I’m not sure if I’m having panic attacks?

[AlwaysAfraid11]

I get pretty anxious while dining out. In general my anxiety revolves around having a medical emergency at work or in public.

The last couple of meals I had, I suddenly had a wave of nausea and then my chest got hot, my heart rate elevated and my chest felt heavy/I found it hard to catch my breath.

Sometimes I get a full day where I just feel generally unwell. Heart skips beats, I feel uneasy, find it hard to take deep breaths, I will also cough/have some chest pains.

It’s usually not super severe. More or less annoying.

Does this sound like an anxiety attack?

[ankietyjoe]

It sounds like panic attacks caused by what's called general anxiety disorder.

Are you particularly stressed or worried at the moment?

[AlwaysAfraid11]

It sounds like panic attacks caused by what's called general anxiety disorder.

Are you particularly stressed or worried at the moment?

I’m always stressed out about my health. I’m focused on it all day, everyday.
I was diagnosed with generalized anxiety disorder back about 10 years ago. I took medication for awhile and then was taken off because it wasn’t working.

In general I wouldn’t call myself an anxious person in everyday life situations. The anxiety I feel is 100% health related.

[ankietyjoe]

Ok, well health anxiety is a self fulfilling prophecy kind of thing. You think you're ill, and then you feel ill, and because you feel ill you then become anxious about feeling ill.

Fundamentally, you need to stop checking symptoms, stop reading about illness, stop looking up symptoms on google etc.

I just realised from your other thread you've had your heart checked a number of times and it's all come back fine, so the problem is actually your perception of being ill rather than actually being ill.

For me, meditation was the magic bullet. My personal opinion is that medication is a waste of time for the majority of people (although it does help some). Meditation is proven to reduce and beat anxiety over time, but it takes practice and patience. You didn't become anxious overnight, and you won't fix it overnight either.

[AlwaysAfraid11]

Ok, well health anxiety is a self fulfilling prophecy kind of thing. You think you're ill, and then you feel ill, and because you feel ill you then become anxious about feeling ill.

Fundamentally, you need to stop checking symptoms, stop reading about illness, stop looking up symptoms on google etc.

I just realised from your other thread you've had your heart checked a number of times and it's all come back fine, so the problem is actually your perception of being ill rather than actually being ill.

For me, meditation was the magic bullet. My personal opinion is that medication is a waste of time for the majority of people (although it does help some). Meditation is proven to reduce and beat anxiety over time, but it takes practice and patience. You didn't become anxious overnight, and you won't fix it overnight either.

I completely agree with your views on medication. They put me on Zoloft for depression, gabipentan for anxiety and then when I developed a sleeping problem (duh), they put me on sleeping pills.

I have since ditched all the medications.

I have a couple of surgeries coming up for non-life threatening things - so I’m not 100% healthy, but I’m not in shambles either.

I actually have reached out to a CBT therapist and I’m waiting to hear back from them about starting treatment using that route.
I’m very familiar with meditation, I practised Buddhism for many years.
It took me about 2 years to get good at meditating, but it works for so many things.

[ankietyjoe]

If you like meditation, you'll probably like CBT too. They work on the same basic principle that 'it's cool'. I think 2 years is about right to get good at meditation. It means you're accepting the practice. Looking back, it was probably about the same for me too, then another 2-3 years of doing it every single day to really beat the majority of my anxiety. Probably 100% for health anxiety, which I had pretty badly at one point.

For me there was a whole host of behaviours that I was undertaking that was keeping the anxiety fires stoked too, as well as bad eating habits. I don't think you can beat anxiety without attacking it from all angles. Eat well, exercise, stop the behaviours that are maintaining the anxiety and getting enough sleep. You need to do all those things to beat it.

[AlwaysAfraid11]

If you like meditation, you'll probably like CBT too. They work on the same basic principle that 'it's cool'. I think 2 years is about right to get good at meditation. It means you're accepting the practice. Looking back, it was probably about the same for me too, then another 2-3 years of doing it every single day to really beat the majority of my anxiety. Probably 100% for health anxiety, which I had pretty badly at one point.

For me there was a whole host of behaviours that I was undertaking that was keeping the anxiety fires stoked too, as well as bad eating habits. I don't think you can beat anxiety without attacking it from all angles. Eat well, exercise, stop the behaviours that are maintaining the anxiety and getting enough sleep. You need to do all those things to beat it.

I already eat well, exercise and get enough sleep. So I’m winning on those fronts lol.
My health anxiety crept in as people around me started to get ill and pass away. People who were my age and at one point also healthy.

Then I had an episode at work where my heart started to beat super rapidly and hard. I left and went to the ER, had an EKG and wore a heart monitor. Nothing showed up. However I was convinced that it had to be something.
At that time I didn’t have health anxiety at all.

Since then I’ve been so hyper aware of my heart. I get palpitations at work, flutters, what feels like missed beats. I’m also really scared of having a medical emergency in public.
My life revolves around it and where the nearest hospitals are.
Heck, I turned down a really good job last month because it was too far from a hospital.

It’s always on my mind, it’s crept into all aspects and it’s exhausting.

I really hope the CBT works because it’s not covered by my insurance so I will be paying out of pocket for the services.

[ankietyjoe]

Weirdly, my health anxiety started exactly the same as yours. I went back to work too soon after a bad chest infection and realised my heart was beating at 120bpm and would not slow down. I spent a night in A&E, had all the tests....nothing wrong. Actually, there was something wrong. I was mega stressed and didn't know how to cope or react to it at the time.

My mental state was like yours too, in that I was completely obsessed with my heart rate after that, every single second on the day. Probably checking 50-100 times a day. I've mentioned this elsewhere in the forum, but at one point I could tell my partner what my heart rate was without checking my pulse, and I was never more than 1-2bpm out, ever. Just an obsession.

Anyway, the ironic cure is to just stop checking and thinking about it. This is what I was talking about earlier, it's a feedback loop.

I've since learned the kinds of things that will make my heart rate rise and stay high. Stress does it, every single time. It also happens when I'm ill. Last year I had a bad infection that lasted about 3-4 weeks and I don't think my heart rate went below 90 the whole time. I was able to stand back and not panic about it though, just kept telling myself when the infection goes, so will the rapid heart rate.....and it did!

It's like people who are overweight. The answer is really simple. Change what you eat. It's not about eating less, it's about changing the habit of eating. Alter what you eat, how much of it you eat, and when you eat.

We have to stop checking the heart rate, and when we want to check it or when we want to think about it say to ourselves that we don't need to and that it's fine. Out loud if necessary.

[AlwaysAfraid11]

I try not to check my heart rate unless I’m at practise or during a game and that’s only because it’s suggested.
I don’t normally wear my watch otherwise and when I do, I’m usually pretty aware to turn the monitor off. Sometimes I forget tho and then I get weird readings that worry me.

I have a “routine” surgery coming up, but I’ve been pretty worried about the anesthesia. Despite seeing a cardiologist about a year and a half ago and being told everything was good I still feel poorly about the anesthesia.

I saw my GP today and got him to give me a referral back to the cardiologist for a stress, echo and a 24-hour monitor. I know it’s probably going to come back A-OK, so I’m not even anxious about the appointment and results.
I think I’d feel better about the anesthesia with one last checkover.

[kestral]

I get anxiety attacks more regularly since I fainted on a day out to the seaside in July. Got took to hospital in an ambulance. They said I was ok but low on sodium which resulted in me taking some meds for a week with some checkups advised later. Had blood check for my diabetes which in fine but told I needed a full blood check in 2 months. Since then I have had big anxiety problems wondering what the results will be. I am reluctant to go out and about now and limit what I do. I requested cbt which is taking ages. I have been on bp meds for several years and now take meds for diabetes.