, or listening to the birds outside my window, I remember how interesting life is OUTSIDE of your own head and it's voices.
