Does panic attack causes permamnent nerve damage ?

[Ankur Bansal]

hello everyone i am new here ....

so here is my story i got my only panic attack approx 3 and a half month before . After that i felt derealization and depressed for about 2 weeks.I didn't take any medication and got myself out of the depression and de realization with the help of watching my thoughts and meditation.The problem i was suffering since my panic attack is chattering in my mind .In the beginning my mind was chattering like crazy.No matter what i do i was having continuous chatter in my mind.I have seen a gradual decrease in my mind chattering .It now chatter very very less when i become busy and chatters more when i become alone and free..
I also suffered 1 or 2 times mood swings after my panic attack and thought that i was diagnosed with bipolar disorder.But i was wrong .Now i have realized that it was a panic attack.

My mood is normal.But when i have nothing to do i can see many unwanted thoughts in my mind. I have seen that i have become much more calmer and relaxed then i was before i got panic attack .That attack has really changed my life for good.I now don't get bothered by high music or disturbances or people like i used to do before.

i also met with a phsyciatrist 1 and a half month ago and took his prescribed medication for about 3 weeks but i don't think that they helped me a lot.he prescribed me clonazepam tablets.

I certainly don't feel completely normal now.i can say i am 85 % percent normal.I feel very very little bit of anxiety when i read some negative or bad stuff like diseases or something bad .

My current problem is

some chattering in my mind when i am alone or have nothing to do

some sort of sensation just above the right ear.These sensations were all over the face some time before but now they are just above the right ear in the back part of forehead.

these sensations are very mild but i can feel them so i am worried if my nerves have gotten permanently damaged.

i am not on any medication from past 3 weeks and don't wont to go on them .I feel that it is a healing process and really it has healed my personality a lot.My ego is collapsed and i now don't worry about anything .The only thing i am little worried about is that of mind chatter and nerves.

i want to discuss it more so comments are welcome

please reply .....

[ez86]

Your nerves seem like they have been sensitized. Dont worry about it, you arent perminently broken. Do your best to accept what is happening, you will eventually get back to normal even if it takes time

[anxiousmess]

hiya. welcome to the forum :)

i've had many panic attacks - they haven't done me any damage.
the mind chatter - alot of us on here are dealing with that alot!
it is down to anxiety.

3 weeks is a very short time for meds. they probably wouldn't have even began working by that point.
maybe you should consider trying them again for a longer time period.

i'm not sure what the sensation above your ear is, but i doubt it is anything to do with nerve damage.

anxiety can make you think a headache is a brain tumor. so it could possibly be anxiety making you think a pain above your ear is nerve damage.

[inosantoclaws]

Mind chatter is frightening, but I don't think panic attacks cause permanent damage.

[Ankur Bansal]

hiya. welcome to the forum :)


Many many thanks . It feels very very good when you find that you are not alone in this world.Not because you are jealous but because you now have people which understands your problem.






anxiety can make you think a headache is a brain tumor. so it could possibly be anxiety making you think a pain above your ear is nerve damage.



You are right i felt that before but eventually i let go of that fear.

i can't trust my mind anymore.

[Ankur Bansal]

Your nerves seem like they have been sensitized. Dont worry about it, you arent perminently broken.

hmm , thank you i know it from the beginning but my mind is working against my knowing . From now on i think it will not chatter any more about that nerve damage stuff .

[Ankur Bansal]

hiya. welcome to the forum :)

the mind chatter - alot of us on here are dealing with that alot!
it is down to anxiety.



so any solution for this or should i just let it happen like i am doing from past 3 months.

Also should i re start my medication ?. I am little bit afraid of physcoactive drugs .I don't know why but i have a negative image of them in my mind.May be it is also because of anxiety .

Also one thing i wanna tell you is that out of weekness i started to take vitamin b complex capsules a week ago and since then i have seen some increase in my anxiety and mental chatter which made me to join this forum.

[ladywillow]

Don't worry Ankur, we all feel that way sometimes. You aren't permanently broken, you just need your body to heal. i know it's hard to accept that it is anxiety, but once you accept it you will have started your road to recovery!

[Ankur Bansal]

physically i don't feel anxious or nervous .Its just i feel chattering in my mind all the time . It annoying sometimes .Kind of obsessive behaviour of mind .

[anxiousmess]

what did the psychiatrist say the problem was?

there are times when i don't feel anxious - but anxiety always seems to be lingering and working it's magic.

as for the mind chatter...continue as normal. but what kind of mind chatter is it? just what youve done throughout the day racing back through your mind? or is it specific stuff? is it intrusive thoughts? if you feel that you're getting worse, then maybe starting your meds again wouldn't be such a bad idea. just as a little extra help.

[laurandisorder]

If you don't feel comfortable with the medication, there are many alternatives such as natural medication, hypnotherapy, acupuncture, massage and other ways to help relieve stress. Talk to your doctor about your concerns.

I have actually just stopped taking vitamin B (Berocca). I was taking it every day and didn't realise that some B group vitamins can make anxiety worse. Ceasing the morning Berocca has really helped.

During one of my anxiety episodes (3 month period last year) I had constant ringing in my ears and felt that all sounds were muffled and distant. Anxiety manifests in so many different ways!!

But you are not alone, welcome!!

[Ankur Bansal]

what did the psychiatrist say the problem was?



he did not told me the problem.Believe me it was a panic attack . Almost every symptom of mine since the panic attack is matching the list given on this forum.

The pills he prescribed were zapiz 0.5 () , nexito (SSRIs) and one more pill.




i also feel mid sensations in nerves in the brain



there are times when i don't feel anxious - but anxiety always seems to be lingering and working it's magic.



I haven't feel anxious from past 1 month except a week ago when i was travelling from home to college in a train ,a certain mild wave of fear came and goes away for a few seconds. . I can work properly , can go or drive anywhere without any help .I live in a hostel alone and nobody can even say that i am behaving even 0.1 % different from them.I have lost my previous mind driven interests.Its like one side of my mind wants to relax and calm to complete peace and other side does the opposite
and i stand out as an observer.




as for the mind chatter...continue as normal. but what kind of mind chatter is it? just what youve done throughout the day racing back through your mind? or is it specific stuff? is it intrusive thoughts?


mind chatter is not gone since i had attack though it has loosen its severity very much.

The nature of mind chatter --

Consists of thoughts like "if i think that i want to do this,is followed by its opposite".First the mind thinks of something and then automatically thinks its negation or opposite.This is the most common pattern of thoughts which linger in my mind.Although i know what i have to do but mind creates thinking around this basic knowing.
This pattern was very severe in the beginning but now it is less.Also there are thoughts from external events like reading something bad on this forum

Thoughts related to worry are also there but they don't cause actual worry feeling.

when i got busy in something suddenly after some minutes a thought will come which will be like "why don't you thinking about your problems"

So this is the pattern of my thoughts .



if you feel that you're getting worse, then maybe starting your meds again wouldn't be such a bad idea. just as a little extra help.


I really don't feel that i am getting worse .I can myself see the improvements .But sometimes when mind chattering is at peak i think of taking the pills again.

What do you think in my case ?

Will i be able to recover from pills or not ?

[Ankur Bansal]

If you don't feel comfortable with the medication, there are many alternatives such as natural medication, hypnotherapy, acupuncture, massage and other ways to help relieve stress. Talk to your doctor about your concerns.


I can't meet my doctor for next 2 months because i am out of my home town to college.I still have his prescriptions.If i will feel that i am getting worse i will start taking the pills .Also will you have any more info on natural medication and hypnotherapy.

[anxiousmess]

if your anxiety started randomly, then make sure your doctor takes your blood to check for thyroid problems.

since you had a panic attack, it has obviously stirred anxiety - which it would with anyone. i think your mind is still recouperating from that. i migth be wrong, so don't take my word for it.
but i think if you hadn't suffered before this, and it is improving, then it very well could be just that.

since you can't meet your doctor for 2 months - i would take notice in your mind chatter and any form of anxiety/panic you have to deal with from now until then.
maybe even keep a diary of your progression.

in the meantime, you could cut down on foods and beverages that can increase anxiety. google will have the list of them - i'll get one and post the link up.
you could also add into your diet foods that benefit your anxiety levels.

as for being able to recover with pills - i'd say the 2 months mark would be a good time frame to work out as to whether you need them or not.
if you are feeling no improvement or worse by the 2 months mark - then i would definitely suggest medication to help you through it.
if you are improving and feeling much better by the 2 months mark - then you can obviously manage this without any extra help :)

if you do feel that you are unable to manage during this time frame, then obviously take the meds - if you feel it's best

[anxiousmess]

Foods to eat

Yogurt

Bananas

Vegetables

Wholegrain foods

Brown Rice

Beans

Turkey

Chicken

Cottage Cheese

Fresh Fish

Poached Egg

Tuna

Fruit

Porridge

Baked potato

Peanut butter

Garlic

Spinach



Foods to avoid

Fizzy drinks

Processed food

White bread

Chips

Pastry

Cakes

Caffeine

Sugar

Alcohol

Chocolate

Cheese

Fast Food

[Ankur Bansal]

if your anxiety started randomly, then make sure your doctor takes your blood to check for thyroid problems.





thanks i will get my thyroid examined in next couple of days.


since you had a panic attack, it has obviously stirred anxiety - which it would with anyone. i think your mind is still recouperating from that. i migth be wrong, so don't take my word for it.
but i think if you hadn't suffered before this, and it is improving, then it very well could be just that.

hmm i was improving from past months until i came to college 1 week ago and start taking vitamin b complex.I was unaware of the problems which b complex can cause to anxiety .Now i have stopped taking them since i joined this forum (2 days ago) and i am now again feeling calm and relaxed.My mind chatter is also diminished a lot.




in the meantime, you could cut down on foods and beverages that can increase anxiety. google will have the list of them - i'll get one and post the link up.
you could also add into your diet foods that benefit your anxiety levels.

thanks for the list .I really aprreciate the support of the members.




as for being able to recover with pills - i'd say the 2 months mark would be a good time frame to work out as to whether you need them or not.
if you are feeling no improvement or worse by the 2 months mark - then i would definitely suggest medication to help you through it.
if you are improving and feeling much better by the 2 months mark - then you can obviously manage this without any extra help :)

if you do feel that you are unable to manage during this time frame, then obviously take the meds - if you feel it's best

from the past two months what i was observing about the self improvement process is that one day you may feel better and the next day you may feel not that much better but when i take an average of 3 - 4 days,there is an overall improvement.Meditation is helping me a lot in dealing with anxiety.When i became completely relaxed during meditation it strongly feels like if someone is massaging my internal brain nerves.That feels very good and relaxing.

[Ankur Bansal]

Just want to update i am feeling very very good .....

I never imagined vitamin b supplements can cause such terrible anxiety.And many thanks for clearing my nerve damage worry .It was anxiety not the actual damage ...

[anxiousmess]

i'm pleased you're feeling better :)

take care :)

[Ankur Bansal]

i am noticing the pattern of thoughts in my mind .i am feeling not bad but can see that i always have thoughts in my mind .They don't alter my mood at all and also don't cause any form of physical anxiety.I have normal sleep.I feel pretty much normal and good .But the problem is i am not totally in the work which i do .It looks like these thoughts are floating in my nerves.i can watch them but can't do anything else except watching them.They jump from one thing to another .It is like i am watching that my mind is monkey but i can't do anything to stop it.

i am not taking any medicine but i am thinking of taking some probably some ssri because they are not addictive .i am sure this mind chatter is because of anxiety.

But i am in doubt if taking medicine would interfere in natural healing.

[anxiousmess]

if these thoughts aren't affecting you - why don't you try replacing those negative thoughts with positive ones.

it is alot easier to do this if your thoughts aren't having much of an impact on you.