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Anxiety 101

answered 10:18 PM EST, Sun October 26, 2014
hello doctor,
my name is john pual slim. im fifteen years old, im 16 pretty soon . i live in los angeles, California . im a pretty good kid, im respectful towards other , i go too school in time, get my work done. i get average grades , 3.0 gpa (i could do better i know). i have a wonderful relationship with my family and they are only aware of my anxiety issues and know i have smoked pot before, my mom caught me , someone seen me smoking , i disappointed her very much, my mom knows I'm very good kid. i told her it was my first time & i promised i wouldn't do it again . i had concept that its a all natural substance given by god, & it was not affecting me in any negative way, i was completely wrong. even wrote a couple of essays for my English class last semester and read countless articles on the postive outcomes, ignoring all the negatives,
now knowing im wrong i should have. i

i honestly started hanging around with the wrong crowd . marijuana in the area i live isnt considered "a big deal" . towards the end of my freshmen year i was just really curious to know what it was all about. so i smoked a couple of times with friends and got addicted without actually knowing it ..., after my few couple of times of experimenting in the month may, 2014. i started to purchase my own cannabis for myself( trust me i made sure it wasnt laced and pure cannabis, almost all my pot was from near-by marijuana dispensaries , ) i started to smoke almost everyday heavily . i didnt really stop , expect when i traveled for a week in december 2013, spring break 2014. those weeks where horrible , all i could think about was how i cant wait too get home and start smoking up , and you must be wondering where are my parents too this non-sense, well honestly i was like a ninja to when it came to getting caught , i was very, very careful in every move I did . i would go out to the park or my friends house to get stoned after school, i would smoke in the mornings not always, & practically every night in my room . with a carbon filter to blow to blow out my window , the fan pointing the window, towel on the door, eyedrops . i was very carefull, & closing my air vent.
just earlier this week i started to have major anxiety attacks(ive researched so much ) .
i thought smoking a diifrent strain would help but i was wrong so i came to a realization this has too stop. this is my fourth day sober, depression, lack of motivation, not much apatite , sweaty palms, racing heart, strong sweat odor, & anxiety , which is destroying my self esteem that i have now developed a life time medical condition .
i believe i have too situations right now but only one its temporary and the other isn't. up too 90 days of my body detoxing its self , my brain conditioning too deal with real life situations such as insomnia, stress, & helping my achy body after 2-3 hours boxing work outs, 3-4 times a week . Anxiety of course kicks in alot during the day and is horrible . im waiting for my health care insurance to go to see my local doctor and spill everything out how constantly i had been smoking pot. i had anxiety last time ay the gym i couldnt really focus so i haven't gone, i went the ymca the other day got my work done but it wasn't the easiest thing becuase my mind is spinning with my life situation.
i apologize with my grammar, topics bouncing back and fourth everywhere, i hope someones reads this. thank you very much

Neal Bobal Says...

Neal Bobal N. Bobal
MA, LPC.

Hello Paul,

I wanted to start off by saying that I'm really proud of you; that you have found the courage to ask for help and acknowledge that there is a problem. Your question deals with two major facts: First, that you have been smoking pot and that you have been sober for 4 days and secondly your experiencing symptoms of anxiety. I would encourage you to join a support group in your local area; they are anonymous and they will allow you to develop a support system that acknowledges your struggles. You are currently in the first stage of change called precontemplation; this stage deals with the mental and emotional dilemma "did I make the right decision; should I change or stay with what's been working (smoking pot); in times like this having a strong social network that understands the stressors and/or triggers can be very comforting. Lets take some time to answer some questions: how long have the anxiety symptoms been emerging? What are the physical signs sensations that you experience during a anxiety attack and the related emotions? How long do the anxiety attacks last? These are some questions that any professional dealing with anxiety management would be asking you; so it would be a great idea to start writing down some responses until you are able to connect with a mental health professional. Here are some simple techniques that are known to help in reducing anxiety symptoms: slow deep breathing (breathing through the nose, allowing your entire stomach to fill up like a balloon and then slowly breathing out from the mouth (focusing on the physical sensations of letting go; this technique can be done anywhere and it only takes 2-5 minutes and many individuals have found that closing your eyes helps to focus the mind and lower the actual anxiety symptoms). Another simple technique that does not require extensive training is guided imager: this strategy involves training your mind to focus on positive memories from your life that you find comforting (for example a childhood event, family trip, or a funny moment that bring a smile to your facing every time you think of it) in this technique you a pairing the happy memory to your current anxiety provoking trigger. When ever you experience a anxiety attack either you can focus on the physical photo of your happy memory or allow yourself to mentally visit that moment in time in your mind while focusing on the breathing as suggested before and this should lessen some of the symptoms that you are experiencing. Please contact your local primary care doctor or mental health professional for a complete work up and remember that if the symptoms do not lessen then you will have to consider med management from a trained psychiatrist.

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Page last updated Oct 26, 2014

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