I think this has hit me., with having the allergic reaction to mestinon and everything., I just am becoming a nervous wreck., I don't know what to do to relax., I just feel so upset., ........and then I am angry too..Well I will be going to the neuro later today for the results of the CAT scan., i guess I will try to go over all this with him. He is just not too talkative., has anyone suffered anxiety or depression from the diagnosis??? What did you do???

My pred caused wicked bad panic attacks - horrible ones - so I am on CONTROLLED release xanax for those, as well as Paxil for depression. I was started on the Paxil the 1st time I had plasma exchange - I was scared out of my mind..........it was awful for a girl with a life long fear - Ok phobia - of needles!

My neuro did say that a lot of people with MG also suffer from depression - they kind of go hand in hand so to speak, so don't be afraid to ask for help.

I also PRAY a lot and ask my pastor and church to pray with me.......it helps a lot!

Hope this helps!

Big, big hugs!
Erin

Hey WW and since I see you are pretty new here, I'll say Welcome to NeuroTalk. The title of your thread caught my eye and though I cannot imagine how MG affects your life, I can say that YES, I do suffer from anxiety from time to time. I take Pristiq and guess it's helping.

I thought Erin's post to you was great and talking through your anxiety/worries w/someone else also helps me. As for your Neuro, he is your Dr and you should address your worries to him, so I say, go ahead and talk to the Dr.

I hope you can find some relief soon and I'm glad you found us here at NT. take care.

Awe, I remember those days. But mine wasn't over Myasthenia, is was about having a Spinal fusion, and then again when I was diagnosed with Pulmonary Hypertension.

Having a personal relationship with the Lord, has helped me in more ways than I could ever imagine. I was a Christian long before I became ill, so going to Him for comfort came naturally to me. I pray and talk to the Lord constantly.

Calming music helps.
I also love old movies, and when my eyes allow, I love to read, knit, paint, garden.
Having said that, i have to say, that when I was in the mist of extreme stress, actually doing something was hard, my body didn't want to work with me. So, going for rides out in the country, talking with someone, educating myself, also helped.

I know this is a very confusing, and stressful time for you. And my best advice would be to gather as much information as you can, and ask you doctor all of them. Google everything if you can.
I also, down loaded the conferences, and listened carefully to what the experts had to say.
Learn how you react to things, and listen to your body when it screams for rest. "This is Not easy to do" !!!!! (not that I'm ratting myself out or anything..)But it is a Must!

Erin, gonna pray you over-come your fear of needles. For someone like us, that's an annoying fear. Okay, so , will you pray I overcome my total irrational fear of worms??? I mean, at least your's is some what rational. It can hurt to get stuck with a needle........ When gardening, I've been know to invent some pretty weird tribalish looking dances. Kind of embarrassing .
Love Lizzie

Lizzie, Your humor is helpful by itself! You're so delightful.

WW, I remember the first time I was dx'd with MG - I just kept thinking "I'm DISEASED" and that thought was horrifying to me. In time, you get used to the idea that you have a condition, but in the meantime I know it's all so overwhelming and scary.

Laughter is sooo important. It releases endorphins, for one thing. Watch a funny movie or read the comics, anything that will get you to laugh. There's an old psychology trick about compartmentalizing problems that may help you learn to control how much you think about your dx. Basically, you tell yourself that you will only allow yourself X amount of time each day to think about having MG. The rest of the time, if thoughts of MG creep in you push them out - out loud if necessary. Your brain takes direction, and if you train it to allow you some peace it will - as long as you don't put things off completely which isn't at all healthy. It sometimes takes some time to develope the skill, but it has been invaluable to me during high stress times.

Allow yourself ample time to research, question, cry, shout, whatever. But allow yourself some time each day to escape, too. You may find yourself talking to yourself out loud a lot, but sometimes saying something out loud seems to help your mind get it straight.

The most extreme example I know of is my husbands aunt. When she lost her husband and youngest daughter in a car accident (which she was also in, but she wasn't hurt at all, and so witnessed both of their conditions and deaths), it was too much for her to deal with. Her physchologist had her tell herself that her husband was just out of town on business so she could grieve the loss of just her daughter. When she got through that process, she was allowed to let herself acknowlege that her husband was gone too and start grieving him.

I hope you can put this to use. I feel so sorry for you trying to get a handle on all this at once!

Remember to laugh, smile and love!
Becky

When I was first diagnosed I was pretty stressed out, as anyone would be. I finally went onto anti depressants, which have helped me, but I was prone to depression before diagnosis.

I have also learnt to tell myself that things don't matter nearly as much as I thin they do. For instance, I'm sick with the flu at the moment, and theres washing sitting waiting to be hung out, but hey that doesn't matter at the moment, getting better does, and the washing will wait. Its taken ages to let myself be ok with things that I once would have done with out thinking twice about, but now they just have to wait. Hope this makes a bit of sense, as I said I've got the flu, and my brain seems to have been blown out my nose!!