Panic attacks

I'm good for one a year.
Usually it comes at night as I'm lying in bed trying to sleep. Mind wanders and next thing you know, I'm hyperventilating and start bawling. It's a pretty ugly sight.
Last one was about my new car. I was nervous about such a big purchase, then a commercial came on TV advertising a lower price than what I paid. I started thinking about my payments, which led to me thinking I got screwed, then panicking about why I fucked up so bad and next thing you know I can't control my breathing and I'm a mess.
Mrs. Rhody calmed me down a bit, got me an Adovan and I went to la-la land. Woke up the next morning, realized what I freaked out about and why I did, realized I wasn't getting screwed and life went on.

 

I don't get what causes it. Or how to get rid of it. I still feel kinda short of breath when I try to relax. It's like, when I'm busy I'm perfectly fine. Driving, working, at the gym, watching TV... but when I lay in bed, or just sit in my chair at work and try to kick back for a minute I can feel my heart rate rise and it gets hard to breathe. And if I read up on heart attack stuff, I can nearly give myself one. This sucks. I just want to be able to relax without feeling like I'm about to suffocate or without feeling like my heart is about to punch a hole in my chest.

 

It's body chemistry for most folks. There's a chemical switch that should regulate the whole adrenaline "fight or flight" thing, but sometimes that switch doesn't function correctly. In my episodes, I would tell others, "imagine you just turned the corner and saw a bear right in front of you. OK, that's how it is for me, only there's no bear."

 

I got my first panic attacks when I was 12 years old. The doctors told my parents I would grow out of it, and it seemed that after about six months I did. Since then they have flared up at various times in my life with various consequences.

The worst episode was in my junior year of college, I had one that lasted for nearly a month and a half. It did not stop. I was hospitalized briefly and figured that any hope I had of working in a deadline driven business was over. As some people have said, it is often a body chemistry thing. To this day, nearly 20 years after my first one I still have no idea what triggers them, they just happen.

What I have found, it that with a combination of medications I can mostly mitigate their effects. I take Paxil on a daily basis and have since my junior year, I also have a bottle of Ativan for those times when it gets out of hand and I need a "emergency exit," as my doctor calls it.

I would strongly urge you to speak with you GP about your symptoms and get on some of the meds. It took me a while and a few different brands before I found one that worked well and didn't have any side effects, but through working with my doctor I have manged them quite well for years. The hardest part for me has been explaining it to people I interact with, especially bosses and family members. But with some patience you learn to deal with that as well.

I would also suggest that you read up on the conditions, "When Panic Attacks," by Dr. David Burns was a very educational and helpful read when I first started dealing with this stuff and it helped me feel more like I knew what I was dealing with.

Eventually it will likely go away as it does for most people, but if not you will learn to manage it. You need patience and a good friend or two to help you get through it.

Panic has been the biggest challenge in my life to this point, but you can get past it. I wish you the best of luck and would be happy to chat with you 1-on-1 about my experiences or offer advice if you are in need.

Good luck, stay patient and stay positive.

 

by the way, just wanted to post this oon behalf of EVERYONE: this thread is why i love this place, stupid disagreements over petty crap and all. for all of you to 'come clean' to show rusty he is NOT alone is fabulous. 8)

keep up the great work, y'all. keep up the great work.

 

OK, here it goes. I wasn't going to share, but after some of the stories on here, I kind of feel compelled to...

After reading some of the above posts, I feel lucky, because I don't have it nearly as badly as some of you...

About 10 years ago, I was in a car accident, after I got out, i started getting very claustrophobic and had a fear of heights that I never had before. Hell, I've been skydiving...

Well, as luck would have it, one of the places where the claustrophobia would kick in would be press conferences, essentially situations where I couldn't get up and walk out. I know technically, I could, but I think you know what I mean. I never had an episode, but I would get very nervous. I asked a fellow reporter who almost always sat next to me and he said he had no idea, so that was good.

The second the press conferences were done, I was fine. The claustrophobia would kick in every once in awhile, but press conferences were where I would be impacted the most.

I asked my doctor about it and he gave me a very mild dose of Alprazolam. It's generic Xanax, but I've taken Xanax and it knocks me on my ass. Alprazolam, just gives me this mellow feeling, that's really pretty amazing.

I'd take it 30 minutes before press conferences and I was great.

 

I would get these symptoms when paying the bills. Especially when there wasn't enough money to pay all the bills.

Eventually, I told myself, the hell with it. It's just money.

Been working pretty well. I could probably run for Congress now, I care so little about debt.

 

Interesting parallel to some of the things Mets reliever Taylor Buchholz is experiencing:


Buchholz then proceeded to explain to Svetich what was going on, the pangs of anxiety, the heart palpitations, the nervous twitches, and wild muscle spasms he was experiencing. It was just Buchholz and Svetich speaking to each other alone in an empty dugout, hours before game time, when Buchholz was struck again …

“I literally broke down right then and let him know everything,” Taylor recalled. “It was one of the most embarrassing moments of my life. I’m there crying to another man. But Svetich recognized there was a problem. He was fantastic and someone that helped me get through this. At that point, I didn’t want anything to come out, because I was totally embarrassed about it. I’m a man’s man who’s supposed to be tough and not breaking down into tears for no reason. I didn’t feel like a man, I’ve been the one that’s been the rock in my relationships.”
http://springfield-pa.patch.com/articles/dealing-with-depression-on-a-major-league-level

 

Hong-chi Kuo of the Dodgers had anxiety attacks and was put on the DL earlier this year.
When he came back, we wondered if Vin Scully would say, "It's nervous time at Dodger Stadium" if the opponent started to rally.

I don't know if it's similar or not, but I've had serious vertigo for about 15 year. First time it happened, we were at this kids-sized amusement park. We went on this kiddie ride that just sent you around in circles. I had to close my eyes, couldn't stand it. Soon after, she was on a spin-around thingee at a local park and I got dizzy just watching her. Now, even watching a skydiver jump out of a plane on TV I sends jolts up my spine. I was driving on a bridge once near San Francisco. From the road, you could look over the side down to the water. I had to put my hand up next to my eye, like blinders. It was not fun.
I had a bunch of medical tests: heart, brain, allergies. They found nothing wrong.

 

Well I had a similar problem last Saturday night. Already have high blood pressure problems, very slight, medication has it my BP really good. Heart rate went up to 120 Saturday night and I got worried and headed to the ER.

Six hours later after blood work (which showed I wasn't having a heart attack), an EKG and being on a heart monitor, the doctor came in and said everything looked great and said he was sending me home. Said it was probably stress.

Had another slight episode on Monday and Tuesday was at my doctor. He gave me an exam, heart sounded great, EKG was great. He said I hope my next EKG is that good. He also said it was stress, which I have been having some of at work. Said it had probably built up and was released. He didn't want to put me on any meds for strees. Just didn't see the need to drug me, which I appreciated.

So far so good. Haven't had any troubles other than a head ache tonight and the fact I just can't sleep much.

 

This thread is frightening.
You know what I'm thinking? This effing business has doubled our stress levels.
Not only do we have the stress of doing a good job and beating the competition, we have the added stress of being laid off or our shop closing down.

 

I don't think mine is so much work related.
My first panic attack was when i was maybe 12. I was laying in bed and started wondering who would live in my house in 100 years. Then I started thinking about how it would be cool to meet those people. Then I realized I'd be dead, then I realized I don't know if there's heaven or not and how I would never know who would sleep in my room in 100 years and before you knew it, I was screaming and crying and eventually I puked.
Next time I have one I'll have to figure out what the trigger for it is. Perhaps there's a stressful situation that I get through, which sets me off about something else; although when I was 12, I don't know what I could have been stressed about.