Anxiety and Work

[Guest Bluenose84]

Last week I started a new job working as admin at the town's local college. The last two days, my anxiety has been off the scale. I've been sweating a lot, had pains in my chest and hands, also I've been feeling light-headed and dizzy and the "jelly legs" where I can't stand still for long.

I've got this fear of dying, as I saw my partner die suddenly nine months ago, I get worried it's going to happen to me with my breathing and heart. Just now a bit of plastic has been burnt on the hob, and I've just panicked and opened all the windows in the flat frightened of smoke inhalation, luckily it wasn't that bad and the smell has gone.

I've been to the GP and I have the worst GP ever - they don't want to know and I'm just passed pillar to post. I want to move GPs. What didn't help either was I missed a dose of mirtzapine.

I just feel it has got worse, as I was basically sworn into the job and took it from there.

[Markie1974]

I found that I had to First identify my obsessions and compulsions.

I listed the scary thoughts that popped in my head.

I then recognized my compulsions , which includes anything I did to relieve my anxiety, which were reassurance , arguing , responding, figuring out, etc, and STOPPING those compulsions.

For example, when I got an intrusive thought, like "mark you're going to die" I would not even acknowledge or respond to it. I would refocus on something else and it would eventually go away.

[Guest Hedonism]

Hi all,

I'm a bit confused and hope someone can clear some things up for me.

In September I was diagnosed with OCD after having to leave work because of a specific checking compulsion ( medication, I'm a nurse). I took six months away from work and have started some low level CBT with IAPT and this has obviously highlighted other work related OCD behaviours that have been going on for longer than I realise. I don't have any other compulsions that intense (I do check paperwork and letters and things) and the OCD manifests itself primarily through repeating thought patterns. Although I can recognise some OCD patterns in social circumstances/ relationships they are not as intense as they were when I was nursing.

Anyhoo, I decided to get back to work (because one shouldn't avoid something for too long) and took on a part time, low level support job outside of the NHS with what should be little to no stress at all and seemed like the perfect opportunity to ease back in to productivity. After three weeks the thoughts, the physical symptoms of anxiety, the ruminations and low mood have returned with a vengeance and its being at work that triggers it! Not nursing but working! It's disabling to the nth degree and fantastically bad for my self esteem and sense of hope.This is now the third time this has happened (the first time IAPT told me I had a work phobia and I didn't like that because work is my life don't you know so I never went back).

So my confusion is this: why does it just get really bad at work and is this common? I can't find any information on this question other than Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder and although I can recognise some of these traits the restricted emotional and relationship sides don't seem to apply. I don't know if working right now is good for me or not and I need to make an informed decision because the intensity of my anxiety response might be making me avoidant. Or maybe thats the OCD again....

Any advise would be gratefully received. Thanks.

[PolarBear]

Hi Hedonism. Welcome to the forum.

I think what you'll find is that some people find their OCD worse at work and others find it worse at home. Some people find it worse in the morning while evenings can be worse for others. It doesn't really mean anything, other than perhaps certain situations at your work might trigger your OCD.

CBT teaches us to challenge our OCD and to refrain from performing compulsions. Figure out what your compulsions are and work hard to refrain from doing them.

Take care.