Hello!

[dstweart223]

Hi Everyone,

I hope everyone is well. I am new to the forum and wanted to quickly introduce myself.

I began to have panic attacks roughly two years ago, the first being on a train on my way to work. The doors closed for the next stop and i began to feel like i was trapped, could not escape, could not breathe and was about to pass out. It was the worst feeling of my life and i though that i was going to die.

Over the next few days i developed a heavy fear of the subway and began to avoid it. I started taking the bus to work and things were fine for a few months as long as i didn't have to take the train, but then i moved to a new area where i either had to take an underground subway or cross a bridge via a bus to get to work everyday.

Again, at first everything was fine. I would take the bus to work without issue, but a few weeks ago i had a terrible panic attack on the bus while on the bridge. It was the same trapped feeling, stuck in an situation that i did not feel safe in, afraid that i would do something crazy like ask the driver to pull over in the middle of the bridge, and i now find myself developing the same fear of going over the bridge that i did for the subway. Based on my own research these symptoms would best reflect agoraphobia.

I've had to call out of work a few times when i could not bring myself to get on the bus in the morning and am in fear that I might be jeopardizing my job (although my employer has not mentioned anything).

I see a therapist once a week and was prescribed to carry around a clonopin in case i feel another attack coming on so that I have reassurance that i can take the pill and the feeling will go away.

I basically feel like i am losing control and don't want to end up housebound and read that people with similar issues have found these forums helpful so I wanted to give it a shot.

Any help, suggestions, etc. would be greatly appreciated. Thank you very much.

Best,
DS

[Kuma]

Hi DS. Welcome. This probably won't make you feel much better, but your situation is not all that unusual. This sort of anxiety often responds very well to Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. It is very different than traditional psychotherapy, and in my opinion it requires a lot more effort. But, of course, the effort is worthwhile. I would consider finding a therapist with expertise in CBT and giving it a shot. It also tends to be a relatively short-term modality, which keeps the cost down too. The good news is what you are dealing with CAN be managed. You can get back to a place where you feel OK taking transport to work.