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August 2nd, 2009
Anxiety
posted by littlegirl61 on 9:08 pm
I have suffered with anxiety issues for years now. I am terrible as a passenger in a car. As a child my father would drive drunk often with my mom, sister, and I in the car. The more my mom would tell my dad not to drive so fast, the more angry he would become and the faster he would drive. To this day I do not do well in a car.
July 30th, 2009
HELLO!
posted by El-Buscador on 2:33 pm
It's nice to find this group! I've been battling anxiety (agoraphobia) with panic attacks for the last 3 years. Not sure what finally triggered it but it has cause major disruption in my life and those around me. This feels like a group that really cares. I will try to stay in touch here and help where I can. Bless you all and remember: Every day has a miracle.
July 29th, 2009
Just a hello!
posted by Alisonj33 on 11:19 am
I am so happy to see this section on here. I have lived with Panic and Anxiety since I was 14. I am now 33. It has had varying degrees from agoraphobic for 3 years to actually being able to function well enough to work. Currently I am on disability due to them.
I am on a variety of medication. 2 Benzo's and Paxil which I would love to work towards getting off. I have been on Paxil for 11 years and I truly believe it does nothing but prevent withdrawals at this point.
Looking forward to getting to know people on here!
July 19th, 2009
Hi everyone!!
posted by Jess0270 on 3:40 pm
I was also very happy to see that this group exists. It seems that most of my friends have never had an actual panic attack, so no one really knows where I'm coming from. I started having panic attacks last year. I began having them while I was on the subway or in the back seat of a cab. When they first began, they were limited to just situations where I was traveling and not in control. A couple months later, the attacks started to happen while I was in class or at work or even at the grocery store. I would walk down the street and feel an attack coming and instantly look for a place to get away from the people on the street. My attacks deal mainly with nausea. When I have a panic attack, my biggest fear is that I will vomit in front of people. (Sorry if that's TMI )... The funny part is that I haven't vomited in years. This fear is completely irrational but it makes me a nervous wreck. I became really angry at myself for letting these attacks control my life. I saw a therapist and we decided against prescription medication. After the attacks began, I just wanted to stay in my apartment and not go anywhere. Avoiding people and the outside world was not an option, though, because I'm a full-time grad student and I have a job that requires me to be outside of my home most of the day. Anyway, I began taking a supplement called "Sam-E". They sell it at grocery stores and it's natural. It actually has helped me so much. I still tend to avoid the subway as much as I can, but I'm trying my best to function normally. Baby steps.
Also, I was wondering if anyone knew if losing weight or eating certain foods would help alleviate anxiety? Obviously eating healthier is always great for you, but I'm looking for any foods/herbs that you guys have tried that seem to help.
Thanks everyone and goodluck to anyone struggling with anxiety... it's nice to know we're not alone. :)
July 18th, 2009
Right group?
posted by dennisannie on 12:36 am
Hi everyone, Don't know if I'm in the right group. When my cousin passed away in a car accident, I became afraid to travel. She was somebody I looked up to. A few months later, my first child was born. Things got worse. I didn't want to leave my house. I was always nervous. The day before a vacation I would worry about what might happen on the way there. Once on the road I would relax, since I could see that everything was going okay. It's been almost thirteen years and I'm still a worrier. (Not as bad) If my children are not with me, I worry that something might happen. Now I can't hear a story about someone having an illness because I start to think, what if I have that? I don't know if it is anxiety, but I get an uncomfortable feeling in my stomach. It feels like I'm extremely hungry even if I've just eaten. I don't know if it's just nervousness, or something more. This doesn't happen too often. Mostly my mind is constantly filled with what ifs. I try not to think too much about the cause of my worries and try to keep busy.
June 29th, 2009
Newbie
posted by YayMeee on 4:44 pm
Hello! I just wanted to introduce myself. I just joined today, and I am relieved to see groups and dares set up for "mental" fitness as well as physical. My doctor diagnosed me with depression years ago, but I'd been in kind of in denial about it up until a few months ago. I'm on medication for it, but not really sure it's working. This is the first time I've ever openly admitted to being depressed (and taking medication for that matter). I figured I need a big change, even if it means my secret is discovered. I have not had conversations with my doctor about panic attacks, but I believe I have them every once in a while. They are very mild, and I am usually able to breathe through them. It rarely happens, but when it does it can be scary.
More than anything, I just want to feel good and have normal, healthy, sense of well-being. At this point, I don't think that can happen without regular exercise. If anyone has any advice, I'd love to hear it.
Comments
by maztek on October 20th 2009 at 8:02 pm
The best escape is through regular exercises and gradually getting away from the medications. Drugs have their own side effects.
June 27th, 2009
Dealing with my diagnosis
posted by amber_welsh on 9:19 pm
I was excited to find this group on here. It is nice to see there are others like me out here. I find my anxiety and depression deeply affects my progress in weight loss and eating healthy foods. Do you also find it to be the case with you? I recieved the diagnosis of Adult ADD and BIpolar this week along with the anxiety I suffer through in the form of panic attacks. I am struggling to accept the diagnosis and not sure if it is accurate. I'm hoping eating healthier and conquering the weight will change my life more than any meds or diagnosis...
May 29th, 2009
New here
posted by carr33 on 6:34 pm
Hi everyone, I just joined today and saw this group. I was rear-ended almost a year ago and I have panic and anxiety attacks. I have not been able to drive since then and I am now seeing a Psychiatrist and Psychologist to help me cope. I have issues leaving the house and I stay in my bedroom most of the time. I am on Lexapro and Valium and Resperidol. I have made a slight improvement and I am leaving my bedroom more. I am happy there is a group for people like me.
April 24th, 2009
Anxiety and Panic Attacks
posted by ritzydixie on 9:37 pm
I have had a couple of panic attacks; my fiance has them all the time for the last year and a half - at least one per day it seems. I need help helping him instead of getting frustrated all the time.
April 12th, 2009
Is anybody out there?
posted by Y_Gurl on 4:27 pm
Hi, and welcome to my group!
I have been living with anxiety and panic attacks for 11 years. They seem to creep up on me at any time...work, home, bed, out with friends...whenever they want. I am unsure what triggers them. I know when I am about to have one because my palms start to sweat. Very soon after that, I am in a full-out fight or flight response. At this time, I feel "disconnected" to reality, kind of like I am "there", but it's not really me, or I am not in control. Often times I feel that I am about to die. Very real panic and fear at the time, for no apparent reason.
I have been taking Cipralex for almost a year now. Since I started this medication, my panic/anxiety attacks now contain a burning sensation that starts right in my core. It feels like I am literally burning up. The burn rises all the way into my head.
I have experienced some success calming myself down before or during an attack with different breathing tecniques, but I really do hate the fact that these attacks can happen at any time. I have between one and two panic attacks per week.
I started this group in hopes that I could connect with others that are battling panic and anxiety. It would be nice to talk to others that understand. Please share your experiences...what you go through, how you get through it, what helps, what hinders.
I look forward to receiving posts and making connections with different people!
-- Y_Gurl
Comments
by bbarnett51 on May 4th 2009 at 6:12 pm
I am glad there is a group on here for this. Hopefully it will grow bc I know there are a lot of us out there. I have battled Anxiety for 15 years now. It is still a daily battle but I have managed to live a happy life with it. However, at one point in my life, I didn't leave the house and I couldn't drive. Over the years I have learned to deal with the strange sensations, constant uncomfortableness(I think I just made that word up)!!!
One of the hardest things to overcome is excercise induced anxiety. I am going to beat this and have been running daily even though it often causes intense anxiety.
I look forward to discussing anxiety/panic with you all.
by Chaoscate on May 12th 2009 at 9:40 am
Hi
I suffered panic attacks whilst driving (solely when driving) for 6 years and now i have not had an episode for over 6 months! I had a car crash 7 years ago and a year to the day later panic attacks started out of the blue. it got so bad so fast,( fear of death/ fear of passing out whilst driving/ fear of crashing and injuring someone else) i was unable to even sit in a car let alone drive one.I would shake with fear, hyperventilate, sweat buckets, paralysed with terror, out of control feeling and have a bizarre feeling of watching myself drive.... I did not drive or travel as a passenger for 2 years. I decided i had to do something about it, i knew the cause (or so i thought) ie the accident being the ultimate trigger and fear of another crash being the continual subconscious trigger. Anyway i had thought field therapy, which was pretty successful. within 20 mins i was driving a strange car seemingly carefree, like before the panic attacks started! i was over the moon...i was cured! Or so i thought. The carefree driving continued until that evening... i drove in the dark. Bang ! The panic was back, 10 times worse.
i went to the therapist again, because i had seen there were positive results, even if not 100%. he taught me self - tapping techniques and we went night-driving a few times together, with me tapping whilst driving if necessary, to keep me moving and to not give in the panic.
anyway, long story short, this went on for 5 years, i could drive in the daytime, usually with mild attacks, occasionally horrendous ones, which i would "tap" on to get me through the journey, but i avoided night drives 99.9% of the time as they petrified me even at the thought of them.
then, i discovered i was going to have to drive 850km , (600 miles) alone. and i knew i could not do it alone. so i found another therapist to try the TFT again
he was different, he hypnotised me and discovered the root of the problem was not the crash at all, which i had always presumed to be the trigger, but he said it was a memory, a really bad near death experience which ended in a panic attack from over 20 years ago, which my brain had never "filed" correctly. He "filed" it , so instead of this experience being the vivid memory it has always been, i actually now have to really stop and think about it to see the memory, instead of it always being in the back of my mind.
Anyway, i had taken up running last year and he said it was one of the best things i couyld have done, as the exercise is such a stress buster, the stress cannot manifest itself as panic.
since running and having the TFT / NLP sessions, i have not had an episode in ages and ages and drive all the time in the dark! Not fearless, |i am still aware of the feelings i used to get, but instead of waiting ( ie allowing) for the panic to set it, it crosses my mind and i dismiss it and my life is back to normal.
i did the long drive in march, but not alone, but in June i have to do it again, alone ! But I am not scared of it... its just a drive i have ahead of me, a drive i barely think about, like the drive to work. a normal drive !
I am so glad to be panic free, and aware that i have my "crutches" if i need them (tapping / 7-11 breathing) in case an attack happened, and if it does then its just a blip and not permanent. I wont let it beat me again !
I can highly thoroughly recommend TFT / NLP treatment... it is amazing. That and exercise got me through it. I hope yours gets better too. I thought i would have it forever and now i can barely recall what it was like...... my thoughts used to revolve around my panic attacks. today writing this post is the 1 st time i thought about my panic attacks in months...
i hope you can get there too
by Candice85 on July 1st 2009 at 8:59 pm
I have recenlty been getting feelings of anxiety. I really didn't know what was happening to me I just felt overwhelmed with the smallest of things, like going to the store or going to my monthly work meetings. I have recently been drinking alot and thought that it had something to with that which I found out it increases my anxiety. I have tried to stop drinking but lately me and my husband have been having problems and it is hard for me to stay sober when I have this on my mind. I drink I would say about 3 to 4 days out of the week and not just a couple I would say when I drink beer it is like 12 to 14 beers and when I drink liquor I don't keep track of how much I drink and then pass out and most of the time when I drink liquor I do not remember anything that happened at a certaint point in the evening They call it a black out. I tell myself that I am not an alcoholic because I do not drink during the day or every day. I have not been to the doctor to get check out for this but a friend has given me some xanax pills I have tried them and they seem to help with my anxiety a little my body is more relaxed. I know I need to go to the doctor but I just don't have the money. I wish I could be normal again. These feelings freak me out because I have never been a shy or quiet person. I don't feel bad for myself I know there are people out there with worst things going on I just want to be normal again so I can enjoy my life the way I use to.
by El-Buscador on July 30th 2009 at 2:13 pm
I hope you are still out there looking for help and haven't give up. I know how hard it can get. The thing you need to remember is that you aren't the only one out there suffering.
Anxiety is a growing disease in this country (sad, but true). But that means that there are more people around who can empathize. I, myself, take xanax (prescribed by my psychiatrist) to control panic attacks. It works but councelling can ease the need for drugs mightily.
DO'NT try to deal with this alone! My best advice is to find an Alchoholics Anonymous near you and talk to someone there. My dad was an alchoholic and found a way out through them. And they don't cost anything. What you are doing is known as "self medication" and it doesn't work in the long run. In AA you can deal with another person who has gone though very similar things and can really help. And take your husband along with you!
Bless you, and remember: Every day has a miracle.