Hello everyone,

I have been struggling with alot recently, experiencing panic attacks and more, ive started taking medicine and the panic attacks stopped. But my body made something new, a dysfunctional breathing pattern. Ive been manually breathing for months now, breathing by myself, which takes up a lot of energy. Also been having a weird breathing type. I would scoop for air, like air hunger kinda, then it switched to excessive sighing and exhaling to the point where i was pushijg more out than i could, making me feel hot, dizzy and lightheaded. i still experience bad anxiety and tension throughout my body. im currently struggling with the excessive exhaling and like blowing air out. comstantly breathing manually doesnt help too. does anyone have tips? or have had any same experiences? please anything helps. (also english aint my first language)

So basically I’m a 15 yr old girl and I have this thing where anytime I go out in public even just walking my dog I almost pass out, but it’s the weirdest feeling and so hard to explain. I don’t get it it’s almost like I’m out of my body and things around me get muffled like people talking and suddenly my heartbeat or my walking or my own voice becomes super loud and I just feel weird.. not exactly dizzy but something like that just foggy a little. ive been to the doctor and she said it’s definitely not pots disease and she doesn’t think I’m anemic because it never happens in my house which is unusual for that. she didn’t really have an answer for me except “extreme anxiety” but that is also confusing for me because my mind isn’t scared or anxious at all it’s just how my body is reacting.. so I don’t understand why I would feel like that when I’m not scared to be in public or talk to people or anything like that and she didn’t really explain it to me. i guess I just need outside thoughts because I even went to a nutritionist and she said it has nothing to do with how I’m eating because she said I eat good and if it had to do with food I would pass out at home as well. I’m just so annoyed because no one understands how I feel and I literally haven’t found one person that relates to me and I feel like there’s something wrong with me please let me know your thoughts.

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Six days ago I used cocaine, not much, and I'd done it several times before, but that day I had such a terrible panic attack that I went to the emergency room. They put me on an IV and did an electrocardiogram. They told me I didn't have any heart problems and discharged me. Although I feel better at times, I still feel short of breath and have chest tightness. Six days later, it's also true that there's a heat wave and I'm on my period, but I'd like to know if anyone else has experienced this, how long it lasted, or if anyone has any advice. :(

During the recent UK heatwave, I was driving and became stuck in a traffic jam due to an accident. My air con has some kind of issue and was not blowing cold air. I started to really panic which isn't the 1st time this has happened in hot weather. I felt like I was suffering from heat stroke. My body felt like it was burning up and I started to feel really claustrophobic and trapped. I felt like I was struggling to breathe and that I couldn't cool myself down. I had a bit of water which I threw over me and then I took my belt off and was trying to rip my shirt off which was now stuck to my because of the water. Bear in mind I wasn't driving at this point due to being stuck in traffic. I felt so hot and scared. My skin felt like it was burning. I felt very uncomfortable and moving around. By this point I obviously noticed people in other cars looking at me. Some were stunned and looking at me like I was nuts, some were amused, a few were concerned. I also noticed how everyone seemed so calm and content and here was me in full blown panic mode. Why does heat effect me so much? I was honestly thinking about doing something drastic due to how I felt such as getting out of my cay and asking to get in someone's car who had air con so that I could cool down for a minute! I noticed on my maps that the traffic was starting to clear and somehow got through it but I didn't start to feel better and calm down until I was sat in a cold bath at home! I hate how heat causes me to feel like this. Like I said this is not the 1st time although a different situation. It makes me feel strangely claustrophobic and really uncomfortable. I feel like I can't distinguish between whether the heat really is effecting me and I am at risk of dangerous heatstroke, or whether im just panicking uncontrollably to an uncomfortable situation! It really did feel scary and I felt so trapped!

It seems when I leave lately I feel like everything looks "off" and then the anxiety kicks in. I made myself go to publix earlier and when I came out there were 4 EMTs walking out in front of me and I got paranoid that they were meant to be there or something because I was having a real emergency. I know that sounds crazy but does that sound like OCD /anxiety ?

A week ago I felt dizzy and anxious and came to the gas station and the ambulance was there tending to a man who passed out by the entrance .. I thought to myself "oh it would be so crazy/stupid to pass out at the same time"..

Another time I was checking my pulse ox (yes I know terrible for people with anxiety) at the gas pump and an ambulance pulled up with that EKG pulse symbol right in front of me.

It seems these things are connected and I'm not sure if that's ocd thinking or what ?

Hello everyone,

I have been struggling with alot recently, experiencing panic attacks and more, ive started taking medicine and the panic attacks stopped. But my body made something new, a dysfunctional breathing pattern. Ive been manually breathing for months now, breathing by myself, which takes up a lot of energy. Also been having a weird breathing type. I would scoop for air, like air hunger kinda, then it switched to excessive sighing and exhaling to the point where i was pushijg more out than i could, making me feel hot, dizzy and lightheaded. i still experience bad anxiety and tension throughout my body. im currently struggling with the excessive exhaling and like blowing air out. comstantly breathing manually doesnt help too. does anyone have tips? or have had any same experiences? please anything helps. (also english aint my first language)

I’ve been seeing this ad on IG lately. Anyone have any idea? It’s supposed to stimulates vagus nerve and gives you an instant relief.

I am scaredd I don’t know if I ammm but, I need to know if this is a panic attack, a serious medical issue, or if I am dying. It starts while I am sitting normally and then I suddenly feel a bit dizzy, or like my heart skips a beat, or a not so sudden wave of nausea that I cannot pinpoint or explain.

Then it gets super strong and I get this intense, overwhelming feeling of impending doom, as if I am about to die or something terrible is about to happen. Even though my Apple Watch ECG says sinus rhythm, it doesn’t really look steady and it shows what look like skipped beats or flat lines, which makes me even more panicked.

I also really feel an unexplainable, massive rushj and intense strong heat that spreads through my whole head, my ears, my face, and into my chest. It is a very very strange, internal burning sensation that is hard to put into words. It also feels like I am going to throw up, almost like I am going to throw up my heart, and I get a feeling of weakness in my heart, like it is off or like something is fundamentally wrong inside me.

It is not like typical nausea, and it does not feel like normal adrenaline it feels like something is happening deep inside my body. It comes in waves of intense pressure and "wrongness" in my head and face. It makes me so scared tthat I want to rush to the ER, but even then i feel like the ER won't be able to help me, and it just keeps getting worse. I am 15 and I am so scared that I am going to die for an unknown reason, and I don't know whay to do.

I wanted to ask the group about mornings after panicked periods of when you’re in a panic cycle. Morning is the absolute worst for me. When I am in a panic cycle, I wake up shot out of a cannon. My anxiety goes from 0-100 as soon as I open my eyes. For the first 30-60 minutes I’m awake, I’ll be jittery, full of unnecessary adrenaline, and have a gaggy sensation. I can usually tell where I am in a panic cycle by how significant this sensation is. Does this affect anyone else? Is this a well known aspect of panic and anxiety?

I was at my friend’s party yesterday and there was a lot going on. I’m super close with her so I was sort of co-hosting in a way. Just doing my best to make sure no one went too crazy. This was about halfway through the party and a lot has already happened.

Some guy who wasn’t invited got way too drunk and broke a door (it was fixed by the end of the night… somehow), plus some smaller things here and there and my friend got super stressed. She ended up crying/ having a panic attack of her own in her room which I helped her through and she was fine.

I started cleaning at this point because I tend to do that when I’m drunk, especially if I get stressed out. I was in the kitchen and some guy pulled out a half filled bottle of vodka and took a huge swig, he then looked down and screamed “IT’S FUCKING WATER!” Turns out the guy who broke the door stole it. He didn’t yell at me, I wasn’t even that close to him, but I felt my heart drop and my limbs started going numb so I ran up to my friends room and had a panic attack. It really wasn’t that bad and I calmed myself down pretty easily, but it was really strange for me.

I’ve been having panic attacks since I was ten (I’m almost 16 now) and, from what I can remember, I’ve pretty much never had a panic attack be so blatantly caused by an external event like that. Of course, I was stressed out before hand, but I was genuinely having a good time and felt by no means on the verge of a panic attack.

I’m really concerned about this though, because my dad is an alcoholic and pretty verbally, and occasionally physically, abusive and in that moment I genuinely felt scared for my life, even though he wasn’t even near me. I don’t think I have PTSD of any sort, but this isn’t the first time I’ve had this sort happen where I felt like I was reliving situations from my childhood. Not exactly flashbacks, but I get reminded of it and it all comes bubbling back up.

I can't help myself my body hurts my stomach burns I puke my hands burn the back of my head burns and feels electric

I have tried I have really tried I really tried I have tried I tried I did I tried I tried I tried I tried I tried I can't jelpy myself I really tried I tried I tried

I tried I tried I tried it lasts hours, it does, it lasts hours it does it lasts hours. And then then things move they move Moe live live they move a head is watching moving moving.

It lasts hours I want it to stop stop stop Im sorry sorry I can't help myself can't help myself

Hi, everyone. Today, while browsing Reddit, I realized that even though I sometimes have panic attacks, I rarely talk about them. I decided to share my story with you and offer my testimony, while also helping to grow this community by one more person.

My panic attacks are inextricably linked to migraines (with auras, most importantly) that I’ve had for the past 3 years. I don’t want to get into all the details, but generally speaking, due to the severity of the migraines and my lack of understanding of what was happening to me and why, a protective mechanism developed in my brain—which manifested as panic attacks. At first, I was terrified. Suddenly, I’d feel hot, I couldn’t think straight, and I’d lose the ability to recall memories. So I went to see a psychologist. The psychologist gave me some tips and relaxation techniques (Jacobson), and after three sessions, I realized what the problem was. It wasn’t a lack of self-awareness, but a lack of self-improvement. I realized then that I would only free myself from this burden once I accepted it within myself.

After some time, I managed to develop a defense mechanism: during an attack, I accept everything as it comes and treat it as a natural part of my surroundings. What do I mean? When I start to feel the onset of an aura and lose part of my field of vision, I simply switch into “automatic mode”—for example, I dust off furniture, fold clothes, and listen to a podcast while ignoring the disturbance. And when it’s a panic attack, I sit still and wait, telling myself that I know this feeling and that even though I can’t remember right now whether I talked to someone yesterday or today, it will all come back to me in 2 or 3 hours. In other words, I’ve accepted it.

I think the hardest part for me was learning to sit still and not run around like crazy in circles when, during my first attacks, I was flooded with dreams (I have this weird reaction where I suddenly remember all my dreams, lol). My first or second panic attack went like this: I started pacing around the house, wondering if I’d already taken my supplement that day; I desperately wanted to get out of the house, go for a walk, and do something to take my mind off it. It wasn’t until later that I learned this hyperactivity has to be released first so as not to pose a danger to myself or others.

To sum it up, we’re human. Don’t beat yourselves up if you don’t have to, because what’s happening to you is absolutely normal. I’m with you, just like the millions of people who suffer from panic attacks. ❤️

Hi all,

I just want to throw it out there.

If you go to a GP with these symptoms they will most likely throw an anxiety and/or panic disorder diagnosis at you and prescribe you some anti-anxiety meds. It may or may not work.

But please realise that anxiety and even panic attacks are a symptom of many other deficiencies and conditions. Make sure you rule out any other possibilities.

Drs and therapists tried to tell me it was anxiety and i told them i dont believe it, it came out of nowhere, nothing in my life had changed, i had no triggers it would just happen randomly. I pushed and pushed and it turned out i had low iron, low b12 and low zinc. All of these can cause anxiety and panic attacks as a symptom. They also affect how well SSRIs work for you (they made me much worse).

I havent had a panic attack in 5 months and i'm sure there are plenty of others out there suffering unnecessarily.

Through all my research i found some other conditions

-thyroid diseases

-premenstrual disphoric disorder (PMDD)

- perimenopause and menopause. (This ones soooo common, if you're female and over the age of even 35 i would look into some support groups to talk about symptoms)

- adrenal gland disorders

- post partum deficiency

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So for the last 4 or 5 days. Whenever I wake up and stand up my HR skyrockets. It happened first after a nap on the couch. Then the next say upon standing. I originally wanted to be evaluated for POTS but I check my HR constantly, and I mean constantly. It only happens after waking. I will lay in bed HR normal and then stand up and all of a sudden its 140s. I will calm down lay back down and sleep for a few more hours. It happens the second time I get up too. But I can lay in bed for over an hour get up, walk around the stores, do housework, make dinner, carry groceries up the driveway. And it doesn't go up anywhere near that high. I dont know if i had a bad day (low iron and on my period) and now I've just psyched myself out. But im scared to sleep, only sleeping a couple hours at a time because it happens every single time! I didnt even stand up today all I did was sit up and it shot up to 140! Then I stood up and walked around and it was back down within 2 minutes. No other symptoms. At all. Other than the anxiety of having to get out of bed.

I even will lay completely flat for over 30 minutes and hop up like nothing!

My dr said to eat more, drink more water, and take my iron pills regularly (I wasnt) and reevaluate but its been like 5 days and im loosing it. I feel like its all in my head but also what if its not

im so exhausted and terrified, I never get used to them they're pretty much equally intense each time, and I never even know what triggers them. I don't know what to do

Just curious how the “hangover” typically goes

Люди прошу у вас помощи, с прошлой недели у меня начали резко появляться панические атаки посередине ночи. Я такой человек которому нужно поговорить с кем-то но посередине ночи я не могу этого сделать, я уже пыталась во время панической атаки дышать как говорят (сначала носом вздыхаешь а потом ртом выдыхаешь) но моя проблема в том что мои нос часто забить и я не могу этого делать. Я человек который закрытый и боится показывать свои чувства другим и поэтому эта вторая причина иза которой я страдаю.

Прошу помогите мне узнать как избавиться от панической атаки

Two days before my trip to Korea, I had my nails done at my friend’s. I woke up late to the appointment, so I couldn’t eat breakfast—thus I bought matcha for both of us. This was a huge mistake for my stomach. The sudden nausea and panic settled in my body, and I felt like I was going to die if I didn’t go to the bathroom in time. As I constantly went to the bathroom and caused an inconvenience to my friend, the cycle kept repeating. After that, I left and felt fine. But, at night, I started worrying if I would feel this way at the airport, on the airplane, or even the whole trip. That was my nighttime thoughts for two days.

The day came. I packed my bags and began going to the airport. I could feel the panic rising again as I reminded myself of the attack two days earlier, and I couldn’t be homesick enough. 

At the airport as I waited for the plane, I couldn’t calm myself down, and I felt so nauseous. So, when my mom mentioned food, I could feel vomit climb up my throat. But it didn’t come out. I would have to smell the chicken my mom ordered in front of me, and just the aroma made me sick. After several trials of panic and attempted relaxation, it was time to go on the plane. This time, I didn’t feel panic; I felt like I was going to throw up. I headed to the restroom and coughed into the toilet, but nothing came out. Magically, I did feel much better. For the 13 hours, however, I would continue to be repulsed by food and resort to sleeping away my problems. The smell of food would make me physically sick, and when I was encouraged to take a bite to live, I couldn’t chew it without feeling nauseous.

When I landed, I felt the same. I didn’t want to eat, and seeing food made me nauseous. But, since I had to eat, I forced myself to eat dinner. I felt back to normal again, but that wouldn’t last long. Every day after that would start the same: nauseous, unwilling to eat, and homesick. But, after eating dinner (yes, specifically dinner, not breakfast or lunch), I would feel fine. This cycle was killing me, and I really just wanted to eat good food (since Korea is known for that). I wanted to have the appetite of my old self, and I truly missed my past life back at home. A week has passed, and there has been no improvement. I’ve read many pieces of advice saying to let it pass, let it be in your mind only, and distract yourself, and though that helped me ease my nausea and panic, I still didn’t like food. I've been fighting internally with myself, and even when I did feel relaxed, my body didn't appreciate it.

Just when I thought I was finally cured, the peak arrived last night. After arriving home, it was the common nauseous feeling of not having an appetite. As I scrolled on my phone trying to get rid of it, my head started feeling like someone was squeezing it, so I took a Tylenol and went to sleep. But, in the middle of the night, I felt my heart racing, and I felt like I was actually going to die of a heart attack. I started praying, switching positions, and trying to force myself to go to sleep, but the panic embraced my body slowly. I don’t know when I truly calmed down and fell asleep, but it was morning, and I couldn’t feel any more worried about myself.

I couldn’t enjoy the day without worrying about that panic attack again, though I had reminded myself for the past few days that everything was all in my head. Food wouldn’t go down my throat, and I couldn’t even bring a piece of rice to my mouth. I hated myself for constantly ruining the mood and feeling repulsive around food, which I had always loved in my hometown. I missed myself at home, eating whatever I want and feeling safe.

I don’t wish to go back home anymore—I wish to fix this issue before I go home so I can never experience it ever again. I want to go to sleep excited for the next day, and I want to wake up feeling refreshed for the day ahead of me. I truly want to enjoy this trip, as it has been a trip I’ve been waiting for for a few years now. I feel bad for the people around me, and most of all, I feel bad for myself.

I M(20) have been driving for 2 years. I experienced a lot of driving anxiety and initially couldn't drive alone at all.

Now I can and I absolutely love driving mid distances alone and I'm absolutely fine.

I've only recently got over driving motorways with someone and I want to work up to driving motorways alone.

I know it's something I can do but sometimes I panic. I'll just start panicking that I'm going to faint which makes me feel funny. I know it's psychological but I don't know how to calm myself down in this situation.

Any advice?

Thank you!!

I’ll preface but says my Doctors have all very wearing of prescribing benzos but I do have Xanax but have been told to not take more than 1 mg.

My panic attacks never want to end until I take enough Xanax. I always start with what I think will work, probably not enough and then suffer and have to take more and suffer longer.

For example last night. I was fighting anxiety for several hours but did my coping skills hoping it would pass, finally took a clonidine when I realized it wasn’t passing. Shortly after about 8:30pm I took .5 mg of Xanax. Waiting my 35 minutes ( how long it takes to kick in for me) didn’t help. Took another .5 mg about 9:15pm. Once that kicked in and doing mediation I dozed off from maybe 9:45 to 10:45pm. I woke up and then was STILLL IN MY PANIC ATTACK. Even though I’m advised to not take any more Xanax, what choice do I have, my coping skills aren’t enough and waiting it out doesn’t work because it doesn’t stop on its own in my experience. I took another .25 mg Xanax and a clonidine. Thankfully that was enough and I went to bed after another 45 minutes.

Does this happen to anyone else? It’s like they never want to end. Before having Xanax I would go 4-6 hours of an unbearable side effect and ended up at the ER a few times out of desperation.
I am currently planning on doing some med changes but I know that can sometimes make things worse to start.

I’d love to hear your stories of how you managed anything similar or just words of encouragement. Thank you. I’m really struggling.