Dear God...is this really anxiety???

Hello everyone. I have to tell you about the extra scary episode that I had today. I came home from getting some last minute Christmas gifts. I sat on the floor and wrapped a few for my daughter. Upon getting up, I felt a little dizzy. No biggie, because this has happened before and I knew it would go away. As I'm walking around the house, I feel really, really dizzy and my legs feel as though they are about to give out. I am shaking uncontrollably and my heart is racing. I was afraid to check my blood pressure. IS THIS REALLY ANXIETY? I thought most of the time anxiety was situational! There was noting stressful about me wrapping Christmas gifts. This is my favorite thing to do. What in the world is happening to me? I did have two cups of coffee this morning at breakfast so perhaps this was a contributing factor, but I've had coffee before and have NEVER felt like this. I took a Xanax and laid down and eventually it all went away but good grief...I was scared. I just knew I was having a heart attack and stroke all at the same time. Anxiety is crippling me. I don't want to go outside in fear that I will have one in public and I hate being alone in my home. I've been seeing an herbalist and acupuncturist, so I'm hoping between these two, something good will happen. This is driving me crazy!!!

[Agora1]

Hi nene2016, think what might have happened is sitting on the floor wrapping a few presents might have tightened your muscles in your legs as well as your arms in that position. When you got up, the pressure might have dropped a little making you feel dizzy. As you walked around the house, the thought of what was happening escalated the dizziness as well as brought on the shaking and heart racing. I'm sure your pressure went up just from the stress of it all. The fact that a Xanax made the feeling go away was a test in itself, telling you it was anxiety. Relax and enjoy the rest of the evening. You'll be okay.

[Hidden in reply to Agora1]

Thank you Agora1. You're probably right. I mean, if it were something really serious, something major would have happened. I'm just so OVER this whole anxiety/panic thing. It's taking over my life. Every time I feel a pain in my left arm, or chest, I IMMEDIATELY freak out and think the worse. Perhaps a hot bath and a glass of wine will help me relax a little more.

Thanks again and Merry Christmas.

[Maribee in reply to Hidden]

Not tooooo much wine or you really will feel dizzy....ha!

[Hidden in reply to Maribee]

Ha. You're right Maribee. Red wine gives me a nasty headache, so I know to keep my consumption at a minimum.

[Maribee]

Why not keep a blood pressure diary.........do you get dizzy if you bend your head...say to pick up something....do you know what your reading is ?

When you say dizzy...do you mean that the rooms spins ?

Or that you feel a bit whoozy ?

Have you spoken to your GP ?

[Hidden in reply to Maribee]

Hi Maribee. I don't get dizzy if I bend over. If I get up too fast, I will feel dizzy. My readings fluctuate. Sometimes is 124/89 and somethings it's 139/90. It's all over the place. And when I say dizzy, I mean woozy. I feel like I'm having an out of body experience. I have spoken to my GP and they say the same thing that the other 50 doctors I've gone to...ANXIETY! All of my labs came back fine. I take high blood pressure but my doctor says I really don't need it because my blood pressure is probably elevated due to anxiety.

[Maribee in reply to Hidden]

I think your resting 189 and 190 are a bit high but then if you are really anxious I guess that would explain it.

Have you heard of the Vagus nerve ?

It is the longest nerve in the body and goes from the brain, through the chest and into the stomach.

It is the nerve responsible when ...you've probably heard of this before....people who have had a shock or even have a coughing fit (as happened to me once when I had a bug) feel faint. It is because the vagus nerve gets over-stimulated according to the paramedic who came out to treat me.

That might explain the feeling you are experiencing when you get anxiety almost like a panic attack.

It's quite reassuring if you know the reason why it happens, it's nothing serious....but ask your GP whether it could be that....the paramedic said that I had had a 'Vasovagul episode'.

I just coughed and couldn't stop then went really dizzy and almost fainted.

Have you got one of those gadgets you pop onto your finger that measures the oxygen in your brain ? You could try and see whether it changes as you stand up.

You can get them at the chemist or supermarket chemist dept.

I'm sure it's nothing to worry about, the trouble is the more anxious we get, the worse the symptoms seem.