I’m laid up right now and I’m an anxious mess. I’m worried about finances and now my car. My mom said the engine sounded funny when she brought it over to her place, where I’m staying.

I’m getting surgery to fix my ankle tomorrow and I’ll hopefully be wfh a week after that. But I will have missed an entire pay period. My big bills are coming up next week, and idk if I’ll have enough to pay them. I also can’t afford a new car, and I’m afraid I’ll need a new one soon.

I’m so overwhelmed. I’ve been close to tears for almost an hour. I’m sure the excruciating pain of my severely broken bones isn’t helping. I’ve been trying to distract myself with TV, games, and crafts, but the anxiety is still persistently at the back of my mind.

  • @bakachu
    10•8 months ago

    Not with a broken leg and ankle but I’ve been overcome before by situations like this. I know there’s a lot of advice in here already to manage the anxiety, but here’s a few things you can actually do:

    1. Make a list. Write down everything that needs to be taken care of. Pets, bills, work, rent, school work…just write down everything that comes to mind. Write down deadlines and where you are going to come short.

    2. If you are not on heavy pain meds, start communicating. There’s a good chance that some deadlines can be pushed back, work can find you extra hours, friends and family can spot you. Even creditors may be willing to help. You have a situation that is entirely provable with hospital records.

    3. Depending on your life situation, you may be able to find government resources, charity groups, etc. Just by calling around you could find a connection inadvertently that can help. I found pro bono legal services once when an someone tried to sue me because a charity group i called knew someone from another group.

    4. Adjust your list and prioritize what needs to be done first. I think just putting things down on paper/word doc takes a lot of burden off your mind. You know you won’t forget what needs to be done and it helps to have all the info in front of you when you need to communicate.

    5. Sudoku. Optional, but highly advocate that or some kind of problem solving game.

    Good luck to you, friend. Speedy recovery.