High Anxiety recently

[Annierose]

Hello
I have always had depression anxiety problems. I thought i was fine for the last year or so, but we recently moved and got a puppy. It seems that change has brought on full blown anxiety and panic attacks. I am taking ativan at night to calm down to sleep. It worked the first night, but the second night i became more anxious and it didn't work as well. I managed a pretty good day today getting things done, but have the cloud of anxiety following me around.
I took fluoxetine years ago (prozac) and it helped, but i gained weight on it and coming off it was difficult and it really messed me up.
Is there something natural, no addictive, non fattening, and effective that I could try to stop this squeezing of anxiety in my chest and help me relax?
thank you

[nomorepanic]

Hi Annierose

A huge warm welcome to nmp.

You'll get loads of advice and support here and make some lovely friends along the way.

Best wishes

[Vanilla Sky]

Hi and welcome to NMP :welcome:

Paige x

[daybyday]

:welcome: Maybe Chamomile or Passion Fruit teas. Diaphragm breathing can help, though sometimes difficult in the midst of anxiety. But good to work on it when not anxious to know how it should feel.
I have anxiety too. So I understand.

[wanttogetbetter]

Hi can totally relate to your post. It's awful isn't it and feels even worse when you can't sleep. I get the chest tightening too and usually in the middle of the night. I am thinking more along the same lines as you that I want to try something natural. One thing I swear by is the gym/exercise, as it really does seem to take the edge off of it for me. I also have a dog and walking him is great too. Good luck!

[zygfried]

Hi, and welcome to the site. Yes, the tightness in the chest isn't nice. I get it every morning. I agree with the tips about diaphragmatic (sp!) breathing but it does take practice and I agree it's difficult to do midst anxiousness. The best thing for me is fairly vigorous aerobic exercise as wanttogetbetter says. Yesterday I felt quite anxious first thing and had the whole tightness in the chest thing and went to my spinning class - I was transformed, afterwards, with all those endorphins etc. What a boost. Think you need to find a relaxation technique you enjoy and practice it regularly as well as regular exercise, etc. I meditate too. Just started that recently and now find that it's starting to make a difference. Hope this and all the other tips available on site help. Good luck.

[boopster]

Hi i am new to all this too i have suffered anxiety over the years of my life and at the minute i am bad, been put on citalpram week 9 now had a long haul of ups and downs, last two weeks i slept much better until 4 nights ago and now its back as bad as. Does this happen? i walk my dog every day but weather changing drastically now not easy. Any suggestions how to keep mind from my anxious thoughts?