Recovery Helped Woman Overcome Anxiety

By Linda Bowman MacBrien

Orangeville Banner

Ontario, Canada

Panic attacks, anxiety disease, agoraphobia; label it any textbook diagnosis you wish. It all comes down to basic fear. Fear that emanates from within, fear that has no face, no shape, no real basis in reality.

But it exists in thousands of people and carries with it an array of physical symptoms that range from tremors, heart palpitations, sweats, numbness, headaches or pressure, and numerous other effects that threaten the sufferer with feelings of impending collapse, if not sure and instant death.

Panic attacks, or internal fear, began ruling my life over a period of years, starting with a feeling that a stroke or heart attack was about to occur.

While driving a vehicle, symptoms forced me to pull over in case I might collapse. When the threat subsided, I rushed home to "safety," fearing the next outing. Shopping in a grocery store or standing in the checkout line, I started to tremble, had difficulty catching my breath, and needed to escape the trapped feeling.

Long car trips with the family became an ordeal lest we get caught in traffic with no place to escape the closed-in feeling.

Eventually over the years, I became a prisoner of myself, staying home as much as possible, venturing out only when accompanied by an adult who could take care of me should another attack overcome me. Even then, it was only for short and necessary outings.

My daily routine, my entire existence was centered around avoidance of the places and activities that previously had been associated with panic.

Almost totally debilitated by my inner fears, you wouldn't think it could get any worse; but it did. Fear of being alone even in my 'safe' home led me to set up my days by ensuring a friend or neighbor was at my beck and call, just in case panic should set in. I was predisposed and conditioned to fear the day from the moment my eyes opened each morning.

In a few short years I had changed from an independent, self-sufficient, happy and fearless woman, to a person helpless, out of control, totally dependent on others, depressed, and depressing to others, a complainer and whiner, absorbed in self-pity and full of fear I couldn't identify or cope with. I was both embarrassed and ashamed.

That was my personal profile just over two years ago. Helpless, yes, but hopeless? No.

I was recommended to a self-help group called Recovery Inc., an international organization with a total of 800 groups in six countries.

Originally founded by the late Abraham A. Low, M.D. in 1937, his national reputation in psychiatry led to the development of his system of "Mental Health Through Will Training," the book written and used in all Recovery meetings.

Dr. Low's techniques of re-educating the brain to a healthy set of values are simple, but not easy. It takes practice to first spot the thoughts that are causing physical symptoms, then willpower to change those thoughts from negative to positive viewpoints.

It's that simple, but again, not easy without ruthless practice.

One of the first slogans I learned and relied upon from Dr. Low's book was "symptoms are distressing, but not dangerous." You bet they were distressing; downright scary. But it occurred to me that the dreaded stroke or heart attack never materialized in any of my panic situations.

The pressure in my head never resulted in a brain tumor or massive hemorrhage as I had imagined and feared it might. And I never once passed out from dizziness or feelings of disorientation. Distressing, yes. But dangerous? No.

There was never any danger of my symptoms being life threatening. Once I let this secure thought take over, symptoms quickly subsided. It became a silent chant "distressing but not dangerous, distressing but not dangerous."

Two-and-a-half years later, after attending weekly Recovery meetings and continually practicing Dr. Low's proven techniques, I, like thousands of other nervous patients, am able to function daily with fewer fears, more self-control and confidence, less dependency.

My dedication to getting well through 'will training' has resulted in regular exposure to driving, shopping, standing in lines, and being alone without the hidden fear from within.

An assistant leader of the Orangeville Recovery group, I am strengthened even more by helping others learn and practice Dr. Low's principles.

Recovery Inc. is a self-supporting, non-profit organization, carried on by volunteers who are trained Recovery leaders. Meetings all over the world are structured in the same format to maintain consistency in the self-help program.

Recovery, Inc. is not intended to replace professional counseling, rather it works in conjunction with the psychiatric and medical communities.

Members do not diagnose or advise on a person's case, they merely demonstrate Dr. Low's methods from his books and tapes and present examples of how Recovery principles have worked in their daily lives.

Former mental health patients have benefited from Recovery's training; people with ongoing nervous problems who have deemed themselves helpless, have discovered through Recovery that they are not hopeless!

The focus for self-help may be a temperament of fear, depression, or anger that rages out of control. Recovery Inc. deals with various temperaments of people from all walks of life.

For myself, Recovery, Inc. is giving me back my zest of life by restoring my mental health. And as I reflect on my past fears and anxieties, solely for the purpose of writing this article, I am happy to report that I am now able to look back 'only' to see how far I've come.

Posted with permission of the Orangeville Banner and Linda Bowman MacBrien.

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