Visiting The Doctors

Today I spent a few hours sorting my belongings that I had brought home from university at the weekend. I didn’t feel anxious this morning, however, I am finding I can only do a couple of hours of anything a day and then I need to lie down and do something simple like watch TV, I think my brain is just too tired at the moment. At 4 my mum came home to take me to the doctors, I wasn’t anxious beforehand but once I got in the car suddenly my mind began to race and I felt I couldn’t breathe. I tried to think of some of the techniques that I have been taught in CBT to deal with it but I just couldn’t think of any at the time and wasn’t able to use it. I however, look forward to the moment CBT techniques are second nature and I am able to stop these situations/thought processes. Once at the doctors I did my usual of going to the toilet, this helps me relax by just taking a couple of minutes to relax on my own. I then signed in and sat in the waiting area, I was ok for the first minute when I sat down and then as time went on I became increasingly agitated and anxious. I became very hot despite it not being so and sat there in just a short sleeved dress I was experiencing the same sort of heat you have with the flu. I found it hard to breathe properly, I was struggling with the bright artificial light, I wanted to lie down, I couldn’t hold a conversation with my mum as I was unable to concentrate and if I spoke I felt even more breathless and my brain was telling me to get outside and try and cool down. I had to wait twenty minutes longer for my appointment than I was meant to and this really didn’t help. I then entered the doctors room and felt slightly better for a minute and then my attention went again, if I was asked questions I found it hard to answer them so luckily I had my mum with me and I had taken a list of things I wanted to ask: a doctor’s note to send to my university, more slow releasing propanol and a hormone balancing drug. I did struggle to stay in the room but I knew it wouldn’t last long so pushed through. As soon as I left the room my anxiety levels dropped rapidly and I was able to hold a conversation again with my mum,  I also felt really cold as I had just spent the last hour without a coat on. I also became really tired from the anxiety of the past hour, so I just spent the evening relaxing on the sofa.