(NYTIMES) - Five years ago, seemingly out of nowhere, my brain fell into an abyss of unrelenting intrusive thoughts - What if I harm myself? What if I harm others? What if I'm crazy? - each of which was accompanied by electric shocks of anxiety and full-on sensations of dread. It was, by far, the most terrifying, vexing and isolating period of my life.
My first moment of relief came four weeks later, when I finally got in to see a psychiatrist.
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