Panic Attack? Help would be appreciated

[Emilym80]

Hi all,

I was wondering if some of you could advise me as to whether or not this was a panic attack/limited symptom attack. I'm booked in to see my doctor on wednesday so I can ask about it then but, in the interim, I'd like to know if anybody else has experienced these sensations.

I have GAD/health anxiety (particularly around my heart) and as such I've had a fairly extensive evaluation by a cardiologist, which probably happened a little less than a month ago- bloodwork, ECG and echo at rest and under stress. These were all ok.

That said, I was having what I believed to be palpitations last night and I was staying with my parents- their house makes me feel a bit uneasy and the room was a lot darker than I was used to, so I couldn't see anything and already felt disoriented. Anyway, I started feeling the palpitations, like my heartbeat was slightly irregular for a little while... I was pretty worked up about this when I got some jaw pain on my right side. I'd been having jaw pain on both sides for about a week already due to some tension etc but this time it was slightly different, like a mild, stabbing pain in my face and some tingling/numbness. I can't remember if there was any pressure- maybe a light squeezing sensation but nothing more. It probably lasted 30 seconds- 2 minutes at the most. That scared me because I worried that it was angina/heart attack and as soon as I noticed it I felt a surge of anxiety/adrenaline and racing thoughts. I then felt hot and flushed, nauseated, like I was going mad/losing control, some mild stabbing chest pain and tightness in the chest area, tingling and some muscle aching and generally very scared and anxious. Some of the symptoms, like nausea and the chest pain, felt like they couldn't have lasted for more than two minutes or so, but I felt like time was going both slowly and very quickly so I can't say for sure (I didn't have access to a clock). The whole time I was very conscious of my heart rhythm and could hear it in my ears and feel it in my chest. I don't think it was beating extremely quickly, though. I feel as if the whole thing probably lasted around 10-20 minutes and got better as the symptoms/fear slowly petered out. Every new symptom that I experienced during the episode would make me more fearful and exacerbate everything I was feeling.

Afterwards, I felt pretty weak/cold and jittery, especially in my legs and feet. I was shaking for hours and felt both tired and too keyed up to sleep. I finally did sleep for a few hours and when I woke up later that day I felt pretty bad, mainly weakness, tiredness and just feeling sick to my stomach (not nauseated per se, more like unpleasantness).

Does that sound familiar or like a panic attack? I'm not sure that it was as I was sort of able to bring myself out of the worst of it by doing some CBT exercises (mainly deep breathing and not resisting the worrying/letting it pass). I feel based on what I've read that if it had been a panic attack I probably wouldn't have been able to do so.

Any input would be greatly appreciated- thanks :)

[lior]

No, I think it's possible to do CBT exercises during a panic attack. It takes strength to do that, so well done. Whether it was a panic attack or not, you did very very well to remember to use strategies you've learnt - and to successfully use them too. You deserve to be very proud of yourself. You handled the situation. If it happens again, it will get easier to fight, because you've successfully handled it before.

I wouldn't know if that's a panic attack or not because I'm not a doctor. But I've heard that people experience anxiety and panic in different ways. To me, you sound literally worried sick - you're left exhausted from it. When I've had panic attacks in the past, I shook and couldn't breathe or think straight. It was like my head was screaming inside, and talking really fast. But just because I experienced that style of panic, it doesn't mean that your experience wasn't a panic attack.

Update us with what your doctor says on Wednesday?

[MyNameIsTerry]

Something Dr Claire Weekes talks about is 'second wave' in a panic attack. She explains that at the start there is feedback in a loop and that feedback is what pushes it to the panic attack. She explains that at this point, you can stop the feedback (your response to the feeling of panic) so that it prevents a full blown attack from developing.

It sounds like you did that to me as you stopped yourself resisting it.

Panic attacks usually last about that time and then you are left with all the residual anxiety due to an excess of adrenaline still in the body which needs to be metabolized (exercise and deep breathing will do this for you).

It may have been muscular or perhaps a trapped nerve. It just seems to me that this was what caused the spiral into the panic because you noticed it.

[Daniele_T]

I am and have been in the same boat for a while now.
Also have cardiophobia or whatever you want to call it after my dad dropped dead on my birthday of a massive heart attack.

The appointment you have with the cardiologist will help but not for very long.
You feel like this atm because you were focusing so much on that appointment and the habit continues.

I was exactly the same.

Try to kick the habit of focusing on your heart so much early and it will help.

Yes I have had palpitations, jaw pain, chest pain, breathlessness etc.
Strange how stress situations seem to make it worse huh? ;)

Yet oddly i can still run up 8 flights of stairs and not peg it or feel jaw pain etc.

Good luck and I'm 90% sure it will be anxiety and not your heart at fault.

[ohwell123]

daniele_t is quite right I can also go on a rowing machine and have my heart beating away like a motown sound bass machine and not feel anything but on my own at night I sit there doing totally stupid things like checking my pulse

from reading the op's post its quite clear this was was pre-empted you told yourself you didn't like where you was staying you've put the fuel into that v8 panic one foots on the gas trouble is the other foot is on the brake your not using the energy so it results in horrible symptoms,

mine then spread to stupid things like supermarkets and going to sleep ive never minded either but it spread like a disease to areas that never bothered me before somedays I wake up and feel like the old me and even say to myself what the hell was I thinking

[Emilym80]

Thanks for your support, everybody. I've already seen the cardiologist and I don't plan on going again unless the GP tells me to. I'm 18 (not sure that I mentioned that in the original post) so I think it's pretty unlikely that there's something wrong with my heart. I'm not exactly super fit (although I plan on changing that!) but I'm not overweight or anything as far as I know and there's been no history of heart disease etc in either side of my family so I hopefully am not at risk for such troubles.

I've been having a lot of issues with my back/neck/shoulders recently so the tingling/numbness/pain has probably been happening due to a pinched nerve in my neck or back. I'll ask my physio about it and see what he says.

I'll tell the doctor about it on wednesday but I'm not expecting anything, given that I so recently went under cardio testing.

I'm going through a pretty stressful time atm- starting uni and none of my friends are going to the same place etc and I've been seeing a new therapist but she's only been doing diagnostic testing so it hasn't helped me at all as far as anxiety is concerned. I think it was probably a combination of a whole bunch of stressors and being tired out.

That said, if you guys have any CBT-type exercises that are easy to learn and would make a difference, I'd really appreciate it. The only one I know how to use is accepting the anxiety and not resisting it, which is how I pulled myself out of what happened the other night.

Again, thanks for your help and support :) I appreciate it!

[Daniele_T]

You had an echo so no cardiomyopathy or even mitral valve prolapse.
At your age clogged arteries would be pretty unique also.
You can move one with things hopefully and work on reducing your anxiety.
At least you know what it is so you're one step in front.

Neck and shoulder pains are also common, after I split with my gf I got chest and shoulder pain and thought it was my heart obviously. .trapped nerve in the neck :-)
It will ease as your anxiety does...

I'll also post you some cbt links and wish you all the best Emily.
It's not an easy journey but you're on it so there's only one way through it....through it.

---------- Post added at 12:39 ---------- Previous post was at 12:36 ----------

http://www.getselfhelp.co.uk/panic.htm

Look at the links toward the bottom.
Especially health anxiety...print em out and work through them.
They will help!

All the best

Daniele

[Emilym80]

You had an echo so no cardiomyopathy or even mitral valve prolapse.
At your age clogged arteries would be pretty unique also.
You can move one with things hopefully and work on reducing your anxiety.
At least you know what it is so you're one step in front.

Neck and shoulder pains are also common, after I split with my gf I got chest and shoulder pain and thought it was my heart obviously. .trapped nerve in the neck :-)
It will ease as your anxiety does...

I'll also post you some cbt links and wish you all the best Emily.
It's not an easy journey but you're on it so there's only one way through it....through it.

---------- Post added at 12:39 ---------- Previous post was at 12:36 ----------

http://www.getselfhelp.co.uk/panic.htm

Look at the links toward the bottom.
Especially health anxiety...print em out and work through them.
They will help!

All the best

Daniele

Thanks so much for your generosity and support. Take care :)

[MyNameIsTerry]

Thanks for your support, everybody. I've already seen the cardiologist and I don't plan on going again unless the GP tells me to. I'm 18 (not sure that I mentioned that in the original post) so I think it's pretty unlikely that there's something wrong with my heart. I'm not exactly super fit (although I plan on changing that!) but I'm not overweight or anything as far as I know and there's been no history of heart disease etc in either side of my family so I hopefully am not at risk for such troubles.

I've been having a lot of issues with my back/neck/shoulders recently so the tingling/numbness/pain has probably been happening due to a pinched nerve in my neck or back. I'll ask my physio about it and see what he says.

I'll tell the doctor about it on wednesday but I'm not expecting anything, given that I so recently went under cardio testing.

I'm going through a pretty stressful time atm- starting uni and none of my friends are going to the same place etc and I've been seeing a new therapist but she's only been doing diagnostic testing so it hasn't helped me at all as far as anxiety is concerned. I think it was probably a combination of a whole bunch of stressors and being tired out.

That said, if you guys have any CBT-type exercises that are easy to learn and would make a difference, I'd really appreciate it. The only one I know how to use is accepting the anxiety and not resisting it, which is how I pulled myself out of what happened the other night.

Again, thanks for your help and support :) I appreciate it!


Have a scan at this website Emily as they have some useful CBT tools for working on your recovery:

http://psychology.tools/download-therapy-worksheets.html

I would also advise Mindfulness. Just look for people such as Jon Kabat-Zinn or Professor Mark Williams and loads will pop up.

Exercise is a good idea for many reasons but one of them is that you can use it as a form of exposure to habituate to the feelings of faster heartrates, harder breathing, etc. Do it controlled and slow as it would be done in Exposure Response Prevention (ERP) therapy with a hierarchy.

[annelim]

Practicing mindfulness helps, but it takes practice to reap the benefits.

One technique to do that is to notice your breathing. Is it rapid and shallow? Is it becoming shallower the more you panic? Take a moment to close your eyes and turn your attention to counting breaths.

If you find you are counting very quickly, see if you can focus on just one or two long inhalations and exhalations. Don’t worry if you can’t get past one or two. If you notice your mind has strayed from counting, then you can say you have experienced a moment of mindfulness under extremely challenging conditions. Have a look at this article: understandingdepressionandanxiety.com/anxiety-panic-attack/ . It contains tips to manage panic attacks and anxiety.