scared of exersise

[ozjeff]

hey everyone, does anyone else freak out when they exert themselves, even if its only a little bit?
my ha is regarding breathing issues, i do smoke a lot, ( yeah, i know),
and am TERRIFIED of lung disease, ( emphsema), just now i walked the 50 metres or so to the mailbox, & tried not to be aware of my breathing, but when i got back & stopped i felt really breathless& like i couldnt get enough air in, & freaked right out.
my docs (2) listened to my chest 3 months ago , & werent concerned both stating not to worry about smoking until my anxiety was under control, but its a viscious circle, i gave up drinking ( once again heavily ) in febuary, but since then its all been about breathing.these bloody goverment ads on telly all the time are scaring the s**t out of me.
how will i ever get fit again when im to scared to even walk a few yards

[davey]

I've been exactly the seem for ages now months and months, to the point where I just wouldn't walk any where really I'd jump on a bus. Since starting cbt therapy my councillor has been great and educated me on A-the importance of excercise and B how these feelings are normal to us with anxiety and can be overcome. I've been a million times better since speaking with her and putting into practice what she tells me-she has had me jogging this week and I feel great for it-I still have my problems but I can deal with them a lot better now.

[ozjeff]

davey,
im so glad your getting on top of it. im getting cbt too & am doing ok on it , but as per my post , it seems to find me rather than the other way round.thats my dream , to be able to run again like i used to when i was a teen ( before i started smoking), i try to be positive , but that deathly feeling that says " too late, damage done", plus the physical side, really sets me back.
how did you deal with it when you staryed to exersize again?

[davey]

Its only very recently literally couple of weeks ago-I try to command my mind instead of the other way round, when the thoughts start creeping in (which they do) I look at it in a more rational way i.e when I get my chest pains and start to feel breathless I try to get angry with it if that makes sense and tell it it will not halt my life anymore. I also have started to believe that if I was going to collapse with it it would happen regardless so I seem to hav adapted the attitude of 'well if your going to drop dead today then so be it but I wont stop doing what im doing.'
I hope that makes sense. Im a smoker also

[davey]

I was lying on my sofa watching tv last night and got quite severe heart flutter....I smiled and carried on watching t.v and it all went away straight away, I do know its easier said than done but if you can do it its a great feeling, I also gain confidence in knowing that paramedics are only minutes away should they be needed and they will save me.....that thought works wanders for me

[ozjeff]

thanks so much for the replies davey,
they mean a lot to me.
yeah, ive got control of the actual panic attacks, (horrid shit,that), its just the constant anxious state thats beating me, ( you know the one, the one thats there even when you dont think youre anxious), so when something like what happened to me this morning happens it feels like its " out of the blue", & then the real fear starts because its "syptom first, anxiety second"
im not afraid of collapsing as much as the symptoms confirming my fears
its great advice , i just wish i could see my councillor more often, i always feel "galvinised" after a visit with her, but ive only 2 left, so we are stringing them out ( 3 weeks apart), in the meantime tho....

[dodo]

The more you concentrateon something the harder it is to do it IYKWIM. So concentrating on your breathing would mean it would feel like a struggle as your body is used to doing it automatically, there's no need to think about it. The reason you're feeling like this is beacuse you're concentrating on it and analysing.

I can say this as I feel this way myself sometimes, in fact a lot of the time. As soon as I think about my breathing, I feel like I'm having to gasp for air and like I;m being smothered.

[ozjeff]

thanks dodo ,
of course you both are right, work is really quiet at the moment & i literally have all day to think, not good when you are already in the "hole".
thanks so much for your replies, i need to try & refocus , haa haa, full of good advice, me, not so good at listening to myself!:blush:

[StoneMonkey]

Hi Ozjeff,
I am 45 & smoke about 20 skinny roll ups a day. I know that it is bad for me and it increases anxiety. What can I say I love the smokes.
Regardless of that I now go running twice a week about 4 miles per and weight train (heavy resistance) twice per week.

At 40 I was very unfit. I would get out of breath, feel hot and uncomfortable just walking even though a little skinny fella then.
What suprises me is that although still little I am now running comfortably with 4 stone more weight (luckily mostly muscle) than when I got out of breath walking.
It was all small steps starting with walking but I learned to love exercise and stopped seeing it as a chore and if I was running or walking I would try to relax into it and regulate my breathing. (Two steps breathe in Three steps breathe out which also helps calm the mind).

My breathing being out of whack has caused a lot of my problems and I am trying to retrain to nose breathing and training my brain to accept less oxygen.
I could only hold my breath for 10 seconds after exhalation before suffocation reflex kicked in and when I do the 20 minute exercises my pulse rate drops 5 to 15 percent. This stuff isn't even looked at by doctors over here.

Keep searching for the keys.
Simon.

[ozjeff]

thanks heaps simon,
im spending today trying to challenge every thought & feeling i get,
once i calm enough will try again.
i wanna get well enough so quitting smoking is simply dealing with cravings,
not feeling like emotional armageddon!:blush: