I intro'd myself several weeks ago when my panic disorder took a big turn for the worst. I'm a teacher, so I've been off all summer. The lack of a structured routine really threw me for a loop. I have been worried about going back to school, since I have been having such a hard time lately. Well, last week I started going up to the school every day. We are going to have a new principal this year and I've now met with her for several hours total. She's very much an action-taker and I feel confident that things are going to be much better for me at work next year.
The first day I went back, I was very nervous. I had a LOT of "skipped beats" and called my husband to tell him that I was on my way home so that he could check to make sure I got there okay. I had a constant feeling of impending doom for the entire drive. The second day, I felt a little better while I was at school, but still had a lot of skipped heartbeats and a feeling of impending doom on the drive home. I was tempted to call my husband, but I didn't. The third day, I was very happy while I was at school, had five or six skipped beats on the way home, the temptation to call was a lot less.
Today, I was very happy to be at the school. I got to see some of my teacher friends. I sat through and participated in a 2.5 hour meeting without a single anxious twinge. I even signed up for a leadership position for next school year. On the way home, I had 3 skipped heartbeats and hardly any anxiety at all. It felt good! :-)
Anyway, I'm very happy to be seeing these kinds of results so quickly after starting exposure. Now if only my efforts to get my classroom clean and organized could be so fruitful...