Is this really possible

[beadbabe]

I have had anxiety and panic attacks for over 18 months constantly now - panic attacks every day sometimes three or four small ones a day. I am absolutely desperate because (and this is what I can't get my head round) I feel so ill. As if my body (and sometimes mind) is falling apart and failing.

I feel really dizzy/lightheaded, have a horrible scarey heart rhythm (ectopics heartbeat - thousands of these missed beats every day and night), stomach pains, rib pain, shaking and unbalanced feeling. What I want to ask is can anxiety really make you feel REALLY ill.

I know I have read the symptom list but it all sounds a little understated compared to how I feel and I just want to know is can this all be so devastatingly severe symptoms only be anxiety. I just want to believe it and hear if anyone else has anxiety this badly that they feel they are dying.

I have had plenty tests (ecgs, mri, blood tests) and I have tried all sort of remedies (ssris, beta blockers, yoga, counselling, CBT, and all to limited effect). could I just get better - I don't think I can bear it if I have to feel like this for the rest of my life, because I have two small children who depend on me and I can't give them what they need. is there any hope?

[Piglet]

What I want to ask is can anxiety really make you feel REALLY ill.


A resounding YES to that question!!!!!

This is exactly what I said to my doctor a little while ago that how can what goes on in my head make me feel so physically ill!!!

I am just wondering mate what things you've tried upto now??

Have you read the Claire Weekes book 'Self-help for your nerves' yet??

Piglet :flowers:

[trac67]

. I just want to believe it and hear if anyone else has anxiety this badly that they feel they are dying.


That is exactly how I feel, I went to see the nurse at my surgery this morning and said the same thing to her, it is our thoughts making us believe that we are suffering from all these symptoms. I have come to the conclusion that I have has this on and off for the past 9 years and am still here so hey it definatley is not going to kill me :)

Please don't give up hope though, as there is a light at the end of the tunnel I have been there before and will get there again, just sometimes it seems to only flicker instead of shine brightly, you just have to keep believing and keep fighting hun and it will become easier and you definately will get there.

feel free to pm me if you need a chat in the mean time here is a :hugs: for you.

Love

Trac xxx

[Alabasterlyn]

A resounding YES to that question!!!!!

This is exactly what I said to my doctor a little while ago that how can what goes on in my head make me feel so physically ill!!!

I am just wondering mate what things you've tried upto now??

Have you read the Claire Weekes book 'Self-help for your nerves' yet??

Piglet :flowers:

I totally agree with Piglet. Anxiety can cause the symptoms of most physcial illnesses. The Claire Weekes books are brilliant, I don't think anyone has written books that so clearly describe the devastating effects of anxiety like she has. I guess as she herself suffered with anxiety she was in a better position to write about the subject.

I would recommend her tapes and CD's too as often when you are anxious it can be hard to concentrate on a book. When my anxiety was very bad I would do my housework whilst listening to her tapes and I found them very easy to listen to and extremely helpful. There is a site online where you can order her books and her CD's.

[beadbabe]

Thanks for both your replies. I am feeling really upset and useless that I can't get over this.
I have been on antidepressants but came off them as I didn't feel they were working but now perhaps I have relapsed further but I worried that they had caused the irregular heartbeat and now it is worse than ever. I am also on beta blockers but they are not helping either (that is for the heart rhythm but the cardiologist says they may not help and I may have to get used to it as beta blockers can go one way or the other with ectopic heartbeat).
Everything just seems without an end and I have worked so hard to get better.
I have read loads of books (inc claire weekes which was interesting from point of view of symptom clarification) but still nothing is denting whatever is the matter with me

[Piglet]

Funny heart flutterings are abit of a thing with me also but Meg once told me to try and view them as no more annoying than a run of sneezes and for some reason that really stuck with me - although I do still get them they are not quite as scary when I see them like this.

Piglet :flowers:

[Alabasterlyn]

Thanks for both your replies. I am feeling really upset and useless that I can't get over this.
I have been on antidepressants but came off them as I didn't feel they were working but now perhaps I have relapsed further but I worried that they had caused the irregular heartbeat and now it is worse than ever. I am also on beta blockers but they are not helping either (that is for the heart rhythm but the cardiologist says they may not help and I may have to get used to it as beta blockers can go one way or the other with ectopic heartbeat).
Everything just seems without an end and I have worked so hard to get better.
I have read loads of books (inc claire weekes which was interesting from point of view of symptom clarification) but still nothing is denting whatever is the matter with me

I'm sorry you feel so helpless beadbabe. I think often as long as we struggle to find an answer for our problems we keep on having the symptoms. I really do believe that relief comes from acceptance, which is why I like the Claire Weekes books. However I think it's very hard to totally accept the awful physical sensations we have as they feel so real. Fact is they are real, but the cause of them is anxiety.

Have you considered asking your Dr to refer you for some therapy or even give you a different med? There are so many different ways of treating anxiety disorder and it can take a lot of trial and error before you find what works for you.

[cazza]

Hi Beadbabe
It deffinately is anxiety. I know its hard to believe i like you have the heart flutters have for 10 months now! I see you on the heart forum too.
I used to say to my doctor i feel so ill there must be something wrong with me. But she said this is what anxiety can make you feel like its a slow process but you have to stop fearing the symptoms...hard as hell i know
i had no stress in my life when all this started but the year before had loads which i just thought i dealt with and got on with it but they say when its over and you are relaxed bamm your body says hey i could not cope with all that and all the symtoms appear...strange i know
its taken me a year to get my head around this and i still have bad days but if all your tests show nothing somehow you have to look elsewhere
you will get there carol x

[trish1955]

I totally agree with Piglet. Anxiety can cause the symptoms of most physcial illnesses. The Claire Weekes books are brilliant, I don't think anyone has written books that so clearly describe the devastating effects of anxiety like she has. I guess as she herself suffered with anxiety she was in a better position to write about the subject.

I would recommend her tapes and CD's too as often when you are anxious it can be hard to concentrate on a book. When my anxiety was very bad I would do my housework whilst listening to her tapes and I found them very easy to listen to and extremely helpful. There is a site online where you can order her books and her CD's.wondering if u have a cair weekd cd i could copy and send it u back i am agraphobic and there is no one who would get me one as my family thinks its all a waste of money but i could get one copy it and send it back i have read most of self help with your nerves clair weeks but readin some times just dont go in any way pleas pm me and let me no thanks
trish i too have all the anxiety running round inme constant and raceing heart still scares me after over 30yrs of suffering on and off

[Alabasterlyn]

wondering if u have a cair weekd cd i could copy and send it u back i am agraphobic and there is no one who would get me one as my family thinks its all a waste of money but i could get one copy it and send it back i have read most of self help with your nerves clair weeks but readin some times just dont go in any way pleas pm me and let me no thanks
trish i too have all the anxiety running round inme constant and raceing heart still scares me after over 30yrs of suffering on and off

Hi trish, I've only got the Claire Weekes tapes as at the time I got them that was all that was available. The only CD's I have right now are the Lucinda Bassett ones called From Panic To Power, they are quite good, but not as good as Claire Weekes. If you want copies of the Lucinda Bassett ones I'll be happy to send them to you through MSN or copy them for you :)

[nomorepanic]

What about asking to be referred for some CBT? That will help I am sure.

[angiebaby]

Hi beadbabe, it's ang, i know exactly what you mean hun, so horrible and unbearable. I live with the illness and fear everyday too, i feel like i will just drop down dead at any moment, or i cannot cope with this anymore. And i also feel as though this is sooooooo bad that this cannot be just anxiety, i must be terminal, i must be so ill and no one is listening to me or believing me. But i have read and have been told that the more we think like this, the more we keep the 'illness' alive, this sounds so stupid to me. But i have felt this way now for so long and i'm still alive, never thought i would be, but i am. It is so very horrible and you do feel so ill. A simple thought, reading a certain thing, hearing a simple thing can make me feel like i will die, i know this sounds silly but it is as if i cannot rationalize with my own brain. I have had thousands of ecg's, holter monitor and bp checks and there is nothing and the symptoms are STILL there and seem worse. Also i get reassurance from certain things and i think, oh ye, that makes sense, but then about 5 minutes later, i'm back to square one. It is so hard. Feel free to pm me anytime hun.x

[pgw84]

I've been wondering the same thing, beadbabe. Today is as bad as ever, I keep getting random chest pain, it feels tight and difficult to breathe, I just don't feel right. I'm trying my best to not keep checking my 'abnormal' pulse. I'm scared I'm going to die young of a sudden heart attack from an undiagnosed heart problem and my bodily sensations only seem to reaffirm this fear. How can anxiety cause this? Surely there must be a problem? I've even been doubting my ECG test because my heart was racing from anxiety at the time, which I think could mask any problem that would of showed.

But apparently, beadbabe, anxiety can cause all this. At least we can all take some comfort in knowing that we're all in the same boat, even when the grass does often feel greener on the otherside.

[looking4answers]

I know the feeling and suffer as you do almost everyday..Its sad to feel these things and to hear over and over its anxiety .Its just not logical.I worry to but well I have a friend that is a nurse that just keeps pushing me to keep on doing things I used to do and keep on.Odds are that if you have suffered with it this long then its nothing to be concerned about.I know easier said than done.I even had another nurse tell me that 99 percent of the things that we suffer from isnt fatal..So hope this helps..