Somebody please help me!!

[bananasmiles]

Okay so I was at the beach today with my dad and I had the worst anxiety attack I have ever had in my life. I have experienced burning in the back of my head and neck on and off for the past couple of months, which seems to go away whenever I massage it. But whenever it happens to me,I completely freak out. When I have an attack, it seems as if my mind has been drawn from reality, like I am still there, but I feel emotionless, like a robot. And its like my eyes feel weird, like I am perceiving things differently and I am trying to focus on everything at once. My hands are currently shaking and I don't know why, cause I don't feel that anxious right now. Leading up to the attack I had tingling in my hands and feet, but the next morning I felt the best I have ever felt in a really long time. Then later that same day, everything spiraled downward after I got that burning. Now I am back in this depressing state of mind, and at the beach I started having actual vision problems, like I thought I saw this black figure when I looked at the sky and when I kept staring I saw snowlike figures. After I slept, I felt better, but I still feel like i am in that weird state of mind. i literally cannot handle it anymore, i am depressed and i dont feel like doing anything anymore. What is going on with me, I dont know what to do, and no one has replied to my previous posts, so i now i feel more alone than ever. Is this GAD or a serious like nerve illness. My doctor described me Paxil, is that a good idea? Anything, anything, please help me.

[NixonRulz]

Where to start?......

In the position you are in, taking a med is probably a great idea. When my anxiety and panic were at their worst, meds were the thing that got me settled. One tip of advice, sometimes it may take a bit of time to find the one that works as you hope. Be patient and when you find the right one, it will be a big help

And yes, you have nervous illness. A condition that Claire Weeks often referred to. It is NOT mental illness. Not similar to bipolar or schizophrenia at all. So no, you are not going to "catch" these mental illnesses

I ask this often so I will ask you. How many panic attacks do you have to go through before they are a little scary and uncomfortable but not dangerous. I suppose everyone has a different quantity but once you realize they are harmless, it tends to take that scary feeling away which ultimately is the reason why they cease. No fear there is no panic

[bananasmiles]

Where to start?......

In the position you are in, taking a med is probably a great idea. When my anxiety and panic were at their worst, meds were the thing that got me settled. One tip of advice, sometimes it may take a bit of time to find the one that works as you hope. Be patient and when you find the right one, it will be a big help

And yes, you have nervous illness. A condition that Claire Weeks often referred to. It is NOT mental illness. Not similar to bipolar or schizophrenia at all. So no, you are not going to "catch" these mental illnesses

I ask this often so I will ask you. How many panic attacks do you have to go through before they are a little scary and uncomfortable but not dangerous. I suppose everyone has a different quantity but once you realize they are harmless, it tends to take that scary feeling away which ultimately is the reason why they cease. No fear there is no panic

When I get an attack, I am fearful of my life, the second I get one, I google all the symptoms i am feeling, and feel a need to go to the emergency room. And then for days and sometimes weeks, i feel like im an in a weird mental state. Last night however, i had this burning in my head, but i went swing dancing and i still felt the burning a little but i felt so happy and more free, and good again. I guess i just have to find things like that to get my mind off of it.

[NixonRulz]

When I get an attack, I am fearful of my life, the second I get one, I google all the symptoms i am feeling, and feel a need to go to the emergency room. And then for days and sometimes weeks, i feel like im an in a weird mental state. Last night however, i had this burning in my head, but i went swing dancing and i still felt the burning a little but i felt so happy and more free, and good again. I guess i just have to find things like that to get my mind off of it.

You don't need things to get your mind off of it. You need to get your mind on it and let it come. No more fear. Welcome all the panc and bullshit that comes with it but just feel it happen and almost watch yourself through it.

It stops no matter what you do. And when you go through it enough and you don't run away or start doing distractions, you will notice that the fear subsides so the attack stops

And swing dancing is way cool. the 30's and 40's were the best generation

[jessed03]

Nixon's right. There really is no way to fight a panic attack. I guess you could take a benzo, but that isn't a viable long term plan, what with addiction and stuff.

The best thing you can do is just allow the fear to flow through you. Because it will if you allow it to. It'll flow right through you like water. Sometimes it feels like a panic attack won't end, or you need to do something to save yourself. That's not the case. It's a surge of adrenaline, one that's too intense for your body to deal with in one go. But like other hormones, your body will metabolize it, and that horrible feeling will go away eventually. When it does, you'll feel better. Anxiety can't kill you or make you crazy. Too many of us spend years of our lives believing or fearing it can.

I just used to lie on my bed, close my eyes, and let the whole thing happen. There are other ways to manage, but I figured I was in for 10 minutes or so of horror, so I might as well just lie there and let it happen, a bit like I would do at the dentist or something. I just reminded myself it was a surge of adrenaline, that my body was metabolizing it, that I'd soon feel better... Then before I knew it, I did feel better.

Submitting to it definetly helped. It shorted the attacks considerably and took a lot of the bite out of them.

Claire Weekes talks about not adding secondary fear to your anxiety. When you get that initial surge of adrenaline, and you can feel trouble brewing, the absolute best thing to do is let it come and pass without adding more fear and more adrenaline to it. Of course, when you worry you're dying, or you start saying OMG! OMG!, you add all these extra layers of fear to your attack and just make the whole thing worse.

That's the essence of getting better, really. Just allowing that horrible feeling of panic to come and go. Sure, it'll make a huge fuss, but it will go, and sooner than expected if you just let it.

The first few times you do this are weird. You feel vulnerable, but also empowered. You feel a little shaken up, because attacks are shocking, but you feel a little hopeful because you have a weapon. You know you can survive these things, and that's super important.

[bananasmiles]

You don't need things to get your mind off of it. You need to get your mind on it and let it come. No more fear. Welcome all the panc and bullshit that comes with it but just feel it happen and almost watch yourself through it.

It stops no matter what you do. And when you go through it enough and you don't run away or start doing distractions, you will notice that the fear subsides so the attack stops

And swing dancing is way cool. the 30's and 40's were the best generation

Lol yes, I agree. Okay I will try. It just seems like a neverending cycle of whatifs. Just accepting it and letting fear flow through me will probably be one of the hardest things I will ever do. But I will try and fight. Thanks for your reply.

[bananasmiles]

Nixon's right. There really is no way to fight a panic attack. I guess you could take a benzo, but that isn't a viable long term plan, what with addiction and stuff.

The best thing you can do is just allow the fear to flow through you. Because it will if you allow it to. It'll flow right through you like water. Sometimes it feels like a panic attack won't end, or you need to do something to save yourself. That's not the case. It's a surge of adrenaline, one that's too intense for your body to deal with in one go. But like other hormones, your body will metabolize it, and that horrible feeling will go away eventually. When it does, you'll feel better. Anxiety can't kill you or make you crazy. Too many of us spend years of our lives believing or fearing it can.

I just used to lie on my bed, close my eyes, and let the whole thing happen. There are other ways to manage, but I figured I was in for 10 minutes or so of horror, so I might as well just lie there and let it happen, a bit like I would do at the dentist or something. I just reminded myself it was a surge of adrenaline, that my body was metabolizing it, that I'd soon feel better... Then before I knew it, I did feel better.

Submitting to it definetly helped. It shorted the attacks considerably and took a lot of the bite out of them.

Claire Weekes talks about not adding secondary fear to your anxiety. When you get that initial surge of adrenaline, and you can feel trouble brewing, the absolute best thing to do is let it come and pass without adding more fear and more adrenaline to it. Of course, when you worry you're dying, or you start saying OMG! OMG!, you add all these extra layers of fear to your attack and just make the whole thing worse.

That's the essence of getting better, really. Just allowing that horrible feeling of panic to come and go. Sure, it'll make a huge fuss, but it will go, and sooner than expected if you just let it.

The first few times you do this are weird. You feel vulnerable, but also empowered. You feel a little shaken up, because attacks are shocking, but you feel a little hopeful because you have a weapon. You know you can survive these things, and that's super important.

Okay, I will do my best. It sounds like one of the scariest things ever, but I will try.

[jshen]

Are you in the states? I'm from CA and it was so hot here, good beach day. Anyway, you are def not alone. When anxious, your not in your right mind and thinking can become hard. I too deal with a weird feelings, and the feeling of being detached from everything when I'm anxious. It sucks and it is the worst feeling but knowing that it isn't dangerous is good to keep in mind when going through it. But no, you are absolutely NOT alone.