Aww thanks gene. I agree with DM. I feel privileged to have found this place and privileged that you share your experiences with me. this place feels like a great hang out with friends who undwerstand me. I feel honored to be in such great company.
I'm a bit like Diva. I relapsed in January and think I found the forum in March. It didn't take me long to get back on track but this place was a godsend for me and saved me a lot of stress at home etc by having a place to go and share my experiences. I actually think my relapse was shortened because I didn't feel alone and received a lot of advice and support.
I didn't actually complete the program as I've done a similiar one to it and just took bits and pieces and applied them to what was happening. It was my OCD that was the worst this time. Anxiety disorders can change how they surface or what your experience as time passes. What used to be PD is now tined with OCD. I get obsessions and they trigger panic attacks as I get upset by even having these thoughts. Obsessions being thoughts that are disturbing and won't go away.. they can be so random and scary :)
I won't be disappearing though because like Diva although I live a full life and go and do everything I still have situations that bring on my anxiety / ocd even if only for an instant. Coming here during those moments is like chatting with friends... Thanks everyone!! It also reminds me that I am not alone nor a "freak" for having these quirks. lol...
All of you will get there too.. I work, go to school, parent, volunteer at the school etc. and travel. I'm still working on driving though but because it doesn't affect my life as we are in walking distance of everything I've never pushed this issue... I am working on it though and I'll keep you posted as I'm sure this will bring on anxiety ... YIKES!!
I appreciate all that these forums have given me as well I appreciate all of you for having the courage to share your experiences with me. I actually feel privileged to have found this site.
Hey...when you have something to say, you have something to say! Rofl, you're talking to the ramble king!
Anywho, thanks for that Diva. And I agree with you and Dee, I'll probably never fully leave...as I feel it's important to remember the roots of what helped you in your life, and especially give the good food life has given you, back to those in need.
Ooh! Sorry it took so long for me to answer this thread lol. Yes, CD is right I am the Old Timer here. I often tell my husband I am a self-help forum addict or a Panic Center addict lol ( I do not beleive I am an addict, so much as I know a good thing when I see one lol)
. I have been here since february of 2007 I beleive. The turn over is wellnot typical at all from one person to the next. Some people never say hi on the forums. Others say hi and don't come back. Others stay for a few months or till they finish the program... Some like me stay... Don't go think my prolonged stay here means the program isn't helpful in any way. This program helped me so much and still does (I review what I need and maintain some of the homework I find helpful) and the forums changed my life. Some might say I use this forum as a crutch and that I am an addict (and mean it lol). But, I have struggled for so long with my anxiety. I was diagnosed in my early teens and I have identified that I probably suffered from anxiety at a clinical level at a much younger age for some periods at least. So, I have had ups and downs. One thing I have noticed is that when I am up I tend to drop the things that helped me get there and then I end up relapsing. I relapsed in december 2006 and it is what brought me here in the first place. So now I am doing so much better! I am no longer so agoraphobic. I leave my house often now and go all sorts of places. I work, I have graduated from University with honors, I am back in school this spetember for a whole new challenge, I go out,...I am in a good place right now. But I stil have stresses and ups and downs like everybody else, as such I find this forum to be of immeasurable help to me. I find sticking around here, getting support and offering support is on of the things that help me maintain my mental health. And as such I stick around. I try to upkeep what has made me well in the first place. Relapse, no thanks! (might happen again one day, but I will be ok, I know where to go ) Plus it is a chance to "meet" interesting new people and share interesting ideas on a subject near and dear to my heart: mental helth. Plus I get to try and give back what I get.
So this is what the typical timeline is: there is none. Coming here, staying here, posting or not, it is all a personnal choice based on need and preference!
) Plus it is a chance to "meet" interesting new people and share interesting ideas on a subject near and dear to my heart: mental helth. Plus I get to try and give back what I get. 
