Hi everyone!

[JPatterson]

I'm 26 and have been experiencing this exact same anxiety. I have an irrational fear that i'm going to die from a heart attack. My heart will start beating loud and fast, I feel a tightness in my chest and on occasion feel as if my heart is skipping a beat followed by lightheadedness. I've had EKG's done, blood work, ran on the treadmill, physicals, heart monitor, and whatever else you can think of and I'm in perfect physical health. For whatever reason though my thoughts trick me into not believe this. The physical effects of anxiety make it seem so real yet I've never had a heart attack and I'm obviously not dead. A few triggers for me is overeating, laying down for whatever reason, drinking, and the MOVIES! (I had a bad panic attack one at the movies and haven't been able to go back). My Dr Prescribed me medication but I took it once and then never took it again. I don't like the idea of being reliant on a drug every day for my whole life so hopefully we can share techniques and therapies that aren't drug related. I plan on overcoming this and it would be great to work together on doing so with anyone who suffers similarly.

I've noticed a lot of people are 25-26 range and remember in health class that mental illnesses for some reason come around during that age.

[needtogetwell]

Welcome JPatterson,

You have come to a good place.

Since you are in good health, hopefully this will just be a passing thing for you. So I have a couple of questions for you.

1. How is your diet? Do you eat properly or on the go all the time with lots of fast or junk food?

2. What about stress levels? Outside of the anxiety, do you have a lot of stress in your life?

I'm not one to tell anyone to google anything but you might want to look up diet & anxiety , stress & anxiety and also look up magnesium $ anxiety. You may find some helpful hints how to get past this this and get your life back on track.

I have lived with anxiety issues for over 30 years and always find that if any of the 3 things I mentioned are out of whack then the anxiety is much worse.

Do some eesearch of your own and let us know what you found. We can always help you build a tool box with strategies to manage this.

Cheers!

[NixonRulz]

Hello there

Welcome to your mid 20's and anxiety. Your class was correct. 20's is the time most people get blessed with this

This is the second heart thread already this morning so it is right up Trick Dick's alley

I love that you say your thoughts "trick" you into believing something is wrong with your ticker. That is a sign you are well on your way to healing. You understand that anxiety is nothing more than a false narrative.

Movies as a trigger is a new one to me. I love new triggers! Everyone develops their own personal triggers based on when they panic and where they panic. Mine was restaurants and standing in a que. (que means standing in line for those not hip on the UK lingo)

Medications did wonders for me and was the most imporatant step I took to heal, although it was the least of things I wanted to do for reasons you mention.

I would take them forever if need be and I do not care that I would have to be on them. I would do it for my blood pressure or an infection, why not for my peace in my mind? Meds are there to help people that have not found a way to reduce their anxiety on their own

I am not advocating meds, just asking people not to be too close minded when it comes to taking them

Just a thought, you may want to repost your story in the general section. More people tend to respond there

[JPatterson]

1. How is your diet? Do you eat properly or on the go all the time with lots of fast or junk food? After highschool I started to drink a lot and gained a few pounds. I ended up turning that all around and completed P90X and started to really focus on my diet and making sure I ate a ton of vegetables, fruits, fish and lean meat. I rarely eat fast food and the only time I will is if I'm working late and need something cheap and quick. I will say that when I do I hyper focus on all the negatives about fast food and processed junk that i'm eating. For whatever reason my thoughts go straight to "that's not good for your heart". I don't eat as many fruits as I used too as money has become a little tight as I'm back at college trying to complete my degree while paying my other bills.

2. What about stress levels? Outside of the anxiety, do you have a lot of stress in your life? Yes, I've been at the same job for 10 years and wish I was somewhere else every day. Money is tight and the work is highly physical and demanding. I'm 26 back at college trying to complete my undergraduate degree.. I feel like i'm behind from most people my age. I moved back in with my mom, sisters, and my gf who moved in recently. It's tight quarters and I'll hopefully be moving out pretty soon as I just found a house that's in my price range. I'm a worry wart for sure any thought or situation that could happen runs through my head. I'm working on being more positive and i'm generally a very happy person. The heart palpitations really get my mind racing because they really feel so unnatural and put me in a mindset like "dang one of these are gonna kill me".

[gypsylee]

Welcome to the forum JPatterson :)