Panic attack

Mental health
1

Hey guys, i'm new to the forum. Just want to dive into it right away, basically i've had a panic attack about 2 weeks ago. Now usually it takes me a month or two to start to feel like my self again, but these last two weeks have been horrendous. They've just been riddled with anxiety. Now the first two days after the panic attack, i was feeling good, and still went and did things day to day that i usually do. However on the third day, it's like my mind just tapped out and decided to turn on me. 

Ever since two weeks ago, i'd have average spells during the day where i start to think i've got a hold on this, but then the anxiety just pops literally out of nowhere. LITERALLY OUT OF NOWHERE, and the cycle starts all over again. Now anxiety attacks have been a feature in my life for the past 5 years, but after each relapse, i've gotten mentally stronger and wiser in dealing with it. This time it's been absolutely overwhelming. 

And i'll get to the reason i posted in this thread a bit later. By the way apologies for this huge essay i'm writing, i just want to make light of the situation and get to the bottom of it. 

So since the last two weeks, i made a decision to completely cover all areas of my health and just go on a treatment spree to get rid of things like my dry scalp, nasal congestion, dry feet etc. Anyway i will attach photos for everything i have taken, so you can get a better understanding. 

So after getting some prescription meds for my nasal congestion and scalp, i decided just like any other hypochondriac that's had an anxiety attack would, to scavenge the internet for anything and everything. Some interesting stuff came back like fluticasone in nasal sprays can exasperate anxiety and the steroid in creams to treat dry skin can do the same as well. 

I have been taking the nasal spray for about 3-4 days but stopped after reading this, and i would also pump 2-3 times more than it stated because i thought the quicker my nasal passageways are clear, the quicker i can breathe efficiently again, hence my anxiety would decrease. Same with my dry skin on my feet, (but i had been taking this before the panic attack) and i would literally lather my foot in the cream to the point i'd have to buy some more within the next two days. 

Bare with my guys, this is a long post, but i just want to get everything out there, so you have you have all of the information to reply with.

I also came across info that curcumin, can help treat inflammation in the body albeit in the brain, gut or wherever, also probiotics to clean the gut, because there is a huge connection between gut-brain neurotransmitters. But obviously, you can't expect to be cured with in a few days, but my anxiety was still way more fiery than in the past for some reason, so i stumbled across how candida comes into the mental health equation and killing off candida too quickly can cause more anxiety (lulz) so everywhere i turn it seems like my anxiety has been through the roof even though i've been a hypochondriac for the last two weeks and put out all the stops to better my health.

Anyway i just wanted to you folk's take on this, and if you can make some sense? I'm going to post a part 2 in a short while, because i don't want to bore you to death with this english essay.

2

Are you taking meds for your anxiety?  

3

You are not boring!

Everything you have written makes sense .

The less medication takes the better in my experience and honest opinion.

There is a u tube presentation by a Professor of Psychiatry from a large London Trusyt I can send the link by PM if u wish. This dr is saying that a lot of drugs are unnecessarily prescribed when other safer methods of treatment were available.

ANXIETY.

This is a debilitating condition with different triggers.

​The sooner therapy is sought the better.

Take care

 

4

Part 2. 

Exactly two years ago i had a panic attack, because my hair was thinning "in my eyes", conclusion: it wasn't hair loss, it was just one day when my hair was wet, my hair seemed thinner than usual, but that usually happens when your hair is wet and also i was taking natural test boosters because of my gym schedule, (needed to recover etc and so forth). 

Anyway, when i had that panic attack two years ago, i became ocd about my hair, was always comparing my hairline to other people's, bought a s**t ton of hair supplements with b vitamins and other vitamins and minerals in them. This one particular product i bought from the same website as my protein powder. I'm sure you guys have heard of the company. It's called "PROTEIN WORLD", and they do multi-vitamins, protein powder, other vitamin supplements for your fitness needs, and just a load of other fitness related stuff. They also have some vitamins that are targeted towards the beauty community, and that's where i stumbled across a product from their website called "HOT HAIR" capsules, and basically it's a multi-vitamin product with different ratios of the vitamins/minerals with some stress busting supplements included.

Now, obviously looking at this product, and the state of mind i was in, i jumped at the chance and ordered a bottle without going through what's in it, however it just seemed like another multi-vitamin to me with some natural herbs to combat stress, i thought it would make my hair thicker and my hair woes would be left behind, when actually there was obviously nothing wrong with my hair and the panic attack sent me into an OCD state about it.

One of the ingredients, in it has 5-HTP, and you were supposed to take 3 capsules of this hot hair supplement, and three doses would give you 150 mg of 5-HTP. After about 2-3 weeks of taking it, i felt pretty chill even though i was freaking out about my hair, and now that i look back on it, if i probably wasn't on that supp i would have driven myself towards insanity about my hair. Obviously at the time i had no idea what 5-HTP was, and what it what used for etc.

What i'm trying to get at is, i took that supp religiously for the first month or so and for some reason after that month i took it on and off, (bear in mind, i had no idea what 5-HTP was) and eventually stopped after a while. And then back on again and off again etc. All in all i bought about 5 bottles of it since 2015 up until now which contains 90 capsules per bottle. So to conclude, have my serotonin levels been damaged by using the 5-HTP in the supp? And is that why my panic attack happened out of the blue, and subsequently having a hard time recovering? 

I also stopped taking these hot hair capsules cold turkey in April and the last 6 months have been a blast, i felt better off them, could be a placebo though because i had become such a supplement freak ever since that panic attack in 2015, that i felt a weight off of my shoulders for taking anything. So my final question is, that was it the 5-HTP that caused this panic attack? And if so is it also giving me a hard time recuperating because of the serotonin/dopamine imbalance, and btw i was not stressed in any way leading up to my panic attack two weeks ago and it really hit me out of the blue and became quite overwhelming seen as i hadn't had any sort of panic episode since 2 years ago, so could you say that because i hadn't experienced any panic for those 2 years, that it's just caught me off guard? 

Really appreciate if you guys have stuck it out and read the whole thing, would be even more grateful, if i could make some sense of the situation with some replies. Love you guys.

5

Thanks for the reply really appreciate it. I've posted part 2 on this post, explaining supplements i took etc. Just yesterday, i sent my blood samples off to be tested, for vitamin d, magnesium, zinc, full thyroid, full testosterone check, and cortisol, so i should get them back within 2 weeks, to make some light of the situation. What i will say is that anxiety attacks have been on and off with me for the last 5 years, but each time, i've come out of it stronger and more resilisent, it's just this paticular attack has left me in a pretty bad place, so i'm just wondering is it the supplements i took in part 2, or the fact that i wasn't taking any in the last 6 months, which made me feel like i havent felt before (clear headed etc.) one thing i will say, is that since late 2014, i've taken natural test boosters for my fitness and recovery (100% natural vitamins and minerals) and those supps had a really good dose of vitamin d in them, (5000iu) and i've taken them ever since, un till i stopped 6 months ago, so it could be a vitamin d defiencey, that brought the panic attack from nowhere? Bare in mind i was in the best mental shape i have ever been in the last 6 months. And also since i've been taking vitamin d since late 2014, i've noticed hardly any anxiety epdioses, and if i have, i would snap back into myself within a month max. But this time it's different, and i'm wondering if it's the vit d? 

6

No i don't, and i don't plan on taking any conventional meds, as i've always recovered from anxiety episodes within 2 months or so.

7

I'm into the whole supplement thing as well, but I swear by 20 mg of citalopram a day.  In the last three years I've attempted a few times to wean myself off of it with no success.  It simply doesn't do me any good not to take it.  When I go off of it, I feel awesome for about a month, then bam, panic sets in and my BP goes through the roof.  An example is last week.  I was off the meds for about a month and I had an episode that sent me to the doctor with a 180/100 BP.  I was literally flipping out.  Needless to say, I started back on the meds and my BP has leveled out to 125/75 as of this morning.  Back on track.  

8

Hi Jerry

​I would get Vitamin D level checked. A low level can cause all sorts of signs and symptoms. including panic attacks , seizures etc.

Have u heard of the vitamin D council?

Have you had any screening for food intolerances at all? For example gluten, wheat, dairy, soy amaranth, aspartame . These can cause panic attacks and also gluten can attack the thyroid gland.

​I would avoid anti depressants, benzos, hypnotics etc, they cause more problems than they 'solve'.

 

9

Hi harriet, thabks for your reply, yes i will look into the vitamin d case, i should get my blood results back either on monday or tuesday. It's just so unusual, as i can really talk myself down and relax myself in stressful times, like i've done in the past, it's just this time, my heart rate seems to up and like a rollercoaster in the day and this exasperates my anxiety, bear in mind this has only gone on for a few weeks, but i just can't seem to make sense of it all. It cant be the 5-htp right? Because for 6 months when i didnt use the supplement which had the 5-htp in, i was on top of the world. Another thing is regarding the canestan cream, which is a cortisone cream, and i would lather that on my foot like i'm wearing a sock of the stuff! Could it be that? Also started probiotics about 3 days after the attack, in order to cleanse the gut of inflammation, and i don't know if i have candida or not, but i've always had a horrible digestive sysytem, so could it be candida die off symptoms? Someone help!

10

Did you ever felt those heat sensations  on your badly?

11

Hi Harriet, been a while since I last posted, hope you're doing ok. Got my vitamin d levels back, and the normal range for vit d in the uk is 50-250, my level of vit d was 44. The doc told me to get on some vit d supplements to get it back within a normal range. I also had a test for my hormones, and it turns out that my testosterone levels are on the low side for a 22 year old. Normal ranges for total testosterone are 7.5-25, and mine was 8.5, which is not bad, but should be higher for a guy ,y age, and my free testosterone was well out of whack. Free testosterone and total testosterone are two of the most fundamental measurements of testosterone for a man, and low levels of these can cause a myriad of psychological symptoms. I've got a very athletic body tbh, I'm also 6'3 and regular gym goer, but I think I can attribute my anxiety attack to over-training, as cortisol is released when weightlifting, and too much of this can hamper testosterone levels and cause all sorts of vitamin deficiencies. The reason I attribute the panic attack to cortisol is because I was not stressed or had not gone through any stressful events prior to the attack, it just happened out of the blue.

12

Hi Jerry Nice to hear from you.

CANESTAN CREAM.

Yuk!

This is an anti fungal cream and must be used sparingly. Why are u using it?

​I am sending you a link by PM if that is ok.

Be careful with drugs such as antibiotics, anti fungals, cortisone, Your vit D is still low and I am wondering what dose of Vit D supplements you are taking and whether  you are taking calcium and magnesium with it.

​

 

13

Hi Jerry, that's not a problem, I'm more than happy to take any kind of help I can get. I hope you're doing well  

​I also neglected to say, that I had major surgery on October 27th, that's why it took me a while to get back to you, I'd just been through a rollercoaster of emotions after the surgery, that I just couldn't find time in the day to do pretty much anything, as I was an anxious wreck. I had surgery to correct and underbite, and the surgery was 7 hours long, my underbite was quite severe, so ideally it would take a longer time to correct. 7 hours under general anaesthesia, is not pleasant, especially when recovering. My mouth was also wired shut (could not move my mouth, speak, eat food etc.), for 6 weeks, and those gruelling 6 weeks consisted of a shambolic liquid diet of soup, blended Weetabix and water. Those 6 weeks were in my opinion the worst of my life. 

​I don't know if you remember, I wrote I had an anxiety attack about 2 months ago (basically the reason for this thread lol), and also if you're familiar with derealisation? I had that after my anxiety attack (2 months ago), and I was kind of in the process of dealing with it, but I didn't have enough time to. quick cliffs, so that I don't bore you guys to death.

​Sept 27th 2017: Anxiety Attack 

​Oct 3rd 2017: Get blood drawn (I'll explain why I've included this later)

​Oct 16th 2017: Got blood drawn again for pre op 

​Oct 23rd 2017: Surgery

​So in between all of this, I was going through derealiazation, and after surgery, it seemed like it made things 200x worse. Anyway I'm kind of feeling better, now that my wires have been taken off etc. so I can breathe more effectively, and as a result my sleep issues resided (I would wake up at 6-6:15, everyday, no matter what time I went sleep. Was so flipping weird!). My anxiety went through roof upon being discharged from the hospital, I thought I would get some respite, by being in the comfort of my home and my mum being around, but I think my hormones were all out of whack. Anxiety has GREATLY reduced, but I get some now and then lingering about, nothing threatening, but I'm still not back to myself pre-anxiety attack, but it's improving day by day, but very gradually, it's just a pain waiting. 

​I mentioned the blood test, because I saw a video of a doctor, and also another person on a separate video, saying not to get blood drawn straight after a stressful event, for whatever reason and she gave 'loosing a job' as an example, however a panic attack is far more stressful in my opinion, but the moral of the story, is not to do this, as it will send your hormones into a frenzy, and I did exactly that when I was freaking after I had my panic attack. Maybe this might have made things a lot worse in my case, but I'm also stating this to give you guys a heads up, especially my fellow hypochondriacs.

​One thing I will also say, that's been quite lasting for me, some brain fog, and light sensitivity. During some time in the day i'll be fine, and all of a sudden, I'd get this brain fog and crazy light sensitivity, and it's like a Rolle roaster. That also is slightly improving day by day, but it's freaking annoying, because I feel dumb not being able to think properly. I'll also give you guys some pointers on supplements that I'm taking now that my wires have been taken off and can open my mouth to actually take supplements (lol). I also assume I have so much inflammation built up in my body from the surgery, and the fact I couldn't take anything to remedy it, so these things are helping with my anxiety and general well being.

These are all supplements, in capsule form:

Turmeric

​Multi-vitamin (good brands, such as garden of life)

​Probiotics

​Ginger 

​Coenzyme-Q10

​Black seed oil

​If you guys need any info on supplements, natural remedies, I'm your go to guy, as I've got extensive knowledge, on nutrition, so do not hesitate to pm if you want to any ideas on starting on some supplements etc. or even you just want to talk. 

​

14

I meant hi harriet* not jerry, wow this brain fog must be worse than expected lol

15

★2  jerry51679

4 days ago

Hi Jerry, that's not a problem, I'm more than happy to take any kind of help I can get. I hope you're doing well smile 

​I also neglected to say, that I had major surgery on October 27th, that's why it took me a while to get back to you, I'd just been through a rollercoaster of emotions after the surgery, that I just couldn't find time in the day to do pretty much anything, as I was an anxious wreck. I had surgery to correct and underbite, and the surgery was 7 hours long, my underbite was quite severe, so ideally it would take a longer time to correct. 7 hours under general anaesthesia, is not pleasant, especially when recovering. My mouth was also wired shut (could not move my mouth, speak, eat food etc.), for 6 weeks, and those gruelling 6 weeks consisted of a shambolic liquid diet of soup, blended Weetabix and water. Those 6 weeks were in my opinion the worst of my life. 

​I don't know if you remember, I wrote I had an anxiety attack about 2 months ago (basically the reason for this thread lol), and also if you're familiar with derealisation? I had that after my anxiety attack (2 months ago), and I was kind of in the process of dealing with it, but I didn't have enough time to. quick cliffs, so that I don't bore you guys to death.

​Sept 27th 2017: Anxiety Attack 

​Oct 3rd 2017: Get blood drawn (I'll explain why I've included this later)

​Oct 16th 2017: Got blood drawn again for pre op 

​Oct 23rd 2017: Surgery

​So in between all of this, I was going through derealiazation, and after surgery, it seemed like it made things 200x worse. Anyway I'm kind of feeling better, now that my wires have been taken off etc. so I can breathe more effectively, and as a result my sleep issues resided (I would wake up at 6-6:15, everyday, no matter what time I went sleep. Was so flipping weird!). My anxiety went through roof upon being discharged from the hospital, I thought I would get some respite, by being in the comfort of my home and my mum being around, but I think my hormones were all out of whack. Anxiety has GREATLY reduced, but I get some now and then lingering about, nothing threatening, but I'm still not back to myself pre-anxiety attack, but it's improving day by day, but very gradually, it's just a pain waiting. 

​I mentioned the blood test, because I saw a video of a doctor, and also another person on a separate video, saying not to get blood drawn straight after a stressful event, for whatever reason and she gave 'loosing a job' as an example, however a panic attack is far more stressful in my opinion, but the moral of the story, is not to do this, as it will send your hormones into a frenzy, and I did exactly that when I was freaking after I had my panic attack. Maybe this might have made things a lot worse in my case, but I'm also stating this to give you guys a heads up, especially my fellow hypochondriacs.

​One thing I will also say, that's been quite lasting for me, some brain fog, and light sensitivity. During some time in the day i'll be fine, and all of a sudden, I'd get this brain fog and crazy light sensitivity, and it's like a Rolle roaster. That also is slightly improving day by day, but it's freaking annoying, because I feel dumb not being able to think properly. I'll also give you guys some pointers on supplements that I'm taking now that my wires have been taken off and can open my mouth to actually take supplements (lol). I also assume I have so much inflammation built up in my body from the surgery, and the fact I couldn't take anything to remedy it, so these things are helping with my anxiety and general well being.

These are all supplements, in capsule form:

Turmeric

​Multi-vitamin (good brands, such as garden of life)

​Probiotics

​Ginger 

​Coenzyme-Q10

​Black seed oil

​If you guys need any info on supplements, natural remedies, I'm your go to guy, as I've got extensive knowledge, on nutrition, so do not hesitate to pm if you want to any ideas on starting on some supplements etc. or even you just want to talk. 

​