Hi so I am a 26/F and I have been dealing with anxiety and panic attacks for aboue 3 years now due to being hit by a drunk driver randomly one night and it changed my life. I am not afraid to drive or be out in the world. Now it seems like my only fear is to have another panic attack. I was doing great on my medication (xanax and lamotragin) and then I randomly had a panic attack out of no where I now a lot of my stress comes from breathing and feeling like I can't breath. I can't figuer out how to get back on the right road now... I had two partial panic attacks last weekend and it's starting to make me feel hopeless. I am to the point now that I can just be sitting at home or at work and I feel like I can't breath. I do everything right I workout and I relax and I try to keep reintroducing myself to things but I feel like I am not doing anything right cause I always am afraid to panic and I can't breath. I am starting to think I am going to be stuck in my own bubble and no go anywhere in life because of this. Anyone have suggestions on how I can figure out my breathing issues and panic problems?
Hi,
maybe you should try some counselling to deal with the issue of the drunk driver who hit you and work out how the incident made you feel. Often this sort of thing will help.
Regards
Richard
it may be worth asking your doctor for a referral for some treatment for PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder)
Hi PB,
For what it's worth, it sounds like Z is not working for you as well as it once did. The good news is there are other good meds for anxiety. After a couple of nde I am nicely on Mirtazapine and Venlafaxine and they have worked miracles. I got to a psychiatrist who cared and he got my head above water. I then got onto the NHS Talking Therapies folks and had a stint of CBT . Better and better
If you need more info feel free to pm me.
David.
Hi thank you all for responding. I got put on citalopram or celexa and I know it was an SSRI and I had a horrible time with it. I didn't eat for like 6 days and I had the whole suicidal thoughts and tendancies so they had to take me back off of it and my doctor says that because I am more on the Bi-polar side of this that sometimes the SSRI's don't work right so that is why I am on the mood stablizer and the xanax. I'm just afraid that if the xanax is working anymore in which I am on a very low dose .50 ER and now occaionally I am having the take the .25 regular release when doing something new I freak out and I don't want to be become addicted to anything. I know people say when you need it that it's not an addiction I just have horrible issues with being pill sensitive. I have thought about the PTSD thing but I don't feel like that is effecting me.... it's just my fear of having the panic attack itself now and I have read everything on it's just a feeling and your body is over reacting and your suppose to embrace it but I can't like I go into overload and feel like I am dying cause I can't breath. I just feel stuck lately especially after I was doing so good.
Sorry to hear that you are having the breathing issue. I do think that working on your accident will help you. Once upon a time I could go through walls but then it all fell apart. I used to fold up like a deck chair and hit the deck from unbidden memories. Quite a funny sight I'm told.
Apart from meds, I got help from a psychologist with 'rapid eye movement' therapy and it helped heaps. I have not forgotten, but the memories are only active if I want. Get your meds right first and then I'd definitely go for CBT / rapid eye movement therapy. Keep Breathing !