Week long anxiety attack

[Dinosmallprince]

So I’ve been suffering from a week long anxiety attack without feeling anxious and nothing’s working, my heart rates wack and I just can’t breath properly (I’ve gone to hospital to rule out any medical emergencies) does anyone have any advice? Or experienced this before?

[Peppermintbach]

Hi Dinosmallprince,

What a very rough week you have had. Your anxiety sounds as though it has been intense and debilitating. It makes take such an enormous toll on you and affect so many areas of your life.

I’m glad that the hospital at least ruled out any imminent physical health issues. I think, if you haven’t already, a good next step is to make a long appointment with your GP to explain how you have been feeling. S/he could write up a mental health care plan for you if deemed appropriate. The plan would entitle you to a certain number of Medicare rebatable visits to a psychologist where you can discuss your anxiety, other struggles, etc.

In the mean time, I think there’s a Beyondblue thread that you might find helpful in terms of anxiety management strategies. It is called self help tips for managing anxiety.

If you’re interested, I think the easiest and fastest way to find it is just to type the name of the thread in the Beyondblue search bar. From memory, it’s quite long. If you feel it’s too long, you might just like to skim read the first and last pages of the thread.

I hope you’re feeling very welcome here and finding your way around the forums okay. I think it’s great that you’re reaching out here.

If you feel Iike writing again to vent, chat, ask questions, etc, please don’t hesitate to do so. There’s no pressure or rush to post of course, but just know that there are many caring people here to support you 🙂

Kind thoughts,

Pepper

[Distant]

That must be hell for you, I went through 3 days straight of panic attacks, unable to get out of bed and that was one of my hardest battles.

Personally, when anxiety starts affecting me I like to think how my diet has been. Enough water, not too much sugar (no sugar if that’s a possibility), enough vitamins, avoiding junk food...for some reason McDonalds triggers me really bad, but KFC doesn’t. Things like that, you might find some connections.

I hope that helps in some way, the only other thing I can think of is this example. You know when you have a cold or flu? And it’s been days, so you start to think "what if I never feel better" but you always get better. For me, lengthy bouts of anxiety feel like that. This feeling will pass and I really do hope it happens soon.

[Astro_Boy]

Hi

thanks for sharing. I had a week long anxiety attack/s and I didn't recognise the signs. I went to the gp thinking I had a chest infection. The dr gave me a ecg and blood test just to make sure I didn't have a heart attack but all came back clear. The nurse at the time gave me a card for where to find mental health support. Anyway that was a couple of weeks ago and I still have a low level buzz going on (and not in my chest thank goodness) .

[blondguy]

Hi Dino .....I hope you are doing okay

I understand how severe anxiety can be as I have had it for a while and it can be treated

Just a couple of tips if thats okay.....

• the earlier we seek help from our GP/Counselor the better our recovery will be
• anxiety requires determination and a strong desire to heal from these awful feelings/symptoms
• if our anxiety begins to effect our ability to function effectively on a day to day basis we have a problem
• Depending on the severity of our anxiety it can sometimes take a long time to heal

any questions are welcome

Paul

[Astro_Boy]

Hey blondguy

Can you tell me more about requiring determination and strong desire to heal please? I try to self manage my anxiety but I constantly feel burnt out. The insomnia is my biggest issue.

[blondguy]

Hey Astro Boy and Dino

No worries at all. Everyone experiences different levels of anxiety. When our anxiety begins to have an effect on our day to day ability to function we may need additional help from our GP

I understand your pain and anguish where sleep quality is concerned...this can also be helped as well

Having a broken arm or leg would be awful....Anxiety (or depression) is no different....except it may take some time for us to heal and that includes regular ongoing counseling

Understandably many people think that self healing can work and yes it can be done...to a point. If the anxiety feelings persist we require help from our GP/counselor... as often as we can

You already have a strong desire to heal Astro

I do hope you can start your own thread topic about your own situation as you will have more support

Any questions are always welcome. The forums are a safe and non judgemental place for you to post 🙂

my kind thoughts

Paul