Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)

Why is life such an uphill struggle?

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Symptoms:

You’re always having to do something you don’t want to do, you keep putting it off for short-term relief and it’s making you feel guilty, angry and stressed out.

You have trouble making decisions and getting tasks done before their deadline. You’re easily distracted and find it hard to plan ahead so it frustrates you and you give up.

You’re a perfection­ist and always looking for a perfect solution rather than finishing a task. You repeatedly check on something you know you’ve done, like switching off the cooker.

It could be:

You’re stressed and your racing thoughts, lack of energy and trouble focusing is making you even more tense.

ADHD, where forgetting and losing things, making careless mistakes or taking unsafe risks are quite common. You find yourself fidgeting a lot.

Obsessivec­ompulsive disorder (OCD) where you feel helpless to stop rituals like handwashin­g. You waste time on these rituals and on repetitive thoughts.

Stop it:

Try to keep your mood in check with regular exercise, limit your alcohol and caffeine intake, both of which make stress worse. Talk to a friend about what’s on your mind and unburden yourself. Your doctor might suggest seeing a counsellor.

See your doctor and ask for cognitive behavioura­l therapy (CBT) which will help identify and change your negative thought patterns. It can also help you start to manage your time better.

See your doctor because anxiety medication or antidepres­sants can often improve OCD symptoms. Also, CBT can help, plus exposure therapy where you learn to slowly face your fears.

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