is normal life over?

[nikkinj11]

Hello my name is Nick I'm 19 and recently discovered I have severe HA. I've always worried but the past few months have been hell, I've had chest pains and numbness and a racing heart. Every night I think I'm not gonna wake up. I thought it was heart disease at first and every test came back fine. I thought for sure they missed something. Then I was positive they missed it as the pain got worse. Two weeks ago I cried and begged my mother to take me to the hospital. And I ended up being fine. No one in my house understands my issues they call me dramatic which only stresses me out more. Then the other day I got jumped and got a broken nose and hand I thought they missed a concussion and forced myself to stay awake almost 48 hours. The doctor gave me vicodine for the pain and my gp has me on Prozac. But everytime I take my pain meds I think ill od and die. Then my face tingles and break down into tears. Its hard to get through everyday life. Will it ever get better or am I going to be this way until I actually die?

[HoneyLove]

Welcome Nik, is sounds like you been through a rough time! I'm so sorry to hear that you got jumped, what a horrible experience for you on top of your anxiety, I'm sorry you had to go through that.

Have you gotten any help with your anxiety? What triggered it all for you?

I will tell you this: normal life is only over if you choose it to be that way. A big part of anxiety is choosing to heal and to help yourself through it. It's hard, but we're here on this site to give you a hand :)

[nikkinj11]

Yes I have seen my gp about it. Thats why he started me on Prozac but I'm afraid I'm losing my mind and I'm hesitant to start therapy because I'm untrusting that they'll keep my info confidental. I'm scared honestly, I have a family history of severe mental illness and I'm afraid ill lose my mind conpletley. I just want life back I'm afraid to do anything

[HoneyLove]

I understand feeling frozen, it's something that often happens with anxiety and I've been there myself. You need to take some action though, otherwise things will never change for you.

Believe me that patient privacy is a huge aspect of therapy, and no therapist would risk their career by revealing your information to anyone - it wouldn't be worth it for them to lose everything they've worked for.

CBT is an excellent type of therapy for anxiety sufferers, I'd recommend that you look into it or talk to your GP about it.

Did you GP give you any other strategies for dealing with your anxiety - did they explain a out looking at your lifestyle, getting exercise or doing daily relaxation exercises?

[cpe1978]

I am absolutely no expert, but if I look back six months then life was very different.

I personally believe that recovering from HA requires a leap of faith. You have to trust doctors, therapists and your own body. Somehow you need to find a way to switch your brain off red alert. But it is possible.

The other big thing I think is the importance of celebrating small victories. Recovery is a process with ups and downs and it is easy to get disheartened but look for a positive trajectory and try to ride the waves. The first challenge is admitting the problem, now you have to find help to devise a strategy to get better. Having a plan is what helped me, along with the support of others on here.

[Fishmanpa]

I believe, and it is my experience with serious illness, that you find what would be considered the "new normal". As many of these fine folks here work their way into recovery, the threat of relapse is a reality and even those that have been in recovery for years can have a niggle now and again.

As with a physical illness, mental illness can and is treated all the time and people can lead a happy and productive life regardless. The key is the desire and determination to do so. At 19 years old you have an opportunity to nip this beast in the bud and put it behind you. Seek professional help to do so.

Positive thoughts!

[nikkinj11]

Thanks for the advise, I'm actually having a moment right now. I did pretty good today. I freaked out once in the car on the way a parade. My face went completly numb and then my hands did. I got really paniced and my mom got angry. It ran its course but now I'm just really worried. I feel like I can't catch a breath and my heart is pounding. I'm trying to work myself through it.

[Mr Mannering]

Take my advice... you need to sit your mother down and advise her that anxiety is an issue for you that you are working towards putting at bay. I shy'd away from telling many people about it because I thought the reaction would be ... 'pull yourself together man' ..... We all know that when the brain is in overdrive it is very difficult to do that. I found that not fully explaining the issue to certain people made anxiety worse when I was around them as I felt I had to work harder at being my so called 'old self'. As for life being over... please don't think that. you are very young and so much changes in your life and the way you view it as you get older. I still have the odd off day where I struggle to keep a straight head but when I look back to where I was about 2 years ago and how disabling anxiety was for me then I know you can learn to understand the symptoms.