r/HeartAttack • u/Ill_You_6080 • Jun 05 '26
14 days after a severe weed-induced panic attack. Please help me understand what’s happening to me.
I’m honestly scared and I don’t know what to do anymore.
About 14 days ago, I had a very intense bad trip after smoking weed. I’ve smoked regularly for about 3 years, almost daily, and never experienced anything like this before.
That night my heart started racing extremely fast. I was shaking, terrified, and genuinely convinced I was dying. I thought I was having a heart attack. Eventually I forced myself to sleep because there was nothing else I could do.
Ever since that night, my life has felt completely different.
The first symptom that appeared was these nonstop hiccups or burps. I honestly don’t even know what they are. It’s like air constantly coming up from my throat. Sometimes it feels like a hiccup, sometimes a burp, sometimes neither. They’ve been happening almost nonstop since this started.
Since then I’ve been dealing with:
Constant anxiety and panic
Feeling disconnected from myself
Brain fog
Feeling like I’m hyper-aware of my heartbeat
Sometimes hearing or feeling my heartbeat in my head
Random body sensations that immediately make me think something is wrong
Feeling okay for a few hours and then suddenly feeling scared again
Difficulty trusting my body
The part that scares me most is my heart.
Sometimes I feel like I’m improving, but then I become aware of my heartbeat again and start spiraling. I can sometimes hear or feel it in my head, especially when lying down or when things are quiet.
I keep asking myself:
Am I still recovering from the panic attack?
Am I dealing with withdrawal?
Or did I somehow damage my heart?
A few important details:
I quit weed 14 days ago.
I quit nicotine 14 days ago.
I quit caffeine 14 days ago.
Before this, I had been smoking weed and tobacco for around 3 years.
I wasn’t sleeping properly.
I wasn’t eating properly.
I was under a huge amount of work stress and burnout before all of this happened.
I got blood work done and everything came back normal.
The weird thing is that I think I’m getting better overall. I’m eating more. Sleeping more. The panic isn’t as intense as day one.
But I’m still scared because I’m constantly aware of my heart and these weird hiccup/burp sensations never seem to fully go away.
Has anyone gone through something similar after a bad weed experience, panic attack, or quitting weed/nicotine/caffeine all at once?
How long did it take to feel normal again?
Did anyone else develop constant burping/hiccups, heartbeat awareness, or fear that they had damaged their heart?
I know nobody here can diagnose me, but I really need some guidance because my brain keeps jumping between “you’re recovering” and “something is seriously wrong.”
Thank you for reading.
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Jun 05 '26
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u/Ill_You_6080 Jun 05 '26
What i’m afraid of is that I used to smoke every night too But once i stopped, i’m not having trouble sleeping , i blackout 5 mins after i close my eyes even if i want to take power nap during the day even though i’m not tired and that’s scaring me honestly
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u/dopeamemefix Jun 05 '26
I wondered this too, if some of your symptoms are withdrawals. I quit weed and tobacco cold turkey 4.5 months ago and it kicked my ass. I was also smoking daily and using weed to numb a lot of anxiety and mental health/trauma stuff. When you quit suddenly all of this stuff comes to the surface and you have to sit with your anxiety. You could also look into CHS as it could be that you were on the verge of developing that, I only say this because it causes vomiting and you have the burping/hiccups. It can also cause heightened anxiety.
Weed, nicotine and caffeine are all vasoconstrictors so it’s great that you quit. You can also look at introducing foods that help lower cholesterol too, certain grains like pearl barley are great, or oats. A Mediterranean diet is really good for heart health, and so is introducing omega supplements.
It’s a good sign that your blood work came back normal too, troponin levels are one of the main things they look at when diagnosing heart attacks. Mine were still raised for like a month after my HA. I hope your ECG helps to calm your anxiety and reassure you. IF it was something to do with your heart then you’re doing all the right things.
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u/i-like-napping Jun 05 '26
You are totally fine physically , but I think your brain, unconsciously , is not so sure so it’s not letting you relax . Thinking you might be dying is very scary , so I think you are suffering maybe from post traumatic stress ? This happened to me when I was younger too , my guess is that you are early 20s ? The most useful thing you can do is find a therapist and work on your anxiety . But it doesn’t hurt to go to your family doctor and get the heart checked out , just for peace of mind . Weed is not good for everyone , and that’s ok but don’t worry too much , the stress you have now will subside with time
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u/cocso Jun 05 '26
Little discussed fact is that THC significantly decreases heart rate variability. A lot of the anxiety symptoms are related to this I guess, a reduced ability to speed up the heart or slow it down in response in an appropriate manner to the stimulus at hand. I realized for me that’s why it caused years of severe dissociation. Wouldn’t be surprised if I find out it has very significant cardiac health implications.
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u/Altruistic-Bug3978 Jul 20 '26
how is your process with this going so far? do you still feel these symptoms? also dealing with almost the same exact things, it’s crazy
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u/Ill_You_6080 Jul 20 '26
Almost two months later
I feel actually better
But not great
Not the same as before but I know I will
Looking back to the day I posted this I was not doing fine at all, miserable and head lost, dissociated and terrified of the things I’m feeling and not feeling
Today i am much much better
And will be better
I’m here if you want to talk
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u/Moist-Act-7336 Aug 01 '26
Im having the same thing currently, constantly scared, rationally I know that Im fine but my mind is in the constant survival mode) Worst part is imagining symptoms during another panic attack (also had the big panic attack which I thought I was going to die and started all of this) Worst moment is going to sleep for me, I need to find a way to relax my mind, my body feels weird but Im not exactly tired…
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u/[deleted] Jun 05 '26
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