i need answers...please read

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nobby82

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hay..
enough is enough.
iv been having panic/anxiety attacks for a year now.
this is my first post, i needed to find answers so i found this site.

here is where im at.
i had my first panic attack a year ago. my worst exprience ever.
then my health deteriated a lot. i was collapsing, having chest pains.
my doctor told me it was anxiety and panic attacks.
a week later i was rushed to hospital after again collapsing.
i was told i had a heart defect and would need a pacemaker fitted!
the operation went well and recoverd quickly. but since then my anxiety is out of control. i am now medicated for it but its not really working.

now every time a have a pain in my chest i think im dying, i get them when im anxius. everytime i get a headace its a stroke. for peaple that dont know about anxiety they would think im nuts. peaple with anxiety have these thoughts but with me my fears were realised when i had a pacemaker fitted.

so how do i tell myself im fine!

iv not been good recently. iv got constant dizzyness and sweaty palms.
iv noticed im twictching and having inviolentry muscal movment what are new and dont know if it is linked to anxiety or stress?
im worried about this..

thanks for reading
 
Perhaps your medication is not the medication for you? What are you currently taking for your anxiety? When dealing with anti anxiety medication, it's often a process of finding what works for you and what doesn't. Perhaps your dosage isn't enough or the medication you're taking isn't the right one! I know for myself, I need a higher than "normal" dosage for my anti anxiety medication to work (for both anti depressants and anti anxiety meRAB like ativan/xanax). You wouldn't think I would need a higher dose because I'm quite small! At one point I was on 60mgs of paxil because it wasn't working at all at any lower dosage, and I need a higher dosage than average of ativan for it to have any effect.

If I could offer you any advice, it would be to go see your primary care physician and explain what you're going through. Having something as serious as a heart condition and collapsing and having to be rushed to the hospital is a very traumatic experience (compounded if you already had anxiety issues beforehand!), and as such perhaps you would benefit from seeing a therapist/counselor you can relay your fears to and help work on ways to get some relief from your anxieties! If you're not currently seeing a psychiatrist, and are able to, I would suggest going to see one in regarRAB to your medication. My new doctor insisted I see one to work out the best treatment plan for me. It's helped a lot.

As far as the muscle twitches, I find I experience them when I'm stressed out. I would get awful muscle cramps too, alone with "brain fog" and an inability to concentrate. When I mentioned this to my doctor she said it's most likely related to my anxiety. Since I know now I NEED medication to deal with my anxiety (because therapy alone doesn't cut it for me) I was hopeful these symptoms would go away once I was put back on ARAB and luckily they did! So, your physical symptoms might just be caused by your anxiety because it does sound uncontrolled. However, since you have a heart condition I'd make sure I got that checked out too.

I hope some of this is helpful to you! I wish you the best of luck!
 
Anxiety is a serious illness as you well know. Unfortunately many physicians are scared to adequately treat anxiety with a class of drugs called Benzodiazepines (Xanax, Serax, Valium, and Klonopin). SSRI's like Lexapro and Zoloft sometimes do little to help anxiety. For anxiety resistant to Benzodiazepines sometimes Gabapentin is added. I wish you the best and hope you find an empathetic physician that will treat your problems.
 
thank you for all the support. im so glad i found this site.
i can talk to peaple who understand, i feel my doctor doesent.
i have another appointment to discusse my meRAB and a plan to move forward.
i am having a really bad bout of anxiety this week. and poping online is really helping.
i hope all your anxiety is under control and your all well
 
thank you for replying to my post cathryn.
im so pleased my twitching and invilentry movement is linked to anxiety. my brain races and i thought i may have tourettes.
im on 20mg of citalopram. im in the uk so you may not know it. i take one a day. i was hoping my attacks would go away. wishful thinking.the thought of taking drugs for the rest of my life to control it is doughnting.
i had some counselling what was unsuccessful. i do need to go to my doctor and discusse some new treatment. thank you for your advise, i will be making a appointment now...
 
I have heard of citalopram. My dad was on it. He found 20mgs (which I believe is considered an "average" dosage) wasn't enough and went up to 40mgs which is considered a "high dose." Although he was a bit tired, he found it worked well up until a few months ago when his doc switched him to another AD in the same family (I can't remeraber the name, but the dosing is lower overall for the same effect).

Anxiety can cause all kinRAB of physical symptoms you might not initially link to anxiety. Once you get that under control through adjusting your dosage or even switching your meRAB you should start feeling better. My "brain fog" went away as soon as my new ARAB kicked in :) Let us know how you're doing!
 
Hello, I just wanted to say I feel for you as well. Anxiety can really take a toll on your health in so many ways. Im so glad to hear that they did fix your heart. Sometimes problems go undetected and can lead to even further problems. I just wanted to say you WILL get your anxiety under control. It just takes a matter of time. Im not going to say it will ever go away for good, but it will be controllable. I am currently on citalopram like you. I was on lexapro and then I had to switch due to insurance purposes. I was afraid to take it, but I am somewhat glad I did. I started off at 10 mg (a lower dosage compared to 10 mg of lexapro). I felt okay the first couple of days until I started having withdrawl like symptoms because of the lower dosage. I then bumped myself up to 20 mg (because that is really what the doc wanted, I was just too stubborn to want to stay on the medicine that was helping me.... long story). Anyhow, I jumped up to 20 mg and felt absolutely high and drugged up and not normal for about a week and a half.... yesterday I think my med started to level out. I felt somewhat normal yesterday for the first time in MONTHS. I am just thankful I had one really good day to where I wasnt afraid to eat anything or drink anything other than water... I had/have such strange irrational fears. I am hoping this wonderful feeling continues because I like feeling like my normal self. It sucks though when you try to control it but you cant. Medication sometimes is the only way and I am also looking for a counselor to speak with about a lot of unresolved issues I think caused my panic attacks. If my anxiety gets worse in the future (which I am hoping it doesnt and this maintenence dose of 20 mg will help) then I may have to increase the med. Sometimes you have to find the right dosage. I am sure you will get yourself back on track. If your med doesnt work for you after a while even after adjusting doses, I would suggest trying another SSRI. The doctor can prescribe you something he or she feels works better. Sometimes it is hit or miss with these because everyones body chemistry works differently. Anyway, I hope everything goes well for you and God bless you. I know he has us all in his hanRAB and will lead us through our trials.
 
I didn't see it mentioned,but I was prescribed Ativan(Lorazapam)for my anxiety,and it did wonders for me.It is also used in our local hospital Crisis Center,
by needle, for emergency situations.It is fast acting ,and I am very grateful to the Pdoc, for prescribing it. Good luck Bill
 
Ativan is a short acting benzo though. Would be good to take before a social situation, but what good will that be for the topic creators health anxiety, which is 24/7? Feel good for 3 hours then be right back where you started from. One of the longer acting benzos would be his best bet in my opinion, such as Klonopin or Valium.
 
Unfortunately good old Valium has received so much bad press, as have all the benzos. It is truly sad that those of us who have severe anxiety are treated like drug seekers when we ask a PCP to Rx for a benzo.
 
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