我無法面對他人,甚至和家人在一起時也十分焦慮

I'm a 63-year-old woman and I'm having problems with confidence. I have never been a very outgoing person, but lately this has extended to my family. I love them all very much, but when they visit, I feel totally uncomfortable and relieved when they go.

我是位63歲的老太婆，我一點都不自信。我從來都不是一個外向的人，但近來，面對家人時我都會變得不自信。我很愛他們，但當他們過來看我時，我感到十分不自在。他們走時，我卻鬆了一口氣。

I feel the same with my husband, who's only home at weekends. I have to go to work, as I need the money, so I do cleaning for elderly people in their homes.

我和丈夫的感受一樣，他只有週末的時候纔在家裏。我不得不工作，因爲我需要錢啊，所以我給年紀大的人打掃衛生。

I can't even go to the doctor, as I just have no confidence with people, although I have to go once a year because I have type 1 diabetes. Even then I worry about it for weeks beforehand and on the day of the appointment I feel so panicked.

我甚至都無法面對醫生，因爲我沒有信心與人相處，雖然我每年都要去一次醫院，因爲我患有1型糖尿病。即使那樣，去之前我都得擔心好幾個星期，預約當天，我感覺十分恐慌。

It feels so silly to get to my age and be like this when other people seem to have gained confidence over the years. I feel so ashamed of the way I feel and cannot tell anyone except my husband. What do you.suggest?

到了我這個年紀，這種感覺是很蠢的，尤其是看着其他人隨着歲月的流逝變得越來越自信時。我爲自己的感受難爲情，但除了丈夫，我無人訴說。你有什麼建議嗎？

It sounds to me as if you could be suffering from anxiety, and there's a talking therapy called cognitive ?behavioural therapy that's effective.

聽上去您好像患有焦慮症，有一種叫做認知-行爲療法的談話治療十分有效。

Why not do some research online - the mental health charity Mind has some great information on anxiety and panic attacks. And why not schedule a call with your doctor in the first instance and talk over the phone about how you're feeling?

爲何不在網上搜索一下呢--心理健康慈善機構Mind對焦慮和恐慌發作十分了解。爲什麼不首先和你的醫生打個電話，在電話中聊聊你的感受呢？

If you're on medication that may also be having an impact. Plus, speak to your family - they will want to support you. It's not silly, you're experiencing genuine mental and physical distress. But I think keeping it to yourself is making you worse.

如果你在服藥，那這也是一個影響因素。另外，和家人說說話吧--他們會支持你的。這一點都不蠢，你只是在經歷真正的身心痛苦。但我認爲，自己默默承受只會讓情況更糟糕。

Just because you're 63 doesn't mean you're immune to certain feelings or conditions - every stage in life brings challenges. It's good you've recognised that the way you're feeling isn't normal - that's the first step to getting better.

雖然你63歲了，但這並不意味着你對某種感情或症狀免疫了--生活的每個階段都會有挑戰。你能意識到自己的感受並不正常已經很好了--這是好轉的第一步哦。

Now you need to gather a bit more strength and share how you feel with your doctor and your loved ones.

現在你需要集中力量，與你的醫生和所愛之人分享你的感受。