Please help Not been good since January been diagnosed with severe anxiety and panic attacks I have had some therapy sessions but not really helped I get all sorts of symptoms like chest pains shortness of breath pins and needles unable to eat and stomach upsets feeling of my throat closing up all the time . I can't get rid of the feelings and am due to go on holiday on Friday for a week not looking forward to it . The drs have gave me all sorts of tablets but I have a fear of taking them due to side effects so now he has have me 14 diazepam to take as and when needed. I took one yesterday which did help for a while but still not brilliant. Has anyone got any advise to help me through the next week .
First, please not to think that all those therapies didn't work. ALL of them have made you better.
Second, your anxiety isn't chronic, and it can be healed as long as you take all those tablets.
Third, all kind of medications always have side effect. Just don't think about those tablets' side effects.
Don't think too much, don't speculate too much.
Hi thegum I try not to worry but it's in my head from the moment I wake up I spend all day just worrying and can't tackle day to day life. I read all side effects and assume I will get the worst ones and die.
Hi Sandra,
The best thing to do first is become aware of your physiology, or the very real physical symptoms you're experiencing. They are there. It isn't necessarily a symptom of anything else but if you fear it is, you should consult your GP. If you have physical checks and they eliminate the problem (ECG for heart, etc) then you should put it down to anxiety.
How to deal with anxiety is subjective and it depends on how disciplined you are in being able to set yourself space and time to be able to perform breathing exercises rather than rely on medication being there for you to help you. 3 things I've found are the most helpful - 1. Guided Meditation, 2. Mindfulness and Awareness, 3. The '7 to 11 Breathing Technique'
Guided meditation, first of all, is quite structured and disciplined in the sense you have somebody there guiding you through the process of meditation (obviously) and you don't want to disturb others doing it at the same time - but similarly expect others to respect you whilst you do it.
Mindful and awareness can often come hand in hand with guided meditation. Through mindfulness and awareness, you become aware of where you are and most importantly what your body is physically experiencing. In focusing on these feelings (chest pain, shortness of breath, pins and needles) by breathing them in, in a controlled manner, by breathing them out you are effectively telling your brain and body to breathe these pains out too, and they will eventually go away.
The 7 to 11 breathing technique is when you breathe into your lungs through your mouth, nose or both, until your lung capacity is completely full - it may even hurt; you may use parts of your lungs you've never used before - and hold your breath for 7 seconds. Following this, you purse your lips as though you were blowing out a candle and gradually exhale until your lungs are empty. You hold this for 11 seconds and don't take another breath.
Keep doing this for as long as you want. The longer, the better. During the exercise you might experience forms of euphoria; your fingers may tingle, your head may feel slightly dizzy - this is good; this is tension unburdening itself off you; don't worry about it. Instead, focus on it and treat it as a good feeling.
With all of this, it will not be an immediate cure. Mindfulness and awareness courses, and meditation classes take time to book and when you go to them, both take patience to master. The 7 to 11 breathing technique you can perform whenever you want.
My advice would be to understand for the first two you won't get anywhere this week but if you take steps now to look into them and how practical it is to do them, by the end of the week you may be on the right track.
Try to take the medication less and less as well.