Hi there!!!!!

Hello there i'm Andrea and new to all this would love to chat to people who are suffering Panic disorderthe same as me i've had it now for 5 months and it's driving me mad ... would love to share with people and swap comments + general chat ...... Andreax

Hi Andrea, i'm also totally new to this - have just spent the last two months convincing myself i had some serious physical illness but now accept it's panic disorder. it's driving me mad, have had the last month off work and feel like a freak. have you got any good tips on dealing with it all? would love to hear from you x

Hello Henri are you in the UK ... i'm in Wolverhampton UK .... i can tell you all about time off from work + panic disorder ...but i'm making slow steps now ... you will get good days and bad days tho ..... nothaving a good day today ..... but your reply cheered me up .. anyway started having panic attacks in July last year .... i'm 37 never had a panic attack in my life but been thru a ruff few years .... anyway felt so terrified .. didn't want to be left on my own .... thought i was suffering heart problems even went to A + E ..... anyway after quite a disgusting time with my GP's finally diagnosed with "stress + anxiety" in late Oct 04... i also have persistant costo chondritis which i still have and fight a daily battle with ...... think the panic disorder left me with this but i'd suffered with it since late August ..... did all the usual checks bloods xrays + ecg's ...... all fine ..... thyroid a litle out but nothing too much ... my GP put me on SSRI'S i take Citalopram 20mg one a day and have to say they've really helped me ....... i do still feel anxious but nowhere near the terrifed crying emotional wrek i had become .... i wasreally resistant to taking these ... i worked was an outgoing confident normal person ... but all that changed over a period of five months ... i was off work from Sept 04 to last week + have just returned... being fazed in at mo ... let's exgange now ... wot about you ... does any of these things sound familiar ... chin up you will get thru it it's nice to talk to people thos .....cos i was in a place i thought no-one could help me... i'd lost my life but not there any more ..... climbing up the ladder again ... Andrea x

hi andrea, sounds like you've had a rough time but are getting on top of things which can only be a good thing! i had a bad day yesterday but am having a better one today. my gp here was totally unsympathetic - my parents are greek and i went over there to have more blood tests etc and the doctor put me on a low dosage of diazepam. it was a good short term solution, helped me feel normal, but still not great. i've weaned myself of the diazepam because i don't want to become addicted but it's bloody hard and i've had a nightmare week since coming off it. i find i'm always fine in the mornings and terrible in the evenings, get that feeling where i think i'm going to die and even if i use breathing techniques to slow down my heart, i can't slow down my brain and i constantly feel nauseous. do you feel nausea or dizzyness at all? this may be a dumb question, but what is costo chondritis? also, i'm going to start seeing a cognitive behavioural therapist next week, see how that goes. have you heard of that type of therapy or tried it? how long did you take off work and were they fine with it? did you get paid while you were off? i'm so glad we are having this conversation. two months ago i was a normal 27-year-old living a hectic but fun life and now i'm like an invalid who can't leave the house. i'm worried it's going to completely ruin the relationship i'm in. i'm so glad we are having this chat. write back soon if you can x

Henri ...... i'm smiling a little cos a lot of wot you're going thru i've been thru .... yupp feel dizzy stiil do get a little 'lightheaded' .. i was off work 4.5 months but 2.5 months of that was being told by myGP that there was nothing wrong with me .. i knew there was ..... in the end paid prvate + went to see a chest spec he diagnosed my costo (inflammtion of the cartlidge in chest rite at the joining of the ribcage very sore) .... breathing techniques and that are all very well but when you're suffering an attcak youget in a viscious circle (well i did) ... you can't predict when you're gonna suffer one + that has the knock on effect about going out + about .... and yes like you i simply dreaded the evenings .... anytime after 5.00pm i was at my worse ..... i ws trrified ...i couldn't stand to see any news because of all the troubles in the world that used to play on my mind ..... and yes you do feel a freak and like you're the only one not rite ... but you're not i've been there you will get thru it .... i was reffered for counselling but at the assessment interview was told i didn't need therapy (good family home .. good job ... no worries) but she did recommend when i go back to GP to think about anti depprst ... Henri they cahnged me in 10 days ... i could go out on my own ... didn't have the terrors and tremors thru me ... they were great ... you need to see another GP attached to your practice or discuss it when you go for your therapy ... as for your relationship what you are going thru takes a lot of support i had a brilliant network of friends + family that were brill ..my father especially .... i haven't been in a realtionship since my last boyfriend suffered cancer .. but i don't want to talk about that ... so if your girlfriens loves you she'll help you .. she may not understand what it is you're going thru (and i believe unless you've been there you don't) but she can be there for you as much as she can ... you can always talk to people like me via the web for support on people who have suffered it .... Andrea x

hey andrea. thank you so much for posting that message, it is reassuring to know that there is light at the end of the tunnel, even if it doesn't feel that way to me right now. what is your best trick for dealing with a panic attack? you know, when you can feel it spiralling out of control in your head. got any tips? also, what anti depressants are you on? the weird thing for me is that i don't feel particularly depressed - i was a bit miserable when this whole thing started, but that was just post xmas blues (i thought). anyway, you've cheered me up, i hope this chat has helped you in some way too x

Well henri ... i didn't deal with them very well... if i was out with friends and one came on me ... i'd go really quiet and feel detached from them just homing in on myself .... talking to myself (in my head) + trying not to burst into tears cos i felt so strange... as your a chap it may take a different form to you ... once or twice i've got up made my goodbyes and left ... wasn't till i told my friends wot was going on that it all clicked with them and they said to me you weren't well then ... but as time progressed i stopped going out .. the one time i did visit my friends for tea i was so bad on the way home nearly crashed my car ... i haven't driven since .. even tho back at work still not driving ..... lost all my confidence .... when i was at home i tried to tell myself it will pass ... but i was ususally awful for about an hour ... feeling mildly awful for the rest of the nite .. i take Citalopram 20mg one tablet a day ..... wished i'd started them in August I may not have got so bad ... as your therapy session is next week mention it to them ... see what they say .. you may be strong enough to deal with it yourself ... i was too far gone and i need the medication .. if you're interested i'll tell you what my counsellor said to me .... popping offline now for a few hours .. but if you write to me i'll reply later ..... chin up Henri .... speak to you soon ... Andreax

Henri PS yes it is really nice for me to talk to someone else too ... who is going through the same thing so big thank you ... Andreax :lol:

hey andrea, don't quite know how to say this but… i'm a girl! henri is just a nick name. anyway, i feel exactly how you feel whenever i go out at the moment and also if people come to visit and i come over all funny i start doing that weird 'homing in on myself' thing. i have only been having these attacks for about a month and a half so i am going to try and get through it without medication and try and leave that as a sort of safety net - you know, so in the back of my mind i always know that i can take a pill and feel better whenever i really feel like i'm going to die because i can't breathe.
i am rapidly losing my confidence at the moment - i'm a journalist and i work in a real cut-throat environment where you just can't afford to lose your confidence. i'm worried this is going to totally destroy my career. anyway, i'd be really interested to hear what your counsellor had to say. i'm at home at the moment and am always checking emails and stuff, so do write back. thanks for chatting to me today. speak soon x

Ohh don't i feel stupid :oops: so sorry ... but it all still applies just visa versa ..... off out now.. email you later Andreax

its so great to see people building friendships within our community. It gives me warm fuzzys. Welcome to you both to out forum. Feel free to fully register, its so much easier.

Hello Susan how do i go about doing that .. thought i has registered but now not sure ... thanks Andrea xx :roll:

hi susan, think i have managed to register, not sure. fingers crossed! i am so glad to have found this website, it helps me feel like less of a freak.

Hello Henri ... just back from visiting .... right ... when i went to see my cllr she explained to me that when your body is subjected to a long period of stress (and being in journalism you must have experienced a lot of that ... i don't envy you) your body stops producing Serotonin ... which is normally produced in your brain (or the base of your brain) this chemical stops us acting on our fight or flight reaction ... so when your body ceases to produce this your brain gets mixed signals and cannot start to handle the most simple of situations without stressing ..... then fight or flight kicks in and thats when we start to experience physical symptoms (the frighteners as I call them) because your brain is saying one thing and your body starts to react ......... My anti depressant is called an SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibator) and puts back this chemical in your body and once replaced the fight or flight syndrome ceases and you stop having anxiety attacks ...... in my case in 7/10 days i was feeling back to normal ...... but initially i did resist taking them ... could not come to terms that I actually needed them ... i wasn't stressed there was something physically wrong with me .. nothing wrong up there .. so i didn't take them and i paid for it got much worse over six weeks and what was a panic attack turned into panic disorder ... if i'd have acrried on think i would have become agraphopic ... but within ten days going out + about on my own even managed some Christmas shopping !!!!!!! couldn't even contemplate Christmas midle of November ... started the tablets 1st day of Dec ..... so i understand what you are saying but don't rule them out ... therapy alone would not have helped me i needed that seraotonin replaced and all the talking in the world would not have done that .. the councillor recognised that and recommended i gave them a try as did the Priv Spec .......... End of lecture now ..... don't want to put you off just want to help .......... PS hot herbal baths (i use Clarins) works wonders for me also as well as a good read ... however i'm reading an Elizabeth Gaskell novel at the momment and it's a bit grim in places ... not too much of a feel good factor there ........ Andrea xx :P

hi andrea, don't worry, you haven't put me off at all and all that stuff about serotonin is really interesting. if the therapist tells me it might be a good idea to take some medication to give me a helping hand then i definitely will - i have already had to accept that there's something clearly not quite right 'up there', so…
anyway, clarins herbal baths is a fantastic idea, i'm a massive fan of baths instead of showers, so i'll definitely give it a try! it's funny, but i haven't really been able to read much since this whole thing started. i work on a newspaper and not only can i not handle reading the papers at the moment, i struggle with magazines, books… but good luck with the elizabeth gaskell!

i find it so annoying that i can't control this thing, it makes me feel like i'm going out of my mind. at the moment i'm really struggling with going out - i managed to have a driving lesson the other day but lunch in carluccio's was a nightmare. i don't know why that is. i've been off work for a month and i'm contemplating going back in to work for a couple of afternoons next week - not sure if it's a good idea or not, as i know work has been a major trigger of these panic attacks. what do you think? how long did it take before you could start going out?

anyway, i feel bad that i keep asking you all these questions - don't feel like you have to respond immediately or even at all. i'm pretty much always online at the moment so am always about. don't want to feel like i'm annoying you with loads of questions! x

No probs at all ...... it's nice to chat ...... lunch at Carluccios's sounds soooo swish ..... i was housebound for 2 months (bar attending appointments which my father had to accompany me couldn't go on my own) .... but once i started my tablets in ten days i had gone into city centre (on my own) and takled a few christmas presents.... so pretty much after that my life started to turn back around ..... i know what you mean about when people visit ... when my friend's popped in to see me i felt so detached ... i kept thinking to myself "look at you i used to be like that ... all the latest gossip from work .. new procedures & soft ware ... fashion ... relationships etc " and at the time i thought i just want you to leave because i can't see myself ever taking part in that life again ... and that made me feel worse about myself and how i was feeling ..... even though they were great listened to me (and i looked a fright) .. and were full of encouragement + sympathy i couldn't connect with them ... becuase at the end of the day they just weren't at the same place as me ... as for my employer ... worked for my local authority in the city for twenty years ... they've been fabulous ... very supportive even to the point of being totally flexible in my approach to return to work .. i feel very very lucky in that respect because it could have gone the other way had i not had an understanding + proactive employer ..... i've been reffered for anxiety management courses and been measured for a bespoke chair to help with my posture whilst i'm at my desk ...to help with my costo it's all been great .... how about your employer are they good ... is journalism still the great domain of men or has it been enlightened yet ...... keep thinking of State Of Play that was aired last year with the wonderful Bill Nighy ... did you catch that ... Andrea x :wink:

OH MY GOD!! i can't believe how spot-on you are with the people visiting thing. i didn't even realise that those were the feelings going through my head at the time, but they were. have you gone any way towards reclaiming parts of your old life, like going out for dinner or out for coffee or whatever? i'm so desperate to get to that stage but i know i've got a long way to go. i know that i've had a good day today but that's got a lot to do with the face that i haven't been anywhere (and also to do with the fact that we have had this chat!)
anyway, i work for a national paper - they've been great about giving me lots of sick leave, don't know how long i can take off but for now i'm fine. journalism is basically rubbish if you're stuck in an office all day (which i am) - it's mainly the great domain of men but it's the scary power bitch women that i have had more trouble with. i sadly didn't catch bill nighy in state of play (but i do love him. did you see love actually? he was hilarious).
anyway, i'm off to have some dinner before watching 'desperate housewives'. have you been watching it and if so, can you fill me in on what's happening in the last couple of episodes?
i remember you said earlier on today that you were having a bad one - i hope you're feeling better now or that you at least manage to have a good sleep. speak soon x
ps i really hope that you'll be able to come to london for lunch in carluccio's soon - they do a fantastic hot chocolate! x :wink:

Afternoon Henri .. how are you today ..... are you having a better day ... i've been to work this am and it was ok .... managed to make myself useful .. but that's it for me this week ...... Haven't caught any of desperate housewive's but my friend Angi is really into it and records it every week ... she's really banging on how good it is .. i did like sex + the city .. anyway today here it's grey + damp + drizzly .... Wot about HRH then ... about time he tied the knot with Mrs Parker Bowles .... Andreax
Hope you've had a good day ...... :lol:

hey andrea, how's it going. i'm having an okay day today, but i haven't been anywhere and haven't really moved from off the sofa. it's the first day in a couple of weeks that i'm spending entirely alone and i don't want to do anything that might bring on another attack. have tried to eat a good breakfast and lunch because i think there's a real link between the food i eat and the intensity of my panic attacks. do you find that at all?

that's about it really! well done for going to work, i can't wait until i'm able to go and spend a day in the office. are you working part-time now? anyway, desperate housewives was good - you should get your friend angi to lend you the tapes. i'm not sure that it's as good as sex and the city though...

can't even bring myself to think of hrh - i'm so bored of the pair of them! i wish them good luck and good riddance.

i sort of want to go for a walk but it's do dark and depressing here, i can't quite bring myself to leave the house. how are you meant to have a positive outlook when the world looks so gloomy?!?

hope you're having a better day than yesterday, henri x

Hello there ... wolverhampton is still grey ..... work was ok ... i used to work 37.5 hours per week but from 01 Mar 05 i will be working 18.5 hours and just going in 2.5 days per week ..... when i'm fully better will consider another position but based in another department doing something completley different ..... change of scene and all that i've been doing my current job sixteen years and i'm a little burnt out .... you sound good today ... and coping on your own as well very good ..... i went off certain foods when i was having panic attacks ... and i've never really returned to them i lost over a stone and a half in weight (there are some good points) so people say you look great ...... but wot a way to diet ... but i never had trigger foods just couldn't eat at all for a while (dad tried very hard) .. i live with my father we share the house .... he's wonderful couldn't live on my own after my ex boyfriend ...... so it suited us both .. (dads on his own) .............. so then any plans tonite.... has anyone been in touch with you from work are you allowed to tell me which paper you work for if it's private i understand ... i'm off visiting later ... Andrea x :wink:

hey andrea, your work situation sounds really good and it's good that you are able to move into a completely different department. will you be starting something from scratch or will it all be linked up with the work you've been doing 'till now? the reason i ask is that i'm considering totally giving up my career because i realised i generally find it quite demoralising. i don't know what else i'd do - i've been a journo for 6 years and haven't worked as anything else. anyway. am so paranoid about telling you which paper i work for because of all this stuff being online - but i promise i will tell you at some point!
i'm really struggling to eat anything, am having to force myself because i know it's important. but it just means that whenever i try to go to a restaurant or cafe or whatever, i feel an attack coming on. you are lucky you've got your dad. i haven't spoken to mine in 8 years and my mum lives abroad so i hardly ever see her. but i live with my boyfriend and he's been helping as much as he can, poor bloke!
no plans tonight. at the moment i find if i make a plan to do anything at all i start worrying about having a panic attack while i'm out doing whatever it is. it's a vicious circle but i don't know how to get out of it and how to start going out again.
just watched tony blair on 'richard and judy' - which was hilarious! they all looked so awkward and he did that thing of talking to them like they were from another planet and didn't really understand English.
funny you should ask if anyone has phoned me from work - one of my work contacts from a PR company rang me today to see what i was up to and it almost brought another panic attack on - when i outlined what was going on he just didnt' know how to respond and it felt like he tried to end the conversation as quickly as possible. maybe that was in my head but the whole thing made me feel awful.
hope you have a good evening - i'm going to try and get a bit of fresh air once my boyfriend gets home. speak soon x

It is nice to read that people feel like I do. I am at work at the moment feeling fed up and panicky. Just mooched around the shops and at one time that would have brightened my day but now I just want to get out of them. Its nice to read people having a chat on here - thats sort of made me feel better than the so called retail therapy

mmmmmmmmmm, I think someones counsellor may have got it wrong! Yes, serotonin release is affected by stress but anxiety disorders aren't caused by low serotonin! DEPRESSION is caused by low serotonin, anxiety is caused by the formation of an anxious habit in the Amygdala. It's called Operant Conditioning and it's how we learn all behavioural responses... it's like instinct!! I think the counsellor got a bit confused on that one!

Trust me, you don't need SSRI's or any other mind altering drug to combat anxiety disorders, in fact, my clients recover faster when they have discontinued them... what does that tell you?

Charles

Hello there Charles Linden ..... you're comments are really interesting to me .... as i've gone with all medical advice so far .. and i'm still on SSRI'S... this will be my third month ...... i do feel better .... can you tell me more about Amygdala and operant conditioning and do you have any tips/advice for me ............ really really interested in your points ...... would really appreciate it if you would post me a reply back ....... Cheers Andrea :P

No need to elaborate i've gone to your website and added it to my favourites .. will look in more detail ... many thanx ...Andrea :lol:

Andrea, no probs, if you have any questions, lete me know!

Charles

Hi Andrea, i'm also totally new to this - have just spent the last two months convincing myself i had some serious physical illness but now accept it's panic disorder. it's driving me mad, have had the last month off work and feel like a freak. have you got any good tips on dealing with it all? would love to hear from you x
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I know where you are coming from I to have panic and anxiety disorder and it gets so bad at some points and then good at others i would love to speak to some one as well and share things

I have spent lots of money trying to get better and joining online groups only to be sadden by how people treat each other in groups.
Here is my questions if any one out there would like to answer some of them for me


1- Has any one went thru all of a sudden out the blue got really lightheaded like you just knew you was going to pass out and for what ever reason you didnt ?

2- Has any one had the chest pains and run to and from the hospital and doctors to be told you are ok

and 3. I went this july 4th to the doctor when I got off of work and said look pal my chest is hurting arms and all I was relaxed yet calm but on the inside I was not calm at all.
they did a EKG which read sinus arithimiya and under that it said normal
so like a dummy I go on line to read about it and it said it can cause people to die sudden so today I called the hospital back and said is this the kind I got he said no alot of poeple got it its where you take a deep breath and your heart will take a pause and start beating again he said its caused by stress anxitey and panic and smoking and useing caffeine
has any one ever had this to ??

I would love to know
Thanks so much
God bless
Rhonda

I have suffered from panic disorder for 11 years. I myself don't think that medication is the answer. I think panic disorder is alot to do with mind over matter. We allow ourselves to believe the syptoms we experience are real when they really aren't. I think aknowledging what you are going through is a big key in overcoming it. Instead of saying what syptoms you're having and worrying about each of them, say "This is a panic attack, the syptoms aren't real" You can control them. I have learned to do that with mine. I have tried medication in the past, but decided I didn't want to rely on a drug to live a normal life. I would be more than happy to talk if anyone is interested. I know what you're going through is scary and confusing, but you can overcome it. You just have to have faith!!!
God Bless

hi
my name is daniel and ive had anxiety and depresson for about six months.
Ive bin and seen 5 doctors and have had a blood test and also a heart trace
and they have come back fine and the doctors have said i will be fine but i still think theres something wrong with me coz i feel like im going to collaspe all the time but even more when i stand up or excersise.
Im scared of going asleep coz i think i wont wake up and i also think my heart is going to stop.
when i first started getting my anxiety i believed it was just anxiety coz i had panic attacks and felt really anxious where ever i was but now im not anxious but feel really unsteady and drowsey

I am new to this but I have been suffering too. Its got to the point where I am too nervious to go out. How are you coping, are you on medication, I am but I feel that they do not do anything for me. Would love to hear from you if you have any tips or ideas that could help me. I have been suffering with anxiety for 12 months now. Hopefully speak to you soon. X

HI KATE i dont take meds my brother tryed for years and he does better with out the meds i am not saying meds may not help but i dont want them . ihave suffer all my life to some degree it has gotten worse in the last seven months we can make one minute at time srt1

HI i would enjoy talking with anyone.

Hi Andrea,
Just found this site tonight. Been suffering with panic and anxiety/depression for about 3 years now. Going through a rough patch at the moment. Just moved to the country for work with my husband and now we are both having to have time off so that he can help me......I'm useless when I'm having a bad time.
Feeling absolutely hopeless lately. Tried coming off my anti-depressants about 11 weeks ago.......just started again a few days ago. They haven't kicked in yet.....waiting, waiting.
How are you feeling now? Do you get depressed at all, or mainly anxiety?