panic attacks where i need the toilet

[VelvetThunder]

I’m a 28 year old male suffering from some pretty debilitating anxiety that leads to depression. So, when I’m at home and know I don’t have any plans i feel great. As soon as I need to leave the house I get a strange panic feeling and need the toilet. If I’m driving my car and get stuck in traffic, I start to panic knowing I can find the nearest toilet available.

I have seen a doctor and he’s put me on medication. I’ve been on it for 4 weeks exactly and haven’t felt any different .

I also get the feeling where I’m too scared to eat outside of my home. Fear that I will get sick, but as soon as I get home I’m starving and can comfortably eat.

I know this stems from some stomach issues I’ve had in the past, but I’ve been healthy for years and this anxiety has gotten worse and worse over the past 2 years.

Going to work and being at work is fine but anything else terrifies me. To the point where my girlfriend told me she was stuck on a train due to some line works, just the thought of that gave me anxiety. I wasn’t even on the train!

I’ve been stuck in traffic before. Has the feeling of needing the toilet so bad that I turned around, found a spot on the side of the road and was prepared to completely humiliate myself.. As soon as I got out the car I had a second to calm down and felt completely fine. How can someone go from the feeling like that any second to feeling fine and not going for another 3 hours when I got home.

It’s rather depressing because there’s nothing more I would love to do than go out with friends, have a meal, hang out somewhere and not have to look everywhere for the nearest toilet.

Any feedback, advice or help would be greatly appreciated . 

[Croix]

Dear VelvetThunder~

It's a horrible situation to be in, not only the physical need, but also the extra very great stress the likelihood of needing a toilet puts on you. The fact that once you have an opportunity to go to the toilet the urgency lessens is I think a part of that. As someone with a similar problem I found there were three things one can try to do, as a result I'm pretty good nowadays.

The first is obvious, go to the toilet before embarking on anything. While this will not stop the feelings it may make the matter more manageable and quicker.

The second is to see your doctor and ask if there is any medication to stop going to the toilet an excessive number of times. I've been quite lucky there.

The third is to treat the basic problem, the anxiety. As you are already seeing a doctor I'd expect this is already underway. The areas I needed were meds, therapy and a lifestyle that reduced overall stress. This is everything from exercise, nutrition and healthy sleep to no harmful use of drugs and trying to have distractions.

If you look at:

Forums / Anxiety / SELF HELP TIPS FOR MANAGING ANXIETY

you will find a lot of measures others have taken to do this

I'd also suggest if you feel the anxiety building up to one of these episodes you try a free smartphone app called Smiling Mind. It takes practice but does very much calm and take your mind away from current problems and feelings.

I do hope you find some relief, this sort of thing is terribly limiting if left unchecked.

Croix

[CJames]

Hi VelvetThunder,

Welcome to the forums, you have a lot of courage talking about your issue, many won't, so good work there.

I think this tool will be beneficial for you; it's called the National Public Toilet Map. You can plan a trip and see the nearest toilets available. It might help your anxiety, knowing that these toilets are here and here and if anything happens you can go.

It can be found here: https://toiletmap.gov.au/

I seriously wish you the best of luck,

Keep us updated.

C.

[blondguy]

Hi VelvetThunder

Good on you for posting and being a part of the forums too!

What you are going through is common. I had chronic anxiety in my 20's and had the same issues as you and its an awful situation to be in. I understand and empathize with your situation

The digestive system is the most sympathetic part of the body where anxiety is concerned. If we are suffering from severe anxiety our digestive system is usually the first to react...badly

I was put on anti-depressants to reduce my anxiety levels and then my digestive system slowed back down to the way it should be. The meds will (should) reduce the adrenaline flow thus bring our digestive issues back to our usual regularity

Just my experience...once the anxiety is stabilized everything else will also follow suit. The meds are an excellent idea and usually do take time to kick in. If you have any issues with the anxiety still being a problem I hope you can see your GP for a 'fine tune' Your anxiety levels will reduce with super frequent counseling and the right medication/dosage. It takes time and determination but its well worth the effort

I still see my GP every 4 weeks for a 'anxiety check' even though I am on meds

The forums are a safe and judgement free place for you to post VT. I hope you can post back with your thoughts when convenient for you

My kind thoughts

Paul

[Shaylas]

Hi I found your post when googling my symptoms and I can’t believe there is someone else experience the exact same issue as me!
it started when I was 12 and no one believed anything was wrong with me, doctors just did urine tests and found nothing and sent me home again.
school was a nightmare, I could barely bring myself to go and I had exceptions from all my teachers to let me go to the bathroom whenever I needed without asking to hope relieve some of that stress.
it was until I started psychology at school I pieced it together that it was some sort of anxiety problem.
I saw a doctor and was prescribed anti depressants which helped but I stayed on them far too long but I was too worried to come off them because I didn’t want to go back to how I was before medication.
I’ve been off the meds for over 5 years now with barely any feelings of needing to go to the bathroom in public but now it has returned in full swing and is making it nearly impossible to leave the house.
I am getting hypnotherapy at the moment which is helping and I don’t want to go on medication again.
Wondering if you’ve been able to overcome this issue or developed any coping mechanisms?
all the best