Hey there,
Just got back from the gym and had a really good workout. I felt strong and refreshed after my one-week rest.
Here’s the stats from today:
Sets: 3
Reps: 5
Rest: 60
1A) BB Bench Press: 205
1B) Seated Cable Rows: 190
2A) Squats: 225
2B) Sumo Deadlifts: 255
3A) Standing Calf Raises: 270
3B) Hammer Curls: 45
Tomorrow will be another home boxing workout, followed by a trip back to the gym Wednesday and a day off on Thursday.
Take care,
Dan
Dj, thanks for posting this. I just found this thread and read the whole friggen thing while here at work.
I too have depression and am taking Effexor for it and Xanax for anxiety. It totally sucks having to go through this stuff. I feel for anyone that has had to do it. Very hard to explain to anyone who has not experienced it.
Great to see you back at it and leading a “normal” life. I am working on it and will beat this like so many of these other fine people have.
[quote]Icarus wrote:
Dj, thanks for posting this. I just found this thread and read the whole friggen thing while here at work.
I too have depression and am taking Effexor for it and Xanax for anxiety. It totally sucks having to go through this stuff. I feel for anyone that has had to do it. Very hard to explain to anyone who has not experienced it.
Great to see you back at it and leading a “normal” life. I am working on it and will beat this like so many of these other fine people have. [/quote]
Icarus,
Glad you found the thread and thanks for sharing your story. Yeah, it is very hard to explain to people who haven’t gone through it…a lot of people just look at you like you’re crazy or something.
Dealing with anxiety is a day-by-day battle. Some days are better than others. The key is to not dwell as much on the bad days and focus more on the good ones. Relieving stress is also a big part of it, so make sure you find activities that reduce stress levels (exercise, reading, meditating, etc.).
-Dan
Hey everyone,
Well, I had a bad day today. I’ve been a bit stressed lately and haven’t slept well (even with Ambien) the last 2 nights thinking about stuff. Basically my wife is stressed with work and school (finals are coming up) so I’m worried about her and my work schedule has been crazy lately. I’m trying not to do too much but I know I’ve pushed myself the past 2 weeks. I’m also dealing with some family problems…my grandmother has Alzheimer’s and my youngest sister was shot at while driving to work the other day. Thankfully she’s OK but I know all of this worrying built up.
Well, today things finally caught up to me. I woke up feeling okay but shortly after noticed I was very much on edge. I managed to get to work and complete all of my tasks (which before I would’ve stayed home) but still felt off when I returned home…oh before I went home stopped off at the DMV and that certainly didn’t help my stress.
So, I get home and do my deep breathing exercises for 20 minutes and start feeling a bit better but shortly after I start feeling anxious again. I break out in a sweat and am really nervous now. I called my wife at her work and she helped calm me down and I then popped a Xanax XR (control-release) and that definitely helped stabilize me.
I spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing and I feel much better now than 12 hours ago.
I’m not going to dwell on this because I realize there are going to be days like this in the future. The good thing is I was able to work through the anxiety and am functioning normally now.
Take care,
Dan
[quote]Djwlfpack wrote:
I spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing and I feel much better now than 12 hours ago.
I’m not going to dwell on this because I realize there are going to be days like this in the future. The good thing is I was able to work through the anxiety and am functioning normally now.
Take care,
Dan[/quote]
I think this is by far the most important part of your day. Your experience with that few hours does not represent you; yeah it was shitty but look at it as “it was just a few hours of my life”.
Then you say “was able to work through & function normal”. YOU COULDN’T HAVE DONE BETTER THAN THAT!!! You are the one that is control now and you can believe that by looking at your own words.
I had a bit of the same feeling yesterday (but in a different way). Had 3 hours sleep the night before. Tried to lay on the couch for a catnap. My body seemed rigid from tension; no way no how was I going to relax in order to fall asleep. So I ended up getting pissed off & said the hell with it.
So I choose to ignore it. Not saying its the best way but I look at the experience as a very small, insignificant part of my life, I ask you - what purpose would it serve to put alot of emphasis on it?
How about looking at it in such a way as doing a workout. Its just one set. So its a really hard set, you do it as this is the last set, the last rep, I have no problem at all doing one last set or one last rep, I’ll give it a 100% because I’m never going to experience it again so it won’t kill me. Did that make sense at all?
[quote]Flower217 wrote:
Djwlfpack wrote:
I spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing and I feel much better now than 12 hours ago.
I’m not going to dwell on this because I realize there are going to be days like this in the future. The good thing is I was able to work through the anxiety and am functioning normally now.
Take care,
Dan
I think this is by far the most important part of your day. Your experience with that few hours does not represent you; yeah it was shitty but look at it as “it was just a few hours of my life”.
Then you say “was able to work through & function normal”. YOU COULDN’T HAVE DONE BETTER THAN THAT!!! You are the one that is control now and you can believe that by looking at your own words.
I had a bit of the same feeling yesterday (but in a different way). Had 3 hours sleep the night before. Tried to lay on the couch for a catnap. My body seemed rigid from tension; no way no how was I going to relax in order to fall asleep. So I ended up getting pissed off & said the hell with it.
So I choose to ignore it. Not saying its the best way but I look at the experience as a very small, insignificant part of my life, I ask you - what purpose would it serve to put alot of emphasis on it?
How about looking at it in such a way as doing a workout. Its just one set. So its a really hard set, you do it as this is the last set, the last rep, I have no problem at all doing one last set or one last rep, I’ll give it a 100% because I’m never going to experience it again so it won’t kill me. Did that make sense at all?[/quote]
You’re right, Flower. I should focus more on the fact that I was able to overcome the anxiety and functioned normally the rest of the afternoon/evening. No sense dwelling on the negative.
I guess it’s just one of those things where you haven’t had any type of anxiety attack in a while your brain tricks itself into thinking it’s never going to happen, so when it does pop up from time to time, it feels much worse than it really was.
I’m feeling a lot better today than I was at this time yesterday but now I know that if I start feeling anxious to first go through my relaxation techniques and if that doesn’t seem to help, there’s no shame in taking a Xanax to help take the edge off.
-Dan
Hey everyone,
Just got back from the gym and had a good, albeit abbreviated, workout. I cut things a bit short because A) didn’t want to rush back into an intense workout after yesterday and B) I’m taking my first Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu class tomorrow so I don’t want to be too sore to where I can’t do anything and I know I’ll likely be plenty sore after the class.
Anyway, here’s the stats from today:
Sets: 2
Reps: 8
Rest: 90
DB Incline Bench: 70, 75
BB Upright Rows: 80
Front Squats: 165
Good Mornings: 120
BB Biceps Curl: 75
Dips: BW + 25 lbs.
Nothing planned the rest of the day excpet relaxing, which will include watching some DVDs and reading.
Take care,
Dan
hey DJ, good thread. I too suffer from panic attacks but they aren’t nearly as bad as yours and others. they seemed to start when i was in high school. i would be laying down trying to go to sleep when all of a sudden i would feel the need to just get up and walk around. I felt nervous, anxious, like I needed to go somewhere. Some years later I wound up in the emergency room from a pretty bad anxiety attack. they couldn’t find anything wrong, much like you.
the next day I went to my doctor and he couldn’t find anything wrong either. blood pressure was great, the ekg looked good also. so they didn’t know what to do. that was the last really bad one i had. however i have had many, many smaller attacks to this day. i have managed to get them under control and haven’t had an attack in a while. i actually find that diet and exercise seem to keep them in check. also for me it seems to be a very mental game that i’m playing with myself. i’ve learned to just breathe, try to relax when i feel one coming on and just go with it. ya know? i’m not medicated nor have i ever been. it is nice to hear that other guys are having going through the same problems. thanks for starting this thread and i hope things continue to get better for you. good luck with your training man!
[quote]dre wrote:
hey DJ, good thread. I too suffer from panic attacks but they aren’t nearly as bad as yours and others. they seemed to start when i was in high school. i would be laying down trying to go to sleep when all of a sudden i would feel the need to just get up and walk around. I felt nervous, anxious, like I needed to go somewhere. Some years later I wound up in the emergency room from a pretty bad anxiety attack. they couldn’t find anything wrong, much like you.
the next day I went to my doctor and he couldn’t find anything wrong either. blood pressure was great, the ekg looked good also. so they didn’t know what to do. that was the last really bad one i had. however i have had many, many smaller attacks to this day. i have managed to get them under control and haven’t had an attack in a while. i actually find that diet and exercise seem to keep them in check. also for me it seems to be a very mental game that i’m playing with myself. i’ve learned to just breathe, try to relax when i feel one coming on and just go with it. ya know? i’m not medicated nor have i ever been. it is nice to hear that other guys are having going through the same problems. thanks for starting this thread and i hope things continue to get better for you. good luck with your training man![/quote]
Dre,
I appreciate the support. Thanks for sharing your story. That’s awesome that you were able to overcome this without using meds. You’re right about “going with” the anxiety when you have an attack. I actually did that yesterday when I was feeling one coming on I tried not to fight it instead I just sat back and encouraged it to happen and things weren’t really that bad. The only thing that sucked was that I kept feeling on edge even after the attack had passed…likely because I hadn’t had one in so long.
Hey everyone,
Well had another so-so day today. Again had problems sleeping the night before and the stress of trying to figure out how to cover playoffs in 8 different sports over 3 weeks by myself has really gotten to me.
I talked with my boss today and he was really supportive and told me not to push myself too hard and that he would have my back if people called the paper and complained. It was very refreshing to hear and definitely made me feel better…as the last time I had my attacks, my ex-boss expected me to keep on working the same break-neck schedule I was that led to the attacks.
I took a Xanax this afternoon just to mellow out and that helped. Didn’t make it to Jiu-Jitsu class, but that’s okay since I haven’t signed up for a membership yet and will go when I’m feeling better.
I’ve been talking to Ragoo and others about Paxil and I think I’m going to ask my doctor tomorrow about it. I think being on something that I can take daily but is non-addictive like Xanax would help level me out…especially on weeks like this where my anxiety levels are spiked.
I’ll let you guys know how the doctor visit goes tomorrow. Depending on how I feel, I’ll also hit the gym for my 2x15 workout.
Take care and stay strong (this goes for me too!)
-Dan
I was wondering, do antidepressants and meds such as Valium lower testosterone levels?
Its got me kinda concerned since I’m 22 yrs. old now but have been taking them for several years now.
Was just worried whether they could affect pubertal and muscular development in a teenager…
Thoughts?
I don’t think they affect T-levels…I made good gains while taking Xanax on a daily basis.
[quote]chirag wrote:
I was wondering, do antidepressants and meds such as Valium lower testosterone levels?
Its got me kinda concerned since I’m 22 yrs. old now but have been taking them for several years now.
Was just worried whether they could affect pubertal and muscular development in a teenager…
Thoughts?[/quote]
Certain SSRI’s have had reported weight gain as a side effect. But I do’nt know how many suffered that or how severe the cases.
Nah, weight gain due to the pills has never been an issue for me.
However, I was just worried because of lack of sex drive and libido, that maybe my T-levels were getting affected by the medication.
I’m taking Sertraline (for OCD) and valium (for GAD).
So that means I shouldn’t worry about these meds hindering my development then?
Especially since I’m not done with puberty and could definitely benefit from more body hair and muscle?
I do, though, tend to lose weight rather easily when I have bits of anxiety. My appetite is one of the first things to go and just today I noticed my pants were fitting a bit “looser” than they had a week ago.
Hey everyone,
Just finished a home boxing workout and am feeling good. I had a long weekend, filled with a 12-hour work day on Saturday, so it was nice to get in a good workout today.
My anxiety wasn’t an issue Saturday…I think being outside and focusing on the baseball games helped me, as I felt good all day. I was wiped when I came home and was in bed by 9:30 p.m. I slept for a good 3.5 to 4 hours before waking to go to the bathroom. After that, I couldn’t fall back asleep for the rest of the night, tossing and turning for 6 hours before finally getting out of bed at 6:30 a.m.
I felt groggy and out of it all day on Sunday, as did my wife, who worked an overnight shift at her job Saturday night. We went to bed early last night (9 p.m.) and I got a good 9 hours of sleep in. I had a bit of a dull headache today but it went away after lunch, thankfully. I think my body’s still recovering from not sleeping well Saturday, so I’ll try and relax tonight and hit the sack early again.
I really think my work schedule messes with my head, even when I try to ignore it. There’s just so much going on and I get easily overwhelmed by the magnitude of it all. Thankfully, there’s only 2 weeks left and then I get a 3 month break from all the madness that is high school sports.
The good news is I haven’t taken a Xanax in 3 days, so it would appear the rough patch from last week is starting to fade away. I’m still a bit more “on edge” than I’d like to be, but I just chalk it up to increased stress from work.
Tomorrow I’m going to hit the gym…I’m thinking about switching over to Chad’s MMA strength-training routine since I’ll be picking up MMA classes again in a few weeks.
Take care,
Dan
Sounds like things are getting better. Once the sports thing is over, you’ll feel even better. Stess from work is a wicked catalyst for anxiety and depression, as it’s infiltrates all of your life’s aspects. It sucks and the best thing to do is to handle it in the most comfortable way.
Also been there. panic attacks were so bad that I laid in bed for over a week thinking about some really crazy stuff. Eventually got on meds (anxiety and depression meds). I had some weight gain at first but got rid of it eventually. It took me quite a while to get back in the gym because the meds made me so damn tired!
Its been over 7 years now and I still suffer from attacks, but at least I know what it is and I dont think Im dying. Ive shared my story with some other people and have found quite a few people who suffer from these disorders, maybe not quite as bad, but at least you know you’re not alone
[quote]Clint80 wrote:
Also been there. panic attacks were so bad that I laid in bed for over a week thinking about some really crazy stuff. Eventually got on meds (anxiety and depression meds). I had some weight gain at first but got rid of it eventually. It took me quite a while to get back in the gym because the meds made me so damn tired!
Its been over 7 years now and I still suffer from attacks, but at least I know what it is and I dont think Im dying. Ive shared my story with some other people and have found quite a few people who suffer from these disorders, maybe not quite as bad, but at least you know you’re not alone [/quote]
Clint,
Thanks for sharing your experience. I can relate to you when you say you sat in bed for a week thinking of crazy things…when I have anxiety I tend to isolate myself from everyone and the negative thoughts begin to flow quickly and freely.
Medication really does help level things out, but as I’ve found, we’re still succeptable to anxiety attacks every now and again, just maybe not as severe as when they first started.
Hey everyone,
Just finished another home boxing workout. Felt good and strong today and seem to have really put the negative thoughts of last week behind me, as I was able to push myself to my usual intensity today after taking it easy on Monday.
Tomorrow I’ll hit the gym and test my 3-rep maxes for bench, squat and deadlifts as I prepare to start CW’s MMA strength-training program. Once I get back from vacation (end of May), I plan on re-enrolling in MMA classes and will be taking them 2-3 times a week, focusing on Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. I was planning on doing another round of TBT but once I saw Chad’s MMA-specific article, I knew I had to switch over since I had been waiting for him to release that info for a few months.
Unfortunately I have to go to the eye doctor (again) tomorrow. My new contacts just don’t fit right in my eyes…they were feeling scratchy and sometimes things would go blurry for a second if I moved really quick in one direction. Hopefully I can find a better pair this time.
Take care,
Dan