feel like yourself again .. normal?

[so jems like]

I got my first panic attack last summer ..
Ever since, I've never felt the same again.
Can anyone relate?
It's been several months, and I've gotten used to that lingering "feeling" that has stayed with me .. But, sometimes I just want to feel like myself again. I want to feel like how I did BEFORE I got my first panic attack ..

[i hate panicking]

Hi,

I know exactly where you are coming from I have suffered from panic attacks for years and have never felt quite right since:weep:.

At one stage i did have them under control,but they came back again.

[Veronica H]

:) yes i think most of us can relate to this. Panic attacks are so powerful even though they cannot harm us. I realise though that the reason that I started to have them was because of the issues and stresses in my life at the time. Maybe not being the old me is a good thing, but I think we all get frustrated having to deal with this illness, and the fear can creep back in when we have an attack after weeks of progress. Overall i think i am getting better though, so hang in there. I don't think i will ever feel the same again but who is to say the new me will not be stronger and wiser.:bighug1:

Veronica

[sMINT]

Funnily enough, I was actually sat in the car earlier waiting for a friend and was thinking this exact thing.

I honestly cant remember what normal feels like. I mean, okay, maybe I wont get a panic attack for a day but the emotional feelings are still there. I still have a little bit of hope though and thats what gets me through

[Kells81]

I have come to realise that I dont think 'normal' even exists! No one has a perfect life, even if they dont get panic attacks they have other stuff going on.
I have suffered from panic attacks and anxiety for years but I cant help but think that my quest to feel 'normal' again is holding me back as it doesnt exist. Dont put such huge expectations onto yourself-it wont help.
Just set little goals and when you reach them feel really proud of yourself and then set another one.
If you learn to love yourself then your 'normal' might not seem so bad.

xx

[mick_uk]

I'm sure I felt normal at sometime. It gets cloudy when you have felt so awful for so long a time. I'm not sure I would recognise it now if it happened.

[Meltdown]

I felt like this for years. I would have periods with loads of palpitations, sometimes leading to panic attacks, and in between I would feel better, but not entirely "normal". This continued from about 2006 to about 6 months ago.

For the past 6 months, I really have felt "normal" - just like I used to, and I have started to enjoy some of the things I used to enjoy, like riding motorcycles, and playing guitar (but not usually at the same time!)

I still occasionally feel a bit panicky, but the feeling soon passes, and I return to my "normal" state again.

My improvement co-incided with reading Claire Weekes book "self-help for your nerves". This book really flicked a switch for me!

I think once you have suffered with panic attacks, there is a tendancy to always be "looking out" for them, so we never truely relax. Only when you lose the fear of panic can we start to feel like our old selves again!

[thepoet78]

Sounds like me.I just try to deal with the feelings i have daily and just go about my day but yeah, alot of the time i want to feel like i use to.I even find myself questioning most of the thoughts i have and the things i do,just to see if they are the same as they use to be.I'm even starting to think i wouldn't even know if i felt normal anymore. I felt good a couple days ago and when i noticed how good i felt it scared me, i had a panic attack from feeling good. I just try to stay positive(somedays are harder than others) and deal with this the best way i can. Just keep telling myself leave the past in the past and quit comparing then to now.It's only going to depress me and keep me feeling bad. Just try to keep the hope that in the future i will get over my anxiety. Also would like to add that there is some good that comes out of all this,i never take a good day for granted anymore and i have made many new and understanding friends.

[Dazo]

Your story are pretty much the same as mine, i got a huge panic attack in may last year and after that i havnt felt good. Every day there is something new, strange symptoms and feeling ill.
Many things scares me and i have seen alot of docs. It is really hard to deal with.

[Nechtan]

I can relate to this too. I think if you have had a big panic attack like I did and your world seems to shatter and you find yourself in a strange place then its hard for life to be the same again. A bit like PTSD.

In saying that though I have had episodes of normality. Really strange when they occur. Usually its through looking at old photos or listening to music I haven't listened to in a while. I get these memories of normality which are very strong.

Nechtan