Fear of heart attack and heart disease

I was DX with PD @ 28 Y/O. I am now 48. I have a morbid fear of dying from a heart attack. I was on benzos for almost 20 years but had to detox after they quit working. I thought I was going to really die after taking klonopin for nearly a decade and then hv it stop working. I have also taken xanax, valium, and ativan. I am currently taking lexapro but I think all AD's are virtually useless for severe PD. I would love to talk to anyone who have the same fears and concerns as I do. Do you take meds? What do you take? I have 24/7 constant chest/stomach pressure from inner tension. I try to meditate and exercise lightly but only get slight relief. I feel as tho sometimes my back is against the wall so to speak and that I will only get worse and then die. I live each day in fear. I sometimes wish I could have a portion of my brain that is causing me so much distress removed. This is how sick I am from all the suffering I hv endured over the years.:weep:

Hi,

You're not alone on this one!! So many people suffer from this fear! I am one of them and I'm only 30 years old (sounds kind of ridiculous at my age, doesn't it???). I'm not currently taking any medication, although I have some xanax on hand just in case. I've only taken 3 of those in the past year. About a year and a half ago, I took klonopin. It really worked well for me, but then I developed a fear of being addicted to it. So after taking it for a few weeks, I weaned myself off. Boy I'm glad I did because the withdrawl that I suffered, just from taking it for a short period of time, was horrible!!! I can't imagine how it was for you after 20 years! I also have the chest/stomach pressure and pains. I've had palpitations and in October I was hospitalized for a fast heart rate during a doctor's visit. Scared the heck out of me, but I was diagnosed with anxiety and sent home with a dose of xanax in my system.

Just this week I started feeling a little more upbeat. I took good look at my life and tried to figure out what was bothering me about it. I realized that owning my own business was too much of a stress for me. My husband got a great job offer and started his new job, so having a steady paycheck is a big relief. I also had to force myself to be upbeat and positive. It's hard, but if you try enough, it will happen. You just have to re-train your brain! I too never thought that I would come out of this, but things are looking up. This week I'm not so worried about having a heart attack or heart disease. Maybe next week will be even better! Just hang in there and keep working on it.....you'll beat this someday!:hugs:

It isn't just you, i promise. I am 22 and i have had panic attacks as a result of a fear of having a heart attack since i was about 18 coz they run in my family- grandad and dad both died of a heart attack. I've never taken medication. You said you do light exercise, maybe try something a bit more strenuous, i go to the gym 3 times a week and it keeps my attacks away. Or maybe try yoga? Suppose to be relaxing. Also learning some breathing techniques will help. Also, when you get the palpatations and chest pains try to tell yourself that it's just a panic attack and there's nothing wrong with you. If it's a reasonable hour try and ring someone for a chat (not about anxiety)- it's always a great distraction or anything else that will stop you thinking about it.
take care :-)
xxx

Hi
I really felt that I had to respond to this as I have had this anxiety/fear since my father had heart attacks when I was in my early 20's. I am retired now and widowed so live alone and with the help of meds, yoga/meditation, I have managed to largely control the really bad panic attacks. In the past I have had numerous visits to A&E, ECG's, treadmill tests , and apart from controlled hypertension I have been told I am fine. I also suffer from fibromyalgia and get chest pains all the time and these,coupled with ectopic beats set off the panic attacks, especially at night. I am much better than I used to be and for many years now have managed to just have the Diazepam in emergencies although I have Propanalol and Amitriptyline and sometimes Zopiclone if I have a run of bad nights.
I agree that meditation,deep breathing and diverting your mind are all useful and I try to remember that I have done everything that I can to safeguard my health and that no-one can change their family history.
I want to be positive here and although I have had some bad patches, on the whole I believe that if I haven't completely beaten it , I have tamed it and it has not spoiled my life. I hope you feel better soon and please pm me if you feel like talking.:hugs:

Hi

Very common this one.

For about a year I was sure that I was going to drop dead of a heart attack. I do a good bit of execrise and started to experience chest and arm pains during it. Had all the medical checks carried out and they came back fine, but this wasn't good enough for me because I was sure they had missed something. As a result I paniced and stopped exercising. Which of course was the wrong thing to do because and I later realised I was just feeding my fear.

I got to grips with it through the help of my GP's and a very good cradioligist explaining to me what goes on in your body and how what I was believing did not make sense. I also had some CBT sessions which supported the positive outcome.

I now exercise and still on occassions get the same pains but know it is down to anxiety and nothing more sinister.

If you had a heart condition you would have easily know about it within a year or so of your first fear, never mind 20 years down the line.

You must try some CBT sessions to help retrain your thought process and look on all your positives. The main one being that after 20 years of fear nothing has happened.

I used to go to bed evey night for months thinking it would be my last. Of course I was wrong and you are as well. You must try to focus more on the positives and ignore negative feelings.

Please try to keep up the exercise, even during low points, because it is a good way of building the overall feel good feeling in your system.