Update. I've been gone for a few weeks.

[JustAnotherAttack]

Hey everyone...I was really active on this forum for about a month I believe and then all of a sudden I just stopped.
My life has taken some crazy twists and so stress has been pretty high. I do quite a few things to distract myself and keep myself busy.

I was having panic attacks several times per day everyday for so long...and I'm happy to report that isn't the case anymore (for now).
For the last couple of weeks I've had only a few total and they weren't as bad as they usually are.
Granted I've had a lot on my mind to keep me occupied I do feel relief because I'm not suffering through another attack.
I don't know really if I did anything to change this or if they just went away on their own.

Anyway...I'm back on here because today I took 2 Excedrin Migraine pills and now I feel dizzy.
Dizzyness is the main symptom of panic attacks for me, so it reminded me of the constant feeling of panic.
I realize that I'm okay and its just the meds because there is caffeine in the Excedrin that I took.

Something that I think contributed to the absence of my panic attacks was drastic cut down on caffeine.
I don't drink sodas, eat chocolate, or drink coffee or teas anymore because of the amount of caffeine in them. I've been downing quite a bit of water lately.
Not only does water make you feel better, but it also has no caffeine. :)
Caffeine, I think, was one of the major culprits that was causing my anxiety attacks.
I used to consume tea, coffee, and sodas all in one day.
I started by cutting coffee out of my life.

Funny story...
I was CRAVING coffee the other day and so my husband took me to go get a coffee and I drank the entire 20oz. coffee that he bought me. I had a feeling as soon as I took my first drink that it was a mistake.
About an hour later I started feeling shaky and like I couldn't catch my breath...I felt really dizzy too. I used to drink several cups of coffee throughout the day and it never effected me like this 20oz. cup did.
The next day I was still feeling the effects a little bit, but I've not had coffee since.
I went grocery shopping this morning and I'm happy to say that I bought some Folgers Decaf to see how that interacts with me. It should be fine, but I'm not sure if I'll love the taste as much as normal coffee.

Anyway, so thats my update. Things in my life are sort of crazy right now and I figured that I would write this. If you don't cut caffeine out...you should try. :)
It really has made a difference in my life.

[newzie]

That is amazing news! It is so refreshing to see/read that someone who was once suffering so badly is now doing so well. It will only continue to improve!:)

I know the feeling about doing something that brings back those feelings of anxiety, but you are doing the right thing by telling yourself it is just the excedrin. The first time I had an anxiety episode and came through to the light, I had to go on anti biotics for a week do to an illness a few months after feeling like myself. I remember one day it made me awfully lightheaded and made me not very hungry (so of the main symptoms of anxiety for me). Well, after about 2 hours of freaking out that an anxiety 'episode' was coming back I put 2 and 2 together and realized it was the antibiotics. After those two hours, I didn't feel the pang of anxiety again.

The lack of posting usually means a good thing:) You'll see people post about things they are doing to improve their lives/anxiety and then one day, poof, they're gone. That is usually a good sign that whatever they are doing is working and they don't have the 'time' to spend on anxiety forums or the like:P

[tailspin]

Hi JustAnotherAttack! It's good to see you again. I was thinking about you! Great to hear that you're doing so much better and that you know why! It must be a huge relief to be able to pinpoint the trigger for your anxiety attacks and then to be able to eliminate it! Really happy for you!

[JustAnotherAttack]

Hi JustAnotherAttack! It's good to see you again. I was thinking about you! Great to hear that you're doing so much better and that you know why! It must be a huge relief to be able to pinpoint the trigger for your anxiety attacks and then to be able to eliminate it! Really happy for you!

Heya Tailspin. :)
I was thinking about you too, lol! I didn't want you guys to think that I forgot all about yall. :)
I've been doing really well with my anxiety. The dizziness has subsided quite a bit.
I've been doing things to sort of limit my anxiety. I've almost completely cut out caffeine. I occasionally have a soda or tea, but mostly I'm drinking water and things without caffeine in it.
I even switched to decaf coffee and surprisingly it doesn't taste horrible, lol.
Coffee was a major thing for me to cut out. I completely quit drinking it for a couple of months, but I missed it so much. Glad that I like decaf...some people hate it. :)

Anyway, how are you!??