Like Honeybun I was I suppose quite nervous as a child. I was an only one and my Mother was I now realise not very stable mentally, thus she tended to stop me from doing things she considered dangerous like riding a bike, flying etc. Once I left home I was able to be more myself and got on with things, teaching for many years and following Hubby around the country as a service wife. Of course like everyone else we coped with traumas, eldest daughter having major heart surgery , youngest one going through a period of school refusal, deaths of parents etc . None of this was easy but I got on with it, even going through cancer treatment didn't phase me too much but then came 'meno'. I just find it hard to believe that the change in me is not related to hormone levels, the physical symptoms are hard to cope with but it is the anxiety and emotional upset that I find so difficult. The sensible side of me knows it is silly to worry over things, especially as Kathleen says ,things that haven't happened and probably never will! But it's like I no longer have control over my state of mind. I have never taken HRT so that is not a factor , I do take a low dose of Citalopram and try to practice mindfulness and that helps-dread to think what I would be like without it!. Can only hope the day will come when I wake up feeling at peace with myself and free of anxiety. Convinced the basis of my anxiety is all the upheaval caused by menopause, but open to the idea that there may be a predisposition to anxiety in some more than others.