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I think I'm having a panic attack right now, I've never had one before but I think that's what I'm experiencing after googling it.

It's the middle of the night here or I'd ring someone to talk to. My chest feels warm and heavy, I feel a little shaky, and am filled with apprehension, and my thought's won't stop racing. There's no way I'm going to be able to sleep. I think it may be a side effect from the meds I'm on, I talked to the pharmacist today and he said that it can take a few days for them to go away but if I'm still experiencing effects by Monday to go back to the Dr. I don't know what's worse, the anxiety or the side effects from the meds!

I've tried taking some deep breaths and it helps a little. I don't really know what I'm expecting by posting here but the activity is distracting and calming me slightly.

It's not a pleasant experience and I feel really terrible and scared. Has anyone had a panic attack? What did you do to calm yourself?

I think I'm just looking for someone to tell me it'll be ok.

It'll be ok. It WILL pass. In the meantime, do you have a rubix cube or cards or something? You could re focus on something else.

They're horrid. It would help if you could find someone to talk with, breaking out of it needs a distraction to focus on and another person is ideal. I'd leave working out what triggered it until it's disappeared.

Thanks for replying

Maybe I could try a game in the arcade or something, maybe that will distract me from it.

Gawd, it's awful, my chest feels so heavy, it's like it's happening in waves. I know that it's most likely all in my head and I'm not dying from it but it's scary. I don't know what triggered it but I think it was the meds. Gee I hope it does settle into my system, I think I'd rather the anxiety and that was bad enough.

Anyway, I'll pop into the arcade and see if I can find something to take my mind off it.

Thinking it's the meds is good, you have to recognize it's temporary and it'll wear off and your sole job is to work your way through it and out the other side. Reporting it later is important, you might need your prescription changing.

Somewhere I have a diary of a chap who emigrated to Hobart in the 1830s, farmed and eventually I think set up a school. You could read that if it would interest you.

spot;1371931 wrote: Thinking it's the meds is good, you have to recognize it's temporary and it'll wear off and your sole job is to work your way through it and out the other side. Reporting it later is important, you might need your prescription changing.

Somewhere I have a diary of a chap who emigrated to Hobart in the 1830s, farmed and eventually I think set up a school. You could read that if it would interest you.


The arcade is helping, i can feel it easing off.

His actual diary or just a published copy? That would be an interesting read, an account of events straight from the horses mouth instead of being guessed at and glorified for entertainment value and printed into a novel.

What was his name? I wonder if the school's still standing. I'd be unfamiliar with it I reckon coming from the North-West and Hobart being in the South but I've a friend who is a real local history buff who comes from Hobart and I reckon she'd get quite excited to learn of it.

A brisk walk helps me. Breathe deeply, look up at the sky, and notice the smells.

I get anxiety attacks in situations like interviews or briefings, it's horrible.

SnoozeAgain;1371939 wrote: A brisk walk helps me. Breathe deeply, look up at the sky, and notice the smells.

I get anxiety attacks in situations like interviews or briefings, it's horrible.


I was feeling anxious this afternoon and mowing the lawn helped a bit. Its the middle of the night now, so I can't really go for a stroll at the moment :wah: But I can try that during the day.

Remember the good old days when you could safely walk at night? I love night strolls.

It's a scanned copy typed from the original in 1959 of the 1829-1858 diary of Tom Brownell, starting as he leaves Huddersfield for the Swan River settlement. He moved on to Hobart pretty soon after seeing what Perth had to offer. I'm fairly sure it's unpublished and consequently still in copyright but I've emailed you a reading copy. If it's too big as an email I can put it where you can pick it up but you'll need to tell me it's not arrived.

Ah... perhaps not in copyright, it was previously published and I've found a library copy at Trove - The diary and life of Dr. Thomas Coke Brownell ... of Huddersfield, Yorkshire, England, from 1829 to 1858 / by B. C. Cohen

Though that might be a copy of the manuscript filed in the National Library, it doesn't really say.

The email says it arrived, give it a try.

I got it, thanks Spot. It's just downloading, my computer's pretty slow, it's going to take several minutes.

I thought you lived in gigabit-speed fibre-optic-to-the-door bleeding-edge-Internet Tasmania!

I must have been out that day...

Maybe it's just me but reading some of spot's posts acts as a strong soporific.

It all downloaded ok but the very first page won't open, says it's unsupported, damaged or corrupted. I'm guessing it's only a title page so I don't think it'll affect the story any, also 5 and 6 are just black. It spans almost 30 years, should make for some interesting reading.

I hope you're feeling easier now. Panic attacks are horrific but they always pass. I too find the arcade games helpful to distract. If you can, try saying some comforting thoughts to yourself, as it's often said that acute anxiety is a part of the psyche that is crying out to be heard and to be loved. Though of course everything goes by the board when you're in the midst of an attack.

:-4

What many people call "Panic Attacks" can in many cases be "Atrial FIbrillation. 20 years ago I was diagnosed with this condition. Rapid heartbeat, feeling of un easiness, lack of energy. In my case the diagnosis was "Lone Atrial Fibrillation"

(no underlying heart disease). There are a number of things that can trigger the attacks, stress, fatigue, over eating, alcohol. Next time you have an attack, check your pulse for irregularity and speed and if that is the case, see a Cardiologist..

theia;1371956 wrote: I hope you're feeling easier now. Panic attacks are horrific but they always pass. I too find the arcade games helpful to distract. If you can, try saying some comforting thoughts to yourself, as it's often said that acute anxiety is a part of the psyche that is crying out to be heard and to be loved. Though of course everything goes by the board when you're in the midst of an attack.

:-4


Thanks Theia I went to bed last night and slept well. I had the distraction of my son's birthday today, I had a couple of niggles but they got suppressed because it was quite a full on day and my focus was taken by everything going on. I took my med this evening as normal and so far feel quite good, it was around this time last night I had the panic so maybe it's settling into my system now.



Lon;1371978 wrote: What many people call "Panic Attacks" can in many cases be "Atrial FIbrillation. 20 years ago I was diagnosed with this condition. Rapid heartbeat, feeling of un easiness, lack of energy. In my case the diagnosis was "Lone Atrial Fibrillation"

(no underlying heart disease). There are a number of things that can trigger the attacks, stress, fatigue, over eating, alcohol. Next time you have an attack, check your pulse for irregularity and speed and if that is the case, see a Cardiologist..


Gee, that sounds a bit scary. I don't know whether to google that for more information or not, I'm already a hypochondriac from googling stuff, lol.

Not to worry. Atrial Fib is not life threatening and can be controlled & even cured as in my case. It' a fairly common condition.

Lon;1371987 wrote: Not to worry. Atrial Fib is not life threatening and can be controlled & even cured as in my case. It' a fairly common condition.


Oh, ok, thanks. That's good to know. If I keep getting these side effects I'll see the Dr on Monday, as I was advised, but I feel like its starting to settle into my system, I feel ok tonight.

Yeah. They suck. I had a friend who I made stay on line 4 with me all afternoon when I had one at work as a receptionist. lol. Answer call, go back to line 4, answer call, go back to line 4.... come to think of it, I probably still owe her more thanks 20 years later. Have had other times when it was a problem. That was one of the side effects when I got shot up with Depo Provera. Video Games are good. Sudoku. Anything that makes you feel like the world is something over which you have control. I think of the sensation now as suddenly having all the illusions of personal safety ripped away from your mind and realising we are tiny creatures of insignificance surrounded by a dangerous world. And that's true. You just have to realise that sanity is too important to let reality get in the way.

Don't know if that helps, but sit there and yell "Give me the lies back!!" into your pillow until you feel that psychic blanket fall back around you and the fuzzy warmth returns.

koan;1372070 wrote: Yeah. They suck. I had a friend who I made stay on line 4 with me all afternoon when I had one at work as a receptionist. lol. Answer call, go back to line 4, answer call, go back to line 4.... come to think of it, I probably still owe her more thanks 20 years later. Have had other times when it was a problem. That was one of the side effects when I got shot up with Depo Provera. Video Games are good. Sudoku. Anything that makes you feel like the world is something over which you have control. I think of the sensation now as suddenly having all the illusions of personal safety ripped away from your mind and realising we are tiny creatures of insignificance surrounded by a dangerous world. And that's true. You just have to realise that sanity is too important to let reality get in the way.

Don't know if that helps, but sit there and yell "Give me the lies back!!" into your pillow until you feel that psychic blanket fall back around you and the fuzzy warmth returns.


You explain it so well, koan. I remember when I had my first panic attack...I was 31 and it appeared to come from nowhere. Every comfort I had ever known was ripped away, I had nothing to hold on to.

Lon;1371987 wrote: Not to worry. Atrial Fib is not life threatening and can be controlled & even cured as in my case. It' a fairly common condition.


cured ? since when ? I had the electric shock/cardiovert thing in february and have had 5 small times since then that my heart took off for a couple or few minutes...thats not called a cure...?

ram29jackson;1411061 wrote: cured ? since when ? I had the electric shock/cardiovert thing in february and have had 5 small times since then that my heart took off for a couple or few minutes...thats not called a cure...?


You are 100 % right---electric cardioversion is not a cure, but, PVA (Pulmonary Vein Ablation) can end bouts of Afib permanately, as in my case. Ask your cardiologist about it.

Lon;1411062 wrote: You are 100 % right---electric cardioversion is not a cure, but, PVA (Pulmonary Vein Ablation) can end bouts of Afib permanately, as in my case. Ask your cardiologist about it.


I understand thats no quarantee either

ram29jackson;1411063 wrote: I understand thats no quarantee either


Depends on who does the procedure. Some people have had two or more Ablations before ending Afib permanately. The procedure should be done by a Electrophysiologist that has done hundreds if not thousands of the procedures. If you will do Google search on Andrea Natale MD, you will see the top guy doing this procedure. He did mine in San Francisco, Ca.

Have you been diagnosed by a Cardiologist that says you have Atrial Fib or is this your diagnosis?

Lon;1411064 wrote: Depends on who does the procedure. Some people have had two or more Ablations before ending Afib permanately. The procedure should be done by a Electrophysiologist that has done hundreds if not thousands of the procedures. If you will do Google search on Andrea Natale MD, you will see the top guy doing this procedure. He did mine in San Francisco, Ca.

Have you been diagnosed by a Cardiologist that says you have Atrial Fib or is this your diagnosis?


I have lone atrial fibrilation

ram29jackson;1411065 wrote: I have lone atrial fibrilation


Lone Atrial Fib was my diagnosis as well (no underlying heart disease). You my find this forum --http://www.afibbers.net helpful. It has been invaluable to me over the 20 years that I put up with atrial fib and it's how I located the right doc to do the ablation.

BTW---it's nice not to have to take the variety of meds that they have for atrial fib. They don't cure it either, just work for a while and then it's on to another med until eventually none of them work and it's time for an ablation. Been there done that.

Lon;1411067 wrote: Lone Atrial Fib was my diagnosis as well (no underlying heart disease). You my find this forum --http://www.afibbers.net helpful. It has been invaluable to me over the 20 years that I put up with atrial fib and it's how I located the right doc to do the ablation.

BTW---it's nice not to have to take the variety of meds that they have for atrial fib. They don't cure it either, just work for a while and then it's on to another med until eventually none of them work and it's time for an ablation. Been there done that.


what do you mean ? how often changes ?

right now i'm on 25mg metoprolol and 50 mg flecainide twice a day