Sylvia's Story

How I possibly can understand what you're going through? For 10 years, I struggled and eventually overcame anxiety and panic disorder. Thereafter, my life changed immensely. No longer am I held back by a lack of confidence and low self esteem. Here's a brief few words about my experience and how it all turned out.

Sylvia wasn't always so successful.

At 30 years of age I lost what little confidence I had due to a broken marriage, limited education and a dead-end job. My life was going nowhere. I began feeling extremely inadequate and eventually experienced my first major anxiety attack. 

I went through all the symptoms: sweating, racing heart, shaking, distorted thinking and in its worst stages, hallucinations. Innocent roadside items took on grotesque forms. Fear of losing control made driving (especially under bridges) a risky venture. Living on the 6th floor of an apartment building was downright perilous.

For five years, I was under the care of a psychiatrist who kept me on medications in an effort to resolve my chemical imbalance. When his treatment ended, however, I was better but not cured. The anxiety was still there, waiting for a weak moment to burst forth.

And it did.

It came in my second year of journalism college as I was waiting in the food line. Despite all efforts to ignore the emerging panic, it wasn't long before I had to hurry from the cafeteria to find a safe haven. It was the student lounge - where it was quiet and the lights were low. That's where I fell asleep, curled up in a ball on the edge of a sofa.

Surprisingly, it was my last major attack. That was 20+ years ago. My eventual ability to overcome my anxiety can be directly attributed to the boost that my new career had made to my self esteem. My marks were better than I'd ever imagined, I was awarded for excellence, and I had found my strength - creative expression.

There have been a few anxiety attacks since, but there been extremely mild and easily controlled. The secret, I discovered, is to focus on the solution not on the anxiety. Here's an example.

My last attack came when my finances had hit rock bottom. The only outcome looked like one of homelessness and hunger. Believe me, that is a frightening vision for anyone, but it was about to be my reality.

That's when the anxiety emerged. I began feeling hot and panicked. It was clear that my thoughts were on the negative outcome that loomed before me, rather than on finding solutions to avoid it. The moment my attention went to finding answers, the anxiety vanished.

Now I know that I can control my anxiety, provided I jump on it right at the start. And that's what you have to do, too.

The experience triggered major life changes for the better

When I graduated from Grade 10, all I could do was type and file. Then, typewriters became virtually non-existent. Typists were becoming obsolete. When I tried to get a better job, my lack of education stood in the way. And that's when I decided the only option was to go back to school.

Since graduating journalism in 1984, I've spent many wonderful and exciting years.

In 1986, I became the Manager of Community Education for the Canadian Mental Health Association. My work included writing columns and press releases, and assisting people seeking information on specific mental health-related issues. While there, I wrote my first informational booklet dealing with teen depression and suicide.

You can read about my new book at http://www.book-titles.ca/TeenDepression.php

Travel used to scare me, but no more.

In late 1990, I ventured on many trips that had been too intimidating for me in the past. At last I was able to go wherever I pleased: New York State to New Orleans, Texas, New Mexico and Arizona, the California coast, Oregon and Washington State. Then, I ferried across to Vancouver Island and headed east through the Okanagan Valley, Banff and Calgary and to her home in Ontario.

The trips inspired me so much that In 1995, I launched a travel guide to eastern Ontario which included features on local artists, historic sites, community events, live theatre and dining establishments.

Since recovering from anxiety and panic disorder, my life has been filled with fabulous experiences and journeys.

Through these pages, I hope to provide you with the tips, advice and product recommendations that will enable you to recover permanently and effectively so you can enjoy your life as I have mine.