Anxiety & Panic Community

Anxiety to me is awful, it feels like my heart is beating so hard that it is just going to come out of my chest with some chest pain, I have some racing thoughts, hands tingle, trouble being still, It feels horrible I can not focus on anything or anybody. My spouse thinks that I should be able to focus on him in the middle of the anxiety attack and just does not get that it does not work. I usually just want to go away because it is so horrible to go thru. I do have Klonopin that I can take but so many times that does not work. Especially when you are limited to two klonopin a day at the most. Everything is impossible on these days work, children, fun etc.

Are there in more natural methods to not go through this pure torment? I would like to just have a bucket of tools that I can use and not have to think about what it is I do.

Can having anxiety in conjuction with BP, BPD, and PTSD make it even worse and harder to work thru. I am always asked to say what has caused my anxiety and I hate that question because most of the time I do not know. Is this typical for most people or do most know what triggers their anxiety?

My anxiety used to be a lot worse than it is today. I used to not want to leave the house, fear fainting, and not want to go anywhere unattended. I also used to take 1mg of xanax 4 times a day.

I am now still anxious at times, but it has gotten so much better. I only take 1mg xanax, once per day (usually before work).

CBT and distraction has helped with anxiety.

I never feel nervous, and psychologists think this is abnormal. I just feel physical sensations. Mostly lightheaded. And it happens every day without fail.

My Panic and Anxiety disorder makes me feel like im going crazy. Like i literally sometimes feel like checking myself into the psych ward! I have been to the urgent care at least 10 times in the past year cause i always feel like i am going to die.

Panic symptoms i get when getting a panic attack:
Warm feeling rushes through my body
Hands get c

sorry i accidentally got cut off the last thread

My Panic and Anxiety disorder makes me feel like im going crazy. Like i literally sometimes feel like checking myself into the psych ward! I have been to the urgent care at least 10 times in the past year cause i always feel like i am going to die.

Panic symptoms i get when getting a panic attack:
Warm feeling rushes through my body
Hands get cold and sweaty
Vision gets fuzzy
Light really hurts my eyes
i feel like i can hear the littlest sounds (i.e buzzing, ticking)
Dizzy
Feeling like running
Feels like things around me get dark and scary
Racing thoughts
Headaches

Everytime i get a new symptom i think that it is some other medical condition..which sucks
I have started washing my hands constantly cause i think things like cleaning products will soak through my skin and poison me

Its soo weird i mostly get panic attacks at night

I am prescribed 1mg xanax 4 times daily but i only take a .5 at night to help me sleep and be calm at night.
When i am getting a panic attack i try to think 'Ok this is just another attack..you have had one before and you will get through it" I also do deep breathing.

Im 19 and this condition sometimes feel like it overpowers me

Thanks you all for your responses, for sharing so much of yourselves here. I hope others will continue to share their experiences and tips too.

For anyone with particular questions about how to handle their own circumstances, be sure to also start your own new discussion for Dr. Farrell to see. To do that, hold your cursor over the orange Post Now button on the upper right, choose 'Discussion' from the drop down menu which appears. Fill in the subject line and body of the message (you can ignore the poll part if you want) and Submit.

Good Morning,

I hate the feeling of heart racing and not being able to turn off my mind. With me it is a cycle of pain..anxiety ..insomia. I do not even know which is worse these days.

The worst part is the fear of the meds. The only med I have been able to take long term is alprazolam(xanax). I take it and then fear I will be an addict even though in reality I know I will not.

I wake up almost everyday in a state of panic...I blame it on coffee.....so wait to have a cup and find out the anxiety is still there. I then blame it on sugar...same thing no sugar still anxious so I take out the meds my Dr. has me on and promise to take them. It is ritual that keeps going 3x.25 alprazolam, 2x50 tramadol and 10 mil cyclobenzaprine and hate that I just cannot control it myself.

Walking my dogs every day and other mild forms of exercise very important as well as taking care of my general health.

I am only 17 and i have horrible anxiety and what i think is depression. I have no health insurance however so i cannot get help. My chest gets tight and it gets very hard to breathe, i get pains in my back and my neck and sometimes the pain is so great my arm(s) and sometimes legs go numb. I get very dizzy and i cant do anything but cry. When i cry i cant stop, usually about 10 minutes into crying i hyperventilate and usually throw up a few minutes after that, ill wake up either passed out on the floor or the crying will start again. My stomach will have sharp pains and i lose feeling of my lower back.

Unfortunately i havent learned to control this, im still looking for help

My anxiety makes me feel like staying home and it makes me cry when my husband wants to go do something and i dont want to stop him so i stay home and he goes out and does stuff. I am constantly being told it is all in my head and that if I just do more things that it would help but it doesnt make me want to do things when i have to spend 30 minutes to an hour getting my stomach to settle down. I have trouble walking through a store or eating out a restaurant. Sometimes it gets so bad when we are at a store that i actually go and sit in the car and wait for my husband to finish shopping. We usually get the food at a restaurant to go but i would like to have a nice sit down dinner with my husband without having to be at home.

My physical symptoms are:
1.gagging
2. nausea
3. vomitting at times
4. heart starts to race
5. face gets really red and blotchy
6. i get an itchy throat that makes me cough and sometimes makes me gag
7. stomach starts doing flips

I have tried Paxil (worked but i was on it for too long so it wasnt working anymore, when i got off of it, i had withdrawals, plus we are trying for a baby)). I have tried Zoloft and Buspar with no luck. I tried Prozac and it seemed to work for a while but it started not working. I have tried Promethazine (worked the best but cant afford to go see Dr to get more). I have also tried Xanax but doctor didn't want me on it for too long. I have tried some natural remedies too but it sometimes makes it worse...just need to get it under control so i can start living a better life. Please help!!

Thanks again to all of you for keeping this discussion going. Your responses provide a great illustration of what it means to have anxiety and/or panic attacks and how it can impact your life. And because you've all taken the time to share, you may help others who are feeling alone in all of this.

To Jamescarebear and others new to here:

Welcome to WebMD!

For anyone with particular questions about how to handle their own circumstances, be sure to also start your own new discussion for Dr. Farrell to see. To do that, hold your cursor over the orange Post Now button on the upper right, choose 'Discussion' from the drop down menu which appears. Fill in the subject line and body of the message (you can ignore the poll part if you want) and Submit.

Like I'm going nuts! Sometimes I would rather be dead than to go thru it. It's there all the time and meds only help some. It's almost like being on a constant adrenaline rush that never stops. It feels like my heart is coming out of my chest and I can't breath. Also feels like my throat is swelling up. I just want to go to sleep because I'm so tired but can't.

I also suffer with anxiety and panic attack. Diagnose with BPD and PTSD. the anxiety is the worst for me. I believe it stems mostly from my PTSD. I have severe difficulty with remembering details of my traumatic experience and the past traumas have resulted in an array of physical symptoms. my anxiety reflect those symptoms.
allergic reactions to foods that come and go
nausea that eats at my stomach
increase body heat
cold extremities
grinding my teeth
severe head aches; like something is squeezing my head
shortness of breath
feeling overwhelmed when being around people for an hour
losing time
I take klonopin for the anxiety two to three times per day along with medication of BPD .
My therapist taught me to do deep breathing exercises and talk myself out of the responses. Sometimes it works, other times not. Walking also helps to calm the mind and body.

im not sure but i have all the symptoms of anxiety with bipolar symptoms.i feel so lost even though i take my meds,unsure if
meds are working because i still feel the symptoms...

It is somewhat comforting to see that many others have the same symptoms as I do!

During a major panic attack, I feel tingly all over and sometimes have static-y vision. I feel lightheaded and like my head is swimming. My heart races, I have chest pains and I feel like I will die any minute.

When I'm having a relatively small attack, I just have this overall feeling of nervousness and impending doom.

I have found that relaxation breathing techniques help quite a bit and I can reduce my heart rate (and actually lower my blood pressure) when I really focus on it. I also have a beautiful picture my husband took of the sunset over the ocean during a particularly relaxing vacation. I like to focus on that photo as well.

The only problem with the breathing techniques is that sometimes trying to focus on being calm just gets me more worked up.

I have found that at those times, crochet really helps me calm (and I would imagine that knitting would have the same affect). When I'm crocheting and counting my stitches I can't be thinking about my heart rate or how anxious I feel. I have to focus on where the next stitch goes, which numbered stitch I'm on, etc. In fact, in the two weeks before my anxiety meds kicked in, I made 6 pair of fingerless gloves!

I am currently on Pristiq (on day because the Paxil I was on was giving me very uncomfortable hot flashes. Thankfully the medication has stopped the worst of anxiety attacks!

I do know that certain situations will make me anxious, but I can talk myself down and generally calm down after a few minutes.

If anyone would like to try yarnwork for a relaxation technique, you should check out ravelry.com. There are some great tutorials and tons of free patterns! (not affiliated, just a good site with lots of helpful members!)