New to panic

[Prest]

Hi everyone,

I have lived relatively panic free for most of my life but started encountering anxiety and panic attacks after my Mum was diagnosed with cancer and died in November 2009.

Since then, I have episodes of feeling very anxious (tense and foggyheaded, missed beats/palpitations etc ).

I also get panic attacks that kind of whoosh in and take over making me feel lightheaded and like I will fall over with my heart pounding as if someone had just jumped out of a dark alleyway, eyes not able to fix on anything and a firm need to escape. These happen in Supermarkets mainly but even had one in my own house on Saturday while rushing around trying to make the kids a sandwich.

These are taking over my life and I am due to go to Florida in 2 months which I cannot wait for but I am already dreading the idea of trying to walk through the airport and stand at the desk. As I say, the worst and strangest feeling is that I will fall over and even sometimes I get a little woozy which of course then fuels the fire.

Anyone else had that kind of symptom?

Prest.

[mary3]

Hi i definatly suffer the same feelings when i am really anxious or having an anxiety attack. The whoosh feeling is the adrenalin in your body giving you the fight or flight feeling and making you feel your heart pound. i also get the light headedness and the feeling like i will fall over, im not sure why this happens but i do know that it is definatly a symptom of anxiety, if you read the lists of symptoms that people have posted you will see this is a very common symptom.

im not suprised you are anxious and stressed after seeing your mum ill and then pass away, im really sorry to hear it. Hope you start to feel better soon xx

[smpomeroy]

Hi,
I think the feeling you are going to fall over is def a symptom of panic - I sometimes feel like someone has given me a shove or slightly like I am falling and I dont have a ear infection or any other reason for this to occur and I suffer badly from anxiety so I can only assume they are related. I also get the whooshy feeling too.

I think and maybe others will disagree, once you accept the panic attacks as a normal reaction to what you have been through that helps go some way to resolving them or at least making them easier to deal with. While the panic attacks make you feel like you are odd or strange then that just adds fuel to the fire IMHO.

I really hope you feel better soon but talking and hearing from others that feel the same way might help you through in the mean time :yesyes:

Suz

[sedalia]

Hello

I'm sorry you're going through this and my condolences regarding your mum. I had my first panic attack just under a year ago, and like you, have just lost my brother four weeks after being diagnosed with cancer. This has set me back a lot, and yes I definitely get the lightheadedness, foggy head etc, sometimes it lasts for days. I wish I could give you some advice on how to deal with it as I know how scary it is, but I just wanted to let you know, as other people have said, that it is a very common symptom of anxiety. Try not to let it scare you too much (easier said than done, I know!) Good luck.