Hi Dave!

I rarely read posts here but somehow your post popped up and I was immediately drawn in, so I will toss in my little bit of info/advice.

For background purposes, I am a 48 year old non practicing pediatrician living in the US. I was diagnosed 15 years ago. I had DBS (GPi target) in April of 2017.

First and foremost, I would like to suggest, if at all possible, to find a way (be it psychotherapy, cognitive behavioral training, medications, meditation, mindfulness, whatever combo of these) to manage this anxiety. Anxiety can be so debilitating! It makes everything worse. And DBS will NOT likely make anxiety better, I think (I base this comment on personal experience, not data, so please educate me/us if it has been found otherwise that DBS itself lessens anxiety. In fact, it’s plausible that it could make anxiety/depression/psychosis, etc worse.). Either way, I sense (by your post) that anxiety is a significant issue at work here, and I would try to make it as manageable as possible before embarking on brain surgery. And, unfortunately, it can take a while to train your brain or retrain your brain but it’s possible. Either way, DBS does not cure family problems! (If only! &#129315 Best of luck to you! 🤗

Mary (aka xaxa)