Stress Buster: Take a Deeeeeep Breath

Will I Ever Be Myself Again?

Will I ever be myself again? The question I constantly asked myself after my first panic attack. My entire life, I have been a worrier, a perfectionist, an obsessive thinker and very, very sensitive to what and how others around me thought and felt. My first panic attack was on April 11, 2005. When it hit, I didn't know what was wrong with me. I couldn't sit still. I had this overwhelming feeling that I needed to run, but to where? I couldn't relax. My entire body shook like a leaf and I had troubles catching my breath. I thought I was going to go crazy, quit breathing and die. It simply hit me out of nowhere. My mother drove me to the Emergency Room where I was diagnosed with having a panic attack. A what? What was that and how could I make sure I never went through it again? The doctor prescribed me an anti-anxiety medication and I went home, shell-shocked. From that day on, my life changed. I lived in constant fear of when a "Panic Attack" would strike again. Where would I be? How embarrassing! What if I just lost it and went crazy in front of a crowd of people? What if I was literally going crazy and my family would have to commit me to a mental institution? I self medicated with alcohol which only led me into the ugly darkness of alcoholism. The fear controlled my life until I found the Attacking Anxiety and Depression program. I was excited about the program but didn't want to start it for fear if it didn't work, I would be doomed forever. *What a miracle!* I can't put into words how thankful I am to Lucinda Bassett and her team at the Midwest Center. This program is absolutely priceless. I have my life back and I don't want to be "Myself" again – the person without these life changing skills that I learned from the program. I am becoming a new person. I quit smoking, quit binge drinking, lost 25lbs and plan to run my first marathon in 2008. I will be off all anti-anxiety, anti-depressant medication on April 11, 2007 (how ironic). This program has absolutely changed my life. I am proud of who I'm becoming!

Katie Fisher

Stress Buster: Set REASONABLE deadlines

We get lots of calls and letters concerning sleep...or lack of it, one of our staff members even wrote a book about it. Time for Sleep, by Tammy Barlekamp.

DREAM BIG!

A TIME to SLEEP

In case you haven't heard, I have a book out called A Time to Sleep. And you know the best thing about this book?? It's FINISHED!! After three years of writing notes on scraps of paper, I finally got it into a finished product. And all I can say is... it feels good. It's not so much about the book as it is about not breaking a promise to myself. I remember back in 1997 my MWC coach, Ken, said "The promises we break are the ones we make to ourselves". He really made me think how sad that was. I thought of all the people that had promised me things and let me down and now he was telling me I was doing that to MYSELF. Ouch. How could I expect to feel good when I was breaking promises to myself on a regular basis? "I promise I'll let you slow down, TOMORROW" "I promise I'll fix you up to look pretty, TOMORROW" "I promise I'll take better care your health, TOMORROW" How sad. I just pictured this sad little kid waiting for the promise to come true. Well, today, most of my promises to myself do come true. Whether it is a nap or a vacation or a book, I don't make or take promises to myself lightly. They are part of how I esteem and respect myself and feel special. It makes ME feel important. And I would like all of you to know that YOU are important too! If you know anything about the Attacking Anxiety and Depression Program, you know that how you think and feel and treat yourself is the key to recovery. What have you promised yourself today? To go for a walk? To have lunch with a friend? To talk to yourself with compassion? Big dreams are built on keeping small promises to yourself. No more excuses. No more broken promises. Be a good friend to yourself starting today!

Order your copy through the Midwest Center- 9-5 eastern time zone – ask for customer service.

Also, read the material at the end of Chapter 3 - that won't hurt you at all.

One thing that helped me: I believe people have to learn how to REST before they can be good sleepers. That is one reason I hit the importance of the relaxation exercise so hard.

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