irrational fears-panic disorder HELP!!!

[hypochondriac1993]

Wusaup peeps,

First off I hate being this symptom reassurance person about anxiety and what not, but I need help. A huge part of my panic disordes being where it's at and the severity is fueled by GAD, depression, obsessions, and irrational fears. My irrational fears are having a stroke or a brain anneurism. Anything neurological that is sudden death basically. When I first got panic attacks it was fear of heart attack, than it moved to brain shit. Which is 10 times more scarier to me than the heart stuff. I'm not sure if I developed these fears after panic disorder or before and the disorder brought it out. I can't stop obsessing over strokes or brain anneurisms. Whenever I have an attack obviously the symptoms resemble those because Im terrified of those. It creates an impending doom mood throughout my day and makes it hard to do things like drive a car(really hard for me) cause I think im gonna lose control of my car due to that and .my symptoms . Im only 21 years old, it should be the time of my life right now. And I feel the stress on my body will lead to a TIA or something. Anyone can relate? Advice?? Id greatly appreciate it?

Symtoms
-feeling off balance
-detached
-shooting head pains
-weak legs and arms(I walk like reptar from rugrats sometimes because my legs feel so weak and incordinated)
-motor skills seem off
-just feel really weird and not like myself

Does all of this sound like anxiety? Sorry if I bored you guys. Doctor wasn't concerned at all. Best wishes

[Goomba]

Yeah, it all sounds like anxiety. I literally just finished getting over this. I was having a lot of weird visual issues, and my nurse friend suggested it might be a stroke. My doctors weren't worried either, but I was! Lol

After I became aware that it could be a stroke, it was a daily struggle for a very long time. I would notice that I always felt like I was walking off balance. I felt as if my limbs were getting weaker. I had pins and needles everywhere. I noticed weird things happening with my pupils. I developed a connection where every time I felt a pain in my body I also felt my head pulse. I got shooting pains in my head, and felt tingles. I'm sure there is more lol.

I went to a neurologist and he wasn't concerned, but he still did an MRI of my brain, and everything checked out. Since then, my anxiety behind it went away, and so did all my symptoms. I feel great! You can too!

[hypochondriac1993]

Wow glad to know someone sufferes the same thing as I do. Thought I was loosing my marbles. I have all of those symptoms and more. Like numbness(possibly imagined); or I get so disassociated that I hate being behind the wheel which sucks cause I have to drive. It's so stressful for me. And it limits me. Pretty upset.

[Goomba]

Also, I read that you said you're only 21 years old and that you should be having the time of your life right now. That mindset was the exact cause of my anxiety, and still is to a degree ( I think I already told you). But, I felt that I should be in my prime and living my dreams, but I felt awful, and stuck. Just experiencing things again helped me to move forward.

This time of my life was the first time I realized how vulnerable we really are. We always have these grandiose ideas that everyone is going to live a very long time, etc, etc. Really, you never truly know. We try to fit ourselves into a perfect picture of life, and control it, but ANYTHING "could" happen, and it's always been that way. Live in the moment, enjoy now, because that's all there ever really is. The possibilities of what could happen, "good" or "bad", are endless. But, if you focus too much on them you won't live your life.

If you are depressed, you are living in the past. If you are anxious, you are living in the future. Live in the now.

[Goomba]

I perceived a lot of things as numbness as well. That is also gone. I think the detachment comes from getting depressed about it. At my worst, I felt like everything was fake, and I wasn't really here. It all goes away, but you have to explore you to figure out how.

[hypochondriac1993]

Wow dude everything you said is what I'm going through. All about death and vulnerability. The hardest for me is set backs. You get that taste of freedom and you think it's in the past, and right when you start getting cozy it comes back. I always try and remind myself it's a set back, but it's like how Many set backs until freedom?? Great advice though . And thanks for taking time to talk to me, really helps. Usually people don't even respond to my threads. Lol can't say I blame em

[hypochondriac1993]

Did you ever suffer panic attacks? And thank you Frankie!! It's crazy all of the symptoms anxiety can cause.

[Goomba]

Not a problem, friend. I wouldn't say I suffered from panic attacks, but I definetly had some strong ones. In fact, a string of them is what plummeted me into my anxious phase. Don't be discouraged by the set backs. It happens to us all. There are going to be good days, and then there will be bad, but that's ok! It's actually a sign that you are healing. And you're still alive on the bad days, you're still you, just experiencing life to a different degree. Take some time to find what your anxiety is trying to tell you/figure out what lessons you can learn about yourself. That will strengthen the good days, and your perspective.

[hypochondriac1993]

Thanks Frankie!!! And what were you're attacks caused by? What was the experience? Mine usually come from symptoms in combination of "I think I'm having a..." Thinking. Great recipe for panic, and a lot of weird things. Like id forget how things feel and it would make me panic. Like I'd rub my nose and it will feel like different(like numb) even though it's probably not causing an attack. If that makes any sense, Or randomly notice stuff like the weight in my feet causing me to feel off balance like I'm gonna pass out or something. Also objects will feel weird in my hands, like the weight and what not. Weird I know. I guess depersoalization is to blame?

[Goomba]

The first time I remember having one, I felt extremely detached. I had been noticing so many crazy things with my vision, and I was becoming convinced something was wrong. I remember watching tv, and then I was just gone, like I was in another realm or something. The following weeks I broke down everyday. I had every symptom you described. When you really start analyzing your body, and pay attention to every feeling, especially in an anxious state, you notice crazy things. I would feel like I was losing my mind, and would get pain everywhere. Numbness and weird sensations everywhere. Heart would be all over the place. I could feel my pulse in every cm of my body. But, I kept fighting, and it has all stopped.

[lyssarae27]

I had the EXACT same thing. Even the exact same symptoms. When all of my panicking started I thought my heart was going to stop. I was afraid I would go to sleep and not wake up. I was terrified of sleeping. Then once I finally stopped believing my heart was bad I moved to my brain. I thought I had a brain tumor. I even had MIR's done at 12 years old because I was absolutely convinced I had a tumor. When the results came back clean I was convinced that they missed something. I can assure you that you are absolutely fine. You really have to make yourself believe that this IS anxiety. And it WILL go away. My mother always told me, "This, too, shall pass." Good luck!

[hypochondriac1993]

Thanks so much guys!! Glad to know people have gone through the same thing.:) thanks for talking to me!

[Niicole Lynne]

I feel like this post explains how I feel all the time.
heart attack and aneurisms and what not.
I feel those exact same sensations

[Niicole Lynne]

Your post made m feel alot better because this is how I feel lately. I try and tell myself it is JUST anxiety but it doesnt always work

[Curtis D]

this is exactly how i felt today when i went to target. when i was in the store i started to think about a stroke and then my leg got kind of numb then i made a run for the car and then home for the rest of the night... grrrrr