rabidbadger 05-09-06, 12:28 AM Hi all
I found this quite comforting, I hope you will too...
Fear of fainting is a very common symptom of anxiety disorders and stems from the psychosomatic effects of panic such as light-headedness and disorientation/confusion. The good news is it is extremely rare to faint during a panic attack, here’s why… The human body has a number of built-in safety mechanisms to protect it from physical harm and fainting is one of these. The brain needs a certain amount of blood to circulate to it in order to get the oxygen it needs to function. If the amount of oxygen going to the brain drops below a certain level, the body will automatically attempt to remove one of the forces that may be restricting the flow of blood to the head – namely gravity – in the hope that losing consciousness will cause the body to assume a more horizontal position, removing gravity as an obstacle to blood-flow.
This would result if you were able to hold your breath for long enough or had a heart problem that resulted in low blood-oxygen levels, but a much more common cause is low blood pressure (hypotension). Hypotension can be caused by loss of blood or by dehydration or it can be a side-effect of certain drugs, it can also be caused by standing still for a long time or a sudden shift in the position of your body such as standing up quickly from a sitting position; this is called postural hypotension and usually results in nothing more than a temporary spell of dizziness.
Why is this good news for anxiety sufferers? Because during episodes of panic your blood pressure is higher than normal rather than lower and the increased heart-beat and heavier breathing are ensuring that more than enough blood is going to the brain. This is an evolutionary response to a fearful situation in which you might be required to fight, or run, for your life. At such times it is vital that you are alert and your senses are functioning as well as they can, so it is important that the brain gets more oxygen. This isn’t something we’ve learnt, it is the way we’re designed; it could, after all, be catastrophic for us to pass out at times of danger and so we are built to ensure this doesn’t happen.
If you have found this helpful, please leave a comment and I will attempt to find similar articles to post.
Best wishes to you all
Chris
Wannabeloved85 10-09-06, 02:39 PM the only ppl tpo faint during a phobia response are those who are injury or blood phobic, and if you are, dont fear! a little exercise that i know of helps! i do it when i feel a littele faint anyway so that i KNOW i wont faint.
clench and un clench your fists continually, this will pump the blood back up to your brain! no fainting!!
Becci x
yes i found that information helpful. its good to be reassured.
Hello all,
Not sure if I'm doing this right. Know a bit about computers but haven't
contributed to a forum before.
Have had anxety illness/death phobia for 35 years (think it was inherited
from my mum who had it for 30 years along with agrophobia.)
Don't know if any of you are like this, but always seems to get worse after
a lot of stress/running around like Christmas and then you have to suddenly
stop and do nothing. I can't do this!!
Having a bad time at the moment 'slowing down'. I get 'frights' with
checking body symptoms. I know deep down it's okay but it just
won't ge through to my brain. Even when I've checked many times and
can't find anything 'bad', it just doesn't seem to go in, it's so illogical
but my brain won't take the logic!!
I've had a business fo 30 years and feel better there, but underneath
my 'strong' attitude to staff etc., I feel a total wimp because this 'curse'
I have makes you feel worthless. It is with me most of the time and I
live a lot of the time in fear of 'getting something'. After 35 years,
I'm worn out with it all!! (I do have many stresses, i.e. business in
trouble, having to move it, looking after father who is dependant on
me etc.)
I know there's loads out there who are worse off than me but I'm
just so tired of fighting it all the time. I had cognitive therapy in
1994 but even my doctor thinks because I've had it once, not much
point in doing it again!! It seems eveyone's given up on me.
I'm so sorry if I've bored you all!!
Misfit xxx
rabidbadger 29-12-06, 12:03 PM Hi Misfit
A lot of people find that there anxiety comes on some time after stressful or frightening events. Psychiatrists put all my anxiety problems down to the upsetting break-up of my marriage but my anxiety didn't start til over a year after all that had happened.
I have had to give up work now but when I was working I found that the busy, stressful times were the times when I was least likely to have an anxiety attack because my mind was busy on other things and not allowed to focus on my health (my anxiety is health based).
I got to a point about three months ago when I felt like I just couldn't physically carry on with that level of anxiety all the time so I asked my doctor to prescribe me escitalopram. Three months on my background anxiety has reduced a lot (if you rate it out of 10, it used to be around 6-7, now it's around 3) and I am leaving the house and going for a walk several times a day (I was agoraphobic and hardly ever left the house before).
I hope you find this useful or in some way comforting.
Best wishes
Chris x
hi
i have exactly the same thing where i check myself all the time and the more i do this the more i worry, then i check myself even more. i know what you are going through because its a nightmare for me. i have been seeing my doctor for a while now and at first i didnt want to take medication but it got to the point where i would do anything to feel "normal" again. so my doctor prescribed citalopram and upto now its calmed me down alot and even though i still check myself and worry its no where near as bad (touch wood)
im on a waiting list for cbt so i hope this helps me.
im sorry about your doctor have you tried seeing another doctor that understands, its like that where i am some doctors are great at understanding anxiety where others just dont understand or should i say dont help
take care
kitkat
I liked the article chris . always helps to be able to rationalise physical sensations. I keeps a word doc of information, I shall be adding this to it. :D
mark1886 05-02-07, 12:00 PM I read somewhere that it is impossible to faint during a panic attack because the heart pumps harder and faster than normal, therefore increasing the amount of oxygen in the blood stream. People who faint only do so AFTER a panic attack. This happens if they recover very suddenly i.e. their heart resumes its regular beating after a period of fast pumping. There is a sudden drop in blood pressure and oxygen, causing the person to faint.
I have read this numerous places that it is impossible to faint during a panic attack, only after it. (Of course many will feel like they are going to faint, they just won't).
Mark
perkster 13-02-07, 12:05 AM Hi all
I found this quite comforting, I hope you will too...
Fear of fainting is a very common symptom of anxiety disorders and stems from the psychosomatic effects of panic such as light-headedness and disorientation/confusion. The good news is it is extremely rare to faint during a panic attack, here’s why… The human body has a number of built-in safety mechanisms to protect it from physical harm and fainting is one of these. The brain needs a certain amount of blood to circulate to it in order to get the oxygen it needs to function. If the amount of oxygen going to the brain drops below a certain level, the body will automatically attempt to remove one of the forces that may be restricting the flow of blood to the head – namely gravity – in the hope that losing consciousness will cause the body to assume a more horizontal position, removing gravity as an obstacle to blood-flow.
This would result if you were able to hold your breath for long enough or had a heart problem that resulted in low blood-oxygen levels, but a much more common cause is low blood pressure (hypotension). Hypotension can be caused by loss of blood or by dehydration or it can be a side-effect of certain drugs, it can also be caused by standing still for a long time or a sudden shift in the position of your body such as standing up quickly from a sitting position; this is called postural hypotension and usually results in nothing more than a temporary spell of dizziness.
Why is this good news for anxiety sufferers? Because during episodes of panic your blood pressure is higher than normal rather than lower and the increased heart-beat and heavier breathing are ensuring that more than enough blood is going to the brain. This is an evolutionary response to a fearful situation in which you might be required to fight, or run, for your life. At such times it is vital that you are alert and your senses are functioning as well as they can, so it is important that the brain gets more oxygen. This isn’t something we’ve learnt, it is the way we’re designed; it could, after all, be catastrophic for us to pass out at times of danger and so we are built to ensure this doesn’t happen.
If you have found this helpful, please leave a comment and I will attempt to find similar articles to post.
Best wishes to you all
Chris
It is very informative. Thanks for sharing.
A lot of people find that there anxiety comes on some time after stressful or frightening events. Psychiatrists put all my anxiety problems down to the upsetting break-up of my marriage but my anxiety didn't start til over a year after all that had happened.
Hi Chris,
This is something very much on my mind too - a lot of people have suggested that my problems with anxiety/panic are related to the sudden death of my mum in August 2001. Because my panic attacks didn't start until at least 18 months later (around May 2003), I've never been sure. There's such a big gap in between that I just don't have a clue as to whether there's any causal link, or whether it's just a coincidence.
Hi Spud,
That's interesting as my dad died suddenly in July 2002, then I had a bit of a breakdown in September 2003, but panic attacks didn't start to seriously affect me until June 2004 - I'm not sure either as we weren't exactly close. it's something else to consider though, I suppose.
the only ppl tpo faint during a phobia response are those who are injury or blood phobic, and if you are, dont fear! a little exercise that i know of helps! i do it when i feel a littele faint anyway so that i KNOW i wont faint.
clench and un clench your fists continually, this will pump the blood back up to your brain! no fainting!!
Becci x
I'll give it a try next time, but I actually try NOT to clench my fists if I can help it because I associate it with the doctor/nurse telling you to do that when they're trying to get a vein to take blood - I'll stop because I'm feeling nauseous just typing this! :(
Thanks, Becci! :D
rabidbadger 17-03-07, 09:10 PM Hi all
There is very often a time-lag between a traumatic event and the onset of anxiety. You don't suffer anxiety at the time because your mind is busy dealing with the situation - and even if you do have anxiety at the time, you expect it because of the gravity of the situation you are dealing with and don't see it as an issue.
I have seen several psychiatrists and they all attribute my anxiety to the breakup of my marriage, which happened two years before my first anxiety attack.
I know it's not exactly the same thing but soldiers who suffer from Post-traumatic stress disorder very often don't show any signs of distress until years after the event.
Chris
indigodreams 31-03-07, 09:33 AM [QUOTE=MISFIT]Hello all,
Not sure if I'm doing this right. Know a bit about computers but haven't
contributed to a forum before.
Have had anxety illness/death phobia for 35 years (think it was inherited
from my mum who had it for 30 years along with agrophobia.)
Don't know if any of you are like this, but always seems to get worse after
a lot of stress/running around like Christmas and then you have to suddenly
stop and do nothing. I can't do this!!
Having a bad time at the moment 'slowing down'. I get 'frights' with
checking body symptoms. I know deep down it's okay but it just
won't ge through to my brain. Even when I've checked many times and
can't find anything 'bad', it just doesn't seem to go in, it's so illogical
but my brain won't take the logic!!"
Hi Misfit :) Your last paragraph here is excactly how I feel at the moment,and I feel for you.I did all the self help had cognitive and finally came off Seroxat after 12 yeras last october.I've been doing great up until I started getting severe low back pain with constipation,and the having to put up with that pain 24/7 finally ahd its toll this week.Last night it was so bad I had 4 panic attacks whilst trying to get to sleep.I called my ex who came round and sat with me..crazy because I havent been it that position for months!! I know logically it was the fear of what is causing by pain and constipation that set off the panics ..but it is as if that little inner voice just wont accept it...so today I am taking time to relax ,talk to myself and show myself that I am not alone,I am not going to die,and life is still as good as it was 2 weeks ago :) so I'll probably be on here a fair bit lol. Reading your story reassured me..thank you.I have no medication at the moment but feel after thinking I no longer needed it that I may have to use it again..and if I do..then fine,at least I tried :)right now I wish I was on it !I hate the feeling of adrenaline flowing through my body..why ? because I start 'checking' which we all know in turn makes things worse lol catch 22 :)
best wishes to all
spikeman_uk 10-04-07, 06:38 AM Hi all,
I'm not trying to throw a spanner in the works, but it definately is possible to faint when having a panic attack.
A few years back, I was in a pub in Tenby, South Wales, with a few friends. We were catching up for a drink and a chat. I started getting the now normal feelings I get when I start to panic (hot/cold, clammy, losing touch with what's going on around me).
I lost it totally that time and started panicing so much that I went into shock. My hearing went funny and then I started blacking out. I was terrified and when I tried to stand up, I fell back against a wall and collapsed. I have never been so scared in my life, more so from the embarrisment. I eventually manged to pick myself up and only just made it to the bathroom before I 'lost' my breakfast.
Luckly this has only happened to me once, though I have had similar blacking out feelings since, but not to that extent. Needless to say, I don't go out to meet anyone for lunch anymore.
Sorry, I hope I'm not frightening anyone here. Has anyone else ever blacked out?
rabidbadger 10-04-07, 06:51 AM Hi Spikeman
I am interested by this, I read a lot about both the psychology and biochemistry of anxiety.
Did you actually lose cosciousness, if so, do you know how long for?
Chris
spikeman_uk 10-04-07, 07:23 AM Hi Chris,
Thanks for your reply. In the short time I have been reading the posts, I have seen that you have agoraphobia. I'm 'lucky' in that my fears have never reached this extent on a permanent basis, though there are some days when I do have trouble leaving my house.
Years ago, when i still enjoyed a few beers on a Friday night, I found that on Saturday's I was always too panicky and couldn't leave the house at all. Since I knocked drinking on the head, I don't have a problem in leaving the house anymore. But it does mean I don't have a social life anymore either. The joys of anxiety!
As for my fainting episode, it was really terrifying and probably one of the worst things that ever happened to me. It certainly caused my anxiety to rocket and I have never been the same since. I am now terrified that it will happen again. I know the feelings now, and when I feel them, I have to leave the place I'm in (whether it's a shop, mall, cafe, whatever). I seem to have this irrational fear of making a fool of myself infront of other people and fainting would certainly be embarassing.
I didn't loose conciousness for long. Probably only a few seconds. Long enough though for my to loose complete control of my bodily functions (which I won't go into here). Don't think my friends understood. I think they thought I was drunk or something, even though I had only had a single mouthful of my drink.
When I mentioned this eposide to my ex-therapist, she said that it was 'serious' (as if I didn't know that already) and then it wasn't mentioned again.
Not much more I can tell you than that. It was just horrible, horrible, horrible, and I will never forget it for the rest of my life.
rabidbadger 10-04-07, 08:44 AM Hi Spikeman
The reason I asked is that a lot of people mistake a perception that they are about to faint for the actual act of fainting - I'm not suggesting that you are doing this.
Usually, any involuntary action that our body performs has some kind of evolutionary justification behind it and to faint at a time of anxiety does somewhat defy the way we should react physically.
As for your ex-therapist, they have a habit of ignoring anything that doesn't fit in with their pattern of how things should go and tend to sweep them under the carpet. I have experienced this myself when I haven't reacted to a particular treatment the way I 'should' do.
Chris
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