Thinking of @firemonkey today. I have an extremely hard time going somewhere new or going to stores by myself. Some stores I can go in if they’re small and I’m pretty familiar with them. Does anyone else have a hard time with this? What do you do to cope?
My therapist has taught me grounding techniques. They’re really for dealing with trauma, but they work for anxiety. Things like describing the room you are in in every detail or reading signs backwards. There are tons of them. Something I did the last time I went to a supermarket and was having a hard time was talk to myself (in my head) as if I were a child. Just reassure myself that I was safe. I also tell myself that as long as I’m “normal” on the outside people won’t suspect that I don’t belong.
I did every coping skill I knew and still had a meltdown when I came home. I was pacing and repeating phrases over and over and not only was the demon laughing at me, but I felt as if the neighbors were nudging each other saying “look at how crazy that girl is.”
Before I had my major relapse I lived with roommates and would go grocery shopping all the time. At that time I was very independent. I’m slowly getting back there, but I’m still very dependent. Does anyone else feel like you’re not as independent as you were before you got sick? I wonder if I’ll ever get back to where I was or if I’ll get to a certain point and that will be the best that is expected.
Let us know how it went today @firemonkey I’m thinking of you. 
Going to a new store around where I live isn’t a problem so long as it isn’t crowded or busy. Going to a new, unfamiliar, location out of my comfort zone-that’s a whole different ball game.
I’m independent but in a very limited way in terms of what I feel confident/safe doing.
It went fine as blood test area was well signposted.
Whenever I go somewhere - it has to be planned. I think that my agoraphobia/anxiety/panic/paranoia makes going places very difficult. I do go to my local supermarket by myself- it is rather small for a market, I know where everything is, its very close to my home, and it never gets crowded. All of these things are a must for me. I just cannot go to unfamiliar or bigger stores by myself- I dont even like going to very small mom and pop stores, because I feel like the owners and workers there, judge me more.
I am kind of getting used to my local supermarket - but I have to push myself to go - I dont have a lot of motivation, especially for going places. I am more at ease when I go to certain places with people I trust - whiich right now boils down to my father - and he is aging. Its not easy to do things and go to places, like stores by yourself when crippling anxiety and paranoia follow you wherever you go - I manage though - not complaining
What were you like before your illness? Were you able to go anywhere by yourself? Before it got bad I could.
I was able to travel - even got a chance to go to a camp with my friend in Colorado - I was a young teen at the time, before my illness hit me full force. I was always pretty anxious doing things on my own, even before the illness hit me, but I was better back then
Before I had my swan song of a break down, I was still pretty anxious about leaving the house…
Actually when I was at my worst was when I was able to just show up places. I was so drunk and numb and out of touch with myself that I could end up anywhere and be numb there just as easily as being numb at home.
When I started getting better, back in touch with feeling things and caring about things, the anxiety came back.
I’m doing better… but I have family that helps me a lot… my sis mainly.
So I trust it better when going to new places with her… I think it’s been helping me push myself a bit more when going somewhere new.
For anxiety… I have to take a breath and work on keeping that catastrophic thinking down before it amps up. I find it’s mostly indoors… indoor places are hard for me.
new parks… I’m good. New beaches… I’m good.
New stores… places to eat… very hard for me. I’m going to have to learn to cope on my own better… I know I lean on my sis my brother or my girlfriend a lot when going out.
I travelled quite a lot as a child/teenager as my dad was posted abroad with the diplomatic service. However I had help doing so.
After getting ill the difficulty with a poor sense of direction got worse and the only time I went abroad was in 1995. My mother accompanied me to the airport and my dad met me at the other end.
The journey home was a nightmare as unbeknownst to me until minutes after take off someone had taken all my money and my train ticket home. I was in a state of high anxiety throughout the flight.
When I landed I had to go to a special office to get help to get home. That really kicked off my fear of travelling, especially to unfamiliar places, and,for some reason, heightened my awareness of my poor sense of direction.
Unless accompanied I won’t go anywhere outside my comfort zone and am limited even within the town I live in.
There’s an overwhelming fear of being lost ,trapped and stuck in limbo.
Exactly like me @firemonkey - I have a very limited comfort zone