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View Full Version : New here, bit of a ramble about problems..



Bec
11-29-2008, 03:51 AM
Hey everyone, I think what Im experiencing at the moment is anxiety/panic but Im having real problems trying to convince myself its this. I had quite a bad hangover yesterday and felt ill all day, a bit sickly and fluey, my mum felt ill the other day as well so for a while I just thought it was probably either what she had or still the effects of the hangover. Then I thought I heard my heart beat really pound for a few seconds and was really restless worrying over lots of things during the night, had a bit of sleep but not much then woke really early in the morning and felt really stiff, achey, tense and I could feel a bit of pain that came and went in my arms and hands and numbness in my fingers. My chest felt tight and a bit painful and because my arms were getting pains as well I began to get really frightened and shivery. I do have a complex about my heart, at the first sign of any odd pain or twinge in my chest my brain immediately thinks heart attack. The rational part of my brain thinks it is anxiety but then the pains start up again and I cant get away from thinking Im about to die and my hearts failing. The symptoms are less when I really try and distract myself but they're still here a bit now, Ive not had a full blown panic attack but I keep doing silly things like checking my pulse and heart rate and convincing myself its abnormal.

Again the rational part of my mind that can never seem to win me over knows theres quite a definate cause of panic/anxiety if thats what it is. My dad died last April of a sudden heart attack at home as a result of undetected heart disease. It literally seemed that everything was fine one minute, then he was just gone the next, in hindsight he seemed a bit run down and stressed for a while before it happened but nothing out of the ordinary for a middleaged businessman. He was relatively young, aged 47. It came as a huge shock to us and everyone he knew. A couple of weeks after I had a few days of really bad panic attacks, I was convinced I was dying and that I was going to have a heart attack, and was annoyed at myself for being all worried about myself and seemingly interrupting everyone elses grief, I really really couldnt help it but felt selfish at the same time..Id feel generally weak, feel the plunge of fear/shock down into my stomach, get aches, pains, tightness in my chest, dizzyness, shortness of breath, rapid heart rate, blackouts, shakiness and really thought something terrible was about to happen. I went to the doctors and she reassured me everything was fine medically and it was panic attacks and they were normal considering what had happened, she checked my blood pressure and cholesterol levels and they were normal. She also said 20 yr old females would make medical history if they just suddenly died of a heart attack, which I had to laugh at a bit and felt really silly.. Since then Id had no other signs of anxiety but it seems that now, months later, with no real reason other than continued grief, stress, and depressive episodes ..its back. I dont really know whats happening to me, and thought I'd overcome the anxiety months ago, and cant seem to really convince myself that anxiety is what it is anymore. My dads' dad died young of a heart attack as well so heart disease is pretty agressive in the family, and another thing Ive never had this fear before but since last night Ive been scared to go in the room where my dad died incase it happens to me too, and thats obviously completely irrational.

I dont really know why Im posting all this on here, I think i just wanted to vent a bit and organise my thoughts, any of your opinions would be much appreciated though, I can rationalise things but generally feel really overwhelmingly scared.

sarah30
11-29-2008, 12:17 PM
What you are feeling is the anxiety. the more you worry about your heart it could lead you into a full panic attack. I know I have fought them for over my whole life. First, of all what you are feeling is normal. Your father dies of a heart attack so you are worried you may too. My mother to had a heart attack at a young age of 45. Thank god she is fine now. But, during that time I worried all the time about having one. Checking my pulse was the first symptom than worring about it beating to fast. Then came the dizziness and wham full blown attack. Try braething exercises when you start this kind of thinking if you can calm yourself down first you will not have a full attack. You will not have a heart attack. You are very young and most likely all is wel with your heart. Thearpy can help alot with anxiety and maybe, help you deal with your fathers passing. I will pray for you and hope the best. But, you r not alone in this fight of anxiety and panic we all must fight and live. God bless

northstar
11-29-2008, 04:12 PM
hi bec :)

i'm so sorry that you lost your dad, that must have been incredibly difficult to deal with. i'm not surprised, with the suddenness of how it happened, that you are left with an uncertainty and fear about your own life. if you haven't thought about it already then i thoroughly recommend you see a counsellor for a while to help you to deal with what happened and how it's left you feeling. i found therapy very very helpful, you may find the same. you can even check if there is a bereavment group in the area you live in?

i also wanted to mention about how alcohol can create anxiety, the panicky feelings and heart palpitations you mention having with your hangover are actually quite a common reaction to alcohol. firstly it play havoc with your blood sugars which can cause all kinds of anxiety and panic symptom and also when you're hungover you're burning through your body's nutrients and putting your body under extra stress which can also create anxiety. so your wobbly day with the hangover is not unusual and can be combatted by avoiding alcohol or cutting down on how much you drink, eating good healthy food along with the alcohol and the following day and making sure you also drink plenty of water. i too get heart palpitations and anxiety if i have too much to drink, so i tend to just not drink much anymore to to simply accept the symptoms as they come :)

if you'd like to read more about the types of things that helped me to get through anxiety you can take a look at this post: http://www.anxietyforum.net/forum/about4087.html

i hope you find something helpful in there and that you're feeling ok again soon :)

if you'd like to read

Bec
11-30-2008, 05:58 PM
Thankyou very much both of you for your reassurance and advice.

Im pretty certain that what it was now was panic, and since then all the symptoms have mostly gone. I just have a bit of the achey thing left and I think thats just a virus/stress.

Sarah30 Im sorry about your mums heart attack, that must have been frightening for you but Im glad she got through it and is ok now. I realise that excessive worrying will just make the symptoms worse and if I should have one again Ill try the breathing thing.

northstar I have thought about counselling for grief, I may consider it more if everything really starts to get on top of me..so thankyou.
Also I didnt know that alcohol was sometimes linked with anxiety, thats interesting. It could definitely have had a lot to do with what happened, Im not an excessive drinker but I might look after myself a little better when I next drink :lol:
Ill check out the link as well :)

Again thanks again both of you, Im ok for the time being but Ill bear both of your advice in mind if it happens again..
Take care x