General Anxiety and Panic Disorder

I started having them in 2006, and I have only just managed to shake them (I think, was borderline one the other day).

At first they were everyday, but managed in the end to get them down to one a month.

The strangest part to me is the detachment from mind and body, it's like you are one place and your body another.

The thirst, if I remember right is because your body is going into fight or flight mode, adrenaline is pumping, the body is moving resources to vital organs etc.

When I approached the doctors, my blood pressure was high, so he prescribed me beta blockers for that and something else for the anxiety, can't remember what that was called, but it made the situation worse, so I stopped taking them.

I don't know why I started getting them, I didn't do drugs, although I did like to drink.

I was happy enough, enjoyed my parties, got out into the fells walking a lot.

Best thing I can advise is that when you have one, control your breathing (very easy to hyperventilate as it feels like every breath you take isn't working, weird huh), and just reassure yourself that everything is ok and that it is just another attack, that is all I did, seemed to help.

reply to post by ludoles


Welcome to ATS, ludoles! Thank you for sharing your story with us and your method of dealing with your anxiety. I think that your advice is very sound advice for everyone, both people with and people without anxiety issues. Great post and you got your first star from me!

Meditate, get outside in nature, and exercise.

I know it seems weird, but EFTmay be able to help (there are plenty of videos explaining it on YouTube).

Avoid refined sugars, processed foods, and stimulants for a while. Avoid heavy foods (especially red meat)

If you're doing any drugs (especially cannabis), you may want to cut them out for a bit.

I promise this is a phase. We live in a dualist world, and emotional states and their opposites cycle around like the days passing into night.

We can all give you advice, but no matter how good that advice is, ultimately it is up to you to act.

Suffering is life's way of telling us we still have some work to do. Know that there is a part of you, in fact the ONLY real You, that is beyond suffering, beyond pain, beyond all temporary states.

Love,

I sympathize. I've had anxiety all my life, a little genetics and a little too much over protection from my father. No experience=fear of novelty. Anyway when I went to college and got summer jobs it got a lot better, but I was also on Paxil since I was 16-17. I'm not sure if it helped or not, but it really screwed up my memory and emotions. I can't recall episodic memories, nor can I focus, and I think at half the speed of other people now. I remember little from college courses.

I started getting panic attacks after getting too high on weed one time. I was never a pothead or anything but I tried a few times, this time I flipped and felt I was dying. I can't even smell pot without my heart racing now. After that I was never the same. Panic attacks triggered when I tried to fall sleep for about 9 months after.

I decided to get off Paxil thinking it was causing it, which was tough. I tried to get back on it after the panic attacks got worse after graduating and not finding a job, and I learned that I was sensitive to any SSRI, as well as Fluoride in water. I'm also sensitive to some anti-anxiety herbs like St. Johns Wort.

The doctor put me on Buspirone as well after me having a complete shaking-in-a-cold-sweat-for-days nervous breakdown after trying Citalopram and Paxil again. The buspirone sucks and makes me feel like I took a xanax and drove 800 miles on curvy roads. I hate it, but i havn't had a panic attack since I started taking it, so I'm on it for now, but not forever. I take them in halves or just before bed so I don't slug around.

I'm starting a job with an 84 hr workweek and a lot of driving and people, which give me anxiety, especially after being unemployed, immobile, broke, and isolated for 9 months. I'm hoping I'll get over some of it if I force myself to go out and do more.

Eating healthy will help you. I notice when I eat crap food, especially processed food, I'm more prone to anxiety. Caffeine doesn't bother my anxiety, unless I try to sleep while hyped up. Try valerian root, kava kava, chamomile, and ashwaganda root extract. I've tried a few on and off but not consistent. Exercise as well. The more exercise I get, the less nervous I get and the better I feel. Build up testosterone anyway you can, it makes you more confident and assertive. Good luck.

I just had wrote a Thread in this forum last night on being positive, not to sound like I know what I am really saying.
I was diagnosed with PTSD and with horrible anxiety and panic disorder. I don't want to really discuss why now. But I have been trying so hard to study up on positive visualization and my spiritual side maybe something I mentioned in that thread could give a good word of inspiration.

Originally posted by Erich94
reply to post by 1/2 Nephilim

 

I do not believe in Christianity in any facet because I have studied the bible now for quite some time and none of it makes any sense to me. I was baptized a catholic when I was younger and it was all kind of forced on me. This made me want to rebel in a way. I have been atheist now for 2 or 3 years, but more recently I have been studying into Buddhism because of some of the experiences I have encountered throughout my life. I always felt like, if I was just religious and believed in something like that, just to keep a peace of mind about the "Afterlife" I would have quite a bit of stress relief.

Greetings friend,

If I may say, for someone who is seemingly prone to panic attacks and anxiety, you write with a great deal of wisdom and personal insight. There is a depth of clarity in your reflection that is very profound and would seem is certainly lacking in many of your contemporaries.

Thankfully, I've never had to deal with such experiences, although I too have my own internal struggles. You seem to be a seeker of sorts, and so I will share with you that thing which has been of greatest help to me in my journey of seeking, and that thing is this: The Law of One.

The Law of One is a system of knowledge that encompasses philosophy, cosmology, and the origins of humanity, along with a great deal of other topics.

Allow me to share a quote, and we shall see how it resonates with you-

Let us for a moment consider thought. What is it, my friends, to take thought? Took you then thought today? What thoughts did you think today? What thoughts were part of the original thought today? In how many of your thoughts did the creation abide? Was love contained? And was service freely given? You are not part of a material universe. You are part of a thought. You are dancing in a ballroom in which there is no material. You are dancing thoughts. You move your body, your mind, and your spirit in somewhat eccentric patterns for you have not completely grasped the concept that you are part of the original thought.

I find the body of material that comprises The Law of One to be the most complete system of metaphysical knowledge ever compiled, although I'm sure others find it to be simply new-agey charlatanism. I'd suggest that you delve into it a bit, do some reading, and see how it affects you. As for me, it has been a great boon and a font of wondrous knowledge, hopefully it can also be so for you.

I'd start here, this site offers what you'd describe as a sort of "Cliff's Notes" to the material-

divinecosmos.com...

If you're still interested, the material in it's entirety may be found here-

www.lawofone.info...

Anyway, it's been interesting reading your story, and witnessing the confluence of kind souls that have come forth to offer their service. Again, you are a unique and beautiful individualization of the Infinite All That Is, and I wish you all the best, now, and in future times.

reply to post by Erich94


Mate I suffer anxiety. Well social anxiety to be exact. A mate of mine suffers from a heart problem and a brain problem. Any amount of stress for him gives him a massive migraine and could seriously do him some harm. He's quite lucky to be alive actually.

I actually take this thing when i'm in social situations like at work and even visiting friends or relations...

It's made by Ethical Nutrients and it's called "Stress and anxiety relief" witht he main ingredient being LactiumPURE which is derived from cows milk, but can still be taken by those who require lactose free diets. I find that one tablet helps me for about 4 hours. I basically take one at the start of my work shift and one at half time. It makes a noticable difference to me.

Now, my mate who has those heart and brain issues. Well he suggested I start taking some of the things he takes.
So I ordered the same stuff because he basically tries to make his body not as stressed. Avoid stress is his answer.

So he has me taking Magnesium capsules. It helps relax muscles and is needed by more than 300 biochemical reactions in the body. One in the morning, once at night.
L-Theanine - 1 at night. This does relaxation without drowsiness. Reduces stress and tension. It's an amino acid derived from green tea. It also apparently produces a bit of Gaba in the brain.
I also take GABA - which is also an natural thing in the brain. Natural Calming effect. Promotes relaxation and eases nervous tension.
Zinc Picolinate - It supports enzyme function but also zinc is good for muscles, skin. It's an essential mineral that plays a role inn enzyme functions and is found inthe liver, brain,
kidneys, pancreas.
He told me to take this thing called 5-htp, about once a week, but i find I get a headache from that so I stopped taking it. It supports a positive mood and is a precursor to seratonin.

I have to say. Once I started taking all that, MY GOD my body and muscles were so relaxed!!! I'm so much more stress free and chilled out than I used to be.

I highly recommend it.
He also started taking Lithium Oratate recently, It's a naturally occuring trace mineral found in things like whole grains, and vegetables. He highly recommends that too. I havn't tried that yet, but I just got some today so I'll give it a whirl.

Anyways. Just letting you know that they helped me and could help you to.

So de-stressed. Take care.

Oh yeah, he cant have caffeine either. But I have caffeine.

reply to post by miss_sky


I appreciate everyone's responses and it really touches me that so many people are having the same problems as myself. I hope you all the best as you have wished me and hope that maybe you have found new ways of dealing with your anxiety through this post and through the intelligent, experienced people who are battling the same things we are.

@miss_sky

You mentioned a few things I find as extremely interesting and I would like to ask you a few questions if you do not mind. You said that you believed your first panic attack could very well be what lead to the disorder itself? The first experience was so frightening that it shook you so bad you feared it ever happening again, and the fear of it happening again is what caused it to keep coming back? I never really had panic attacks in my sleep other than the one I had as a young child. Though, a few times, I have woken up in the middle of the night gasping for air. It wasn't because I was out of breath, it was because my throat was literally closed. Every time I tried to breath it was a rattling gasp sound, and I seemed to just be breathing straight into my stomach instead of my lungs. I am currently looking into vitamins and other natural remedies and will take your information into consideration when purchasing them. I have heard some wonderful things about aloe vera in its use internally. People have been suggesting adding a good amount of aloe vera to their diet and feeling much healthier and getting rid of their anxiety. I think I might try this.

@PlausibleDeniability
I do believe that Self Esteem plays a huge factor in some people's anxiety and panic but mine does not have any center on Self Esteem as mine is fine. I am comfortable with myself and my body. I have no worries about my appearance or my personality for I be as kind as I can to people and as kind as I can to my body.

@Violetshy
I have thought that maybe I do have some sort of heart condition but I every time I start to wonder about it, I just get freaked out and it gives me more anxiety and I usually start to have a panic attack. I have randomly gotten heart palpitations over the past year, which I have associated with my anxiety since they seemed to come after all of my panic attacks started. I have meditated quite a bit recently and it does help me a bit, I had such a profound experience while meditating a while back that I wound up in tears. I won't go into details about what I experienced, but will just leave it at amazing.

@Ludoles
Wow, I really appreciate that you took the time to join the site after reading my post. I, like you, used to lurk around ATS reading about all of the information that my mind could handle. I have taken into account all of the things you have listed and I will give a few of them a shot. I will look into the whole writing down my dark secrets thing, anything to give me some sense of relief will be great.

@ExquisitExamplE
Thanks for your kind words though, I have always received that same criticism from my peers and over-seers throughout my years in school. A seeker is no doubt the most accurate description of my personality. I honestly strive to figure things out. That's why death is such a problem for me, because there is no real way to know the unknowable (at least from my current viewpoint). I have researched a little bit into the law of one but by no means am I a scholar of it's meaning or teaching. I got a bit interested in it after watching a video on youtube called "spirit science" on human history. I learned about the emerald tablets and everything else it has to do with which all really surprised me as I had never even heard of the tablets up until that point. Thank you for insight, I will take it with heed and will delve further into the law of one in an attempt to greater understand the nature of my existence

@DaRage
So many people have been recommending me different vitamins that I feel as though If I take everyone's advice I will probably just end winding up as a human sized one a day. I will take your information as well as other peoples regarding vitamins and supplements and figure out which might help me best and a combination of other factors.

I just want to mention a few other things. I am 18 years old, I will be 19 in may. I have undergone a lot of surgeries in my lifetime. I got a toe cut off of my right foot when I was about 5, I had to get it reattached. I had my tonsils out, I had surgery on my right leg I had surgery on my knee, and I also had surgery on my neck.

I think it's possible I may have developed PTSD because of the surgeries. At a certain point I began to dread surgeries greatly. I hated general anesthetic because of my unpleasant experiences with it. The feeling of the GA entering my blood stream always made me panic because I could feel it going up my arm to my chest. It always burned, it felt like fire inside of my body, engulfing me. Since I am quite a bit existentialist, general anesthesia really bothers me. I have always felt like the feeling of being under GA is what being dead would feel like. It's a long dreamless sleep which has this weird vibe about it, this nothingness feeling. Anyways. I'm not sure if this could be my problem or not. But after all of these surgeries I can't really blame myself if that is the case.

I recommend 'Bioenergetics' which is a body and mind therapy.
Humans are pulling away from their bodies - they don't like what the body feels like and spend their lives in their heads. The world is mainly mental for humans.
When the body is heard it is usually because it is shouting out for attention but we don't like that and then take something to numb the feelings more.
The body is where life is and when really felt - life is sensational.

There is much fear trapped inside the body from when you were a child - being a child is scary for most because you have to be forced to do things against your will, this fear can be released but only if truly felt.
Running away from the body is not possible. There is no escape. Make friends with what is happening instead of resisting. Feel the body instead of going to the mind to cure the problem - the body sensations are not a problem. Just feel it.
This is Alexander Lowen speaking about the therapy which he created 'Bioenergetics':
youtu.be...

I wonder what they did 200 years ago when someone had an anxiety or panic disorder... oh right, they had a drink and learned how to deal with it. Today we need 15 pills to be a zombie... I mean "normal".

Originally posted by Bacardi
I wonder what they did 200 years ago when someone had an anxiety or panic disorder... oh right, they had a drink and learned how to deal with it. Today we need 15 pills to be a zombie... I mean "normal".

Maybe 200 years ago people were not so intellectual. All the time is spend in the head these days, the mind is king.
Getting in touch with the body is how to enjoy life - it is where joy lives.

reply to post by Itisnowagain


In other words, Government/big pharma didn't restrict and monopolies hallucinogens back then.

Originally posted by Bacardi
reply to post by Itisnowagain

 

In other words, Government/big pharma didn't restrict and monopolies hallucinogens back then.

Do you need drugs to feel the body? To feel life?
It is right here, right now. Not many know about how life feels because they are looking for the buzz - they look in mind.
Life is sensational.

This is another interesting video of Alexander Lowen speaking about the bodily feeling of life and how to really connect to the fountain of life:
youtu.be...

The fear is felt because of the disconnection. The disconnection is caused by the running away, by the not wanting of what is happening. The body feels tight and is uncomfortable, it is uneasy but these are just words - feel the feeling - as you take time out and feel the sensation the body is producing you will feel it move. It is just energy that is stuck. It can cause tears to come and all sorts of strange happenings. But it is just the energy being released.

Getting in touch with the body can bring up all sorts of emotion because emotion is e (energy) in motion. Do not be surprised by what comes out and don't bother trying to work out or figure out with the mind what any of it means - just allow the energy to move by looking at it in the body by putting your attention on it and allowing it to move as you just watch. It will release and you will be free of fear and anxiety. Don't expect overnight success, however you will notice change quite rapidly.
You can keep the attention on the body whilst going about your normal daily activity.

There are so many great posts on this thread and tons of great advice. I'm really impressed with how much people are sharing about such difficult personal issues.

I'm afraid that my earlier posts on this thread were a bit abstract and wanted to share some more details about myself and my experiences struggling with my anxiety problems and panic.

But first, I wanted to mention that for me the most effective thing for helping with panic are cognitive behavioral therapy techniques I learned from psychologists leading group anxiety therapy sessions with between 6 and 30 patients (depending on the group). If you can't find a group therapy session in your area, I would recommend finding a psychologist to do one-on-one sessions with you who is trained in treating anxiety and panic and uses a "cognitive behavioral approach". Before you see a new psychologist, talk to them on the phone before you make an appointment and make sure that they use this specific approach. From my personal experiences with therapists using other approaches, I'm not so sure that more "traditional" therapy approaches involving talking about childhood memories, dreams, and general analysis of your thoughts is helpful for treating panic or general anxiety, and dredging up all of your old traumatic experiences and memories might actually make your anxiety and panic worse (at least for the short term), if you aren't already armed and trained to fight the panic with these "cognitive behavioral" techniques.

Most of what I originally posted is my distillation of the things I learned from this approach, and my personal way of applying them (everyone will have a different creative strategy for applying this technique, that you must learn on your own through practice).

Of course, it will be much more expensive to do one-on-one sessions with a psychologist - yet another reason for finding an anxiety group as the sessions are much, much cheaper. Do make sure the group is led by a certified psychologist, ideally with a PhD level education (some great psychologists only have master level degrees - so don't worry too much if they don't have a PhD). Also, make sure the therapist leading the group is using a "cognitive behavioral approach".

I'm only saying all of this because I really want to help the OP and anyone else who finds this useful. To be honest, I'd rather not even talk about any of this at all...

So, here's my dirty story...

My first panic attack happened when I was traveling in Ibiza, Spain, with an ex-girlfriend about 12 years ago (I'm 37 now). Despite what you all might think given Ibiza's reputation for drugs and partying, we were not actually doing the club scene or partying all that much, and not doing *any* drugs at all - just drinking some in the evening and going dancing. It was at the tail end of a two week trip in Spain, where our final destination was Ibiza for the beaches and for some fun nightlife.

My girlfriend was staying in Spain for another week to meet up with some other friends of hers, and I was to fly back to the states on my own. The morning when I was leaving to catch a plane to Madrid, where I was going to stay overnight before my final flight back home, we had a really horrible fight. I won't go into the details, but basically she broke up with me and it was a very bad scene. After the fight, I was in a horrible state and also in a terrible rush to get to the airport on time. I didn't have any savings at the time, was in credit card debt, and had spent way more money on this trip than I had planned, and my credit cards were totally maxed out and I was practically out of cash - so I couldn't miss my flight as I didn't have extra money to stay in a hotel for even one extra night or to deal with the airline fees for changing my flight.

I was at the gate waiting to board the plane when the panic attack started. I had no idea what was happening to me. I thought I was having a heart attack or maybe a stroke. I felt like I couldn't get enough air to breathe. My fingers were tingling pins and needles and started to go numb, which I now know was because I was hyperventilating, but at the time I thought might be a symptom of a stroke or something else that was very dangerous. My mind was screaming at me that I should get medical help right away at the airport, and that I might be about to die - but I was so worried about my financial situation and about being stranded on the island that I just simply got on the plane. This was a true nightmare.

On the plane, things didn't get any better. It was a small plane, and there was a lot of turbulence. I have always nervous about flying to begin with... So, this was a recipe for the Ultimate Panic Attack.

I completely lost it shortly into the flight. I truly thought I was about to die and that I needed immediate medical attention. I pressed the button on my armrest to call the stewardess, to tell them that I was having some kind of medical problem.....

Originally posted by Erich94
I just want to mention a few other things. I am 18 years old, I will be 19 in may. I have undergone a lot of surgeries in my lifetime. I got a toe cut off of my right foot when I was about 5, I had to get it reattached. I had my tonsils out, I had surgery on my right leg I had surgery on my knee, and I also had surgery on my neck.

I think it's possible I may have developed PTSD because of the surgeries. At a certain point I began to dread surgeries greatly. I hated general anesthetic because of my unpleasant experiences with it. The feeling of the GA entering my blood stream always made me panic because I could feel it going up my arm to my chest. It always burned, it felt like fire inside of my body, engulfing me. Since I am quite a bit existentialist, general anesthesia really bothers me. I have always felt like the feeling of being under GA is what being dead would feel like. It's a long dreamless sleep which has this weird vibe about it, this nothingness feeling. Anyways. I'm not sure if this could be my problem or not. But after all of these surgeries I can't really blame myself if that is the case.

You fear the nothingness. It is strange because I love the nothingness. I even went to a sensory deprivation flotation tank 3 weeks ago to experience nothingness and meditation is done for the same reason.

If one peels all that is not them away - if one removes all appearing things............what is there?
Accept and know thyself as the nothingness.
Peace will prevail.

reply to post by Itisnowagain


You know how I connect to the fountains of life? I drink as much as I want and I live life without the restrictions of society. I work when I want and sleep when I want. Men do what they want cowards do what they're told and I'll drink to that.

reply to post by Itisnowagain


Nothingness is not the truth. It is the deep dreamless sleep before awakening to the truth. The dream is the truth. From the nothingness we awake into the dream and this is where we have the freedom to create ourselves as we will.

Originally posted by arpgme
reply to post by Itisnowagain

 

Nothingness is not the truth. It is the deep dreamless sleep before awakening to the truth. The dream is the truth. From the nothingness we awake into the dream and this is where we have the freedom to create ourselves as we will.

edit on 1-3-2013 by arpgme because: (no reason given)

You 'are' when deep sleep is happening, you are that. That screen that is empty during deep sleep is what is ever present, in deep sleep it is empty of 'things'. It is pure awareness with no things present.
On waking 'things' appear. They appear on the screen of awareness.

The tv screen is not noticed when there are pictures moving on it but the pictures cannot appear without the screen being prior to any appearing thing.

Are you what is appearing? Or are you that which is aware of that which appears?