Question by Holly L: Panic disorder, depression, OCD, anxiety?
Soooo.. my whole life i’ve felt like i’ve had OCD. then in early november this year, i scared myself in class to the point that i passed out. then i went to the counselor at my school who deals with depression, anxiety, etc a few weeks later. she had me take this test and diagnosed me with OCD, anxiety, and a little bit of depression. and of course with the anxiety comes the panic disorder.
so i have a few questions…

1. how can i control a panic attack that i can feel coming on in the middle of class? (usually i can tell when they’re coming).

2. how does depression and OCD tie into panic disorder/anxiety? (she told me that it’s kinda like OCD building up over time and it makes me just like…. snap all of the sudden through panicking).

3. she suggested i go to this behavioral therapist but then decided that i go to some “art therapy”? what do you do there? i heard it’s kinda like doodling or listening to music to help you cope with a panic attack when u feel it coming on.
I’m on a medication to calm me down during the day. but 1. it makes me sleepy in the morning when i take it before school and 2. i can stay on it much longer cause it can become an addiction…
— and for the one answer— my OCD involves doing something to one side of my body that has happened to the other (if someone punches me in my arm, i have to punch myself in the other arm), when i see numbers i have to add them all together and make sure it’s divisible by 3. if not, i get shallow breathing for like 5 or so seconds. there’s a smoke detector in my upstairs hallway. i have to jump and touch it whenever i walk up or downstairs. same goes with this wind chime on our pourch. walking past it i NEED to jump and touch it.
^^ * i CANT stay on the medication cause it’s addicting.
4. how can i stop my violent shaking i get when im in these states?

Best answer:

Answer by ryshtyan
Art therapy will do wonders for you. I’m well aware of individuals who’ve had some kind of disorder, like ADHD, ADD and stress related problems that benefited hugely from getting involved in some kind of art/craft program. This allows you to focus your attention on something other than stress.

Also, as hard as this may seem, don’t let things bother you. This is one of the biggest problems people have. Tiny things bother them and it nags away until it becomes a real health issue. Whatever irks you, let it go. Realize it’s not worth getting stressed over and just move on.

If you feel panic coming on, shift thoughts. Do something even as corny as simply looking up to the ceiling and search for cracks and count them. Do whatever you can to shift your mind to something else. Even run off names in alphabetical order in your mind and make a game out of it. I do this. It helps.

As for the art therapy, if you’re into painting, take up painting. If you’re into ceramics, take up ceramics. If you simply want to build stick houses with whatever you find in your yard, or somebody’s yard, do that. Whatever interests you, go for it.

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