Hi everyone. Renea here.

[renea]

My name is Renea. I am from the United States. Indiana. I am a 25 year old female. I am suffering from panic and anxiety. I was put on Wellbutrin-xl 300mg three weeks ago. I will go see a counselor for the first time on the 24th. I get so panicky just thinking about it. I just recently started leaving the house 3 days ago by myself. Two months ago i had a panic attack driving with my 2 yr.old and 1 yr.old. That freaked me out, so after that i wouldn't drive anywhere. Or leave the house. I have a hard time going outside when it is sunny out. Weird huh. I'd rather it be rainy or cloudy. I guess alot of it is because i fear of having a panic attack and fainting. Everything i do, i wonder if i'm gonna freak and pass out. I have it. I really look forward to meeting everyone. So i hope to see you all very soon. I loved reading all the forums. Makes me feel better that i'm not alone. Sincerely, Renea

[kate]

Hiya Renea,

Just to say welcome to the site.

You will find plenty of useful information here, so have a good look around!

Kate x

[Meg]

Hey Renea,

Glad that you're making progres and going out again..

I'm sure you know that avoidance is definately something to avoid . lol. Progress is made by exposing yourself to your fears and surviving them.

Look forward to hearing more from you





Meg

Watch your thoughts, they become your words...
Watch your words, they become your actions... Watch your actions, they become your habits... Watch your habits, they become your character... Watch your character, it becomes your destiny...

[sarah]

Hi Renea

Welcome to the site. Glad you have had a good look round and found the posts familiar and comforting.

Exellent that you have started leaving the house again, thats a great start!!!

love Sarah
xx

[me]

hello renea, my name is mary. its great to hear your getting outside again, try to keep going, it must be so hard but everytime you do it be proud of yourself. keep looking on this site its wonderful and so helpful x take care from mary x

[nomorepanic]

Hi Renea

Welcome to the site. Sorry to hear that you are a fellow sufferer but you will get loads of help on here and plenty of advice.

Please keep trying to go out and do things - try not to avoid anything.

I got your picture thanks so I will add it to the pictures page asap.


Nicola

[red]

Hi Ranea!
Just to echo what everyone else has said - welcome to the site and keep up the good, hard work. Let us know how you get on with your councellor on 24th - it really is a step in the right direction.

Take care
Red
x

[renea]

I just want to thank all of you for welcoming me to the site. I tried out the chat room and the people i talked to were extremely nice. It is nice to know that there are people like you all that can understand. It really puts me at ease. Thank you again. Love Renea xxxx

[nomorepanic]

Hi Renea

It was good to see you in the chat room last night - it is nice to talk "live" to others isn't it. Hope to see you back again soon.

Nicola

[Stepher]

Hi Renea,
I'm new here as well. I learned something not too long ago that really helped me and thought I would share it with you. We always worry that we are going to pass out or crazy when we have a panic attack, but those things won't happen. If you notice when you are having an attack, you are actually more conscious of yourself and your surroundings so you are not crazy. Also, when we have an attack, our blood pressure actually rises, so it's not likely that we are going to pass out. When I had my worst panic attacks I hated driving. One day a friend asked if she could go with me and I said, "are you sure you want to, I might have a panic attack." She said, Steph, because you suffer from anxiety, you are actually a safer driver as you pay very close attention to what you are doing." That made alot of sense to me.
Keep up the good work, take baby steps and if you really don't want to go somewhere, go anyway and tell yourself you can back out halfway if you need to.
Over time you will master lots of little tricks to help yourself.
Steph

[renea]

Thanks Stepher. I've been doing exactly what you said. Last night I went out driving for awhile trying to extend my distance away from home. I was stuck at a intersection at a red light and guess what, I started to panic. I don't know why, but i did. Guess it was because the whole time i kept wondering if i'm gonna have one. I tried not to think of it that way, but it's hard not to. So I cranked on the airconditioner and rolled down the window and that made me feel better. So of course I went home after that. Maybe I'll do better tonight. Love, Renea

[Meg]

Dear Renea,

We've all been there . I used to be physically sick driving but now I'm back to it being second nature .

Good for you for trying and excellent news for coping with it. Singing loudly helps as does a talking book with a story you're interested in.



Meg

Watch your thoughts, they become your words...
Watch your words, they become your actions... Watch your actions, they become your habits... Watch your habits, they become your character... Watch your character, it becomes your destiny...

[nomorepanic]

Renea

Driving is my/was my biggest problem. I am doing very well with it now but it has taken many many years to conquer it.

Take a look at the website - the coping page - there is a bit about coping whilst driving - may help.

Stepher - great advice and you are right about the passing out - I never have done. I think my fears are claustrophobia - cos I hate traffic jams and stuck on a road I can't get off.

The only way to get over it is to keep doing it over and over again.

Nicola

[renea]

Thanks Nicole. I just read the site for coping. I'll keep them tips in mind. I just hope they work. Last night I went out for a drive and I got stuck at a red light (a long one) and I started to panic. I cranked on the airconditioning and that made me feel better. So then (bad me) I had to turn around and go home. I'm going to go back out tonight and see if I can get further. I just wish I could be my old self. But I have to keep telling myself, I will conquer this and be that old person and enjoy things in life that i now avoid. Thanks. Love Renea

[Bryn Powell]

Hello Renea, For me driving is the worst because I can't avoid it. Because of the PAs I try to make it as easy for myself as possible. I drive slowly with a window open and stick to the right lane. This means I can stop whenever I want to, it doesn't matter if it's illegal to do so or not. I'm always nervous when I drive, thinking that I might panic, but doing the above I never have and I have never had to stop either. It's not good to avoid things but if you can make it easier, why not?

[Meg]

I used to carry an emergency kit whilst driving.

Little book on calmness, little book on panic.
Bach remedies
Singing to CD's
Murray mints
Nuts
Water
Map - in case of turning off early
Flicky through magazines
Talking book CD
Paper and pen for writing and planning anything - to aid concentration.

It helped to have something to distract myself with when it all ground to a halt.

Look on the coping pages of the home page



Meg

Watch your thoughts, they become your words...
Watch your words, they become your actions... Watch your actions, they become your habits... Watch your habits, they become your character... Watch your character, it becomes your destiny...

[blossom]

Nicola, sorry I looked but could not find my name or anything about the Cipralex, sorry, from Blossom

[Brownie]

Hi Renea,
Welcome to the site....as everyone has already said lol. We have all been at the same points with our panic and anxiety, and it's great to talk to people that feel the same because they are hard to find unfortunatly. This site was a godsend for me, it has helped so much and i hope it does the same for you:)
hope to see you around in the chat sometime
-Christie[:I]

[renea]

Thanks Christie. So far I've enjoyed the forums and chat room. It does help alot knowing about other peoples problems with the panic. I also hope to see you around the chat. Love Renea xxxx

[me]

hi renea just a quick note to say hope you have had a good weekend and you are feeling well take care love from mary x

[nomorepanic]

Blossom - which post are you looking for?

Nicola