I thought I could handle it but I'm breaking

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Yet another anxiety related thread. Sorry about the ranting and pessimism but it should get the idea across.
I used to think I just worried to much about things and that is still true. Obviously anxiety is a big part of AS and I don't know about you but it seems to happen constantly regardless of social contact. Ofcourse the state of the global economy stresses me more than personal finances or not getting enough sleep but I'm sure that's true for many people.

The problem is that I can't stop worrying about every single glitch I see in society. I'm talking about the spread of fascism and other negative social trends. As long as the problems exist I can't rest or feel relaxed or relieved. The logical solution is to participate in fixing the problems but it's too late and there are no real channels to do so. For example:

Here in Australia, the Liberal government has recovered our economy and international relations and proceeded to do their own damage by allowing business to screw over the individual, allowing US business to screw us over too and now the minister for communication has put fowards a proposal to scrap restrictions on cross-media ownership. So I'd just vote Labour but they are
incompetent and they won't get in. So either the Labour party will get us into so much debt that the US will own us or Howard will just give us over the the US anyway. Not that I have anything against the US in general, it's US corporations and the international bankers that own them that see us as cattle and don't feel wealthy unless someone else is poor. But I digress, I don't mean to start a debate.

The same pattern seems to exist now in most aspects of our modern world. And so many people are so damned apathetic and conservative that they'll urgently stamp out any person who mentions a real problem. Every way I turn there's something stopping me from proceeding in life or enjoying being alive. My personal situation is also a problem, I just keep doing tertiary education because I can't find a job without heaps of customer contact. I hate living at home with my parents but I can't afford to leave and it's a scary thought.

Some people see me as strong-minded but I worry constantly about many things and it's making me hard to be around because I rarely talk about the good things. What if there are no good things for me at the moment? I'm sure many of my posts here have a hint of bitterness and I don't want to be this way. I thought I could handle the anxiety but it's eating me up. I've decided I have the following options (For reference, I'm a 22 yo male in a small, NSW city):

1. Go to a doctor and hope to god I get diagnosed and prescribed valium. I'll have to get private insurance first.
2. Move to Melbourne, the underground capital of Australia and become an anarchist, hacker goth or something like that.
3. Do nothing and see how long I last.
4. Some solution I haven't thought of yet.

So far I'm hanging on the 4th option.
How many Aspies are surviving ok without anxiety medication or even a diagnosis?
Are there any Australian Aspies who were diagnosed on their own as adults and what was the process like?
Does anyone else relate to this and how have things been for you?

Hi. I'm a 42 yo Australian male who was told he has AS and ADD about a year ago now. I am married and work for myself...so it can be done..its just a bit harder for us.
My advise to you is to go to the doctor asap. They are there to help you. I finally found a psychiatrist in Melb. who specialises in AS and the like, after seeing a lot of other doctors who didn't have any clues about what it was that was making my life so hard. Knowing what AS is all about has helped my wife and I so much. We are starting to be able to work around it, but it's taking a lot of coaching and training from psychologists.
Psychiatrists are covered by Medicare btw. All you need is a referral from the local GP. If you are a student it shouldn't end up costing you much at all.
I don't seem to be worried about stuff as much as you, but I can relate. I have had some major worries in my time. I'm on a small dose of an anti depressant to keep me stable and not as sensitive. Its working well.
Anyway I hope this helps a little. Get help. There is lots of it out there.
Davo

Thank you, that's what I was wanting to know. So then it's important to find a specialist and get a referral to them to avoid the run-around with other doctors. The possible confusion and complications is why I've avoided this so far. I was worried about side effects from medication but I figure stress would kill me sooner. I'll check out what specialists are around here.

I have a button that says..."If your not outraged, your not paying attention"....this button has not changed the world but it makes me feel better that some one else was as outraged as I am...misery loves company, I guess...

I agree with your whole post....it scares me and makes me really angry when I look at the many autrocities on this planet...I am really frightened about the direction (backwards) that the US is going and feel powerless to halt the degression...this has often made me suicidal....It is actually physically painful to be exposed to information about Rawanda,Iraq "crusades",starvation in Africa and Asia,corporate creation of toxic-world to perpetuate the insainity of consumerism....this stuff makes me nuts!! !!So, whats one insain aspie to do...?

In spite of the stereotype of nonempathetic aspies....I feel I am hyper sensitive to suffering as others are to physical sensory overload(which I also have to noise,light and skin)so I do what I can to buffer myself from what is painful....I cant avoid the "news" or what passes for it in this country....(mostly crap about movie stars anyway...but they manage to show people being blown up)I no longer read The Nation...or anything by greenpeace....etc...I am a cowerd?perhaps....but would others lock themselves in a room with a crying baby...for hours?

I was a "punk anarcist" sort of, but felt they were as controlling and uber-PC as main stream groups...and they spent more time drinking then actually doing anything productive as far as changing society for the better...maybe some groups do...we were a bunch of self medicationg depressed people with poor social skills who probably alienated more then informed...

For the past 12 years I have worked with the disabled DD,and teens who were DX with ADHD,Depression,CD...etc,I hate alot of the things that the "Institutions" do, but I do my best to advocate for the "clients" and show them the compassion I feel for them...Thats the best I can do for the world and even that requires alot of my energy(im naturally unsocial, so this is not easy for me)but it does make me feel like I'm making a small contribution to lessen some suffering...

I dont think we can change the dirrection of the planet...I hope Im wrong....but when I've looked at history and present...it seems like we are pretty much of a F88ked planet...IMO

I can relate. I've been in it for awhile myself. It being this blinding mess that seems to be everywhere. I spent the last year learning, if you want to call it that, about all the things that are destroying earth. It was hard to keep a job or even wake up for that matter. I've just recently started to get out of it. Maybe I too am just cowerdly ignoring it now. But if thats what it takes to save yourself from self destruction, do it. If you really want to make a change you can, but first you have to stop thinking about the world and everyone else and help yourself strengthen your foundation. Whatever you do next, make sure it helps you grow in someway. Stay positive. Homosapiens have been on the brink of self destruction long before we even started documenting it. Somehow we're still here. Maybe its a coincidence, maybe there's something more behind it all. I don't know, but that what I ponder now instead of all the sh*t. Don't get me wrong I'm still in a rut but at least I can pop out from time to time now. You know when you read or hear or see something that so real it sends shivers down you spine, thats life reminding you of all the beautiful things we don't understand. Contribute your mind in an area you really enjoy, and you know your mind sees things a little clearer than most. But don't go to school if you're undecided on what you want to do with your education. Help others realize its importaint, life that is. Life is special, and whether you realize it or not, thats why you feel bad about all the madness you see around you. I just read what I wrote, I sound like a f*ucking preacher. And I used to make my christian friends cry in high school with my ranting.

I kinda feel like a bit of a cop-out by wanting to deaden the anxiety rather than acting on the urgency of the situation. But then who do I think I am? Sure, I'll do my best to be a positive influence in the world but I know that pulling heroics is the best way to either crash and burn or end up a tyrant.

Another thing is that I use to percieve a great evil in the world, a maniplulating and insinuating force that corrupted people and caused many of society's problems. While I certainly discovered the groups that personify this evil I eventually realised that this "thing" that unnerves me wasn't some great conspiracy but simply an element of human nature that I don't understand. I think many people that fit the "crazy conspiracy theorist" typecast are percieving an unconscious element of humanity that seems alien to them and mistake it for conscious, intentional corruption. The implication of this is that; If I am opposed to this "thing" that turns out to be normal human nature then the only enemy of humanity in this case is infact myself.

So to get back to the here and now, I think I'll go see a doctor.

I'm sorry to hear that!

I hope things improve with you soon!

That human nature element you speak of is something I understand. The way I see it, if you're not living you're dying. Those that consciously attempt to contribute to society but don't enjoy life contribute to the depletion of life, even though they may try to help others they can't because they don't know how to help themselves. Also western society as it is today, is not an environment that allows humans to exhibit anything close to there true nature. We've just conditioned ourselves over time to put up with it. Also the natural world is not always good. We are not somehow better than nature like some would have you believe, but being self aware of that its what sets humans apart. We've just conditioned our selves over time to put up with it. I guess the main problem as I see it, is the fact that the majority of the populus is willing to be lied to. Few want to put in the effort to understand what is really happening. (ie. fascism, implementation of a world government, poverty, economic colapse, global warming, the destroying natural ecosystems) Most would rather be given the illusion of comfort than have to build a coffortable reality for themselves, if such a thing ever even existed. A few understand, the majority don't care, and that has to be reversed. It kind of feels like humanity is in the ninth inning, and thats a very unsettling feeling. There is no success without struggle. Times will get better. The future is made by those that aren't content with the present. Stay up.