dmoney
06-25-2009, 07:59 PM
Hey everyone!
I'm 21-year-old male from Wisconsin and am new to the horrible world of anxiety.
It all started last May. Late one night I had what I thought was a heart attack or some sort of heart issue. My heart rate raced up to 160+ bpm and just stayed there. Around 3am I ended up convincing myself to get to an emergency room because this just didn't seem right. I started to feel dizzy and this intense shivering from being so cold because my heart was working so hard. This time the cardiologist on staff would diagnose it as sinus tachycardia related to dehydration. I just accepted this because he's a doctor, what do I know?
In late June after a very intense 4-person panel job interview that lasted several hours, the same feeling came back. This time my heart also started skipping beats. I felt like I was going to die again, something wasn't right. So again I found myself in an ER at a different hospital. This time they came to the conclusion that it was probably anxiety-related.
EKGs, a CT scan, and an ultrasound showed that I had no major heart problems. (I found out that my heart is smaller than it should be, but that's not really a big deal.) So, there I was.
I couldn't (and sometimes still cannot) convince myself that I don't have heart problems. I get random pains, weird anomalies, and launch into panic attack mode. I've always been alone every time I get them which doesn't help. The feeling of pressure on the chest, sweating, increased heart rate, it's just overall awful.
I was placed on lorazepam which I was supposed to take as needed. For awhile I was taking two daily to prevent attacks. In November of last year when I got my last refill, I've only taken three or four pills since.
I feel like I'm on some road to recovery without doing much but just convincing myself that everything's going to be okay.
Lately though, that feeling of "impending doom" has started to cloud my thoughts. That's why I am here, just looking for some sort of support in the event that I need it.
Hopefully I'll also be able to provide some kind of insight into things to help people too... Anyway, it's a pleasure to meet all of you and I look forward to the discussions here.
Thanks! (And sorry this post was so lengthy! I feel very wordy tonight.)
I'm 21-year-old male from Wisconsin and am new to the horrible world of anxiety.
It all started last May. Late one night I had what I thought was a heart attack or some sort of heart issue. My heart rate raced up to 160+ bpm and just stayed there. Around 3am I ended up convincing myself to get to an emergency room because this just didn't seem right. I started to feel dizzy and this intense shivering from being so cold because my heart was working so hard. This time the cardiologist on staff would diagnose it as sinus tachycardia related to dehydration. I just accepted this because he's a doctor, what do I know?
In late June after a very intense 4-person panel job interview that lasted several hours, the same feeling came back. This time my heart also started skipping beats. I felt like I was going to die again, something wasn't right. So again I found myself in an ER at a different hospital. This time they came to the conclusion that it was probably anxiety-related.
EKGs, a CT scan, and an ultrasound showed that I had no major heart problems. (I found out that my heart is smaller than it should be, but that's not really a big deal.) So, there I was.
I couldn't (and sometimes still cannot) convince myself that I don't have heart problems. I get random pains, weird anomalies, and launch into panic attack mode. I've always been alone every time I get them which doesn't help. The feeling of pressure on the chest, sweating, increased heart rate, it's just overall awful.
I was placed on lorazepam which I was supposed to take as needed. For awhile I was taking two daily to prevent attacks. In November of last year when I got my last refill, I've only taken three or four pills since.
I feel like I'm on some road to recovery without doing much but just convincing myself that everything's going to be okay.
Lately though, that feeling of "impending doom" has started to cloud my thoughts. That's why I am here, just looking for some sort of support in the event that I need it.
Hopefully I'll also be able to provide some kind of insight into things to help people too... Anyway, it's a pleasure to meet all of you and I look forward to the discussions here.
Thanks! (And sorry this post was so lengthy! I feel very wordy tonight.)