There’s no way on earth we’ll have any chance, at all, of successfully managing our disorder if we can’t own up to, embrace, and engage that from which we’re suffering. And we have to acknowledge that this suffering has legitimate biological and psychological foundations.
If we can’t bring ourselves to own our suffering and disease, why would we be motivated to do anything about it?
I can’t tell you the number of emails I’ve received from new clients who proclaim a clear acknowledgment of suffering, and suffering very badly. But when it comes to admitting they suffer from a recognized, legitimate, certified, registered, or however you want to “officialize” it disease, that becomes a little tough for them to do.
Perhaps that’s because they’ve been programmed to believe any malady involving the mind is a matter of no major consequence and can be easily shaken off by living one’s life in accordance with these useless philosophical statements…
“Come on, there’s nothing wrong with you, just toughen up.”
“Dude, pull yourself together, okay?”
“Hey, pull up those bootstraps and get going.”
Any of those bits of “ inspiration ” sound familiar?
Perhaps they think they’re inherently weak and this bit of panic and anxiety folly is an automatic, given their faulty self-assessment.
Or perhaps if one acknowledges a problem exists, one would then be obliged to put forth the effort toward doing something about it; and the motivation and energy, well, just aren’t there.
Regardless, there are lots of folks out there suffering from a variety of unfortunate situations who just don’t want to admit they have a real problem. And, unfortunately, until they do life isn’t going to be getting a whole lot sweeter any time soon.
I mean, it’s the same for people who abuse alcohol, drugs…anything. Until one admits there’s a problem, nothing positive will be done about it.
And until we readily admit we suffer from panic and anxiety , very real illnesses, we’ll never effectively manage them.
And that won’t make for a whole lot of comfort anytime soon.
After a winning bout with panic disorder, a career in the business world, and a part-time job working with socially challenged adolescents, Bill found his life's passion and work. So he earned his master's degree and counseling credentials, and is doing all he can to lend a hand to those having a tough time.
Bill has some powerful MP3s and mentoring packages available on his blog, http://panicattackology.net . Lots of good stuff going on and much more to come.
In addition to doing psychiatric emergency work, Bill continues to do a lot of writing and speaking. He's conducted numerous mental health workshops for non-profit organizations and remains available to present more. Bill is a national and local member of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (N.A.M.I.).