Hello

[pjr378]

Hi, I just signed up today to the forum. I visited this site in the past to read your discussions since I've dealt with panic/tension problems over the past few years but earlier today I experienced what I think was a full-blown panic attack, the first one of my life. It was genuinely frightening and I hope that it's not something that will get worse. I'm 35 and though my anxieties aren't making life too difficult, I'd like to deal with them better.

[RachelLangley]

Hi, I just signed up today to the forum. I visited this site in the past to read your discussions since I've dealt with panic/tension problems over the past few years but earlier today I experienced what I think was a full-blown panic attack, the first one of my life. It was genuinely frightening and I hope that it's not something that will get worse. I'm 35 and though my anxieties aren't making life too difficult, I'd like to deal with them better.

Welcome to the site. :)
I'm sorry to hear about your attacks. I hope they get better for you. You can never quite tell when they're gonna come on nor when they'll go away or how bad they may get but try to focus on the more positive things instead of the negative. Practice breathing techniques. I'm into natural medicine but sharing my opinions on this site have upset some people so if it gets worse I'd consult a doctor. You CAN get through this though, YOU have control.

[paul1981]

Hi there
Hope you are ok, when I had my first it was the scariest thing to ever happen to me, but you know what, apart from being really uncomfortable it was nothing more. What has really helped me has been cognitive behavioural therapy, I'm a worrier and the constant negative thoughts can bring you down its about challenging things like that and also understanding panic and how it means your not going crazy and that it's just a natural reaction of the body, unpleasant but natural.

[pjr378]

Hi to all who replied. I guess you can call me a third generation panicker because my mother and her mother have experienced attacks in their lives. I have the same kind of nerves as they do, only mine seem to be getting worse in some areas whereas they've moved on from them. I've had overwhelming tension in the past, but this time was really bad. It was so bad I had to lay down on my bed and wait it out. My chest felt like it was being sucked inward by a vacuum and I guess breathing helped a little but it still felt like there was a ball inside of my chest. I literally couldn't move my body for about 20 or 30 minutes and when I tried to stand up I felt crippled. I took my pulse and it was almost 90. Usually my pulse is somewhere in the 60s when I'm not active.

I think what set the entire thing off is the fact that heat was coming up in my apartment. About five years ago I had a reaction to a flu shot I was given and I passed out when it happened to get hot inside of my kitchen (I was cooking dinner at the time and on the phone with my mom). I ended up with a heart arhythmia and was kept in hospital for three days. That issue is past me but now I seem to get overcome with anxiety whenever I'm in a stuffy place. The apartment I'm in is one of the old tenement types where radiators blast you with heat every so often. I have to keep a couple of windows open to make it cool inside and that usually calms me down.