I FEEL LIKE THIS ANXIETY WILL BE THE DEATH OF ME :(

[Wgrover]

Ok this is kind of a long one. In late November of 2015 I had a panic attack. Since that panic attack I have had multiple anxiety attacks. My symptoms have ranged from many different things to elevated heart rate, labored breathing, tightness in the chest, random pains in my body, and impending doom. You know feeling I like I am about to die.

I have seen several doctors now and several EKGs and a holter monitor later the doctors say everything is ok with my heart. But yet I don't feel like everything is ok. I constantly feel like something is going on inside my body. As for example today I started with some dizzy spells after leaving the doctor today. Other days it will be an elevated heart rate. At the doctors office of course my heart rate was fine and then after I left everything seem to fall apart again. These symptoms never happen when I need them to. They seem to come and go as they please.

These symptoms have kept me out of the gym and away from my normal lifestyle. I have pretty muted lived in fear for about 6 months now and been to the doctor more times in the last 6 months than i have in my whole life. I feel as if the are not taking me serious and not taking a deeper look.

The thing is, is I function ok. I can go to the gym but I am just scared of getting my heart rate up. When I do get my heart rate up sometimes everything is ok other times it takes awhile for it to calm down. I go to work everyday without a problem other than these symptoms that i deal with. Somedays I feel really good then others these random symptoms take over. The symptoms also occur almost every time that I eat.

The reason I am posting this is because I am not sure what to do or where to turn. I need some feedback. Positive feed back or ideas of what to do. Please don't strike anymore fear into me. I am already scared that I am gonna just fall over dead.

[Agora1]

Hi Wgrover, I don't think any of us can instill any more fear in you that you haven't already experienced. Anxiety is quite a controlling disorder as you can see. It gives you just a taste of what normal might be before it hits again. No matter how often it strikes, the fear is the same each time. Once you've been diagnosed with anxiety, the next thing the doctor may prescribe is medication just to take the edge off your symptoms. Whether you take it or not is your choice. Usually therapy is recommended to find out what causes the anxiety to appear. Since you can't be on medication forever or pay to have someone to talk with once a week, the next option is to start learning different techniques to use to lessen the symptoms. You have many choices from CBT, meditation, relaxation and deep breathing, hypnosis, biofeedback, acupuncture and on and on. You will pick and choose what works best for you. Once you have a good grasp on the technique of choice, you will practice daily in order to relax your mind and body. In doing this, you will be prepared when the next panic attack comes along (and it will) The difference will be that it will be less in intensity and your fear will start to go down. It takes time, but what you are feeling can be turned around where you can be in control again and enjoy your life. Wish you well. This forum has a wonderful group of people who offer support and understanding to each other. All of us have gone through what you are experiencing and because of this we can share our own stories. My best to you. Talk soon.

[juzme in reply to Agora1]

Great reply. Would of loved that advise a few years back myself.

All true..

[anxiouslady13]

Anxiety sucks! Every time you think you're feeling better, it comes back in a different way. For instance, my ears ring and it makes me feel like somethings wrong with my hearing then my vision gets foggy so automatically I believe I'm going blind lol. The best, but hardest, thing to do is tell yourself it's just anxiety. It is awful but in time it will get easier to deal with.

[Hidden]

When you feel panic like that, your body is actually at it's strongest. It's in fight or flight mode. There are chemical reactions taking place which cause this. You can definately get in control of this, you just need some-one who is experienced in this sort of thing to teach you how. If you can find a good hypnotherapist with added qualifications like NLP ( nuero, linguistic programming) they can help you find the triggers and give you the resources to conquor this. While you are searching for some-one should you decide to go down this route, you can help yourself in the meantime by learning to do deep breathing exercises, as you take a breath in through your nose, place a hand on your stomache and allow your stomache to expand. On the out breath take twice as long breathing out through your mouth. Do this in a quiet place about 10 times regularly throughout the day. At first you may feel a little dizzy, but this is perfectly okay as you are giving your brain oxigen, and this will soon pass.

Please believe me, there is nothing wrong with you, you just need a little help from some-one experienced in this. It's very common in today's busy world.

Good luck

[lin62-65ze]

Loved Agora1 reply, please follow it. You are not going to die, anxiety is causing all these symptoms which most of us have experienced. Once you do the deep breathing excercises and maybe get relaxation tapes you will feel better. You will conquer this as your fellow members on this site have testified we are all fighting for you😊😊😊

[mens]

what you are experiencing is panic attack. Be happy and thankful that there is nothing wrong with your heart. I can resonate with your condition as i have been in your shoes. you experienced this from 2015 and i have been having this condition for ions. each time i have this breathing problem with palpitations i also thought i was going to die. i still wake up from my sleep gasping for breath. I wake up pray and keep telling myself that i am ok and medically i am fine. this is the positive thing that keeps me going. Panic attack can strike you anytime anywhere. just go on with what you have to do and you will be fine gradually. The doctor has given you a clean bill and the symptoms that you have experienced can only relate to your heart and your heart is certified fine. Its just our mind. Do exercises that you enjoy and cooking is also therapeutic. you are fine my dear. take care

[Anxious2befree]

Wow I can relate to the panic attacks and the symptoms occurring every time you eat. I thought the same thing and I went to the doctor nearly 3 times a week. Anything that went wrong I ran to the doctor and to the ED but now I know it's anxiety. You need to reassure yourself that you are ok. You need to take control of your mind because it is a powerful thing. I am seeing a psychologist and I can tell you it's helped me 100% to learn that I'm not dying, I'm not going to have a heart attack and that I'm actually ok. I still watch everything I eat and still have anxiety but not to the point I was experiencing. Stay strong xx

[pam1000]

I have been there too and are still like it. I have tried alsorts hypnotherapy counselling and are still trying to find a solution. Haven't tried cbt but think I need to see someone pyschatrist cos I'm getting desperate. Am on beta blockers they are helping.