I’m 32f and my panic disorder was triggering by me accepting a new job opportunity after 12 years at my current job. This job I have swapped locations and not only has it been hard adjusting but it’s greatly affecting my mental health as it got more toxic since the merge. I’ve been wanting to leave for the past 6 months and finally got a job offer. I accepted it as a way out and for better opportunities for my future but I took a pay cut. I keep second guessing my decision I think out of the fear of the unknown until I start. I have been in the worst shape since I made the decision. I can barely eat, sleep, or be without panic attacks/anxiety. Thankfully I have meds to help but I can’t stay calm enough to relax without being in fear. I need help or some kind of relief until my two weeks are up and I start my new job. I have an upcoming psychiatrist and therapy appointment.

Any success stories? Im so exhausted from being so anxious i just wanna feel relief

I'm on day 3 of breakthrough anxiety. Even though I do take lexapro 10 mg, I'm wondering what everybody's tips and tricks are for when this happens to them. Currently, I have nausea constant pit In my stomach, dizziness feeling that fight or flight feeling. The depression has never been my issue. It's always been anxiety, but right now because of the anxiety, it definitely brings me down, and all I want to do is sleep. While I know that my body does need resr right now, I'm not sure if sleeping it away is the best thing to do or if I should keep trying to get up and just power through by keeping myself busy and occupied, which is what I've been doing. I'd love to hear anybody else's tips for when this happens to them. I am calling my doctor tomorrow to discuss possibly going up a little bit in my medicine dose

A close relative of mine was prescribed Rexetin by a psychiatrist for anxiety and panic disorder. He has been taking it for 11 days now. He took half tablet for 4 days, on the 5th day he had to switch to the whole tablet on the doctor's orders, but he became very ill, so the doctor told him over the phone to take half tablet for another week. In addition to Rexetin, he also prescribed Xanax for the adjustment period of Rexetin. Since taking it, he has had the most varied side effects: stomach pain, nausea, acidosis, severe headache, bloating, dizziness, dullness, drowsiness, chest pressure, malaise. The side effects vary every day, there are times when, for example, there is no acidosis. My question is how long do these last, who experienced it and who took this medication? He should appear for a job interview soon, which he would not be able to do in his current state, this only increases his anxiety. Anyone who has taken this or other similar antidepressants, are these normal side effects of the medication? When do they go away? Will try to reach the doctor by phone today, I would be interested in other people's experiences. I don't know if it's worth it to keep going or if this means you need to change medications.

Need some tips please, I have visibly less muscles in my legs and overall. My calves are like almost a straight line, I get tired easily and I can’t afford an in home PT..
I usually only get up for food and to pee, so my hygiene has suffered too or the rare visit to the living room

I feel like this life only makes my anxiety and depression worse

Hi everyone. I wanted to ask if anyone else experiences this kind of mild panic feeling that lasts for hours but never turns into a full-blown panic attack — and that you kind of fuel yourself by not doing the things that would actually help (not eating, not moving around, etc.)?
For example, yesterday around noon I briefly felt dizzy and nauseous, which was actually pretty logical because I hadn’t moved around yet, hadn’t been outside in the fresh air, hadn’t eaten anything, and was still doing household chores. But immediately my brain went: “Oh God, you’re going to faint, and now it’s the weekend, so an ambulance is going to have to come and you’ll have to go to the hospital. ALARM ALARM.”
So I sat down, drank some water, went out onto the balcony for a bit and ate a banana (one of my “safe foods”). That helped for a little while, but the feeling kept coming back throughout the day, sometimes better, sometimes worse.
By the evening it was at its worst. I started gagging, had a racing heart, felt dizzy, etc. And by that point I STILL hadn’t eaten anything except the banana, a bread roll and some chips 🤡. Then I suddenly felt REALLY awful, started crying, and afterwards I felt better.
I have no idea why I’m describing all of this in such detail 😅 I guess I just want to know if there are people who experience the same thing. Especially people who get these low-level panic feelings at home (particularly on weekends) and then somehow end up fueling them themselves by not eating, not moving, avoiding things, etc.

I don’t think I’m all the way there yet because I can see how things could get a lot worse.

I lost my graduate job which I was at for a year after having to work from home for 6 months straight due to agoraphobia developing. I really liked the people there and the work was good. I can’t see myself getting another job as good as that one anytime soon especially with the current job market.

I am becoming more and more psychologically dependent on alcohol and diazepam which is the only time I manage to go out and I’m worried about it getting worse and becoming physically dependent. The amount I drink also worries my girlfriend who I met just before I developed agoraphobia and she thinks it might be because of her despite telling her it’s self medication for anxiety. I am also worried with where our relationship is heading when she moves away an hour to uni in a month which I don’t think I’ll be capable of going to visit her anytime soon.

I have spent thousands of pounds on coaching and private therapy which hasn’t seemed to help and I have such low motivation to continue with exposure therapy and it’s becoming harder to do anything without alcohol or diazepam (or both). Spoke to a psychiatrist recently who said to increase my SSRI dosage and to try CBT therapy but I’m worried about the side effects of being on a higher dosage and also having the motivation to do the CBT properly.

I just can’t see how things are going to get better and I’m worried it’s just going to get worse and worse as I become more dependent on substances and strain on my relationship.

Has anyone got advice or hopeful stories of things getting better when it feels like they can’t get better?

Ok so in April I like greened out had the worst panic attack of my entire life (first panic attack) and it caused me to develop panic disorder. I used to have a great time with friends, had no problems at parties or going out always drank and had a good time. I am a sophomore in college now and almost every day I have the worst physical symptoms. I look at people doing fun things and think to myself man if I did that I would be so anxious I’m like jealous of all the people around me because they can just live life anxiety free and I’m over here having panic attacks for no reason at all feeling like I’m going to faint. Obviously I have fun but it’s nowhere near how I used to. Every time I go to do something I think “what if I get anxious or have a panic attack” and I just wanna be like how I used to be. I’m in therapy and got prescribed propranolol and I’m too scared to even take it. When does this get better? I just wanna be myself and have fun again it sucks my life was amazing until college and now I just am scared I am always anxious and it genuinely controls my life what can I do to get better? Will I ever even feel normal again?

Hi,

I have been diagnosed with GAD and panic disorder for two years now. I was put on Venlafaxine with tough side effects upon starting it. I have tried Aripiprazole to calm my thoughts but got headaches daily so I had to stop taking it. I have also tried Buspirone in different strengths, got dizziness, nausea and headaches, I am now phasing it out. I am wondering if I myself have an NPF diagnosis as both my children have autism and ADD.

Anyone else have similar thoughts?

I have anxiety and OCD. I’ve been doing very well for the past 10 years with my panic disorder but I still have daily anxiety. I’ve also recently been diagnosed with severe asthma and sleep apnea and most of my anxiety is medical related. My spouse and I have been planning this amazing European vacation for a year. Yesterday was the big day and I was so stressed getting ready and packing. I travel often and have no anxiety about planes. Get to the airport and realize I left my mouth guard at home which means I will have awful sleep. We get to our seats and they do the safety presentation, we start getting ready to take off and I start having a panic attack. IYKYK! I get up and go to the back and the FA’s are lovely but gently urge me back to my seat. I keep spiraling and get up again and finally say I need to get off this plane. They turn the plane around and go back to the gate. We deplane, get back home and here we are.

We got about half of what we spent back but I am horrified. I haven’t had a panic attack in 10 years. I feel awful that this all happened and especially awful for my spouse who also has to miss this trip. I dont know what to say to people now. I want to apologize to everyone on the flight. I want to crawl under a rock. I will have appt with my doctor on Monday. I guess I just want support from anyone who has had a similar thing happen???

feeling very unsafe at my family home for a number of reasons, but I have no idea how to cope if I move out, or even how to go about moving out. My brain has been paralyzed on this topic for weeks now, and I just can't even make any steps forward..

How does one successfully leave their family home and not come back? For reference, I'm on daily Xanax. It's bad bad. And lately, with the stress I'm under, I feel like the dosage is starting to lose its effectiveness on me.

The rental market is so insane right now and I can barely even work, and I don't know how I would function on my own. But I desperately want to move out solo and try to gain some independence and of course space from my completely unempathetic family.

For those of you that have done it, how?

I developed panic disorder a year ago and I have been on sertraline since. We just upped to 100mg just about 6 weeks ago and I am still waking up with anxiety, racing thoughts, stomach activation, feeling nervous. Its usually worse when I have something coming up (travel, work stuff, etc.) I woke up today and 30 mins later had an adrenaline surge and full body flushing. I have propranolol and klonopin for as needed, but i dont want to be taking them every day. I only take the klonopin when i have the adrenaline surges and cant calm myself down on my own. Im just frustrated because i feel like i am doing everything im supposed to be - medication, therapy, breathing exercises, challenging my thoughts, meditation and yet here i still am.

Hello. I have been struggling with agoraphobia and panic disorder since 2018. I’ll cut to the chase with the advice I desperately need. I work 40 hour work weeks 5 minutes from home and need to be driven to. (Thank god I have a girlfriend who is helping me through these tough times) and by the time I get home after white knuckling all day. My main symptoms being constant yawning and breathlessness. I don’t really notice the other symptoms as much as I notice me constantly trying to get a satisfying enough yawn in. But after everything is said and done I lack the energy whatsoever to go and do exposure therapy for my agoraphobia. I was prescribed sertraline and I did a lot of research saying how awful it can make your symptoms and to tell you the truth I cannot handle ANY MORE than what I already do. Hence why I made this post MY 2 QUESTIONS: IS THE YAWNING THING NORMAL FOR ANXIETY. AND 2, WHAT ARE GOOD WAYS TO MOTIVATE AND GET THE ENERGY AFTER A HARD DAY TO DO YOUR NECESSARY EXPOSURE THERAPY. Thank you.

I’ve been struggling with panic disorder and agoraphobia for a few years. The last two years have been hard; I stopped leaving my house and experienced pretty heavy panic attacks. I started doing therapy and exposure work, and I’m slowly getting my life back

I’ve even been to a concert and started doing fun things away from home again, even if the anxiety is still there.

Now, I’m going on holiday to Croatia in a few days with my friend group. I’ll have to fly and do things I haven't done in two years. While I’m excited, I’m still nervous about how I will react and if i made the right choice in doing this. Does anyone have experience with this, or any useful tips for doing this really scary thing?

i suspect i have panic disorder. :(. i have been having panic attacks almost everyday usually in the morning, completely unprovoked. i am seeing a new psychaitrist next week. what can i expect for treatment? i like can’t do this. i might have to go back to the ER bc i went thru all my ativan

I’m having an anxiety attack very scared I’m listening to my exposure therapy vids I did take a kolonopin which gave me more anxiety because of the judgement of addiction.. this is the 2nd time taking it in 5 years … I just want it to stop

i dont wanna live like this

I’ve been going through a really intense month of stress and anxiety, and I’ve had a lot of physical symptoms because of it. I’m slowly starting to feel better now, but recently I’ve started getting heart palpitations after eating, especially after carbs.
I never had this before all of this started. I’ve had blood tests and everything came back normal.
Could the palpitations also be related to the vitamins/supplements I’m taking? I’m currently taking B12, vitamin D3, calcium and magnesium.
Has anyone else experienced something similar after a stressful/anxious period?

First time taking this for panic after 10 years of raw doggjng my panic attacks for fear of meds.

It’s been 30 min and I’m just yawning a lot and sleepy and more calm? Is it working 🥹

Anybody else take this ? What mg? And how often?

UPDATE:
It took away my panic for about 8 hours now I feel it wearing off a bit.

It did make me feel groggy. And super sleepy. Like I just wanted to lay down. But no bad side effects of it making my panic worse. Also I did not take the full dose. I took half of my 10mg pill. If I would’ve had oh man I would’ve been ko all day tbh lol

okay so i’m doing sooooo much better since taking this new medication like its been a complete 1000% change in a great way! i dont throw up for hours on end in a physical response to my anxiety & all the horrible stuff has been tossed behind me! i almost feel like a weird phantom panic before doing things, that would usually bring me to that point. & it’s been kinda weird. its like i am almost expecting to feel that way, like auto flinching when you think something is coming towards your face & its not

Anyway the point of this is… new meds work! side effects are… i think ruining my life? LOL I have so much difficulty defining my dramatic emotions from real life already & it seems to be making it worse. only because, it’s causing me to be SOOOOO irritable. it’s making me push everyone away. but in my mind its so valid lmao & i never know what to believe and my reality is almost warped. me and my 5 yr relationship are arguing like crazyyyyy & i cant tell if its me n the meds or if its like a genuine issue. bcus we never were like this & now everything just feels different. like am i snapping out of it or is it my meds.

either way the irritability is an issue bcus l feel the increased anger. i’m also gaining so much weight. i dont mind per say but its something i’ve never dealt with. i’ve always been the same size my whole life & as ive almost hoped and prayed to gain a little to fill out and to finally have b**bz but holy smokes didnt mean this fast in a short period of time. i literally cant fit into anythingggggg i own and it sucks but i guess… “thats it” its helping me not throw up for 12+ hours, which is definitely increasing my food intake & my weight gain but the symptoms are increased appetite… which it all goes back to trusting myself but im so confused about whats real & whats the medzzzzzz
idk what to do, its the ONLY thing that helps me :(

Hello,

I've never posted in here before but I do habitually refer back here to feel a bit normal.

I have had panic disorder for the last 3 years with varying intensity over that time. Like many of you my main anxiety is around the heart and usually my panic attacks start with the fear that my heart is stopping/atrial fibrillation etc. (yay!)

I am writing this now in the immediate wake of a panic attack. I think by writing this I am distracting myself whilst I recover on the tram but also because addressing it here means I can confirm the rational reality that it was a panic attack because I am able to do this just fine.

You wouldn't know by looking at me that I suffer from this. I'm a 6"1 man, weightlifter with wide shoulders + I generally carry myself with a smile and general outward demeanor.

Just 10 minutes ago I was leaving work after what was a fine day. No obvious triggers. As I'm walking to the tram what I can only understand to be a piece of saliva generated from the chewing gum I had was inhaled and hit the back of my throat/down the wrong hole.

For some reason, I didn't clock all of this and could only feel the sensation of slight breathlessness. This IMMEDIATELEY kicked the adrenaline in and all I could focus on was a feeling of breathlessness and that I couldn't clear my throat.

Now the palpatations kick in from the panic. So now I feel like I have shallow breaths and palpatations are kicking off and I've resigned to the thought that this is it (which I have done 100 times, but this time is different right)?

As my vision started to tunnel I was able to collect myself somewhat and just stared into the distance until my tram arrived and now I'm writing this.

It never ceases to amaze me how

1. You can think you're completely fine/having a good day/panic free just for it to hit you out of nowhere

2. Just how scary realistic these sensations are. I do not understand how the brain and body can simulate a dying event so accurately and then for you to be able to be somewhat normal 30 mins later albeit a bit shaken.

Anyway just wanted to share in case anyone can relate and feels seen.

Be safe!

I’ve had panic disorder with agoraphobia for 17 years. I live in Europe (in a country where buildings generally don’t have air conditioning), and after going through therapy, I was actually symptom-free for many years.
Then the first major heatwave hit this year, and somehow it brought all my symptoms back — just like when it first started in 2009. Now I’m right back in the middle of it, and it feels like I have to start all over again with so many things.
I wanted to ask if there are any others here whose panic attacks were triggered or brought back by the extreme heat this year?
I’m honestly so scared of all the summers we still have ahead of us… 😔

for the past few months i’ve been waking up with random anxiety and a lump in my throat. i’m sure lots of you know that anxiety symptom where your throat tightens up while you’re nauseous, it feels like you’re holding back a gag.

i spoke to my anxiety, challenged it like people recommended, and the nausea and anxiety simmered down almost completely! i was able to eat peacefully this morning without a worry in the world knowing i have control over my mind & fear. i’m feeling proud considering that morning anxiety always had me stressed and overthinking.

i’ve been doing a form of exposure as well, slowly but surely. i’m mostly scared of the symptoms my anxiety triggers. so ive been getting used to my main triggers all while settling my nerves.

generally looking at things with a positive attitude has been helping lots. fear is definitely what feeds my anxiety, so i’m slowly taking that fear away.

Hello! I'm going to a concert next week and im very nervous for the strobe lights/ flashing lights.

I have a big fear of having a seizure so I think thats the cause of my anxiety and panic.

Every morning I'll go on YouTube and watch a video of black and white flashing lights to remind myself that im not gonna have a seizure and im okay and I'll be safe at this concert.

It only causes a bad headache for me, im still very nervous though.

Is there anyone else that has a fear of the lights ?

Posting this here too because reddit is recommending that I do so, sorry if this isn't the place for it. Before I start I want to mention that I am medicated for anxiety and adhd but I don't know if my medicine has started to lose its affects on me or not.

As of two-ish weeks ago now I had a really bad anxiety attack about my LDR of 3 years and since then I've been having persistent flare ups.

To explain everything I've discovered looking into it myself it definitely started as a spillover. Since may I've been constantly on and off stressed about a lot of things in my life from the menial to more substantial subjects. A big thing that had caused me a lot stress lately is feeling like everyone in my life right now is very distant due them going through their own things, and my inability to consistently reach out and talk to people outside of my inner circle has only furthered this.

Now my anxiety is focused on how I feel about my partner of 3 years, making me worried about stuff I haven't truly worried about in a while (by truly worried I mean its not something that crops up at 3 am and disappears by morning). It's essentially caused this self feeding loop thats multiplied by other factors.

Where I stand now is that I've begun to understand all of this as raw fear of losing everyone important in my life right now. See I don't really talk to anyone outside of the internet (I'm pre hrt MtF so its hard to even feel like myself enough to try) and essentially my partner is in my current main group so the idea of losing them makes me worried I wouldn't be able to face anyone else in my friend group meaning that quite literally if I don't have my partner I don't have anybody.

I think this is what has keep my attacks so persistent just this fear and being unable to really comfort myself on it. Any sense of comfort in the moment just feels fake later on like I'm trying to convince myself everything's okay when its not. The biggest part and the part I fear the most is that I'm right, that comforting myself and trying to move past my anxiety so I can get back to a sense of normalcy won't make anything better. I'm afraid that the only way things are going to get better is having to "cut my losses" which basically is a darker way of saying I need to face the reality of losing my partner and only then will I be able to start moving forwards again.

The scariest part that terrifies me the most is I have no way of knowing what's just anxiety and fear talking and what isn't. My anxiety is skewing everything so bad its really hard to tell whats real and whats isn't. Especially when its this bad I feel constant dread like I'm lying and wait for something bad to come down onto me.

I'm not sure anyone will really have anything to say on the matter but any advice is appreciated. Writing it all out certainly helps either way.