panic attack lasting 2 hours?!

[coco88]

hi all.
im new to this site so please forgive me as i get used to it.
i thought i may reach out tonight for some answers.
ive only recently been diagnosed with anxiety in the last month. it all started at christmas with muscles aches and headaches.
then it grew into tingles in my fingers and hands. and a crushing chest and back pain.
cant catch my breath, clammy hands, dizziness, you name it ive developed the symptoms as time has gone on.
made several trips to emergency room and had numerous ECG's.
ive had a 24hr heart monitor and awaiting results.
im now on propanolol 40mg twice a day for palpitations and since taking it and knowing my ECG's are normal i started to relax and felt really good.
my anxiety re-triggered yesterday at a works thing where i needed to make a speech. and tonight i went to the cinema and spent 2 hours with a crushing chest pain, clammy hands, constant little belching or feeling the need to belch really hard. i also had my flight and fight response and had to sit in the toilets for 20 mins to cool down. i couldnt get my breathing normal either. the fact it came and went in waves of 2 hours scared me and again i thought it was heart problem related. i calmed down as soon as the movie ended and went home.
sorry for the long message but has anyone experienced attacks for hours at a time? and has anyone experienced just these symptoms i had tonight?
thanks in advance guys

[Phill2]

Hi Coco
My first attack lasted 3 days.
Lost 6kg from not eating and stressing in those 3 days!
Meds will help immensely.

[Shazamataz]

I've had panic attacks lasting from seconds to days. It's not nice!

There are heaps of techniques, breathing and the like, which can help. But I'm not one to preach as I am not handling mine at all recently.

[coco88]

thanks guys.
i woke up today and lay in bed feeling fine. started getting ready for work and the same crushing came back slightly so looks like ive got it hanging on a little longer :(
but its eased me to know its not tate to have it happen so long x

[GingerFish]

I've been there. Docs say a panic attack can only last up to half an hour at most and when we say we experience panic attacks lasting for hours or days, its actually just high anxiety left from one panic that leads onto another panic, rather than one continuous panic, it certainly does feel like one giant never ending one though! I've only had one like that before. It lasted from about 5pm that day until 8am the next day. I thought I was going to die or go crazy. I think I had maybe a minute or two here and there of calmness, well as calm as I could be with that kind of anxiety but for the most part it was absolutely constant. I even called up nhs24 demanding to be sectioned! I had never been that bad before and hopefully never again. They managed to reassure me it was just anxiety, I wasn't dying or going crazy and arranged for me to see my GP that morning. I did have a lot of stress for a few days leading up to that - my stepdad took a stroke and I hadn't been eating or sleeping well for days and I think it just took its toll on me and I broke down. Took me a while to recover from that attack tbh.

[AnnaZV]

Hi Coco, hello everyone. I'm new here also, even though I'm certainly not new to anxiety disorder and panic attacks. Having one right now which started at 10:30pm and continues to the present even though I have taken half of an anti-anxiety med. I have been hyperventilating and belching continuously for the past three hours with no respite as well as shaking like a leaf. I can feel my shoulders scrunched up to my ears practically and the tingly tension surging like electrical current through my body. I am really tired of this and sometimes get angry with myself. I have been through this before following the birth of one of my children and it lasted on and off for about 5 years. Then I made some changes in my life and was phobia and panic free for over 20 years. Health issues and difficult life events have me back to experiencing this most debilitating disorder which is robbing me quality of life. So, I have joined this group in the hopes that I can kick it again and feel relaxed, calm and peaceful once more. I would love hear how others handle the panic and learn new techniques to beat it or at least keep it at bay. Thanks!

[Ditapage]

It can last however long a person remains in a heightened state of anxiety. Two hours seems like eternity when you're anxious but it's not that long. panic attacks themselves are always over in 10-20 minutes for me but lingering anxiety will always trigger another one. As Gingerfish said, it's not one long continual attack, it's just separate attacks because we're still anxious.

I can totally relate to the constant burping. Do you burp because it feels like it's a way to get your breath? Apparently it's because we swallow air. Makes sense cause I feel like a ball of gas gets stuck in the middle of my chest. Sucks!

[Phill2]

It can last however long a person remains in a heightened state of anxiety. Two hours seems like eternity when you're anxious but it's not that long. panic attacks themselves are always over in 10-20 minutes for me but lingering anxiety will always trigger another one. As Gingerfish said, it's not one long continual attack, it's just separate attacks because we're still anxious.

I can totally relate to the constant burping. Do you burp because it feels like it's a way to get your breath? Apparently it's because we swallow air. Makes sense cause I feel like a ball of gas gets stuck in the middle of my chest. Sucks!

I beg to differ
Mine was 3 days non stop

[sandie]

I am still learning and working hard on controlling my panic attacks - which have in the past lasted from a few moments to many hours. Constant palpitations, sweating, not being able to breathe, the adrenaline surges - the list is endless. All of the panic attacks were the result of acute anxiety.

Unfortunately, the AD meds I was prescribed heightened my anxiety which worsened the panic attacks. However, since weaning myself off the meds and now being prescribed Propanalol, things are getting a little better.

There are breathing techniques (specifically belly breathing), and other tips to help ease the panic - but be reassured - they aren't harmful.

[Phill2]

I am still learning and working hard on controlling my panic attacks - which have in the past lasted from a few moments to many hours. Constant palpitations, sweating, not being able to breathe, the adrenaline surges - the list is endless. All of the panic attacks were the result of acute anxiety.

Unfortunately, the AD meds I was prescribed heightened my anxiety which worsened the panic attacks. However, since weaning myself off the meds and now being prescribed Propanalol, things are getting a little better.

There are breathing techniques (specifically belly breathing), and other tips to help ease the panic - but be reassured - they aren't harmful.
Belly breathing helps immensely :yesyes:

[Ditapage]

I beg to differ
Mine was 3 days non stop

Damn...sorry to hear that. You're a warrior, I would have been a mess. 3 minutes FEELS like 3 hours to me.

I didn't know a panic attack was capable of lasting that long. I thought the body had to come down from a panic attack? Was it continual or was it high anxiety triggering further attacks?

[Phill2]

It was constant
No food or sleep for 3 days
I went to emergency and asked to be committed
They gave me 2 Valiun and I fell asleep in the car on the way home
After that I went on meds for 5 yrs

[coco88]

wow, thanks for the replies guys.
its comforting to know that its just prolonged anxiety symptoms rather than an attack. but sucks that it happens to us.
yer ditapage, i also heard the burping is due to the gas we swallow, im burping everyday now when i get my chest pain, so i think its too much air when i cant breathe properly and or ive developed a habit of chest breathing rather than belly breathing.
ive also noticed that i dont fully get a panic attack but get these symptoms on off all day. so i think when ive stressed myself out the anxiety lingers.
ive been sucking on mints and now got some peppermint tea to help my digestive system to see if this helps.
i had chest cramps and a feeling of not enough air about an hour ago, ive had a cup of tea and getting ready for a bath and already i feel much better.

i guess now i just got to keep my mind off it or its going to keep lingering . x

---------- Post added at 19:29 ---------- Previous post was at 19:25 ----------


It was constant
No food or sleep for 3 days
I went to emergency and asked to be committed
They gave me 2 Valiun and I fell asleep in the car on the way home
After that I went on meds for 5 yrs

aww im sorry to hear you had it that bad. i doubt i would have coped at all with that. a couple of hours was bad enough for me.
*hugs*

[Phill2]

Thanks Coco
It was no fun that's for sure
In the old days they would have called it a nervous breakdown

[Murphy]

I had an attack a couple of months ago that lasted the best part of a week.

I'd just started some stronger medication when the attack began and unfortunately one of the side effects is making anxiety and depression related symptoms worse in the initial stages of taking it.

I'm 32 and have had agoraphobia,anxiety and depression(among other problems)since i was about 10 and this was one of,if not the worst experience of my life i was an absolute wreck.

[faithfulone]

Have you tried relaxation techniques or meditation? I have a few apps on my phone I use that provide guided meditation (since I'm new to meditating) and it's very relaxing.

[nataliejosephine]

There's high levels of anxiety and panic attacks. It sounds like you're experiencing more high levels of anxiety and then having a panic attack, but getting through it. When you have either your body will take a couple days (maybe longer) to begin to relax. So it's normal to still feel like you're still in panic mode. All I can say is to ride it through and chill with a good book etc

Propranolol is amazing to help you relax, but I find you need to time when you take it, when you do things that make you more anxious.
I alter the times I take mine depending what I'm doing that day, and if it's something new, that I know will trigger more anxiety than normal.