Depression and anxiety at same time

[emorris5219]

Feeling anxiety and depression simultaneously, or at least they're trading off at irregular intervals. Any insight on this?

[princesskj]

I'm going thru the exact same thing ;-/

[Lin]

My depression makes my moods really bad and my anxiety stops me having a social life, go to town or do lots of things I used to enjoy. I hate it all just horrible life.

[jbevis]

I have both too. It's so hard to deal with. If it's not one hitting you, it's the other. It seems like there is no escape. Sometimes I literally feel like I'm losing my mind.

[RossLeahy]

i suffer anxiety and depression and paranoia for 8 years now my anxiety is becoming unbareable thought i was at work today and had an attack it started with me driving to work and having pains in both my arms (which may or may not have been there seens as nobody can find anything medically wrong with me). I had to pull over and ring my mum who calmed me down enough that i could finish driving to work but when i got there thew attack came back and spiraled so quickly out of hand to point where i was sitting out the the back at work on floor screaming im dying im dying im going to die.

the feelings of anxiety i was feeling where super fast heart rate sweating dry mouth loss of all strength in my legs high rapid breathing muscle cramps in belly and upper arms from tension tingerling hands feet and face and more and more of my attacks are becoming like this and in total lasted for about hour and half.

If anybody could please talk to me or offer me advice or share stories would be much appreciated and if i can help in return would gladly do so.

Ross Leahy. 8 year anxiety paranoia and depression sufferer.

[Lin]

Dear Rossleay, hope you have found support from reading some of the posts on the forum. It has helped me lots in last few weeks and really helps talking to people who actually understand. You will get lots of support and suggestions to help from people's own experience of tablets and other ways of getting better, hope it helps you.

[jesikahlaine]

My attacks have s

[jesikahlaine]

My attacks have gone from 3-4 a day to maybe one a week & its usually provoked. Thats after starting medication.
I get most of the things u described besides the weakness in ur legs although my body does feel weak becos i feel like im going to pass out.
I had an attack yesterday where i felt like i was going to pass out mouth goes dry lips feel swollen etc. I talked myself out of it. It took a while but i done it. I had to keep telling myself ive had all this before & nothing happened so just wait for it to go.
It was provoked though.

[Lin]

Anxiety and panic attacks are horrible and can show in many ways in your body. During one it helps to breath slowly and concentrate on just your breath - as in meditation - this slows down your breathing and usually calms down all those thoughts inside your head.

[Judie]

Well,it certainly does seem like that at times. Many feel anxiety symptoms are just the physical aspect of depression. I never believed that but to look back on my life they do go hand in hand with times of stress and depression. The reality what comes first doesn't matter, I mean certainly someone suffering Panic Attacks will get depressed and if suffering depression it would be normal to get anxious. I guess it doesn't matter if the cart or the horse or the chicken or the egg came first -they do work together to keep you miserable :(. That's why I do believe it's important for all of us to get to the bottom of Negative Thoughts .

[Judie]

I was told and believe that Panic Attacks are your body's way of making you take notice of your depression and in doing so get help for that which may be the underlying cause. We all have things in our lives that perhaps upset us but we have blocked to some degree.

[Lin]

I was told a simple way to stop a panic attack yesterday - litterally just put some water on your lips.
So keep a bottle of water with you and have a quick slurp. Apparently at beginning of a panic attack your lips and mouth go dry, so if you stop it straightaway it stops the attack carrying on.
Sounds so easy if it works.

[streakybacon]

Interesting il b sure to keep some water close by from now on, would splashin water on the face help too?

[Xarzez]

I feel you man, I find I can't even deal with simple, normal things and interactions. It's made me feel so bad I've attempted suicide

[Lin]

Me too I get suicidal and I will try anything anyone recommends to see if it helps. I know if it helps, or others do, and then I try something else. Suicide thoughts get very strong at times and it is talking to other people like on here which can help.
Streakybacon - hope water trick has helped. I am keeping a bottle of water in my handbag all the time now.

[Xarzez]

I'm actually brand new here lol... But, I feel really safe and assured, like I finally found a group of people who are like me. Quick question, anyone else here ever experience derealisation? I get it a couple times a week and that's what really gets to me.

[warumtera]

i become oki by pathient and fightin anexiet or depression is something take only minutes >>and u can overcome it my friend

[RossLeahy]

Thank You Lin i have had really ruff couple of weeks with bad anxiety attacks so sorry about the late reply i am now started to take medication Venlafaxine been on it 3 days now so am hoping this can help along side my CBT therapy i attend will keep posting.

Ross Leahy.

[canyonlad66]

I have had anxiety solid for 3 months now.started with breathing problems which I thought were asthma but now realise they were panic attacks.My anxiety affects my breathing 24/7 in varying degrees and is worse when I am anywhere socially.I find this incredible because Ive always been outgoing and centre of attention kind of person.I often get spells at night when I feel a bit depressed but more upset and teary than suicidal.I refuse to take any meds because I feel they can screw you up more.I started taking ashwaghanda today which is an indian herb apparently good for anxiety.I hope so because this is doing my head in

[Lin]

My son has asthma so know how scary it can be and can see how panic attack and anxiety could feel the same. Remember to slow down your breathing and concentrate on breathing from stomach and on the breath and these panic attacks will end. Meditation will help too . just 5 minute of meditation every day will help to calm you down and give you some precious headspace to think rationally - only few minutes a day helps and then build up the length of time when able.to.

[Judie]

Canyonlad66, Try Fish Oil ( Omega 3 ) 2,000 mg a day. They are the brain function vitamins, work incredibly well as they are excellent for anxiety, depression , ADHD, Alzheimer's. This is the only thing I take for anxiety. They work as well, if not better then SSRI's ( Celexa, Paxil, Zoloft etc..) When my Panic Attacks first surfaced The most prominent symptom for me was also breathing ,caused by hyperventilation syndrome aka shallow breathing. Just begin to do deep breathing..count to 4 slowly inhaling through your nose , deep and rhythmic , hold for a second and then exhale to the same count of 4 slowly through your mouth...continue this, focus. Now the key is not only doing this when you feel anxious. Retrain your breathing, stop and consciously do this during the day at random times. Now I know how scary it feels to be short of breath but the fact is nothing will happen to you. You are throwing the Carbon Dioxide / Oxygen ratio off and that is what is making you light headed and short of breath.The absolute worst thing that would happen is you would faint, YOU WON'T because your brain will send a message to take in more oxygen and regulate your breathing ( hence the grasping that you think is your inability to breathe) So make it easier on yourself and retrain yourself to breathe correctly with the above exercises. Trust me , I not only have hyperventilated and shallow breathe regularly but I actually " hold my breath". So I too practice taking deep cleansing breaths. You will be fine. The Irony of Anxiety is that because of the hyperventilation scaring me sooooo much I quit smoking 30 years ago....SILVER LININGS there are always silver linings in life. You will get better, time and deep breaths that's all. Be Kind To Yourself.

[Judie]

For years I believed my Panic Attacks were a result of a physiological response to stress until I was informed that Panic Attacks are indeed a symptom of depression or in fact go hand in hand with depression. It is very difficult to understand this but I personally equate it to the Chicken and the Egg. Which came first, did debilitating anxiety that altered your life cause a depression or did your mind attempt to make you take notice of an underlying depression by producing bodily symptoms. Just like the Chicken and the Egg it truly does not matter what came first. The reality is they do co-exist, I think through my own experience anxiety people have a hard time accepting there may be a depression involved. The reality is that both anxiety and clinical depression are treatable with Positive Conditioning and or meds if clinical depression is beyond a mild depression. Stress is often the catalyst to anxiety and or depression. Stress is relentless and alters eating, sleeping, emotional and intellectual patterns that our body is accustomed to. Think in terms of a vacation, how many of you sleep well that first night ? Most do not because their biological and emotional routine has been thrown off. Be kind to yourself, figure out what stresses have perhaps upset your balance. Work at fixing the imbalance. Deep breathe, relax and know and accept in life the things we can change and the things we simply can't. Anxiety is transient, it will ease up but you must accept that it is caused by thought procces. Depression is treatable and so is Anxiety.

[Lin]

My clinical depression starts first and then the panic attacks and anxiety. Sometimes the wrong medication has caused my anxiety and panic attacks so changed meds many times, and on 16gm of diazepam to control the anxiety. New anti depressant started to work but then drugs for hormonal imbalance made me take a nose dive. Have now had a gynae operation and can only hope that this will work to help sort my hormone imbalance and will allow new anti depressant tablets to work, plus have doubled the dose of these.
Panic attacks and anxiety are completely irrational but feel real at the time and are hard to deal with. Everyone has their individual way of dealing with them, but I like to get as much advice as possible, try them all and then decide what works for me. Some days different things work than other days depending on sleep, whether pressure of work too etc.
We can only try to find our own solution to them and hope that we can stop them or depression goes away for a while and we get a break from them for a while.