Read this if your suffering from health anxiety: My anxiety story
MY AGE: 17
GENDER: MALE
LOCATION: MIAMI, FL USA
JOB: Internet Security Expert/Web Developer - (I am currently not working do to this anxiety issue)
Health Issues: Asthma, Panic Disorder, and Depression.
Allergies: Penicillin, Omnicief, Cleosin.
HOSPITALIZATIONS:
I was hospitalized on 11/17/2014 because my whole body went numb during an anxiety attack. I went to hospital they did exams on me and found it was all anxiety. It was the most frightening experience i have ever had in my life. They gave me a Xanax Prescription and sent me home. I am going to my psychiatrist to try Paxil. I am currently trying my best to resolve my anxiety once in for all, as it is taking over my life. I want to help people with this issue so I am writing this post. I have been hospitalized for less severe anxiety attacks before.
I viewed my statements as of last month my medical bills totaled: $21,941.37.
SUMMARY OF MY ANXIETY:
Back around a year and a half ago, I took some LSD. I had a "bad trip" and noticed my heart rate was really fast. this caused me to go into panic as I thought I was having a heart attack. This was the most terrifying thing ever since I was on LSD, It felt very real. After this incident I was fine. I was a frequent drug user, I smoked pot daily. I started smoking again and had terrible sleep habits. One night I had McDonnell's and Wendy's in one day. I stayed up all night and went outside for a joint. After smoking the joint I got a terrible stabbing pain in my chest which I associated with a heart attack and freaked out again. I started having the same symptoms daily from that point on and decided I need to see a doctor. The doctor checked me up reassured me I was fine but told me not to do drugs as they can cause issues like this. I stopped the drug use. I then went to a psychiatrist to get medication, he gave me a 10mg prozac prescription. This helped a little bit. I was still getting the symptoms you can see below and went to a cardiologist. He did a ultrasound and ECG and the results were perfect. He says I was perfectly healthy. After this it felt like a broke out of my cage. I felt myself again. No pain, no issues. I started eating terrible again and smoking pot and drinking a lot. Then I stopped around 6 months ago due to I don't want to do drugs and be an alcoholic anymore. Recently in late august, I was doing a lot of walking, going to malls, etc... I started getting a really bad pain in my left arm that followed bad chest pains. I got panicked and rushed to a hospital. I had an EKG and a Chest X-RAY. Everything was perfect yet again. From that day on, I've been having terrible anxiety issues. You can read them below. The point of this post is to maybe get into your head so you can realize you are OK! I am working on following my own advice.
SYMPTOMS I HAVE:
Chest Pain (Middle of Chest)
Leg Pain and Arm Pain (Most of the Time Left Arm)
Burping a Lot (People with Anxiety can bring in a lot of air and not realize it.)
Headaches and weird feeling in Head
Shortness of Breath
Elevated Heart Rate (Resting 84-90, When a little anxious can be up to 120)
Tremors
High Blood Pressure (Normally My BP is 110/78, When a little anxious it can be around 130/90)
Muscle Spasms (Especially in chest area)
Hot flashes
Feeling like I'm not in my body
Suicidal Thoughts (I would never commit suicide though. I believe its weak and pathetic.)
Feel like I'm going to die
PANIC ATTACK SYMPTOMS I GET:
Bad Chest Pain (Middle of Chest)
Collapsing and Numbness in my Chest and Hands, etc. (Scariest feeling I've ever had in my life)
Feeling like I'm going to die
Fast Heart Rate (During an anxiety attack i've seen it all the way in the 170s on a hospital monitor)
High Blood Pressure (During an anxiety attack i've seen it as high as 150/94)
Shortness of Breath (Felt like I'm breathing ok but not getting enough air)
Tremors
TESTS I'VE HAD DONE - ALL TEST RESULTS WERE PERFECT:
ECG
UltraSound of Heart
Stress Test (They do an ECG as you run as fast as you can on a treadmill for 7-12 minutes)
Chest X-RAY
Upper GI
MRI of Brain (Haven't had yet going to within the week when doctor schedules it)
Blood Tests
Stool Tests
Hormone Test
Thyroid Test
PAST RECREATIONAL DRUG USE - I have been drug free and alcohol free for over 6 months:
Marijuana - Half an Ounce everyday for a year.
Mushrooms - Every once in a while.
Alcohol - I drank CIROC (VODKA) almost everyday for 6 months.
LSD - This is what really made me start having anxiety. I had a bad trip and noticed my heart was racing this caused this "trauma" that is causing my anxiety according to my psychologist.
Codeine - One time.
Xanax - A lot of freaking Xanax. At least 2mg a day for a couple months.
A TIP TO RECREATIONAL DRUG USERS:
I recommend to anyone who is struggling with anxiety to stop recreational drug use immediately as it can cause a high amount of stress/anxiety and is also physically bad for you.
The way to really look at it is you are consuming a substance that you have no clue what is in it. You can think it is as "high quality" as you want but you really don't know what's in it. I can't tell you how many times i've smoked pot thought it was totally fine but it had another substance in it. Just a few words of wisdom, if it's not from a pharmacy or government regulated do not ingest it.
MEDICATIONS I HAVE TRIED AND REVIEWS
Prozac - 10-20mg - I highly recommend staying away from this drug. A lot of doctors may say it has "no side effects". THAT IS NOT TRUE. This drug made me have the following issues:
Night Terrors - Waking up screaming in fear my girlfriend would calm me down over a period of 20-30 minutes.
Horrible Nightmares - I don't even want to talk about them.
The worst head feelings in the world - Not really headaches but overall my head felt terrible.
Sexual Issues - Less of a sex drive and could not get an erection, I had to take viagra.
Super Dry Mouth - This was insane my mouth was constantly dry.
Made me drink a crazy amount of water - I went from drinking 3-5 bottles of water a day, to 12-16 bottles of water a day.
Made me lose a ton of weight - This was a good thing for me, as I am overweight and currently dropping a lot of pounds naturally, but it made me loose around 15 pounds in 2 weeks.
Weird Psychological Issues:
1. My job is web development so it may have a connection to why this was happening. I would wake up thinking I was a computer and running computer processes in my head. Yes I know this sounds crazy, but this drug caused this to happen.
2. I would sometimes wake up thinking I was a worker in a grocery store and my girlfriend was my manager and she was giving me a hard time.
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Buspirone - Not sure of dose - used when needed - I didn't really give this drug a chance because I took it during an anxiety attack and it made me so dizzy I couldn't stand up.
Gabapentin - 300mg - used when needed - Works well. This drug has no relation to anxiety, It is for seizures and nerve pain. For some reason this drug helped me tremendously during panic attacks. My psychiatrist prescribed it because she thought it would help.
Xanax - 0.5mg - used when needed - Works ok can't notice much effect in small amounts. Works for most people with anxiety but is not a solution as if used in the long run is a horribly addictive drug.
MEDICATIONS I AM CURRENTLY ON
Paxil CR - 12.5mg - Starting tomorrow
Xanax - .5mg - I use it when I feel anxious.
DOCTORS I HAVE SEEN - ALL OF MY DOCTORS SAY THIS ANXIETY:
General Doctors - 4 General Doctors
Cardiologist
Neurologist
Gastro Intestinal Doctor
2 Phycologists (Therapist) - One terrible, One Amazing.
2 Psychiatrists - One terrible, One Good.
3 Hospital Doctors
NOTES FROM MY CURRENTLY PSYCHOLOGIST:
My current psychologist is the best one I have met yet. He is more of a scientist than a therapist. He has 2 PHD's. He has previously helped my aunt through the same issues.
I will not go into full detail on our conversations but I will just list the points.
He says all of this is physiological and is 100% not physical. The reasoning is there has never been a report in medical history of such a wide arrange of symptoms or illnesses.
He has treated patients with the same exact issues.
I have had medical tests that prove this is not a physical issue.
His reasoning for my chest pain:
When you are anxious you get indigestion which increases stomach acid. This can cause a GERD like effects and cause a discomfort in your chest. This is what causes my burping and discomfort in my chest.
Interaction with People:
My Psychologist stresses the importance to have someone in your life who can help you through this. I have my girlfriend who helps me during panic attacks and is an amazing woman. I wouldn't know where I would be without her.
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Overall I am hoping to be cured soon. I have come a long way from where I was, and I'm on my way there. Just writing all of this information down and seeing all the tests I have and reading what I wrote here, makes me think why should I panic. I have had every test done, and I am healthy. For all of you who suffer from anxiety out there, I wish the best. Feel free to contact me anytime if you need to talk.
Be Strong and Live Life to the Fullest,
Robert G.
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Originally Posted by Abarth
