How do you handle being alone during a panic attack

[NATALEE]

Hi everyone my name is Natalee I am new to the forum and am excited (not anxious LOL) to join.
I am 39 yrs old from Phx AZ. I have suffered from panic attacks now for about 6 yrs. I am on medication but i only use it when im having an attack to calm down due to it is a comfort for me to hoard them knowing i wont run out and having no medicine makes me even more anxious. So I had a question about my panic attacks and how i handle them. I wanted to know if anyone else can relate to me on that. I know most people talk about having a fear of an attack in public because they are embarrassed or feel like people will think they are crazy. I handle mine the opposite. I live alone and i have this dreading fear of passing out or dying in my apt all alone and nobody finding me for days... sounds dramatic i know but isnt that how we that struggle with panic can be lol. When i have an attack i will do whatever i can to leave my apt to be where i know there is help like a neighbor or someone around in case i do pass out then they will see me and call for help. I acually dont get embarasssed in public i feel safer like someone is there to call 911 or help me. My biggest fear when having an attack is fainting but this has acually never happened so u think i would not be afraid but each attack i swear it could happen. So what i have been doing lately is if I wake up in the middle of the night and feel this awful dread of doom come on i will get in my car (somehow i dont feel threatned to drive due to i feel in control to drive to a safe place if i need to or pull in a store gas station and know there is someone there to help me if i do indeed go into a fainting spell)
I have been driving myself to the nearest emergency room to me and i will sit in the parking lot where i can see the entrance doors just in case the attack gets so bad then i feel comfort i can run thru the doors and know help is on the way. The reason i dont acually go inside is i dont have insurance and it can get expensive to go to an ER everytime i have an attack. I will sit there until i calm down but just in case i have that heart attack or dying feeling i have help right there. I know for me when i am having a panic attack the place i want to be most is in a hospital knowing i can get medical attention if i get to the point of losing it. I was just wondering if anyone also feels safer in public or has ever felt better being close to a hospital or has ever just pulled in the paring lot to calm down? I have been in the ER at least 4 times for attacks in the past but i try now like i said not to go unless absolutely necessary. Please let me know... i would luv to hear experience if anythng like mine or my outlook on feeling safer in a public place.....sorry about my puncuation and running sentences im at work trying to type quickly....thx natalee

[NixonRulz]

Hi everyone my name is Natalee I am new to the forum and am excited (not anxious LOL) to join.
I am 39 yrs old from Phx AZ. I have suffered from panic attacks now for about 6 yrs. I am on medication but i only use it when im having an attack to calm down due to it is a comfort for me to hoard them knowing i wont run out and having no medicine makes me even more anxious. So I had a question about my panic attacks and how i handle them. I wanted to know if anyone else can relate to me on that. I know most people talk about having a fear of an attack in public because they are embarrassed or feel like people will think they are crazy. I handle mine the opposite. I live alone and i have this dreading fear of passing out or dying in my apt all alone and nobody finding me for days... sounds dramatic i know but isnt that how we that struggle with panic can be lol. When i have an attack i will do whatever i can to leave my apt to be where i know there is help like a neighbor or someone around in case i do pass out then they will see me and call for help. I acually dont get embarasssed in public i feel safer like someone is there to call 911 or help me. My biggest fear when having an attack is fainting but this has acually never happened so u think i would not be afraid but each attack i swear it could happen. So what i have been doing lately is if I wake up in the middle of the night and feel this awful dread of doom come on i will get in my car (somehow i dont feel threatned to drive due to i feel in control to drive to a safe place if i need to or pull in a store gas station and know there is someone there to help me if i do indeed go into a fainting spell)
I have been driving myself to the nearest emergency room to me and i will sit in the parking lot where i can see the entrance doors just in case the attack gets so bad then i feel comfort i can run thru the doors and know help is on the way. The reason i dont acually go inside is i dont have insurance and it can get expensive to go to an ER everytime i have an attack. I will sit there until i calm down but just in case i have that heart attack or dying feeling i have help right there. I know for me when i am having a panic attack the place i want to be most is in a hospital knowing i can get medical attention if i get to the point of losing it. I was just wondering if anyone also feels safer in public or has ever felt better being close to a hospital or has ever just pulled in the paring lot to calm down? I have been in the ER at least 4 times for attacks in the past but i try now like i said not to go unless absolutely necessary. Please let me know... i would luv to hear experience if anythng like mine or my outlook on feeling safer in a public place.....sorry about my puncuation and running sentences im at work trying to type quickly....thx natalee

Wow. Lots of info here

First, fainting from panic is one of the most rarest things

Here's why.

I order to faint, it has nothing to do with breathing. It's all about blood pressure

Your blood pressure HAS to drop in order to pass out or faint

When you are experiencing panic, guess what happens?

You know the answer

Your blood pressure rises

So you have to have a real condition that causes your blood pressure to drop in order to faint

The ER seems to be a safe place to you

That is a illusion. It does t matter where you are, panic can hit you

The more you alter your normal behavior in order to avoid panicking, the deeper it gets in you

You associate certain things that you do caused you to avoid an attack

So you do those things thinking that is what you have to do to not panic

Now you are living your life running from danger that isn't even real

Look around at the similar stories here

Ultimately you need to panic away and realize it's not dangerous. Just uncomfortable

When you understand this, the feelings subside and just eventually stop

[homebird]

I haven't driven to the hospital (well, that's not true. I did once, but I was suicidal and needed to be admitted. Different situation). But I do feel better if I am in a public place when I am feeling anxious or having a panic attack. I usually will go shopping or something if it's during the day. Just walk around and look at people and remind myself that I'm not dying and life is going to go on after the panic subsides. If I am alone or and it's night time, I will watch TV and distract myself with "normal" things that make me feel less alone.

[darkavenger]

Greetings,

I just want to react to part where NixonRulez mentioned that panic attack is rising Your BP. If I may, from my own experience, it's not always like that. TBH, fainting-like sensation is very usual while going through panic attack due to simple reason. You're hyperventilating most of the time, and hyperventilation [oversaturation of Your blood oxygen level [SpO2]] can as well as low blood pressure and insufficent oxygen cause fainting, though - never the full scale fainting, where You pass out, but the one where You lose Your conciousness for a short periods of time and feel really bad. You have ant feeling in Your limbs, fingers mostly, Your lips may go numb, and You start to lose picture in front of You, You may feel extremely disoriented, and You feel like You faint, if You don't do something about hyperventilation.

Also in rare cases Your BP can go low while experiencing panic attack, though this one is not often, I did experience it also.

Hope this helps a bit,

regards

Bryan

[Im-Suffering]

OP take note, for you have lost your way. So a special message today is given.

Today I shall remind you all of your birthright. You were born with each and every attribute listed. For the world was good. You are inherently good. Now somewhere between here and there you have forgotten, or have been told you are the opposite, or made to feel the opposite is truth. It is not.

In a world of seeming opposites, you could never fully explore secure-ness without the experience of insecurity. It's a crafty children's game, but effective. If insecurity leads you to security, then insecurity has served its purpose, it's only purpose. And I mention this because it is on topic to the thread, each of you defining how or when or what you do, to feel secure. As if you have lost something, and cannot find it. You were born secure. Earth was meant to be a secure environment where through the experiences of insecurity you can learn security. A stage for the game.

A loving father, by analogy, would place his child confidently in a playground, where the playground itself is safe. However within the boundaries of the park the child could have insecure experiences. Now should the child fall off the swing, she may believe the entire park is unsafe, you see. A distorted view of reality. Growing up she may avoid all parks, not remembering the pleasant experiences with friends, dad, etc. a negative mind will draw to it like thoughts.

I present to you, the attributes in oneself (and definitions) producing an unfavorable mental climate for anxiety, it simply cannot take root :

Security.

b : easy in mind : confident
c : assured in opinion or expectation : having no doubt
2
a : free from danger
b : free from risk of loss

Trust.

reliance on the integrity, strength, ability, surety, etc., of a person or thing; confidence. 2. confident expectation of something; hope. 3. confidence in the certainty ...

Faith.

1.
confidence or trust in a person or thing:
faith in another's ability.
2.
belief that is not based on proof:

Courage.

mental or moral strength to venture, persevere, and withstand danger, fear, or difficulty

Confidence.

a : a feeling or consciousness of one's powers or of reliance on one's circumstances <had perfect confidence in her ability to succeed> <met the risk with brash confidence>
b : faith or belief that one will act in a right, proper, or effective way <have confidence in a leader>
2
: the quality or state of being certain : certitude <they had every confidence of success>

Self reliance.

: reliance on one's own efforts and abilities

Strength.

the quality that allows someone to deal with problems in a determined and effective way

Decision.

a : the act or process of deciding
b : a determination arrived at after consideration : conclusion <make a decision>
2
: a report of a conclusion <a 5-page decision>
3
: promptness and firmness in deciding : determination <acting with decision>

Capable.

3
: having attributes (as physical or mental power) required for performance or accomplishment <is capable of intense concentration>

self–worth

: a feeling that you are a good person who deserves to be treated with respect, capable, strong, powerful

Integrity.

: the state of being complete or whole, true to self

Self esteem

: a feeling of having respect for yourself and your abilities

Self love.

: love of self:
b : regard for one's own happiness or advantage

"If ye shall have the faith of a mustard seed, ye shall move mountains and the world will open up for you"