Why now?

[chrisandhisbrain]

I've gone through lots of stress, anxiety and depression in my life, but never had a panic attack.

The start of this year was extremely stressful but I still kept it together.

The last couple of months have been awesome and I've been very happy.

So why then did I wake in the middle of the night last week and have a panic attack, and have now been having them daily, with constant symptoms?

I know no one is going to be able to answer that, but I was wondering if it was possible to develop serious anxiety seemingly out of the blue?

It's very frustrating. I've worked hard to be happy and now I've been struck down with one the scariest and debilitating conditions I've ever had, for no obvious reason.

[HalfJack]

My anxiety first began due to being bullied so badly at senior school, but it didn't happen until the last week I think. So for 5 years I experienced abuse and was always on high alert, finally it's over and I was feeling so happy and I started getting really bad palpitations and panic episodes. I guess sometimes maybe your body just reacts late? I don't know but I understand your frustration completely.
I mean it's a good thing you didn't experience that while you had reasons to be stressed but yeah, never good timing either.

That doesn't mean you can't still get help for it though be it self help or otherwise. Sorry it's effecting you so much, lots of people here have probably had very similar experiences.

[Beckybecks]

I think we can get delayed stress reactions. I Know that often I seem to cope well in a stressful situation and when it's all over and I'm congratulating myself and starting to relax, then wham the anxiety symptoms kick in.
Also it may be an idea to have a look for the root cause of your anxiety and address this first.

[chrisandhisbrain]

Sat here just incredibly upset and frustrated. Horrible nausea first thing, switching to a tight chest all day at work, then more nausea with an upset stomach at home, plus a panic attack starting but I guess the propanalol kicked in and stopped it.

For the first time I wanted to hurt myself tonight, almost burst out in anger, wanted to punch through a window. Want this to go.

[Beckybecks]

It's ok to be angry. Better than beng scared. What you're experiencing is just some of the symptoms of anxiety. Knowledge gives you control, so learn as much as you can about your condition. Never give in to it. It can be controlled and you all get over it.

[HalfJack]

When you feel up to it maybe look at some of the info on here about dealing with strong feelings like that?

You can do things to fight this. Is there anything you've done recently that has helped you deal with this?
It took me a while to realize how much drawing helped me calm down and focus my mind away from the anger and anxiety.
Exercise is good for pretty much everyone.

[stonecutter76]

Mine started just as yours did. Seemingly out of the blue. Why? I've no idea, either. But...I'm now several years removed from them and I conditioned myself along the way to "control" them and put them into remission, it would seem.

I would suggest you read others' experiences here and learn what you can from what they've learned.

First off, you will do yourself a big favor if you go easy on yourself. It's not your fault this is happening, so just go with it and ride it out. If you cannot, hit the propranolol. It worked pretty well for me to distinguish between the "mental" aspect and "physical" aspect of panic attacks. It was a very strange sensation for me to be taking propranolol and not feel the sudden heart pounding and sweating, but instead only my mind panicked.

My strategy was this:


Repeat to yourself while it's happening that you're totally fine, it's just mental, and you'll be over it just like you have before.

Frustration, anger, and pity are normal. But try your best to not dwell on them.

If you find triggers, avoid them but gradually expose yourself as you're able. One of mine became the grocery store, I guess maybe because of the lighting or something? But I gradually spent more time in there until my brain learned it was "okay" in there. Avoiding places that trigger attacks can gradually make you stay indoors/away from others, so when you're either medicated or feeling up to it, expose yourself and retrain that brain.

Understand that your mind is pretty strong - it can make all this happen! But it can also learn again to stop doing this, or it can be medicated to ease the symptoms. Do what you feel is best for you.

Trying deep calming breaths - in through the nose, out through the mouth. This helped me tremendously when one would kick in. Doesn't have to be obvious or exaggerated, but it will have a good chance at calming you down a bit.

Know that many of us totally understand where you're coming from. It's okay, this happens to quite a lot of people.