At what age did you start having anxiety?

[Adora]

cant remember when it first began but it was going strong by 1st grade, I was bullied badly in elementary school and blamed for it by teachers and principals lied to by therapists to gain my trust (which made me have trust issues for my whole life)

My father was very hard on me, I didn't know it till I had kids and found out about my Aspergers that much of what he did was because he didn't understand my problems and was trying to help me and prepare me for the world knowing how hard it was to me and was doing the best he could

I have been on anti-depressants several times and I feel like the side effects were as bad as the benefits and were a moot point

However, when I was young they didn't really diagnose for Aspergers or any of the other things I have that affect my horrid handwriting and clumsiness. I got labeled Add (which I may have also IDK)

my dad even though he and other people didn’t know I was on the spectrum did try and correct my behaviour,he didn’t like that I still wanted dolls at the age of 12 and he even told me not to tell anyone that I have barbie dolls even if I just collect them,he always tell me if my hair was messy or correct me if he thought I was acting immature but he was also extremely abusive and use to criticise me a lot.

 

[Fitzo]

Very disfunctional family so think it was always there to some extent, but treated for it at twenty just after getting married. I think it never really receded much since then. I always feel as though it wouldn't take much to push me over the edge into a meltdown or bout of depression.

 

[OlLiE]

being aware of being different from other people is my oldest memory

 

[Gekko2508]

Started when I was 18 and got a lot of social trouble. Nothing because of university stress, just because of the bad times I was having in my social circle.
I'm naturally aggressive/assertive, so my anxiety does the complete opposite to me - it depresses me and makes me retreat. As of now, I can barely make phone calls because I'm so focused on getting the social aspect right, that I forget anything of substance that goes on during the call. I know this of myself, which is why I get little panic attacks before I need to make a call.

 

[Iamnotarabot]

I still dont know what is what I feel.

But at age 8/10 I felt like the world was about to die before the teacher would give me my paper back.
I was one of the best kid of the class back then but everytime I felt that I did bad and would have a bad mark.

 

[VJCJ0628]

my dad even though he and other people didn’t know I was on the spectrum did try and correct my behaviour,he didn’t like that I still wanted dolls at the age of 12 and he even told me not to tell anyone that I have barbie dolls even if I just collect them,he always tell me if my hair was messy or correct me if he thought I was acting immature but he was also extremely abusive and use to criticise me a lot.

My Dad was always very critical of me as well, I remember I was around 9 and he rode me for 2 weeks and ask me what I would do in this situation choice a or choice b and then that situation and whenever I got the answer wrong he would really come down on me

Now that I have children 1 low function autism another Aspergers I came to realize not only that I have Aspergers but also that he was doing the best he could to prepare me for the world

one one hand I wouldn't wish my childhood on my worse enemy, on the other hand, I feel like it was the only way I would have learned

I have serious issues with executive function and when I get in a rut I still have to pressure myself like its life or death situation to pull myself out, It doesn't work all the time but its the only thing that works sometimes that I have found

However, I only found out I have Aspergers maybe 3 or 4 months ago while looking into my son's symptoms online, I hope to find better ways of dealing with things then I have done in the past

 

[Gritches]

The way I experience anxiety is feeling like I'm in trouble for no particular reason. Probably started in my late teens; the chronic, without-good-reason type of anxiety anyway.

 

[Progster]

No idea, I was always an anxious child. Perhaps since I started school, because there were more demands on me.

 

[lilcrybabytears]

I'm not sure when I starting showing symptoms of anxiety but it was definitely noticeable in middle school so around age 13? The worse it's been is when I was in boarding school at age 17. I developed panic disorder and couldn't leave my dorm. I had to take Lexapro and Zoloft while seeing a therapist. The only thing that helped was being placed in an online school and staying at home for a year as I readjusted.

 

[HidinginPlainSight]

Probably around 7, when I first noticed that all the other kids realized I was different and that they weren't going to leave me alone. I got extreme anxiety about going to school and used to try to time my walks so that I made it to school just as it was starting so I didn't have to wait outside. My older brother rarely let this work.

Strangely, I don't feel it anymore, unless something very particular happens, like having to find a place to sit at a work BBQ.

 

[LookingforMe]

I was around 13 and getting ready to go to a concert with my best friend. I’d never been and it was at a huge outdoor amphitheater. With no understanding of what anxiety was, I knew I felt off but couldn’t put words to what it was. I began sweating, breathing heavy and my heart thumped until I felt like I might faint. My friend was really annoyed but we did make it to the concert late and I was so thankful it was outdoors.

To this day, there are times when I feel as though my anxiety is too much to do adult things, like buy food or gasoline for my car and I’ll try to think of a way out of doing them. And there have been times when I can’t get out of those errands, that I think of my brain as an overprotective parent, trying to keep me safe, so it’s easier to ignore the anxiety.

It is always there though, as an underlying feeling.

 

[mw2530]

I think mine started when I was in my mother's womb.

 

[Loren]

I have recollections of being extremely sensitive and aware when I was in preschool/kindergarten. I began to experience bouts of anxiety when I was in first grade, as far as I remember.