Electric_Worry
12-10-10, 20:00
There's a little detail to this question, so please bear with me.
A couple of months before I had what I consider to be my first panic attack, I was on a diet and exercising regularly in order to drop a few pounds. To begin with, the exercise would consist of riding my bike for around five miles or so, however at a higher tempo than a leisurely cycle. The exercise would usually be from Monday to Friday with the weekends off. I would get up, brush my teeth and what not and then head out (without breakfast) within thirty minutes or so. I hadn't exercised for a while and I will admit to probably pushing myself from the very off, rather than taking it easy. On a few occasions I would be racing through a section of the route for a couple of miles and would then have to slow down and stop for whatever reason, e.g. to join a road. Once I had slowed down and gotten off the bike, my heart beat would race out of control, I felt sick, faint and would turn white as a sheet. It was a horrible feeling and on each occasion I thought I would definitely pass out. I didn't, and after around five minutes I would feel absolutely fine and would continue the remainder of my route without a problem.
However, after the third time it occurred I started to become more and more conscious of it happening again. So much so that I stopped the regular exercise routine out of fear. I didn't stop using the bike, but even when nipping the short distance to the store, I was acutely aware of my breathing and heart rate to the extent that the slightest quickening of my heartbeat made me extremely anxious. I would be cycling gently for a couple of minutes, almost expecting for it to happen again, in some cases forcing me to get off my bike and start over breathing, which also made my heart race again. I also feared having one of the episodes in front of somebody else or at the roadside, for fear out of embarrassing myself more than anything, so that became a factor, too. Whenever I saw someone during my outings, I would tense up and imagine it happening.
This is where I believe the anxiety arrived from. Sure, like most people I've always been anxious to a certain degree, but never on this kind of scale and never did I have an anxiety/panic attack. I eventually stopped the bike riding altogether, however this was because I needed a new part and haven't gotten around to picking it up. Post-cycling I noticed that I had started to become more and more anxious as the weeks progressed. The week before the first attack I believe I also started to become worried about it happening without doing any exercise at all. Again, it was mainly the thought of it happening in front of somebody else, rather than out of the blue when I'm alone. The anxiety built up and built up to the point that I felt constantly on edge. The real panic attack came when I just went outside to lock a car door and heard somebody down the street. It wasn't anybody threatening or acting aggressively, just somebody and their family in their garden. This made me hurry up back inside and then the attack unfolded and lasted for hours. You don't need me to tell you what one is like, but it took me a week and medication before I started to feel calmer. I still have a lot of work to do, but I am a lot better.
So, after that little ramble, do you think the episodes on the bike could be panic/anxiety related or something else, such as not warming up properly, pushing myself too hard, having to stop abruptly etc? I know it could also be something like heart disease, too (such is a rapid drop in blood pressure). Also, does this sound like a possible trigger that lead to what I consider my first panic attack? The fear of having an episode caused the anxiety to build up, which then reached a peak.
I know the members of this site are not doctors or medical practitioners, however an opinion or insight is always welcomed. I think it's interesting to hear what other people consider their anxiety/attacks were born out, too.
If you managed to read the entire post then feel free to treat yourself to a cookie. You've earned it.
A couple of months before I had what I consider to be my first panic attack, I was on a diet and exercising regularly in order to drop a few pounds. To begin with, the exercise would consist of riding my bike for around five miles or so, however at a higher tempo than a leisurely cycle. The exercise would usually be from Monday to Friday with the weekends off. I would get up, brush my teeth and what not and then head out (without breakfast) within thirty minutes or so. I hadn't exercised for a while and I will admit to probably pushing myself from the very off, rather than taking it easy. On a few occasions I would be racing through a section of the route for a couple of miles and would then have to slow down and stop for whatever reason, e.g. to join a road. Once I had slowed down and gotten off the bike, my heart beat would race out of control, I felt sick, faint and would turn white as a sheet. It was a horrible feeling and on each occasion I thought I would definitely pass out. I didn't, and after around five minutes I would feel absolutely fine and would continue the remainder of my route without a problem.
However, after the third time it occurred I started to become more and more conscious of it happening again. So much so that I stopped the regular exercise routine out of fear. I didn't stop using the bike, but even when nipping the short distance to the store, I was acutely aware of my breathing and heart rate to the extent that the slightest quickening of my heartbeat made me extremely anxious. I would be cycling gently for a couple of minutes, almost expecting for it to happen again, in some cases forcing me to get off my bike and start over breathing, which also made my heart race again. I also feared having one of the episodes in front of somebody else or at the roadside, for fear out of embarrassing myself more than anything, so that became a factor, too. Whenever I saw someone during my outings, I would tense up and imagine it happening.
This is where I believe the anxiety arrived from. Sure, like most people I've always been anxious to a certain degree, but never on this kind of scale and never did I have an anxiety/panic attack. I eventually stopped the bike riding altogether, however this was because I needed a new part and haven't gotten around to picking it up. Post-cycling I noticed that I had started to become more and more anxious as the weeks progressed. The week before the first attack I believe I also started to become worried about it happening without doing any exercise at all. Again, it was mainly the thought of it happening in front of somebody else, rather than out of the blue when I'm alone. The anxiety built up and built up to the point that I felt constantly on edge. The real panic attack came when I just went outside to lock a car door and heard somebody down the street. It wasn't anybody threatening or acting aggressively, just somebody and their family in their garden. This made me hurry up back inside and then the attack unfolded and lasted for hours. You don't need me to tell you what one is like, but it took me a week and medication before I started to feel calmer. I still have a lot of work to do, but I am a lot better.
So, after that little ramble, do you think the episodes on the bike could be panic/anxiety related or something else, such as not warming up properly, pushing myself too hard, having to stop abruptly etc? I know it could also be something like heart disease, too (such is a rapid drop in blood pressure). Also, does this sound like a possible trigger that lead to what I consider my first panic attack? The fear of having an episode caused the anxiety to build up, which then reached a peak.
I know the members of this site are not doctors or medical practitioners, however an opinion or insight is always welcomed. I think it's interesting to hear what other people consider their anxiety/attacks were born out, too.
If you managed to read the entire post then feel free to treat yourself to a cookie. You've earned it.