pls dnt judge.but did taking drugs contribute??

[bethyboo]

hello everyone. i left home at 16 and took alot of class A drugs for a few years. i havent touched drugs for over 7 years but at the end of my drugs period and ever scince ive suffered from panic attacks. i used to smoke canabis and stopped that 3 years ago for the same reasons. i wanted to say that i am not a horrible person and taking drugs was just a silly thing that i did when i was younger but i have always wondered if this was the trigger to why they started.
My nan spent many years in and out of mental institues for depression and severe ocd and although i realise it is in the genes i do wonder if it hadnt been for the drugs then i may have gotten away with it?? is there any proof do u think. i totally have accepted the way i am so its not really answers im looking for just something that i thought might have been mentioned and a part of me is desperately hoping that im not the only one.i dont want to be judged for my past as i am although far from normal am a very nice person lol x

beth salisbury

[JPF]

Hi Beth

Well I certainly won't judge you and I'm sure I'm not alone in that! I've heard anecdotally that there is some medical evidence to link drug use and some mental health problems.. A good friend of mine did a huge amount of weed and ended-up on Prozac and had trouble with self-harm, depression and paranoia.. However, he told me that he smoked the stuff to make him feel better so whether the one influenced the other I don't know..

I've never really done drugs and I still get Panic Attacks. I come from a long line of depressives so, like you say, I think it's in the genes as much as anything - maybe drugs make it come to the fore a bit more, I honestly don't know but I tend to think it's kind of a 'if you're meant to get, you get it' kind of deal (I have no evidence for that, it's just the way I feel!)

Just my ha'peth - some of the nicest people I've known were total pot-heads!

All the best
J

[vernon]

Hi there, Welcome to the site.
Don’t think badly of yourself for what you have done in the past, It wasn’t a big issue anyway cos most people have took drugs in some form or other. I have been a heavy and daily drinker for about 40 years and that’s no different to any other drug except its legal? However I have stopped drinking for 14 months now and don’t think the taking of drugs make any difference to whether u suffer from bad nerves or not. I started drinking heavy to hide from my anxieties and fears and found I could do the same as other people and enjoy myself after a drink, Maybe you was the same had the problem all along and used drugs to help you and hide from it? There are so many people with anxieties, phobias OCD etc and lots of them have never took any kind of drugs, also there are drug and alcohol users out there who never get bad nerves, so I don’t really think this sets it off, its the type of person we are. Anyway don’t think badly of yourself, nor dwell too much on the past, just think of now and the future to get you well again. The past is gone and thinking of it will only bring back the past and stop u getting better. Take care for now and hope u feel better soon, Vernon

[seh1980]

hello there,

I wonder the same thing. I smoked cannabis for many years and occasionally took other drugs, too. I now take nothing at all and often regret having done it all as I can't help wonder if I brought the panic attacks upon myself. I think I probably did but there's not a lot I can do about it now, is there? We all make mistakes and we learn from them. Don't beat yourself up about it; just put all your energy into overcoming the panic attacks and tell yourself that you will soon feel a lot better.

Sarah

[FAN]

hi dont dwell on whether or not you caused the panic just work at getting better im sure it doesnt matter how anyone came to be this way the fact is we are now here with the intention of getting better

fan x

[Meg]

Hi Bethy,

There is now growing evidence that 'recreational ' drugs are involved with some peoples first panic attack- either whilst under the influence or whilst recovering from it.

The jury is still out as to whether these people were prone anyway and the drugs were a catalyst for it or simply caused a brain anomaly at that time.

What is true is that we've seen quite a lot of people with drug caused panic on this forum and once the initial shock and fear is over and fear of the fear has set in - the recovery process is similar to the rest of us..

It does seem though that those people may need to stay off drugs thereafter or run the much higher risk of panic returning and this type panic is one of the very few causes where it does really come ' out of the blue' .






Meg
www.anxietymanagementltd.com

You cannot conquer fear until you have learned what it is you're afraid of. The enemy is ignorance. Vivian Vance

[stimpy]

Panic attacks are associated with either a build-up of stress, or a major life stress.

Some people will experience panic attacks as part of an illness. For example: someone with asthma may have a panic attack as a result of feeling breathless.

Panic attacks can be a side effect of drug use.
But whether or not drugs can cause anxiety, panic and confusion, brain and liver damage long after you stop taking them is uncertain.


Love, light and Best wishes
Liz xxx
With hard work and determination and all the things you know.
The world is there for you to take. There's nowhere you can't go.


[]Scatty Eccentric & 'Poet Laureate to panic and anxiety'

[razocaine_07]

i think that reading your post, it came across, to me that your dwelling of the drugs is causing more problems. Everybody does things they regret, but its in the past and thats where it belongs. Yes there are connections between the likes of cannabis and anxiety, depression etc. I used to smoke skunk which is more potent than resin i think. I quit because i thought it was doing damage and when i panic, it plays on my mind. But not when im having a good period. So i put it down to my panic and not the drug use.

[andrew]

hi beth, nobody could make anything other than a guess about what might have happened if things had been different. there is alot of anxiety involved in a drug lifestyle and the extreme up and downs are anxiety heaven. dont stress yourself your not the only one ok.
well done for making such a positive change in your lifestyle and take some belief that just like you got through all that, you will get through this.
you tc ... andrew

[nomorepanic]

Hi Beth

Welcome aboard the forum.

I am sure that there is a link between drugs and panic but as you have stopped taking the drugs now then you can forget about it and concentrate on getting better.

I hope we can help you on that road to recovery.

Nicola