Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Life After Anxiety
    Life After Anxiety
    Life After Anxiety
    Ebook71 pages59 minutes

    Life After Anxiety

    By Bill Jeffries

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    Bill was a Naval Academy graduate and overachiever who seemed to have a great life and bright future. But he was secretly harboring a debilitating anxiety disorder that made every day a painful experience.

    After a near fatal suicide attempt, he decided to confront his illness and build a new life.

    Life After Anxiety is an honest and revealing story about a painful battle with anxiety. It is also a story of redemption, and how one can achieve a life beyond anxiety.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBill Jeffries
    Release dateAug 5, 2016
    ISBN9781370836635
    Life After Anxiety
    Author

    Bill Jeffries

    I am a computer programmer and entrepreneur. I have a computer science degree from the United States Naval Academy and am pursuing a Masters in Data Analytics Engineering from George Mason University.I live in Northern Virginia with my wife and three kids.

    Related to Life After Anxiety

    Related ebooks

    Mental Health For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      What’s Your Motivation?

      Oct 22, 2021

      What’s Your Motivation?
      2 min read

    • Article

      A New Chapter

      Dec 23, 2022

      A New Chapter
      4 min read

    • Article

      Letter Of Gratitude

      Jul 6, 2021

      We’ve been friends for years and you’ve always been there for me. Now I want to be there for you – to thank you, support you and tell you how great you are. I appreciate our friendship and I want you to know that we will see each other soon and enjoy

      2 min read

    • Article

      Your Greatest You

      Jul 25, 2019

      Your Greatest You
      6 min read

    • Article

      FIGHT Fatigue

      Mar 22, 2020

      FIGHT Fatigue
      8 min read

    • Article

      How To Be Happier

      Aug 4, 2023

      How To Be Happier
      1 min read

    • Article

      One Too Many

      Dec 21, 2021

      One Too Many
      8 min read

    • Article

      Learn to TRUST YOURSELF

      Sep 29, 2023

      Learn to TRUST YOURSELF
      2 min read

    • Article

      Let Happiness In

      Dec 23, 2022

      Let Happiness In
      3 min read

    • Article

      "Sing With Me"

      Oct 27, 2022

      "Sing With Me"
      2 min read

    • Article

      Meditation, Gut Health & Your Skin

      Oct 10, 2018

      CARLA OATES is the CEO of The Beauty Chef, a natural beauty expert and the author of Feeding Your Skin and The Beauty Chef Cookbook. W: thebeautychef.com Meditation increases the balance of good bacteria in your gut, which not only helps to promote a

      3 min read

    • Article

      Anxious Kids

      Dec 4, 2019

      Anxious Kids
      5 min read

    • Article

      ADDRESS Your Stress

      Feb 21, 2021

      ADDRESS Your Stress
      2 min read

    • Article

      A Moment Of Calm

      Sep 28, 2021

      Let anxious thoughts fade away, relax tired muscles and transform your mood with minty, medicinal lemon balm Fresh and citrussy with a hint of mint and similar in appearance to oversized mint leaves, it’s no surprise to learn that lemon balm belon

      1 min read

    • Article

      Fluid Beauty

      Feb 14, 2018

      Fluid Beauty
      8 min read

    • Article

      Bye-bye BAD HABITS

      Dec 23, 2021

      Bye-bye BAD HABITS
      4 min read

    • Article

      Signs That You’re Not Selfish Enough

      Mar 25, 2021

      ✢ You struggle to say no ✢ You feel guilty when asked what you need ✢ You worry that when you disagree with someone their feelings will be hurt ✢ You’d rather everyone else is happy, even if you’re unhappy ✢ You find it difficult to express anger and

      1 min read

    • Article

      YOUR GUIDE TO vegie burgers

      Oct 8, 2023

      YOUR GUIDE TO vegie burgers
      2 min read

    • Article

      Your Year of Better SLEEP

      Dec 29, 2022

      Your Year of Better SLEEP
      5 min read

    • Article

      Empowering The Self

      Nov 2, 2020

      Empowering The Self
      6 min read

    • Article

      “Look Who Found Me”

      Jun 25, 2022

      “Look Who Found Me”
      2 min read

    • Article

      Someone Cares

      Mar 30, 2024

      Someone Cares
      2 min read

    • Article

      Dealing With Anxiety

      May 9, 2023

      Dealing With Anxiety
      4 min read

    • Article

      Mindful Wellness

      Feb 17, 2023

      ‘With living costs on the rise, eating seasonally is a great way to help lower costs, as produce is often cheaper when in season compared to when it’s not,’ says nutritionist Rhiannon Lambert. ‘Seasonal eating is also important for helping to reduce

      3 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Life After Anxiety

    0 ratings

    0 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      Life After Anxiety - Bill Jeffries

      Life After Anxiety

      By Bill Jeffries

      Text copyright © 2016 Bill Jeffries

      All Rights Reserved

      For Amy- my best friend, my partner, my soul-mate

      Forward

      I should be dead. 

      The gravity of that can pull hard on me, at times.  My kids don't know how close they came to never existing.  I can barely breathe thinking about it.

      This is the story of a happy, healthy, successful kid who was overcome by a debilitating anxiety disorder and almost lost forever at the age of twenty three.  This is a tale that is both cautionary and hopeful.  Cautionary in demonstrating the speed at which a person can fall.  Hopeful in proving the speed at which that same person can rise.  

      I’ve written this for the people who are sheltering their demons.  You can fall much farther and much faster than you think you’re capable.  

      I’ve also written this for those who feel like they’re at the bottom, and who wonder if there is ever a way back up.  There is.

      Anyone can burn themselves to the ground.  But anyone can rise from the ashes.  

      I should know.  I did both.

      Chapter 1: Yuma

      1995

      Front desk, can I help you?

      Yes, I'm injured.  I think I need help.

      Ok, what is the issue?

      My wrists are bleeding.

      Oh.....I'll call 911 right away.

      Thank you.

      Beside the bed on the floor was a huge puddle of blood.  Some hours earlier, after several test cuts on both sides, I made a deep gash in my left wrist, hung it over the side of the bed, and waited to die.  

      Pretty quickly, I blacked out.  Throughout the night, I faded in and out of consciousness.  I hallucinated about deceased family members.  I was so weak I could barely move or even open my eyes.  

      Hours later, I was shocked to realize that I was still alive.  Something inside me told me to call for help.  It took all of my power to eventually pick up the phone and call the front desk.

      Earlier that day, at the house I shared with two other naval officers in San Diego, I felt my mind unraveling.  A decade-long battle with anxiety was taking a drastic turn.  I felt that I had no way out.  All of the strategies I had carefully crafted over the past ten years to escape the clutches of anxiety had failed.  But I didn't feel like I could seek help.  I felt embarrassed, shameful. I felt purely defeated. 

      I'd used up all my will to cope with this monster over so many years.  All of the strength and power I had used for ten years to bury the issue and deal with life's challenges all by myself was finally giving out.  I wanted very badly to reach out to someone.  But my ego couldn’t endure the shame of admitting I had a mental illness.  It didn't seem possible for someone like me. I was voted Most Likely to Succeed in high school. I was a Naval Academy graduate. Not me. The feeling of denial always seemed to have the final say.

      I decided I needed to clear my head.  My plan was to get in my car and drive around San Diego until I felt better.  But after a half hour or so of driving, I started to feel darker instead of lighter.  

      I pulled over into a drugstore and purchased a large bottle of pain killers and a set of razor blades. Even though I still thought I could literally drive away the dark feelings, I was planning for the event that I couldn’t.  I had never thought about suicide before this very moment.

      Back in the car, I made my way to I-8 and started driving east into the desert.  My plan now was to drive out into the open spaces until I felt better, at which point I would throw the pills and blades out the window, declare victory, and drive back home.

      But as I hit Yuma, Arizona, two hours east of San Diego, I was still feeling worse.  My world was getting darker and closing in on me.  I felt that there would be no rescue.  I checked into a Holiday Inn and prepared to end the pain.

      I heard the sirens getting louder.  Eventually there was a loud knock at the door.  It cracked slightly open.  A bright flashlight beam bounced around the room and settled on my face.  I closed my eyes as a loud, authoritative voice boomed, Mr. Jeffries, is there anyone else in here?

      No, I replied.  The door opened and in walked two police officers and four EMTs.  My room became a flurry of activity. Two of the EMTs came directly to my side while the officers and other EMTs searched around the room.  An EMT started counting the pain killers to make sure I didn't take any.  Another EMT asked if I was able to sit up or walk.  I told him no and they went to retrieve a wheelchair.

      The EMTs picked me up and placed me into the wheelchair.  I was wheeled into the dark parking lot

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1