Not a troll thread.
With that out of the way. Does anyone else get this and if you do, how do you deal with it? To preface I'm an officially diagnosed hypochondriac, so I already have severe panic with things all health related.
Well recently, I've started to get panic attacks while playing the game. Like I'll be playing with my friend and have to stop for 30 minutes to an hour to calm down, or sometimes in the case of the other day, 2 hours and bailing on a dungeon because I had to run outside and take forever to calm down (as it's those sudden feeling of impending doom and going to die panic attacks).
My friend started to notice a pattern of it happening when either 1. In Bozja, 2. Leveling Healer, and 3. PotD. And suggested it might be the adrenaline causing my usual fight or flight, just without symptoms to cause it this time.
So I started trying to pay attention to when I play and he may be right. I get that feeling of 'at the edge of my seat' when healing. Like every button press is a life or death decision and if I fail we all fail and it's my fault, so the pressure causes higher heart rate, adrenaline rush, and if I try to ignore the feelings, it goes into full fight or flight.
This is only on harder play of healing, pressure roles, or pressure times. Dungeons on my main SMN or DPS (because we're expendable) doesn't cause such reaction.
So my question is, does anyone else have this issue or face this, and if you do what do you do about it? I don't want to just give up on healer or Bozja, but I'm not exactly any help if I have to bail on my party because I have to run outside and calm down.
Class/Job Stress and Adrenaline Rush, how do you deal?
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11-29-2021, 12:31 AMNekaru_InfitimaClass/Job Stress and Adrenaline Rush, how do you deal?
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11-29-2021, 01:00 AMItMe
How do I deal?
I switch mains.
In stormblood, playing NIN gave me headaches, so I tried tanking and found it smooth and low stress.
How long have you been healing?Quote:
Originally Posted by Nekaru_Infitima
Is this just something that will get better with time? Or are you a veteran healer still having this problem? -
11-29-2021, 01:10 AMMarniDawg
Yes when I first started tanking there were times when I would queue for a dungeon in duty finder and I would get so anxious I would have to withdraw and run to the bathroom lol.
Honestly I got over it by bringing a friend along in discord to talk as I tanked and eventually doing things on my own little by little. I basically had to build up my confidence and realize that even if I messed up and caused a wipe it wasn't the end of the world.
So basically I dealt with it by investing time and patience with support from others. -
11-29-2021, 01:16 AMNairaTelauriel
I personally feel that its a big help to realize that, even as a healer, your job isn't as important as you think, especially in Bozja, where many other players can pick up any slack. Which isn't to say you're not very important, but runs won't end if you mess up, and 99 times out of 100, no one will be upset. Everyone makes mistakes, it happens. Its all about getting into the right mindset beforehand. If you acknowledge going into things that you're play won't be, and doesn't need to be, perfect, then healing becomes a lot less stressful.
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11-29-2021, 01:37 AMNekaru_InfitimaAnything above 50 dungeons seems to have started causing it. Before when I was leveling healer, and only doing easy stuff it had no effect. But recently when I tried to get WHM to 80, and ended up in 60+ stuff, the issue has started.Quote:
Originally Posted by ItMe
It's healing or Bozja. In Bozja any class does it, as I just fail at every CE.Quote:
Originally Posted by NairaTelauriel
For healing it's anything above lvl50 dungeons. After having a tank die, one run went south as I felt more pressured the whole dungeon in the most recent one, and in the end I had to bail for a panic attack. I told them I was having one though and said if I couldn't calm down in 5 minute to dismiss me, they said they'd wait but I ended up outside to calm down and I don't blame them one bit after 30 minutes that I was AFK booted. I still feel really bad for that run...
It just seems the pressure of healing causes really bad adrenaline rushes. -
11-29-2021, 01:42 AMVencio
We all have our unexpected “anxiety” moments on the most unpredictable times & while irritable it may be, it’s good to reflect on & acknowledge them rather than deny it or put up due to other’s satisfaction/pressure.
This is why I don’t do static or savage altogether.
Coming from WoW ((a far hostile & reputable known as highly toxic players)).
You cannot alter or have certain things accomodate you 100% since you’ll never know what type of players you’ll come across, or the very least worse show your friends’ true colors which is far scarier & sad ((had this happened to me when I thought my whole FC of 6 months were kind & mellow but switched to “elite/ unruly, impatient” mentality that I just couldn’t do it.
Don’t feel discouraged when having those moments & just delight on the few people that are willing to go the extra mile for you & acknowledge your flaws no matter what.
At the end of the day we’re still people, partaking on another reality through our avatars & just be the best you can be, try to experiment things out of your comfort zone through small steps,
But more IMPORTANTLY, have fun & enjoy the game along.
There’s already enough life stressors currently going through our personal lives, more heavy enough to handle, try not to let Eorzea world be that to you.
Cheers & thanks for opening up. -
11-29-2021, 02:11 AMlisaa
The best way I found is to record myself and rewatch my gameplay. In the moment and panicking, it can feel like chaos and everything is a split second decision, but rewatching the video as a third person, it's easier to see what's going on without the stress of making a mistake. I can see how much time I truly have, that part that I thought was hard to heal actually had time to cast two gcds, i just didn't cast anything, or I had a cd like rapture or indom that I can use. [if you're new to healing, it might be helpful to go over the video with a friend who is familiar with it] Then I'll go back and do it again and this time it's easier to more calmly handle that situation with what I now know
It won't help for seeing things the first time, but I think if you do this enough it can also give you the confidence to handle things even if it is new and unknown. "I've handled these other things that are hard, so I can handle this too."
As for CEs in bozja, they're pretty hard, a lot of mechanics will one shot you, and because theres so many CEs it's hard to remember all the mechanics. So don't worry if you die. That's why you'll see even perfect legends lying on the ground, or so few people qualify for the duel. It's normal to mess up and die. -
11-29-2021, 02:12 AMItMeIf you've mainly done "easy stuff" as healer, maybe you're still acclimating to the role and never overcame "Healer anxiety."Quote:
Originally Posted by Nekaru_Infitima
What kinds of content have you used your healers in?
Do you get this feeling when going back to the other healers?Quote:
Originally Posted by Nekaru_Infitima
Maybe you just don't like WHM. -
11-29-2021, 03:39 AMMichieltjuhh
How do you deal with similar situations IRL, such as giving presentations to people you haven't met before?
Videogames are not usually the place people find out they have performance anxiety, but that's exactly what it sounds like to me. -
11-29-2021, 03:56 AMTaleraRistain
Well as a WHM main for 7 years, I can tell you that sometimes that button press is a life or death decision and the party can wipe and it will be our fault.
But that's okay.
Wiping isn't the end of the world. We pick ourselves up and try again. You will get people in randoms who act like it's the end of the world to wipe, but it's really not. If you are stressed in that situation, you might try running healer with friends who you know will be okay if the party wipes as you're learning, and then venture out into randoms again when you have a good grasp on things.
Bozja CEs can be a real mess with things going on all around you and you dying to something you didn't even see. But it's okay to floor tank. Even as a healer. We're not robots and we will fail sometimes. -
11-29-2021, 04:18 AM_Pigzig
bruh i play this game to get away from stress
if u gettin stressed in the game i feel bad for u son, cant even relax in video games that must be a hell of life -
11-29-2021, 04:28 AMEscalon
I honestly think a break may be in order, turn the game off and play something else for a bit, at least till Endwalker drops, a couple of days should help with that.
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11-29-2021, 04:37 AMHysorn
I mean, I used to feel a bit nervous tanking M+ dungeons in WoW because how awful pugging was, you never know if you were getting people with room temperature IQ or actual decent players. Don't really feel like that with any of the jobs in FFXIV though.
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11-29-2021, 05:08 AMLexis
I have similar issues that affect my day to day life and also shows up in group gameplay, which does indeed suck. I think every individual has their own way of coping with these issues, it's just a matter of figuring out your own.
For me, healing isn't an issue at all but rather tanking. And it's really unfortunate because I absolutely LOVE tanking. It used to be 'my thing' back in the old TBC days of WoW (around 2006 I think). Then, the community became more and more hostile to a point where making the slightest mistake would result in a barrage of verbal abuse. Even if you don't make mistakes, simply admitting you're new to something could be enough to throw the angry little goblins into a frenzy. This resulted in consistent panic attacks every time I tried to tank and I simply gave up. Tackling new content can also set off panic attacks as I can't help but imagine every worse scenario possible where I turn out to be the worse player the world has ever seen and everyone hates me. I could just give up on MMOs altogether, but I refuse to let my anxiety dictate what I get and don't get to enjoy, so I figured out lil' tricks that help sooth my dumb brain.
Before diving into new content, I always watch a video guide (MTQCapture has been my go-to for FFXIV). I also try it first as a class that I'm completely comfortable with (in my case, Machinist). Having seen the content once really does wonders for the anxiety, as you now know what to expect. Of course, you're not gonna remember every single mechanic on your first go and for that, there are two things to remember:
1- This community is very understanding, especially with new players. As long as you're trying to learn and improve, you'll be just fine.
2- You're a lot smarter/skilled than you give yourself credit for. Always remember that one when you get the first-timer jitters.
As for tackling roles that are anxiety inducing (in your case, healing), I'd recommend keeping them as alts, that way you don't feel pressured into playing it in order to progress and instead dive in at your own pace. If you want to get into a 50+ dungeon as a healer and find yourself really anxious at the idea, try going in said dungeon as a DPS first and pay attention to the out-going damage. Try to mentally go over how you would deal with it with your healer so that you don't feel caught off guard once you try it again as a healer. This way, you'll build confidence in your own ability and, over time, may not even need to do this anymore. It's all about putting yourself in the right mindset before going in.
Hopefully this help, but even if it doesn't: try things, experiment, figure out what does and doesn't work for you. It's those little tricks I've picked up over the years that get me through the day and it's absolutely worth the effort you'll put into it :) -
11-29-2021, 05:23 AMNekaru_Infitima
You guys all say it's fine to mess up as a healer time to time, it's just a game, and such. And I understand where you're coming from...
But on this same forum the Duty Finder Thread is mostly people shittalking healers that can't handle DPSing and healing at the same time, and mistakes.
I feel like the DF thread is the most expected, but will probably lead to the most stress.
...So which is the more accepted? -
11-29-2021, 05:28 AMCaurcas
As a healer you will fail sometimes, or others will fail you. This is part of the game. They will get mad, or you will get mad. This again is part of the game. The best advice I can proffer is to throw yourself at it till you get good at it, even if other players get butthurt and mad.
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11-29-2021, 05:46 AMSnorkyIt's not all on you, remember you are only human. Just keep trying. I never got to the point of a panic attack but I use to get pretty stressed. I don't play a healer for a reason. Because people are unforgiving and can be cruel. Maybe just start off with friends until you are comfortable healing. But if you like the job class keep trying you will get there.Quote:
Originally Posted by Nekaru_Infitima
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11-29-2021, 05:59 AMMichieltjuhhPeople will vent, more so behind your back than openly. Regarding the Dungeon Finder thread however, you'll find that a lot of those scenarios were not related to a kind player who simply wasn't performing 300%, but a mute one who refuses to listen, speak, or change.Quote:
Originally Posted by Nekaru_Infitima
You seem to care about what you assume others think, hence why I asked how you deal with it in IRL situations, such as giving a presentation for strangers in your field of work or the like. Performance anxiety is an issue that will plague you in games just as much as it will in real life scenarios, so if you have a fix for it there, try applying that to the game. -
11-29-2021, 06:03 AMSkivvyI've generally found the attitude of players in game to be far normal/forgiving than how the forum community presents itself. I think most people in-game are quite understanding and tend to go with the flow of things although it never hurts to let your group know you're still learning a role, new to content or whatever the case may be. Mistakes are going to happen, and even the best players will still fudge things up now and then, so I wouldn't stress too much on that.Quote:
Originally Posted by Nekaru_Infitima
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11-29-2021, 07:17 AMLexisFor the most part, posts you'll find there aren't about players making mistakes but rather having no clue how to play their class/role altogether or displaying less than ideal attitudes. Even then, things usually don't get confrontational during the run and people rather bear through it and vent about it later on the forums.Quote:
Originally Posted by Nekaru_Infitima
If you read your tooltips are try to play your role to the best of your ability, you're already miles ahead of most people that get griped about in the Duty Finder thread. Everyone makes mistakes, heck I know I do, but mistakes aren't what make nightmare runs. -
11-29-2021, 07:36 AMEscalonQuote:
Originally Posted by Nekaru_Infitima
People make too much drama out of that, what people talk about in the DF thread, including me, are mostly extremes.
I main SCH and AST, and there are times where the Tank just melts away and in those times I wont DPS anyway.
My Priority is -> Your life > My DPS and its simple as that.
Im quite good at how low can you go game, but at times I rather have the Tank topped, be it because of gear, lack of using CDs or the combination of the two. Thats my role as a Healer and in the 8 years I play this game, no one complained to me.
And I can assure you, the moment someone would complain, I just leave the instance. If you have the audacity to complain to me, who healed for 8 years why I dont do X at Y time, not realizing that your HP is hopping between 10% and 80% constantly and me just spamming heals to keep you alive, no matter what I say, you would not get it anyway. -
11-29-2021, 04:42 PMTaleraRistainThe forums aren't anywhere near what in-game experience is like. I've been Pugging in this game as a healer for 7 years. Most people are pretty chill. We're all just trying to get through the instance.Quote:
Originally Posted by Nekaru_Infitima
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11-29-2021, 05:10 PMcaffe_macchiatoPeople in the FFXIV community can become naturally abrasive due to playing a co-op game where everyone has to rely on each other. What Square Enix tries to do is mitigate this abrasiveness in the game itself so that you can simply opt out of any other community sources if you wish and play in a clean environment. That’s hard for people who want to immerse themselves in the FFXIV community, but the option is there. The forums, subreddits, FCs, Discord servers, and so on don’t reflect Square Enix’s intentions when making this game.Quote:
Originally Posted by Nekaru_Infitima
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11-29-2021, 05:53 PMMADbear
Depend on if you want to get better or get rid of the said panic. In your case it's probably stem from not familiar with solving situation (which happen a lot as healer).
If you just want to feel better playing this game w/o investing much then play something else than Tank/Healer, both are in the spotlight and their mistake is the most visible to other player.
But to get better mean you need to do some familiarity with the many situation that can happen. Try predict what to come next and plan on how you'll deal with it, this will give you more control on your consciousness and performance on a long run.
Start from lower level dungeon, maybe some run with trust since they'll not bash you for wiping and with stack of success you probably(?) will be more confident to do with pug.
tl;dr- Just practice a lot and bring friend for emotional support, nothing's better
than doing it over and over while trying your best. 200+runs later you'll learn to resent every pug rather than stressing and gain motto "if you die, you die" -
11-29-2021, 06:19 PMGemina
I think it can be difficult for people to relate to a full blown panic attack if they've never had one. While fairly common (somewhere around 1/3 of all people will experience at least one in their lifetime), it is not the generalized anxiety many people attribute it to. More often than not, these things send people to the hospital as the sense of dread, despair, and impending doom is overwhelming even though the actual threat is non-existent.
The onset of a panic attack can quite literally be anything. I've had them before, and the first time it happens without questions is the worst. Oddly enough, I had one about a week ago while farming Diamond EX. I am not sure why, but when the dog form does Vertical Leap, I couldn't get my gap closer to work to charge back in after it goes off. And that's what did it. I can't explain why. It's not a big deal. You just walk back in otherwise and proceed, but after 2-3 times of not being able to get it to work I was in full flight/fight mode. I felt like I had to get the hell out of that instance or I was going to pass out. My heart was racing, and I felt myself losing consciousness.
What did I do? It's a little hard to explain. How do your tell group you're having a full blown panic attack in the middle of an EX encounter? I don't know. I just knew I had to get out of there; but something in my head was also saying you can't just abandon your duty. What I did was put myself on autopilot (aka dissociate), if that makes sense. Then I remembered what is probably the most important thing to do during a panic attack: to breathe. In through the nose, out through the mouth. Deep, controlled, and steady breathing. In about 30-45 seconds I started feeling better, and the attack began to cease. I managed to finish the fight, and then let everyone know that I had to call it a night. They likely didn't even notice that just moments prior, I was freakin the eff out.
It's also important to know that the attack will pass, especially once you've learned to identify that it is a panic attack. -
11-29-2021, 08:18 PMJevikfett
The difference between a master and a noob, is that a master has failed far more times. Perhaps the issue you're having is purely perspective, so downplay your role or change how it's viewed... it's not life or death, but more of a keep bars filled game. Spam 1 (melefic, stone, ruin) until a bar hits 80% then fill the bar. Alternative is practice using the squadrons or trust system until you're comfortable
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11-29-2021, 09:11 PMVatom
Drink hot sauce.
Stop caring and die... alot
If your new take tips and learn after death
If you a vet and you die alot if your not in ult or savage dont care just keep swimming
Learn more about your class/fight and practice (lack of training can cause lack of confidence)
Do trust max you lvl and do old content by yourself it can be a trill
Main blue mage and all will be forgiven
Also if your in a practice duty relax and try to get as much understand as possible
If anyone is some how toxic ignore it or ... if you got the know how get even with mechs or rescue ;) -
11-29-2021, 09:53 PMSetesh45
Stop being a snowflake, that's your solution, and I mean that 100% seriously.
Stop looking for excuses, workarounds, just do it, like Shia says.
I used to have several panic attacks a day, I could not leave my flat, I had health anxiety, I could not work, I almost offed myself by jumping from a window.
In the end I "just" had to force myself into the situations that caused me issues, I could not breathe, I felt like fainting, but I kept going out, I kept exposing myself to it. It's the only way to force your brain to rewire itself to react to these situations correctly.
In the game it translated to me not doing any raids, trials, PvP, I felt anxious before every dungeon, always watching the dungeons guides ahead of time which didn't help anyway.
Now I have every raid finished, I'm doing pvp (only to get marks for glams, I still don't enjoy pvp and suck at it...). And IRL I work a job that requires me to communicate with people across the globe and travel abroad. -
11-30-2021, 04:04 AMLunalepsy
Stress? But playing FFXIV has never been easier!
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11-30-2021, 04:14 AMVahlnir
I don't really have that problem, but I've known people with similar issues. If you are having these issues while playing high pressure roles, I would consider not playing them. It might not be the choice you want to make, but panic attacks are no joke. I would put your well being above playing something that stresses you out so much. In that respect it should be a no brainer.
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11-30-2021, 05:02 AMFusiaRain
Im going to try to say this without getting weird...
But I use it, I use the stress and my rushs, my anger and frustration to make myself better by finding pleasure in the heat. (don't take that wrong)
I'm just one of those people who may be a little "mad" but pressure makes me laugh/smirk and push myself to my limits. I enjoy that personally it makes it fun, at least for me personally. (personally I feel like there isn't enough of this to thribe on)
I played dark souls without dying with nothing more than fist weapons, I played many of hardcore diablo characters where death means you lose everything. I even pvped in runescape and always skulled without running away.
So honestly I hardly feel it on ffxiv, (i even felt it in ff11 when farming blue mage spells ) Took almost 5 months to learn I believe it was heavenly strike from the ice golems (been forever btw)
But to sum up I enjoy it, it keeps my mind out of the screwed up stuff irl and my past that I don't like to think about. As long as something else is pressuring me and stressing me out I can remain "calm" and not cry about things irl that really cause me huge proplems. -
12-01-2021, 10:20 AMsincity1976
I remeber doing a Dzemael Darkhold run once. The DPS and tank were standing next to the crystals and pulling everything they could. After a couple of wipes the DPS started a matter of fact conversation about whether it was the tank or the healer that sucked. Like we weren't there.
My first time in Dohn Mehg as a fresh level 73 the tank immediately went wall to wall. I casted everything I had but I couldn't keep him alive with my newly geared scholar. The tank gave a snarky "I guess smaller pulls..." comment.
None of that should bug me. We are allowed to be new, we are allowed to make mistakes, and more then half the time the mistake isn't the healers (just the blame is).
But it does. I play Trusts until I am comfortable, repeat dungeons I know well, and play within my limits until I feel good. I find once I am confident, someone blaming me for a wipe just rolls off. Either it wasn't my mistake, or it was but I know it's the exception.
I am going through the same thing now learning tanking. It's a game. If your not enjoying it take a step back and do something you do enjoy. I play to get away from things, not to pile on. -
12-03-2021, 07:24 AMNekohauscatOmg, I'd love to see you playing Dark Souls with fists! What a cool idea. I want to make a new character in ds3 & play with a scythe, without a shield lolQuote:
Originally Posted by FusiaRain
Anyways, btt
I think that coping is something that everyone needs to find for him/herself. When I feel like having a panic attack, I usually eat something really spicy to snap out of it, it helps me remember to breathe. This might not work for you, though.
If it's not to personal, are you in therapy op? A therapist might help you find ways to cope with panic attacks! Mine did.
Anywats, I wish you the best of luck & I hope that you'll stay safe!