Anxiety/Panic Disorder, any sufferers?

Is1ldur

Just wondering if anyone else on the boards has been diagnosed with the above, or thinks they may suffer from it. I am not going to go into too much detail for the moment, 'cos I don't know how common it is exactly. Any I have been a sufferer for the past 3 or so years, and would like to hear from anyone else who has some experience with it.

Silent Grape

i used to get flashbacks, which sometimes led to a panic attack and sometimes didnt. very scary though, what with the not breathing. when i feel scared i get shaky and have trouble breathing, but i wudnt call that a panic attack
mia x

GUI

i suffered from one a few years ago..
pm me and ill tell ya probs i had
and how i dealt with it
also ur symptoms

Zascar

A good friend of mine gets there from time to time. He gets very nausiois and stuff, and generally feels ****ty. Usaully happens if he's e.g meeting some girl he really likes (a date kind of thing) or has somehting he is worried about... he hasn't seen anyone about it, i dont think its that bad... but maybe he should? What did you do / what did they say?

Jim

i get panic attacks sometimes, apparantly my body releases adrenaline when it shouldnt and i start to sweat and my hands shake. i used to get them a lot as a kid but not really anymore.:)

ando

i used to get panic attacks when i was reading out loud from a book when i was in school. I'd start getting really nervous and stop breathing properly.. eventually my voice would start shaking and I'd stutter... nightmare, really was... I dreaded reading out loud in class.

Nowadays, the problem has moved elsewhere... I sometimes get really nervous/anxtious about the work day ahead of me, sometimes because of the ppl I work with, sometimes because the places I goto... it really gets to me a lot sometimes (once I got physically sick), but lately, as I get more confident in what I'm doing, its not so bad.. although I only eat a proper breakfast once in a work week :mad:

Practical

Originally posted by ando
i used to get panic attacks when i was reading out loud from a book when i was in school. I'd start getting really nervous and stop breathing properly.. eventually my voice would start shaking and I'd stutter... nightmare, really was... I dreaded reading out loud in class.

Nowadays, the problem has moved elsewhere... I sometimes get really nervous/anxtious about the work day ahead of me

urgh Im exactly the same on both situations, im not a shy person but when it comes to reading outloud I just cant stay focused on the words im reading.
Another problem I have is with exams , I use to get sick over mid-term break exams and would only be getting 40% on average even though i knew everything on the paper.
I just got my jc results today and I wasn't impressed at all , I dont see the point in staying in school if i cant get my head around a simple exam

ando

Originally posted by Practical
I dont see the point in staying in school if i cant get my head around a simple exam

ah don't let the JC results get you down to much, I pretty much had a disaster of a JC, but the LC was a different story. Just learn from your mistakes, but dont give up, you'l regret it later

sorry, bit OT :rolleyes:

Enygma

Ya I started to get these over the last year or two, it got really bad a few months ago so I went to the doctor and he put me on Seroxat which has helped enormously.

I didn't really get typical panic attacks. I just kept experiencing this sense of impending doom, like something terrible was about to happen, or that I was about to go crazy. It usually happened when driving but also happened in crowds or just walking to the shop. One time I wasn't even able to cross the road to the shop I was so freaked out. My heart rate would fly up and I'd get this weird sensation in my chest that rose up through my head. Everything seemed a little more vivid too I guess cause of the adrenalin rush or something.

Its weird because you get really terrified, of nothing, you're trying to tell yourself that it's ok, that there's nothing to be scared of but you can't really be sure.

I didn't have a clue what was wrong with me either which made it worse. Apparently it's really common and starts in early adulthood. One thing I'm not sure of though, do they actually ever go away or what's the story?

ando

Originally posted by Enygma
he put me on Seroxat which has helped enormously

My mother is on them iswell, or was.. dunno if she is still on them. I remember she had a big panic attack on a bus when I was in Ibiza, another time when i was really young, she could'nt get onto a dublin bus... She never told me she had a problem, but now reading enygma's post, its dauned on me. I never knew what them tablets were for

Enygma

They're also used to treat depression and obsessive compulsive disorder, afaik it helps you maintain a normal level of serotonin or something. The side effects can be a little weird (sweaty, thirsty, sleepy, insomnia, nausea, twitching leg, loss of libido) but they go away after a while.

Beats being scared out of your wits most of the time anyway.

eth0_

Seroxat and cipramil are great drugs, i've been on both (for depression) and if you get the dosage right, they're fantastic. Doctors usually only give you 30mg to start with, which isn't a lot.

Only downside is SSRI's like those two, are pretty expensive.

LegacyUser

When I was in my early 20's, up to the age of about 24, I suffered from frequent panic attacks. The first time I had an attack, I recall being on the way to pick up a friend from work. I just didn't feel right and I began to panic about it. Before long, my heart was racing and I was getting shooting pains down my left arm. I knew that was a sign of a heart attack and even though I was only 20 I managed to convince myself I was having one. I stopped to phone my parents and ended up in the hospital hooked up to all kinds of machines. They ended up sending my home after giving me a valium.

I am 28 years old now and I know longer suffer from panic attacks. It was quite bad for a few years. I could have a panic attack for any reason. Worries such as health, money job or even public places could set it off. After a while, I began to recognise the signs of an attack, and before long I learned how to control them. It was as if the panic attacks didn't scare me any more. I'd been through them so many times I knew exactly what to expect, and I knew I wasn't going to die. In the end, it was almost as if I could tell the panic attack that I wasn't in the mood for it to take over the next few hours and to go away please.

Now, a few years on, I feel like a much stronger person for having gone through them. I know what to expect from fear and I am not afraid of it. I learned that it is not possible to control everything in your life and there is no point in worrying about what you can't control.

I know from my own research that most sufferers are hit with panic attacks early in adulthood and grow out of them by their mid twenties. Try to get to know the situations that bring on an attack and try to stop the attack before it begins. I found it very helpful to get to know my attacks, to know when they were starting, when they were peaking, and when they were running out of steam. That way, I knew what to expect from them, and consequently I didn't fear them anymore. Fear is the fuel, and without it the attack goes away.

Hope this helps some.

LegacyUser

Yeah, I got them fairly regularly between the ages of 18 and 21. What a bummer, while all else around me were enjoying their young adulthoodl travelling, taking E, etc., there I was hiding under my bed. I put it down to a really bad acid trip that I'd had but the more I think about it the more I realise that this was just the mental catalyst that set it off. (i.e. worrying about having ****ed up my brain as opposed to actually having ****ed up my brain.

Anyway, I discovered a method to control them, used by author Colin Wilson. Whenever you feel brewing, start to talk yourself dowm using a stern interior monologue, as if the "sensible", logical you is shaking your neverous self back on an even keel. Repeat to yourself stuff like, it's happened before, it'll go away soon, big deal, what's the worst that can happen. Eventually, if you can just keep that tone up the panic will subside. You'll still experince the physical effects, cold sweats etc., but you know it's on the way out and the sense of relief can be a real positive boost.

If you can think yourseld into it you can think yourself out of it.

Funnnily (?) enough, I had a panic attack this year for the first time since I was 22 (now 29), brought on by jet lag, an empty stomach and big joint of the homegrown and it was a doddle. I was wee bit concerned (to say the least ) at first, but using the old talking down method and a trip to spar for fizzy drinks worked like a charm. I was back on the couch enjoing my stone within half an hour.

So there you go. If I can be saved I absolutely GAURUNTEE that anybody can.

Is1ldur

Nice to hear it is not all doom and gloom. I'm 26 now, I think I started getting them about 3 years ago. I was in the car with my first one. Monday after an extremely heavy weekend, lots of Red Bull and Vodka (which I blame for bringing them on and would advise people not to drink the stuff). Felt ****ty in work, heart pounding, etc and decided at lunch-time to go to my doctor. I got into the car and drove for about 4 mins. Fairly heavy traffic and at one stage, parked at the lights, I had to get out of the car. Heart pounding, sweating. I got back in, 'cos a few people were looking at me a bit strange, drove straight up to two cops and asked them to call an ambulance. 30 mins later after numerous tests, they told me there was nothing wrong with me. I am sure all sufferers go through this at the start. I found the internet really helped. I thought I was actually going crazy for the first few months, then I found a site all about it and it was like cool, I'm not mad. Anyway, after a few more attacks and visits to my doctor, I was put on tablets, Prozac first off, which made me feel a bit strange, kinda like I was looking at someone else carrying out my actions, however did not suffer panic attacks for a while. I went off the Prozac and was fine for quite a while. The odd scare, but nothing too bad. Felt a bit ****ty and thought they might come back so I went on Lustral (Sertraline) which don't have the same side-effects as Prozac, and got through. Anyway I was recently(about 4 months ago) down on the Shannon with a group of mates (Stag party) and lo! I had a damn attack while in the middle of Lough Derg(I think it was Lough Derg). Bloody scary, we could not pull in and I was very bad. Eventually got to dry land, paid EUR100 for a taxi to take me back to my car, and drove back up to Dublin. Went back on Lustral and that's pretty much where I am now.
I went to a psychiatrist a few weeks ago, and she basically told me there was othing wrong with me, told me a bit about the whole adrenaline stuff (which I already knew) and told me to give up the tablets. Tried a few days ago, and have to go to the doctor again tomorrow, as I am suffering bloody withdrawal symptoms from them. Ah well. Could be worse I suppose.
Anyway, big factors which I have found bring them on is defenitely alcohol/hangovers and over-tiredness, a very bad mix.
Don't know if I will ever get over them completely, but I went to a support group recently (it was actually more for people suffering from depression), and I realised just how lucky I am. Some of these people really do have serious issues(that is not to put them down, by the way).
Anyway, I would be interested in hearing from others, I am sure there are a few more out there. And btw, if anyone wasnts to pm me or email me go ahead.
d_conlan@hotmail.com
Regards All

McGinty

I used to suffer from very serious panic attacks where I couldn't breathe, heart pounding, etc. I still get edgy but now I have found a method of controlling them. First of all when I feel the panicky feeling rise in my stomach, I start to breathe through my nose, counting to four and concentrating on the count. I hold the breath for four and exhale through my mouth again counting to four. I find this works as your mind is taken away from the panic feeling and it is focused on the counting, plus by slowing the breathing in this manner, it slows your heart rate and releases oxygen to the brain.

Secondly, it is important to discover what triggered the panic, I have issues from my past that I am dealing with. At one point I was agraphobic and was too frightened to go out, however I fought and made myself go out. I then some years later embarked on counselling and for me that is a tremendous help. I release that tablets/ drugs have their place, but I can't help feeling that doctors over rely on this method to help patients with anxiety, etc. There is usually a root cause and it is my beleif that by writing down feelings, what triggered it and talking it over with a professional will help.

Hope the above helps.

Kambika

I also suffered from panic attacks for a long while. First it appeard in kind of flashbacks. Had to see a therapist for over a year and now I feel better but Im prepared that it just returns anytime.

Originally posted by Enygma
Ya I started to get these over the last year or two, it got really bad a few months ago so I went to the doctor and he put me on Seroxat which has helped enormously.

Having seen the Panorama programme on this Drug last Sunday and having heard various horror stories about it on Joe Duffy's programme today and yesterday,I'd have to urge caution.

Apparently it's makers failed to include the latest warnings about the side effects of the product which include for some people tendencies to self harm and suicide.
Consequently wholesalers were asked to withdraw the product today untill the company put in the warning.
This does not effect the supplies that are currently in chemists, they have not got the updated warning either.
There was one lady on liveline today who said she cut her legs while on the drug and didn't know why she was doing it, but felt the urge to do so.
The urge , she said went away when she went off them, but came back when she went back on them-Scary
Others were saying that the withdrawal symptoms were so bad that getting off the drug is a slow and painfull process, sometimes a lot worse than the symptoms it is supposed to treat.
they said it could take years to get off it.

I realise that not all takers of this drug might suffer sid effects, but I would urge caution nonetheless.
mm

Enygma

I didn't see that show but I did hear a tiny bit of the Joe Duffy show out the window of some guys van. Was it Seroxat they were talking about? All I heard was some guy saying that his doctor never told him about the side effects.

There are several side effects listed in a pamphlet that comes with the pack, although it doesn't mention any tendencies towards self-abuse. It also says that the side effects should disappear after a week or two of regular use. My doc also told me that something like 1 in 10000 people might experience liver problems when taking this drug, so he advised me to take a blood test.

I was also taking Seroxat a few years ago for depression (this is why the doc put me on it for anxiety as it was very successful for me back then too). I did get different side effects back then for a good while (sleepiness, wieght gain, thirsty) but it helped me cope too so I was ok with it. Coming off it was easy, just take each day at a time, cut down to half a tab a day, then after a while, take half every two days. Then a half every couple of days. I tell you it was a walk in the park compared to giving up the smokes. You do get withdrawal but it is very bearable.

Another thing to note is that you're hearing these stories from a very small percentage of the people who are taking them. You're not hearing from the thousands of others who are really happy with it. If it doesn't work for you, try something else. There are plenty of other options. Talk to your doctor.

I heard somewhere that the drug companies routinely only deal with ever second or third complaint they receive and that this is acceptable according to the FDA. Somethings are bound to slip through the net.

This drug is sold as Paxil in America, if you do a search you'll find all types of horror stories about it. But I'm sure if you do a search for Anadin you'll find just as many horror stories.

This is my second time taking this drug, and both times it's been very successful. Maybe I've been lucky, I don't know. But yes, I would also advise some caution when taking drugs of this nature.

DadaKopf

I saw that Panorama the other night, and read an article in The Observer about Seroxat a few months ago and saw another documentary about it two months ago. This scare has been building up for a while. Of course GSK has to admit to dangerous side effects (and admit liability) but let's keep this in perspective: this only affects a small minority of patients. Further to that, Seroxat/Paxil clearly demonstrated in trials that it's an effective anti-depressant - it performed at least 33% better than a placebo in control tests.

I'm also curious about the documentary's insistance on GSK's assertion that it's not addictive. The journalist used the Oxford English Dictionary definition of 'addiction' (one which admittedly the general public would be most familiar with) instead of a medical definition. It's always seemed obvious to me that suddenly stopping any drug that significantly alters your brain chemistry would cause side-effects. This doesn't constitute addiction, though; sure there are 'withdrawal symptoms' but once off the drug, you don't crave them. It also makes perfect sense that some people would be more sensitive to the medication than others.

It's easy to overlook the vast improvement SSRI's have made to people's ability to function normally than the more primitive MAOI's, which dulled people's personalities and weren't as effective.

Anyway...

Aside from the concern over withdrawal symptoms, which are in fact rare, real concern should should be given to the way they're administered. They're handed out way too liberally by GP's for minor difficulties that would be better off treated by a counsellor - especially with kids. The best results are always achieved, in my opinion and experience, by combining an anti-depressant with counselling. Whatever your problem, you end up getting to the root of it and you also don't feel like a pig dumped in your head. Furthermore, it's safer because your counsellor will be able to tell when there's a problem and will be able to steer you back so: forget the side effects.

I've been taking Seroxat on and off for four years and it's improved my life no end. It's great for depression, anxiety, phobias, recurring thoughts, obsessive compulsive disorder and phobias but too many people put their faith in Seroxat as a cure. I advise anyone going on it to couple their medication with some form of psychiatric help. And the recent scares, while serious, should not be a factor against taking them if needed.

I better point out that I am not taking this drug,never have or any drug for it's purpose.
I just remembered, that it was mentioned here, and having seen panorama and heard Joe Duffy, I thought it was worrying enough to bear a mention.
The reason it was mentioned on Joe Duffy's programme in the first place was that a new warning leaflet, detailing side effects like suicidal and self harm tendencies was put in boxes in the U.K but not in ROI.
On taking a phone call from Joe Duffy's programme, GSK decided to recall all the boxes in it's Irish warehouses and replace them immediately with the more indepth warning literature.
Dadakopf's thoughts I would agree with:

I've been taking Seroxat on and off for four years and it's improved my life no end. It's great for depression, anxiety, phobias, recurring thoughts, obsessive compulsive disorder and phobias but too many people put their faith in Seroxat as a cure. I advise anyone going on it to couple their medication with some form of psychiatric help. And the recent scares, while serious, should be a factor against taking them if needed.

mm

Enygma

There's an article about it on the front of the Examiner today (Thursday).

DadaKopf

What did it say? It's not on the website.

Is1ldur

Actually, I find the withdrawal symptoms have not been highlighted enough. I suffered fairly bad with them as stated above. I am off Lustral (It apparently happens with most Anti-Depressants) for the last three weeks and am still getting the odd dizzy spell, not to mention the electric shock sensations. Nowhere near as much as the week I went off the drug, but they are still there. And having checked out a few sites on the internet, it appears to be widespread.

Is1ldur

BTW if any of you need more info go to www.bbc.co.uk/panorama and have a look around for the area related to the last program. There are some very detailed links there.

LegacyUser

I started getting them on holiday in ibiza. I experienced it during the third day. I got a feeling that i couldn't breathe properly,my heart rate got faster and i had bad thoughts. I experinced this for the next day or so. I thought they would subside when I came home but they didn't. I would get mild ones. It only happened when i would think of it and then it would get worse. I went to the Doctor who said it was very common. She mentioned Seroxat but I wouldn't advise people to start taking drugs for this problem, it's all in your head and they will go away it you don't concentrate on it so much.

Kambika

Yeah if you dont concentrate so much on your thoughts..... but maybe thats exactly what you should do then ?! Maybe this "attacks" are a hint that you should think about something that you try to push away ?