Scared to exercise because of heart rate / panic

Hello, anxiety and panic friends! Hope this is the right forum for this one...

I'd be interested to know how some of you have dealt with this. Or just share experiences so we don't feel alone!

Had anxiety for years, with all of the usual symptoms (panic spikes, palpitations, high heart rate, etc). It's been especially heart-focused, so I've ended up avoiding anything that raises the heart rate, as it triggers an immediate anxiety /panic response and terror that my heart rate will never come down, or I'll end up with a heart attack or being rushed to the emergency department for some terrible heart surgery.

I want to start to exercise, slowly working up as being inactive has made me unfit, but how the hell do you deal with the cardiophobia / 'heart fear' when, after anything strenuous, I end up in a panic state as I am terrified of my heart rate being high and scared it will never come down? Feels like I'm only getting by because I can take a beta blocker when it gets really bad.

Going to book a private ECG to get a basic (hopefully) confirmation that the heart is fine, but how did you deal with it, or how are you coping if you still suffer with it?

We're not alone, and it's nice to have a rant and share stories sometimes!

Honestly, once i had a clean bill from a ECG, i went to have a jog and raised my heart rate to 130. I figured that if my doctors said i’m healthy, then all else is not relevant. I went with the mindset that if I was destined to fall, it’d wouldn’t matter either way if i sat on a couch vs going for a run.

Hope it helps. If anything, I’m a regular gym go-er now bringing my hr up to 165-170 at peaks.
But before u start, i’d suggest getting a full health check :).


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