Are panic attacks linked to drug use?

[KittyKate]

When I was young (im 26 now).. but from 16 - 23 I used to be heavy into the raving scene, used to go clubbing about 3 or 4 times a week, used to take a lot of E, sometimes 12 a night, coke, speed you name it.

I saw the light and stopped suddenly. A couple of years later I had my first panic attack.

Do you think these are realted? Is there any studies about this?

I am honsetly so anti drugs now cause I feel I am paying the price for those raving days :-(

[Phill2]

In my case they are definitely related

[Lindalou64]

HI KITTY,
im not a professional but from readin and my own experience im sure it dont help matters,i know it can affect you in some mental physical way....it all has to come from the nerve system...............tc Linda xx

[PUGLETMUM]

hi kitty kate, i would say that yes they can be connected, but maybe youll never know? its like saying well if i went back and didnt do drugs would i have a panic attack? and the answer is you will never ever know!

hard i know but true, so maybe try to forget whether your drug taking caused it and just try not be worried about them, you can live your life and still have panic attacks!!

[Dying_Swan]

Hiya.

Yes, I do think drugs can be related. I'm not sure if there's any evidence for this, although I would imagine studies have been done.

Perhaps if you were someone who was already a little pre-disposed to anxiety, the drug use just tipped it? I guess you'll never know for sure, but well done for kicking them. Just remember that past drug use won't stop you from getting better

xx

[Gary1975]

Silly thing is Prozac started mine off

[PUGLETMUM]

well i wouldnt say prozac started mine, because i had taken it twice successfully, but i have been freaked out about prescription drugs ever since i tried it for the third time and had a terrible reaction to it!!! the other 2 times i didnt even know i was taking it, but this time omg i was sooooooo ill, and i stuck it for 2 weeks! then tried it again but with the same results, and the rest is history, after that i also went from bad to worse!

[Scarlett77]

I think it depends - sorry to be so vague! I did a fair amount of E and coke in my early 20's, and haven't noticed any long term ill effects. I did used to notice that E made me extremely depressed for a couple of days after i took it, but i just thought that was to be expected after the initial high. But then i had panic attacks, etc before so i realise it probably effects everyone differently.

I do think cannabis makes you thicker, have no energy and put on weight!

Like you i am heavily anti drugs now. I would just say forget about the past - after all, like me, there's nothing you can do about it now - and concentrate on now.

I hope everything works out for you. Take care,

Scarlett x

[Greeneyed]

Hi there I think that drugs especially cocaine & majuana can induce panic, though as I understand, as you are taking them, not two years later, I suspect your past drug use is NOT to blame so don't punish yourself. I used to do a lot of recreational drugs and also stopped a few years ago. I have tried them a handful of times since and each time it has induced panic either immediately or the next day - so I know I can never touch them again, in the same way that I know drinking too much will also result in panic the next day.

I used to torture myself that my previous excesses were responsible for my mental state but can trace back my OCD to adolesense and first panic attacks to uni before I had ever tried any dodgy substances so I reckon I would have been like this anyway. What I do know is that I will never take anything again as I don't have the mental consitution to handle it anymore!

Try not to dwell on this too much, as people have mentioned you can't change the past so it is wasted energy thinking about it. xxx

[kilometres]

The 1st and most violent attack i suffered was after smoking a joint by myself whilst drinking, and whilst i was at a low point in my life. Drugs have the ability to cause minor and major changes in mental and physical state, some mind altering drugs such as lsd and weed cause mental disorders, like with me and you, and we all know what heroin and crack can do to people. As for affects of drugs after you "saw the light" i know several people who say they never saw life the same way after dropping acid.
I spoke to my sister and told her my attacks were down to weed, to which she replied i had a bad trip on acid when i was your age . So now, even though she has a husband and son and lives a straight life, she still has flashbacks to that point.

I hope this helps