panic attacks

[willdo]

hi ,

its getting to a point were i feel a panic attack coming on by just thinking about going outside my comfort zone (shop for example). its a double edge sward im so bored at home feels like im going crazy , yet have not got the courage or motivation to do anything.

[romantic_thi3f]

Hi willdo,

Thanks for your post. Man I can resonate with this one. Wanting to go outside gives you anxiety, being outside gives you anxiety, so the only safe space is home. Except home can give you anxiety too because you know that being outside is kind of important sometimes!

Can I ask if you've ever seen a counsellor to talk about your anxiety? I know that I saw one for mine and it really helped. One of the things they asked me to do was 'exposure therapy' which is basically like baby steps. So if going to the shop is way outside your comfort zone, what might be a smaller step? Would a smaller step be walking near the shop but without going inside? Or maybe even going outside for a little walk and not going anywhere near the shops?

A lot of the smaller steps can still feel a bit daunting or anxiety provoking, but not quite as intense. But most importantly though, you can handle the anxiety. It can be awful and petrifying and uncomfortable - but you can handle it.

While I can't bottle up motivation, maybe yours could be the fact that you're going crazy at home. As someone who has been there, sometimes the incentive to go out is the pure fact that I know I can't be inside forever. You can do this.

rt

[willdo]

Thank you,

i was /still getting professional HELP. this had flared up so bad since late November , i'm not due to see my psychologist to end of January. just have to do my best till then.

thanks again

[White_Rose]

Dear willdo

Love your name. It's a great affirmation. Welcome to the forum.

Does posting here make you anxious? Is this going outside your comfort zone? After all you are reaching out to people you don't know. If posting here is OK please try and remember you are moving towards others, just not physically.

Shame you cannot see your psych until the end of the month. However you can think about what you want to chat about and perhaps write down some of your thoughts. It's an interesting exercise to write about what you want or need. Certainly it can clarify your needs.

I can imagine you are bored st home but the boredom has not pushed you out of the door yet. So how far can you get out of your home? Can you walk down the front steps, walk to the gate and collect the mail. All goals for your journey. May I suggest you practice taking these very short trips. It's always good to feel we can accomplish something, especially when it helps to solve a problem. Who knows where it may lead.

What do you do to manage your panic? There are as many ways as there are people, you need to find a way that suits you. How about friends. Can they help you take these steps. I was thinking maybe a friend could knock on your door and invite you to take three steps away from the door and chat. The idea of course is that the distance you move gradually increases, but slowly. Otherwise you may get too distressed and not do anything.

Are there any other ways you can think of? When my sister was depressed my mom used to visit her. Mom would ring the doorbell and then walk away to the gate. (not far). She used to tell my sister that she had to walk to the gate otherwise mom would not stay. Not entirely happy with this sort of things but it did work. After a while my sister was able to leave the security of her hallway and go outside. Horses for courses.

Love to hear from you.

Mary

[willdo]

thank you so much. i'm not that bad in or outside the house. just places i cannot easily get out from or fear of embarrassment ii get a panic attack. shops, events, etc.

[willdo]

Hi,

I had panic attacks for most of my life , i avoided places and things that my trigger it. i was ok though managed to live with it or over 30 years .

After a couple of surgeries last year i was getting my blood result after the second surgery (draining fluid around the heart) i was at the doctors surgery waiting when

i suffered a huge panic attack , could not mange it tried to flee only to hit the exit door and actually fainted for few minutes
When i came through i was ringing wet, pale, my blood test afterword showed that my inflammation factor was 220 instead of 2. doctor referred to

hospital , stayed another week for observation and was discharged. No one can explain why exactly did i faint(doctors , specialist , hospital etc...) most put it down to post surgery, inflammation factor, immune system malfunction etc...no professional appeared too concern
Since then

i have been living in fear that it may happen again,(it has been over 18 months now) my panic attacks started to increase, the thought in my head pre occupied with why , what if? Today 18 month later i'm in chronic depression.i fear of been alone just in case it happens again. My OCD is running wild, Anxiety 24/7.
i tried to justify why i fainted , but it will not go away , can you HELP

William

[White_Rose]

Hello William

Sorry to hear about your experience at the doctors. I imagine it must have been quite terrifying. No wonder you still think about it.

Doctors try to be reassuring and I'm certain at times they are reassuring themselves as much as their patients. When a doctor says it could be this, or that, or something else I think they do not realise how worrying this can be. It can also give the impression that they are unconcerned meaning in their minds there is nothing to worry about but as we are not medical people it can trigger worries for us. In the incident above I suspect the doctor was most concerned about any damage you may have done to yourself when you hit the door rather than looking for reasons.

They see this sort of incident fairly often and as it is not happening to them they can see it quite objectively. Unlike us who are experiencing it and don't know what happened or why. Sometimes there is no obvious answer to cause which I know does not help much. My understanding of panic attacks is there is no one set of circumstances that leads to panic or that it is always the same trigger. There is always a trigger I believe and maybe you can talk about this to your psych when you get together again. I think there is a specific reason, probably buried in our psyche and it pops its head up periodically. Maybe you can find it with lots of help but I am unsure if knowing will stop the panic or help you to deal with it.

We can be triggered by a word, a sound, smell, taste, in fact almost anything. What's worse is that we do not always react to that same trigger making it harder to pin down the cause. You are worrying what caused the panic attack while the doctors are concerned with the outcome, hitting your head, and what injury you may have received. This can lead to them appearing unconcerned or not noticing your worry.

Does that make sense? Over the years I have had panic attacks I have rarely found a specific cause though there are sometimes general reasons. It has been worrying at times and of course like you I want to know to avoid the trigger in future if possible. I have been sitting at home feeling perfectly fine when panic hits out of the blue. No idea why.

It's easy to say don't worry about it but not so easy to do. Would it help to think of it like a physical pain? We sometimes get a pain in our bodies without knowing why and it usually goes away. It's not the same I know but perhaps it will help to try this.

Mary

[willdo]

Hi,

This is a bit embarrassing but needed to post . when i go to bed and that's usually early in the last month or two (6 pm or so), i get this urge to get up and pee , only to return to bed and few minutes later have the same urge. this may happen up to 15 times which drives me nuts.

I have no physical issues and wondered if my anxiety is the cause and if any other member ever experienced the same problem.

william

[Tugboat]

Hi William,

This happens to me when ever my anxiety is out of control, as it is at the moment. It happens to me all day, I can go to the toilet upto 3 time’s in an hour!

[willdo]

At what point do you say to your doctor/psychiatrist that the medication is not working.i am currently treated for depression,anxiety,panic attacks and OCD.

my doctor decided to change the antidepressant i was on for 20 years in October last year. Few weeks of no change (worse), he decided to change again (14/12/2019).

Over the phone he said you sound and the indications are much better, will need to increase the dose next time i see you 1/2/2020.

Why do i feel worse, all of my symptoms are same/worse. My mood is so low , i escape to bed to toss and turn for hours, my OCD is running wild, i have not had dinner for 6 weeks (lost 10 kilos) during the day i force myself to eat i have no appetite , Anxiety is all i preoccupy my time with.

they say it takes few weeks to get better, i'm worried if i say something he might get upset or change medication again (with all the hassles and pain of reducing the current and starting a new one and having to wait few weeks again)

any thoughts, PLEASE HELP