Having Trouble with Anxiety and Possible CKD

Hi all I'm a 32yr old Male recently discovering I have anxiety.

Back in October 2018 I ended up in the ER with a panic attack. I didn't know it at the time because I thought I was having a heart attack. Blood Pressure skyrocketed and I was given a series of blood tests. The doctor said everything came back fine I just seem to be a little dehydrated and I was released as having a Panic Attack.

I started going to the doctor regularly to figure out the cause of the panic attack and make sure my blood pressure was just due to emotional stress. I stayed in the 140/90 range during the early stages as I learned to get my stress under control and flash forward to about 1 year later I've been doing really well and got it down toward normal ranges and had no anxiety issues for about a year as well.

I went to see my primary care to just follow up on how my blood pressure was doing and everything came up fine and I was told with how good I was doing keeping it under control we were going to go back to annual appointments. A huge relief for me as it was a sign I was getting back to normal and putting all this behind me. My doctor said my kidney function was slightly off and told me to do a blood test on the way out. Everything was fine except for creatinine was at 1.4 putting my gfr with ckd-epi at 64 and 57 with mdrd formula. One of those is technically ok and the other is stage 3. My doctor wasnt really concerned but ordered a 24hr urine test to rule out any issues as I was at 1.0 during my visit in 2012.

I was extremely.stressed out waiting for results so I looked into my old labs for comfort that everything has been normal and would stay normal. I found out that during my ER visit I was 1.3 creatinine and my urine protein was just barely in range of being negative (this was the ER doctor who just said I was dehydrated and released me.) My initial visit with primary care 6 months later I was at 1.4 and just barely negative for protein again. The results were exactly the same 6 months later during my recent test before the 24urine test. I started changing my diet and drinking more water and exercising immediately.

I called my doctor to try and figure out what I could do before I fell into CKD range. She told me she wasnt really worried about my results and my 24hr urine test came back just fine with no issues but she is going to get me a renal scan and appointment with Nephrologist but not to worry because she is just being thorough and my numbers personally didnt really worry her.

I got my urine results back and everything was normal but I noted that my protein in 24hrs was 138 and below 150 is normal so it was better than all my previous tests being just barely in but still not where I think I should be.

My doctor consulted with the nephrologist and I got a call from their office saying they dont really want to see me for a few months as I'm not really high risk with my current lab work and want to see how things look if I manage to keep my BP stable with how I was controlling it lately.

It's been 2 weeks since that conversation and I'm really struggling with being left in the dark with what could be a long wait. Still have another 2 weeks before the kidney scan and the nephrologist is still going to be a long ways out.

Depending on the formula the doctors use I'm either just in range of ckd 3 or right above it and my early protein tests were borderline that I'm dangerously close to being high risk but thankfully my 24hr test showed improvement after diet change.

I guess what am asking is if I keep at it can I keep lowering protein to get it further away from +1 range or is it an inevitable thing that we cant control? And can my 1.4 creatinine be brought down back to an acceptable range? I've made a ton of lifestyle changes as I was so ready to be back to normal after this last doctors visit but now this happened and my emotional rollercoaster is starting all over again.

Worse still I just had a baby last month and my test results came in just a few days after she was born. When I got them in the mail I threw up and had multiple panic attacks in the last week. I haven't had one in over a year and thought I was getting past this but all my panic attacks started after the birth of my first daughter (I have 3) and the fear of them growing up without dad. I broke down and cried in the bedroom getting ready for work the other day and hid it from my wife and kids who were getting ready in the next room. Just having a really tough time holding it together right now. I'm going to take charge of my health and do what I can on my end but it's kind of feeling like I have no control here. My emotional stress isnt helping and even though I have been back at 120/80 or lower BP for the last 2 months its starting to raise again back to where I was during peak anxiety. I'm overwhelmed and not sure what to do right now.

[LifewithFGN]

Hi Cora15. I know it’s easy for me to say but please do not worry about that protein count at all. A lot of people will have minimal traces of protein in their urine for decades without it ever progressing to CKD. That’s why we have normal ranges. Now that’s it’s on your doctors radar, it is something that they will no doubt keep a check on at regular intervals, so try and keep that in your mind. CKD can progress very slowly so I’m sure your doctors would pick up on it very quickly if things changed in future. It sounds like your anxiety is propelling your fear about what might happen with CKD and when we do that, our minds tend to go to the worst possible outcome. Please try and let go of that. Enjoy being healthy. Exercise and diet is important but please don’t let it take over your life. Everything in moderation. All the best.

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Thanks for the advice. That helps.

[Calvin18]

Hello Cora have you ever taken ppis? Like nexium or Prilosec for heartburn? I was on them for a long time and my nephrologist concluded that is where my CKD originated from.just a FYI

In case you take them.

I wish you the best ....

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No I have not but thanks for the heads up. I'm fairly certain I probably had untreated high bp through my 20s that we didnt find until I ended up in the ER. I got out of the Marine Corps at 22 and moved home and had a baby with my wife pretty quickly after. My wife went to work during the day and I watched the baby all day and worked at night for the last 7 years. Slept an average of 3hrs a day and pounded caffeine and junk food to stay awake all night.

It really should have come to no surprise that my blood pressure went up and my blood work was off a bit. Now that I know I've made changes to get my life back in order. Got a 9-5 job for the last 5 years and sleep more except for the last month with the new baby but I'll get back to normal soon. I've given up soda and junk food and exercise 30min or more daily. I've only had water and 2 teas to drink over the last 30 days.

While typing this the Nephrologist office called and said they reviewed my charts and dont think it's necessary to see me until May after I finished my 24hr urine test. I haven't been diagnosed with anything yet as I've technically been over 60gfr. It's just my age that's concerning. Hopefully with changes I made I can hold this at bay and wont progress and hopefully improve a little. I'm going to do what I can and see what happens.

If I can keep my anxiety under control I think I can keep my BP down. I've been pretty steady around 120/80 the last 2 months and dipping below that several times for the first time in a year and I haven't used BP medication to control it. When I have a panic attack I jump back up for a few days. I just need to get out of my own head.

[SadMad]

Anxiety and panic attacks are the worse. I have had bouts of depression that left me hospitalized but never had anxiety and panic attacks until the Summer of 2018 which was after finding out my kidney disease had progressed to Stage 3. I am now at Stage 4 and found out that the years of uncontrolled blood pressure have caused this progression. I try to watch what I eat-D.A.S.H. Diet. You can work to keep your kidneys from getting worse. I see a therapist now and talking on here has helped a lot. Educating yourself really helps. Doctors don't want you to go by the internet but if they are not telling you everything how are you going to know. I just had AV fistula surgery that didn't work and had no idea that was possible. Now I have to have another fistula surgery done in two parts a month a part. I have turned to pray and have gotten closer to family members that I had distanced myself from. Life is short so take care of yourself. I am proud to say I will be a year smoke free on April 7, 2020.

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Thanks for the advice and yes anxiety has probably been the hardest thing I've had to overcome in my life which 10 years ago I would have laughed at myself for the situation I've put myself in. Went to the Marines at 18 years old in Iraq by 19, lived an incredibly stressful life that was fast paced but never let it get to me. Didnt fear death at the time, the potential for getting blown up and not feeling a thing strangely put me at ease.

10 years later after having 3 daughters and knowing I was careless with my health all those years triggered something in me. I wanted to live suddenly and always be there for my girls which led me down the road of anxiety and depression. Old me wouldn't have kind words to say about me today.

I'm not sure at what point in the last 8 years I developed high BP . I did my physical at the VA in 2012 with no medical issues so hopefully I didnt do too much damage in those 8 years. I was averaging close to 150/100 when I first found out about my BP. I took myself off my blood pressure medication 3 months ago and for the first time in a year I went below 120/80 last week. The doctor said my medication must be working and I told her I ran out of it 3 months ago and the VA wouldn't refill it so I stayed off it. She said if I'm showing this much progress then I should stay off it. Hopefully if I can keep it up and reduce my creatinine a little I'll feel a whole lot better. Doctors didnt say a word at 1.3 last year and I wish they would have and I would have changed my ways immediately. Hopefully I didnt do too much damage in a year to get back to normal.

I think if I could calm down my BP would return to normal and stay that way. I went up to 130/88 today after having a panic attack last night and my chest and left arm still hurt from it. It's pretty crazy what stress can do to you. Going to go exercise now and relax and keep at it.

Good for you for quitting smoking. Small victories my friend and nothing to scoff at. I was panic attack free for over a year until this happened thinking I was over it but it's a cycle that's harder to break than I thought. Dont sell yourself short though, I would have fallen apart after what you've been through a and given up but your stronger than I.

[Darlenia]

Sorry for the late response. I completely understand what you're experiencing. My husband has serious kidney disease which threw me into anxiety big time as I looked down into that dark abyss...which only became worse (irrational thoughts, little sleep, jittery reactions, constant depression, unfocused behavior) as appointments ramped up, tours scheduled, reactions to meds occurred, etc. The one thing that finally changed everything was when I took myself to my primary doctor and told him, through my sniffles, that the uncertainly was getting to me and described my reactions. Also told him drinking wine helped...which I didn't want to continue for obvious reasons. He immediately prescribed a non-addicting anti-anxiety med that allowed me to sleep! Amazing what getting adequate sleep did...it really stabilized me, gave me energy to cope, and brought me into reality - namely, focusing mostly on today, not endless speculation about the future. I only needed the medication for a short time, but have it around in case this spiral starts again. Don't be afraid to address your mental state with a caring doctor. He can really help you in turning things around.

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Thanks for responding. I've had a really good week.

[Klove22]

I certainly can relate to your anxiety and feelings of being overwhelmed. I am being seen by a psychiatrist who prescribed medication to manage my panic attacks. It has also been suggested that I see a therapist. It isn't a suggestion that I can consider due to the worldwide pandemic. However, finding this support group has been as helpful as a therapist would be. Thank you all for sharing your comments. I heard something that was said last evening that was so true. It was said that during this crisis, we all need to be kinder to other's. I intend to pass on my kindness also. It should surely help my mental and physical health.

[SissyFaye]

I hear you. I have developed severe anxiety recently as my CKD has gotten worse. The shortness of breath really ramps the anxiety up even more. On Monday I basically contacted all of my doctors to let them know that what we doing isn't working and that we need a new treatment plan. They don't ever seen to respond with any sense of urgency while at times I actually wondering if this is what it's like to shortly die. I'm not exaggerating either. I feel absolutely miserable. I guess we have to be our own advocates and fight to ensure we are h heard. My doctor's are very hesitant to prescribe anything for my anxiety which I do not understand at all. (No history of misuse or addiction... I take everything as prescribed). I recently had to stop working due to being out more than I was able to work so the whole disability process adds even more anxiety to the mix. Congrats on the baby! I hope you get she peace of mind.