Debilitating exhaustion at social events

[DustingMyselfOff]

Hi. I'll try to keep this short but there's probably some background needed to understand. I've been dealing with anxiety and panic attacks for many decades. Sometimes under control, most of the time not. Been on Prozac for 30 years at the same dose. Worked well for a long time, not sure if it does anything anymore. I carry tranquilizers with me for times when my anxiety and panic gets bad but don't take them every day.

Recently my doc suggested I add Gabapentin. I think I really like it! I have become a social butterfly where in the past I avoided interaction like the plague. I actually am starting to ENJOY accepting invitations and social gatherings which I NEVER have because of anxiety. I'm able to stay more focused at the office, too, focusing on only three or four tasks at hand rather than the usual 8 or 9 tasks at at time.

So, I should be happy, right? Well twice in the past two days, I have pretty much been taken out of two social events by debilitating fatigue. I was at my sister's house celebrating my husband's birthday, just the three of us. Wonderful dinner that I normally love. I was too tired to eat, or even stay at the table. I had to excuse myself and go sit on the couch. Yesterday evening I was meeting with three other couples at the casino (my favorite place) for dinner and some play. By the time we got to playing, my fatigue was so bad that I couldn't really speak, couldn't keep playing, and had to excuse myself to the ladies room to rest my head (which felt like it weighed 300 pounds) against the wall.

WTF???? I was looking forward to the events. They were things I enjoy doing. Yet they were both ruined, not by an actual "panic attack" but by my body completely giving out on me. Here's the mysterious part: last night at the casino I tried several things to bring myself back to life: I tried a few sips of an alcoholic drink. If anything, made it worse. I downed 2 cups of coffee. Didn't help. I used Afrin nasal spray thinking my head was clogged up. Didn't help. Out of desperation I popped a tranquilizer. Bingo, I came back to life.

Sorry for the long post but can you think of any reason why my symptoms of anxiety would change so much? I now feel like I WANT to go to these events, but once I get there, my body makes me go home. So frustrating! I thought I was finally starting to get a life, and now I'm afraid to commit to anything again for fear I will have to go lie down.

Thanks in advance for any thoughts.
Sue

[GiantMogwai]

Which tranquilizer - diazepam/valium?

---------- Post added at 18:45 ---------- Previous post was at 18:34 ----------

If this is something just in past two days could be something viral. However my theory is this could be fatigue caused by muscular tension. Tranquilizers such as diazepam are muscle relaxants so would potentially help fatigue induced by tightness. Also you could try organising a lunch and seeing if the same thing happens. An experiment. If you think this is muscle fatigue or tension, try a massage, and maybe with next event give yourself extra time to relax beforehand and ask partner to drive to avoid drivers muscle tension. Another experiment. Good luck!

---------- Post added at 18:46 ---------- Previous post was at 18:45 ----------

I particularly find shoulder tension gets me very tired.

[DustingMyselfOff]

Thanks for the reply, but I don't think it's a muscle thing. Wouldn't I feel tightness or fatigue or weakness in my muscles? If it's muscular, it's totally unnoticed by me. It's my head that feels SO HEAVY that I need to lie it against something or recline somewhere. No, I don't think it's viral because it's only hitting at night at the events. And now that I think back, I got hit with this once before a few months ago when taking my dog to a dog park after a long busy day at work. So weak I wasn't sure if I'd get back to my car and make it home.

It almost seems like the Gabapentin is working so well that I don't feel anxious or overwhelmed anymore and so I keep adding more and more to my activities and then I completely run out of steam. I didn't take a tranq at my sister's house, I just called it an early night and amazingly once I got home, energy returned. It's almost as if crashing fatigue is my new sign that I've taken on too much, whereas I used to have panic attacks, now I'm more prone to collapsing.

P.S. I have Tranxene and Xanax. I prefer the Tranxene: it takes longer to kick in but then lasts longer. Xanax seems to work faster and wear off faster.
Sue

[GiantMogwai]

Sounds like a good explanation. You've overdone it. Fair enough in which case why did the tranquilizer make you feel better? I've always gotten tired quickly at social gatherings in the past. I get overstimulated far too quickly.

[DustingMyselfOff]

"Fair enough in which case why did the tranquilizer make you feel better?"


I guess that's what I'm trying to figure out, too. When I am barely able to stand upright, you would think taking a tranq would be a bad thing to do (and it was risky but I was desperate) but within 30 minutes of taking it my energy returned, my head cleared, I was able to start enjoying myself again and extend the evening by several hours.

So is that a sign that debilitating fatigue is my new "warning" that I'm riddled with anxiety but just don't feel it in the ways that I used to in previous years?
Sue

[GiantMogwai]

Maybe the tranquiliser just gave you a 2nd wind, Iike that feeling when you arrive home. Sometimes a good breeze through a window can give me a 2nd wind. :)

[DustingMyselfOff]

I have my yearly physical with my GP this Wednesday, I will be mentioning this new "fatigue" to her. My TSH levels are a little high but they've been higher without this exhaustion. If she has anything enlightening to say, I'll update in case it might help others, but it seems like only you and I on this thread for now.
Sue

[GiantMogwai]

Yeh, good luck, lack of vitamin D can cause fatigue. :)

[pulisa]

I'd certainly ask for a full thyroid profile when you see your GP this week, Sue.

Gabapentin can cause "brain fog" when taken regularly but this sounds more like an overwhelming fatigue wiping you out. A full blood count would pick up any lurking viruses of course.

I hope there is a simple explanation and that your appointment gives you some reassurance.

[DustingMyselfOff]

Thanks, guys. I had 3 vials of blood drawn a few days ago in prep for my physical on Wednesday and everything is in normal range, even Vitamin D and B12.

Yes, I take 100 mg. of Gabapentin 3 times a day and it really has changed my life, and I THOUGHT for the better, but it may be helping me / causing me to put too much on my plate and not notice the early signs that I need to cool it a bit. Although since I was feeling so normal, I thought I could go ahead and start being a more active, social person.
Sue

[pulisa]

It's good news that your bloods were all fine, Sue, so it may just be a question of "too much, too soon" with your spells of complete exhaustion?

I'm sure your GP will be able to give you his/her opinion on Wednesday. If there's no physical reason then inevitably it may just be your mind/body reacting to a bit of social overload? Good luck for the appointment.

[DustingMyselfOff]

It's good news that your bloods were all fine, Sue, so it may just be a question of "too much, too soon" with your spells of complete exhaustion?

I'm sure your GP will be able to give you his/her opinion on Wednesday. If there's no physical reason then inevitably it may just be your mind/body reacting to a bit of social overload? Good luck for the appointment.

Thanks, Pulisa. I'm STILL dragging, to the point that I'm working from home today, but of course this is depressing me / worrying me since I always need to know exactly what is going on with my body, and why. Yes, a control freak. Wish I could just "accept" that sometimes, people don't feel up to par, but I can't. I need to know WHY I'm feeling what I'm feeling so I can prevent it from happening again.

I'm also depressed about being on yet another drug (Gabapentin) even though it seems to really help. It just adds more confusion to the equation, one more thing that I may need to wean off of in the future, etc. I was hoping that if the Gabapentin worked that I could start weaning off Prozac but doc says there's no reason to try to get off Prozac since it's been in my system for so many years. Might be more trouble than it's worth to get off.

I think it's still a stigma thing for me. If I have to list the medications I'm taking somewhere, I still get embarrassed to list my anxiety meds. At this age you would think I would listen to the docs who tell me it's a chemical imbalance and that I need the medication just as a diabetic needs insulin. And the more meds you take, the more variables as to which to increase, which to decrease, which is causing which symptoms, etc.

Sorry, just feeling fed up and defeated today. Yes, it was a very busy, tough week with very little quality sleep, but still to be so weary two days later?

Thanks for being here, being able to vent helps a little.
Sue

[pulisa]

I don't know about you but I very rarely feel able to slow down and when I do it's a sign that I am in a better place mentally. Maybe you are feeling more relaxed and consequently your body feels it's been given "permission" to wind down? I know you feel the "wind down" has been too "dramatic" but maybe it is a bit of burnout but only because you feel better?

Sorry if this reads like a crap opinion. I'm more in the "agitated depression" bracket and I do get periods of feeling completely wiped out (which frighten me because I have to keep going at all costs)

[DustingMyselfOff]

That was definitely not a crap opinion... I appreciate the down-to-earth comments and the sharing of experiences. And I can totally relate to very rarely being able to slow down, and yes, I have noticed and been aware of feeling wiped out on the days that I "allow" myself to where I have no commitments or obligations. But these two recent crashes were not that.... I really needed to be on my game at these two events but the body (and/or mind) did not cooperate.

Today I'm noticing heightened general anxiety and also the "prickly skin" feeling that I always seem to get when my TSH levels are changing (either up or down). I have no friggin' idea why my levels won't stay consistent but it's really frustrating that I have to go through these physical and mental symptoms when they do.

Ahhh well, yet another thing I need to learn to accept. Thanks for helping me feel less alone in these challenges.
Sue

[pulisa]

Thyroid blood test results often don't match symptoms. Levels can alter according to the time of day the blood was drawn. You could ask for some T4 and T3 blood tests which give a more accurate profile of thyroid functioning.

[DustingMyselfOff]

Yes, perhaps I will have it drawn again in a week or two. I do have a slip that will test both TSH and free T4 but since I had already taken my Synthroid that day it didn't make sense to have the T4 tested. Next week I will hold off on taking the Synthroid, have blood drawn, and then take the tablet.
Sue

[pulisa]

That sounds like a good plan to cover all angles. Does gabapentin affect your thyroid med in any way? I'm sure your doctor would have checked this anyway.