Panic attacks suck. Just getting another over.
 

On my 2nd .05 of xanax and feeling a bit better and where do I go for support, an adult board at 4:30 in the morning. I was a beat away from calling 911, and I am the type of person that does not fear death so much, until it feels so close.

WOW...I am new to this disorder. Thanks for letting me vent, it helps.

I've had 4 in my life...1 last weekend.

I've yet to try drugs to control them. generally I jump in bed, crawl under a blanket and make sure to cut off getting too much oxygen. My first experience was terrifying, but now I've noticed the triggers and the feeling.

Try to sort it out as soon as you can or they will come more and more often and stronger. You don't want them becoming a regular occurrence or it could take you years to beat these bitches.

whats a Panic attack?

keep it together man, you can beat it:thumbsup:thumbsup

I can feel them coming, but little I can do. here you go.. not again.
The epinephrine builds so fast that there is no way to control it.

For anyone that has not felt one...don't call me a wuz.

Thanks.

no one called you anything...............:winkwink:

Panic attacks are sudden, discrete periods of intense anxiety, mounting physiological arousal, fear and discomfort that are associated with a variety of somatic and cognitive symptoms. The onset of these episodes is typically abrupt, and may have no obvious triggers. Although these episodes may appear random, they are considered to be a subset of an evolutionary response commonly referred to as fight or flight that occur out of context, flooding the body with hormones (particularly epinephrine (adrenaline)) that aid in defending itself from harm. Experiencing a panic attack is said to be one of the most intensely frightening, upsetting and uncomfortable experiences of a person's life.

panic attacks are all in the head
kinda like allergens

Sounds like a load of poo poo.

DeadFidel needs to grow a pair of balls and stop being a crybaby.

I agree....

This is one of those 'A.D.D' type fucking 'diseases'. Total bullshit.

Yes, they are all in your head. Your head, which controls hormone releases, nerves, everything. It still feels fuckin AWFUL.

I'd like to retract my earlier statement.

Well...
I have had them for years. I got something that might help.


When it happening:
The first thing I do is tell myself its a panic attack, I know, I know easier said then done.
2ndly Avoid trying to analyse what is happening, will my heart stop? Will it explode? Why the fuck do I feel light headed, I must be having a stroke kind of thoughts are a no no, you simply can not dwell on that. You can not dwell on thinking your life is going to abruptly end.
Infact you goto think it is kind of silly.

3rd Try and find something simple to do, poor a glass of water, let the water run on your hands. Drink the water, this is for example but something simple will do the trick. When doing this I tell myself to get a grip, I jest to myself, "Get real dude" this will be over in a few minutes.

What sucks is these things can strike any fucking time any fucking where and you goto make a choice to deal with it with or without drugs. I chose not to use any drugs what so ever and face up to this problem.

Once knowing it is a problem for what it is and what it is not definatly helps alot.

How do you avoid them? Big question and the answer is simple.
Well I used to drink lots of coffee, I seldomly excorcised and no matter how ya look at it thats not healthy. I cleaned up my diet, and even a simple walk will hold these things off and if you stick with a good diet and a little excorcise you will have much less.

With this problem people I have tried to talk to about it either A: Got no fucking clue or B: Think there is a deep rooted problem emotional problem ( and maybe in my case there is but thats for another discussion ).

In my opinion I think it is a misunderstood biochemical thing, and not psychological. I did crazy amounts of research and I found out something interesting. In everyones brain there is a small portion that sends it into shock, or sends it into a state where biochemically it prepares you to die.
Nothing turns off though infact the body is at a hieghtened state of survival.

It's a primal thing and a common thing that mammals have and it is triggered usually when say wounded by a predator or taken down by a predator.

Well I believe that many people have this problem and once in a while this portion of the brain triggers off what we or at least what I call a panic attack.

Maybe you can identify with what I am saying, and this is how I have coped with the problem.

By the way...

Xanex will not save you.
I do not think Dr's got the right kind of drugs for this problem. You will still have them no matter what you take. I have never heard of people with this problem avoid Panic Attacks with the use of prescriptives, nor have I heard of a medication directly made for them.

Maybe there is one, I have not really looked I just got answers like hey get on some Xanex, how about some prozac? Fuck that shit, like I need a fuzzy head while having a panic attack.

Not.

Good luck though bud.
For me they have calmed down in my 30's. when I was in my 20's they come on and my first one was when I was 17. You do not forget them and when they started, I guess at least I have not.

I know the feeling all too well :(

Doesnt sound very pleasant at all DF. Hope you get a grip on them mate.

I wish I was by your side if you ever had one to watch shit head.

"Experiencing a panic attack is said to be one of the most intensely frightening, upsetting and uncomfortable experiences of a person's life."

I had that a few years back, hard to get rid of. Just make sure to breath normally when it happens and try to do something else to keep your mind from it. I actually rushed to the hospital when it first happened, not knowing what it was :1orglaugh Another good advise is to put a long tube/pipe in your mouth, e.g. a plastic pipe you used to shoot paper stuff out when you were a kid, and breath in and out.. or just go out and walk a few blocks that helps too.

You wont understand, untill you actually experience one. oh and :321GFY

Is this a typical US disorder? I never heard anyone from anywhere else is having them

Lol, one doctor thought my attack was astma(?sp), so he gave me a shot of oxygen right in the stomach. Then everything got 10x worse.

Never heard about this too....

The worst thing that I hate on panic attack are the palpitation. My heart, neck, even my head palpitates and its very uncomfortable not to mention scary as fuck.

But when an old friend told me im just having a panic attack... its gone LOL

Its a bullshit disorder made up by fat, lonely hippies.

Here's a tip: stop feeling sorry for yourself and go outside for a walk . Leave your house for a change, instead of whining on internet boards.

Could be all the Tube sites bringing on these panic attacks

I don't have it so it doesn't exist? I feel pity for you. :Oh crap

One of the few things worse than a panic attack is a panic attack under the influence of something else like say for instance LSD.

PS it is not some made up A.D.D. type ailment. Yes it is in ones head. So is a lot of everything else. Remember that orgasm you had, well that was in your head too. Migraines, headaches, and even the different levels of pain are all in your head. Unlike being hyper which also is in ones head as the brain releases to much crap into the system. Panic attacks just trigger your fight or flight reflexes and pump up other chemicals that may make it feel like your heart is about to explode, your pulse may shoot through the roof, and a whole slew of very real symptoms hit you.

Oddly most people I know that have or still have panic attacks are not fat fuckers who just sit around all day either. Many are very healthy and some even are super thin. I have had known one who also has slight agrophobia (I think that is it) where she does not like going outside if it is crowded. Though everyone I have met who has had them also has certain triggers.

As for it being a US thing I doubt it. I have seen it happen to a tourist at an amusement park and his wife was telling the EMT's that he has panic attacks all of the time in broken English. They were from Italy. I have also noticed many Mexicans with the same issues.

for anyone having regular panic attacks and still smoking weed or / and drinking
fair amounts of coffee: both THC and Caffeine trigger panic attacks.. number #1 cause.

Never heard of it here. Maybe it's because ppl in the USA use 8978X more medicins?

LOL! Panic attacks suck bigtime!

If you smoke pot and have panic attacks, you will not be smoking pot for long!

Hypnosis is something to try, if you perfer to stay off the drugs.
Relaxation technics really help, get outside.

Set times to relax (several times a day) techniques for mind, body and spirit.
Laying down and relaxing your body, like a limp rubber band.

Read up on it and take time to fight it, or you will end up on a presciption to mask it. The subconscious mind, can play tricks on you or help you.

Good luck and get on it :-)

True. That's one of the main reason I don't smoke weed anymore. This shit can make you stop anything to avoid them ! :Oh crap

I take velafaxine for something else and it seems to have stopped my panic attacks as well.....

Not winning in any contest threads lately has made you a cranky little bitch, huh?

I used to have them very severely...it was not a pretty thing at all.

Over time, with lots of reading to educate myself, I got to where I cope with them better. While I can't say that I never have them, the vast majority of the time it is now like one part of my brain is able to stay in focus to say

"oh, look, you are having another panic attack. It's not fun, but we've been through this before, so just try to breathe from our belly and know that it will pass"

Someone above mentioned getting a handle on them before they really start snowballing. I agree to that statement 100%. Because once you've had a bad one...and sorry, I rarely say this but fuck you to anyone who doubts how bad they can be...

but once you've had a bad one, your mind plays tricks on you...and it can get to where you are afraid of having another one and that fear itself can trigger one.

Best of luck you to you in dealing with it. And as an fyi, while xanax helps short term, it has it's own set of issues, and isn't a long term fix.

Try meditation. :)

I had mild panic attacks for quite a while few years ago, like a lot of them, not that bad that i thought i had to go to the hospital but still enough to make me feel pretty fucking shitty. Turned out to be coffee. I drank it basically everyday and i stopped with it. It solved it 95%. Now i drink a small cup every now and then and that doesnt seem to be a problem.

Now instead of pumping your body full of meds like all you Americans love to do try to find out what might cause it. Its not always as simple as coffee or cigs but it can be easy as that. Drinking less coffee certainly beats taking Xanax every day.

You want to find the problem not a temporary solution.

Man up, cupcake.

I feel really bad for you and I feel like I'm an expert on this subject. I had panic/anxiety attacks from age 21 to 34. (I'm 39 now.) It got so bad toward the end that I was afraid to drive. I'd get them randomly 3 times a week without warning or even knowing I was stressed.

I usually felt about 20-30 minutes of impending doom, sweat, heart palpitations, chest was heavy, couldn't breathe, and really thought this is it, I'm going to die this time.

I tried EVERYTHING from xanax to meditation tapes. Then I took the plunge and went to 2 hypnotherapy sessions for panic attacks. By the end of the 2nd one I only had one more attack and my brain instantly took control on how to stop it without effort from me. I remember some of the visualizations she walked me through during the session, and one stood out as automatically working when I had my next and last panic attack. I doubt this will work if you haven't gone through hypnotherapy, but when it started, I instantly pictured my panic attack as happening to me on TV, I was watching it happen and I picked up the mental remote control and turned it off. That fast, that instant, and I never had another one again. My theory is, the hypnotherapy taught my mind how to distract itself when I would start to panic, and I didn't have to WORK at distracting myself.

Good luck, I hope something helps.

Kiana

It's strange so many people have it nowdays.

Must be the sopranos influence

Weren't you the one feeling sorry for yourself around Christmas because you have no family/friends or anyone to send you gifts so your way to cope was to steal the packages dropped off at your neighbours doors?


DeadFidel - I'm not sure I've every acknowledged having any. I tend to minimize any 'fucked up' feeling I have. But when my brother was getting them, a doctor recommended more excercise and he sent him to this place that's like a frozen jacuzzi. He said it's helped him and he gets them seldomly now, can cope until it ends and without meds.