Feeling as if you just woke up accompanied by anxiety

[Bertie123]

So for the last 2 weeks, I was very stressed, working 8-9 hours a day for college tests the next day and there wasn't a single day I was not utterly stressed. On Sunday I felt a weird feeling as if I just woke up from a nap (everything feeling more distant, weird, sounding the other way - don't want to call it "derealization" because I knew it was as real as can be, just very different from what I feel usually, the waking-up feeling is the best way to describe it) for a few minutes but I ignored it and it passed in some 5 minutes. On Monday it happened again (right before I had to take the oral exam so I guess stress again...) and went away in some 20 minutes. I decided to read on it.

Of course, being a hypochondriac and reading about "similar experiences" on the net is probably the worst you can do - I found everything from heart failures triggering such reactions to schizophrenia. Because of that, the whole Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday went by with me being paranoid if I'm not sick in the head, constantly asking myself "why does it happen? Why does it look different? Why do I feel different? Why me, I haven't ever had any problems! I don't have any problems at home. Why? When will it stop?" - things like that. I constantly felt this after-nap feeling, practically as if I started a new day during the "old" day. I had no holes in memory, problems with sharp thinking or recalling facts regarding my passions. I also lost any affection to things I love like programming, soccer and such - I just felt I don't want to do anything. It only made things worse and suddenly I felt, during one of such "waking-up" moments that I have a shallower breath. I measured my blood pressure - 175/105. After two hours it was 145/90 and I felt a world better - then, I decided to pay my doc a visit the next day. As if I was touched by a magic wand, I felt completely normal and relaxed thinking to myself "Oh, so probably I have problems with hypertension. Gonna heal that and whoo - I'm cured!".

The next day (yesterday) I went to college. Not a single moment of this weird feeling then - everything perfect and as normal. Then I went to the doc about my blood pressure. I was made an ECG which turned out great and (though I'm to make ultrasonography and blood/urine works as well, just to make sure) the doc told me I just need to relax, buy myself some melissa and take three 10mg propanolol pills a day. Right after walking out of my doc's - bam, this weird feeling again. Thinking about it now, I think my mind became terrified that it's not some physical thing causing this feeling problems but the complete opposite. I tried to calm down but practically the whole rest of the day I felt this weird feeling.

Today, from the very morning I felt this weird after-nap feeling again. I was constantly thinking when I'm gonna be OK and drinking two melissa teas, one melissa-based pills and this propanolol didn't help too much. However, I decided "OK, to hell with it! I'm gonna stop worrying and whenever the weird feeling comes, I'm just gonna ignore it as it's never happened!". After that, I felt great. Practically 4 hours of being happy, full of spirit to commiting what I love, everything perfect. A few hours ago, however, I decided to eat something. As I was finishing - BAM, this weird feeling again. I no longer could think just "to hell with it" as I just felt a shallow breath, faster pulse - some anxiety, I guess. I didn't know how to react so questions like "When is it going to pass? Why me, I've never had such problems? I don't want to worry my family. I don't want to stuff myself some psychotrophs! I don't want to be always weary and tired after them! No! Why?" came to mind and, of course, it only made things worse. Now, however, I feel great again and think "To hell with it!" again.

Sorry for the lengthy post, I just wanted to make sure everything is described nicely. So what should I do? I don't want to take stronger pills, injections or any of these. A week ago I was a merry 20-year-old man and I don't want to become anything else. I never drunk, smoked or done drugs. How should I react? Should I just take these propanolol and melissa pills for a few days more (it's only a second day today) and try to not think about my anxiety at all and whenever it happens, just try to calm down as much as I can (like the sticky topic says)? I never had any problems with my mental side so I'm quite disoriented whenever this weird thing happens and I want to be back to normal as soon as I can...

So... just "Keep calm and carry on" to cure that? :)

[Bertie123]

One more thing also... Even if I don't feel the "proper" anxiety (as in: shallow breath, faster pulse), I still feel this after-nap perceiving of world for most of the day. Should I worry about it or as soon as I eliminate the anxiety about this feeling, it should disappear along with the "hard" anxiety moments?

[mrsmischief]

Ive had to cut out naps all together because of the anxiety i would wake up with. Now i have insomnia and wish i could sleep even if it did make me anxious when waking up.

[trinidiva]

I think I am beginning to find this out the hard way.....I took a nap today and woke up feeling anxious and off balance.....

[Bertie123]

So I read the great stickies by PanicCured and it helped me a great deal. Yesterday, I tried to control my breathing and for the first time in these past days wasn't worried if I'm gonna have the attack - and it still hasn't happened since yesterday evening! It's great. Also, I had a nice, pleasant night sleep for the first time in days where I didn't feel any anxiety or nothing, had no weird thoughts - just an "empty" mind like I used to have before this whole anxiety-thing started.

Also, today was the first normal morning in days! I'm so excited, I just opened my eyes and had no after-nap feeling, eveything was clear and normal. Regretfully, I was so excited that I constantly kept comparing how cool is it to finally see and feel normally and now, for some hour, I have a slight (not comparable to the earlier ones, though, so improvement here as well!) after-nap feeling again. May it just be because of my constant focus on my feelings? I mean: should I try to remain calm even when I'm excited I finally feel the normal way to not trigger any adrenaline rush?

[locksey]

So I read the great stickies by PanicCured and it helped me a great deal. Yesterday, I tried to control my breathing and for the first time in these past days wasn't worried if I'm gonna have the attack - and it still hasn't happened since yesterday evening! It's great. Also, I had a nice, pleasant night sleep for the first time in days where I didn't feel any anxiety or nothing, had no weird thoughts - just an "empty" mind like I used to have before this whole anxiety-thing started.

Also, today was the first normal morning in days! I'm so excited, I just opened my eyes and had no after-nap feeling, eveything was clear and normal. Regretfully, I was so excited that I constantly kept comparing how cool is it to finally see and feel normally and now, for some hour, I have a slight (not comparable to the earlier ones, though, so improvement here as well!) after-nap feeling again. May it just be because of my constant focus on my feelings? I mean: should I try to remain calm even when I'm excited I finally feel the normal way to not trigger any adrenaline rush?

What's the diff btwn the threads and the stickies ?

[jessed03]

Stickies are highlighted at the top, in blue.