need help with panic/anxiety

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i need help! My life has been hell for the past 3 months.. it began with my bp going out of control. first i want to say that i was diagnosed about 20 years ago with panic disorder. I have been on and off anti-depressants since then. I have not had a panic attack in quite a while,,,
I have hypertension for many years but it was always under control with meRAB
six months ago my psyciatrist stopped my anti-depressant (Pristiq) because my bp was going up. Since then my primary dr has not been able to get it under control and told me he thought it was anxiety and told me to find another dr. I went to my cardiologist who also was having trouble getting it under control. he also told me i should go talk to someone. Ok.. now the drs are saying it is all in my head! I agree i have anxiety and it is not getting better by these drs giving up on me and not helping me get my bp down.. so now i am risking having a stroke!
I am finding myself running from dr to dr thinking there is something terrible wrong with me. I keep thinking i have cancer and no one is finding it.
I wake up every night feeling panicking.. my bp skyrockets.
My new primary dr put me on zoloft. I am on my 3rd day and coming home tonight driving on the interstate i think i had a full blown out panic attack.
I became disorientated. I felt i was going to die. I couldnt focus on my driving. everything seemed unreal to me. i was extremely lightheaded and thought i was going to pass out but i kept saying to myelf... i have to get home.. i would not pull over .. i was afraid i would die on the side of the road.
thank god i had xanex in my purse. I took one and by the time i got home the attack was over but i was soooo scared.
has anyone else taken Zoloft and did it bring on a panic attack? I have taken many many meRAB in the past.. you name it,, prozac, effexor, paxil, cyrabalta,pristiq. they all seem to stop working after a while..

I thought zoloft was supposed to help you with panic attacks....not bring them on. I am hoping it is because i am just starting it. i hear it can take several weeks before they work and the side effects go away.. is having a panic attack a side effect? other than the panic attack i think i feel better with the zoloft.. it doesnt make me feel like a zorabie like the other anti-depressants.
Also , i had a blood test taken and asked for the results. i saw stuff on my blood test that got me upset and of course i had to look them up onthe internet and of course i thought yet again... i have cancer and no one is finding it.
I also think maybe this panic attack was brought on because right before the attack..before leaving work.. i read something on the internet where someone said his mothers dr told her she was sufferinig from stress (like me) and she ended up in the hospital with cancer!!
so of course i thought wow.. that can be what is happening to me.. the drs. keep telling me its in my head..its anxiety..maybe they missed something and it really is cancer..
I am sorry for the rarabling.. I am just at my wits end with this.. this has been going on for me for several months. I am exhausted with getting little or no sleep.
 
Hello My name is Dottie. I am 43 years old and as I was reading your post and what happens to you while having a panic attack.. describes me to a 'T"!!! Anyway, I wanted to answer you about Zoloft. I have been taking Zoloft for about 10 years now and it keeps my panic attacks to a minimum. I also have xanax for the real "bad ones" when I feel I am losing control of my thoughts. I also wake up on a nightly basis in the middle of a panic attack. No bad dreams, no bad thoughts just heart racing out of control and i feel like I am dying. I usually call the crisis hotline and explain I am having a panic attack and I just want to talk (not about panic) to get my mind off of what is happening at that moment. Usually within 5 maybe 10 minutes I am o.k. with no xanax.
 
Have you been to an Internal Medicine Dr.? If, not, make an appt. with a good one. He will check alot of things. Request Cancer blood tests or whatever they would do, tell him you want everything checked!!Even hormones, explain your situation, tell him how worrying is bringing on more anxiety and to please help you! Keep me updated, you are not alone
 
Hi Kaybug:

Thank you so much for your input. As you can see by my last post I am not having much luck finding a good internist. The last one dropped me after he was unable to get my bp down and so much as told me it was all in my head and I was going to end up in the looney bin..this was very traumatic to me and now i feel i have lost trust in drs. I am now afraid to tell the new internist that I am not feeling better with zoloft actually i am feeling worse.. I have been so sick the last few days.. extreme nausea, extreme fatigue, anxiety and agitation. I cannot eat as the thought of food makes me gag.
When he looked at the blood test results i brought him from my cardiologist he did not seem concerned about the results and said maybe i should talk to someone and get treatment for anxiety. that is when he put me on zoloft. I know about panic attacks and anxiety as i have suffered with it for over 20 years although i have not had another "panic attack" in over 10 years.. We know our body and we know when something is not right.. I have been feeling sick now for about 3 months. Initially, it was my high bp making me feel miserable but now others things are happening- like the panic attack, anxiety, waking up in the morning feeling neasuas.. I know it might just be anxiety brought on by the stress of everything that has happened over the last 3 months but I also feel the anxiety can be coming from something physically wrong with me. I have asked the dr if i could have leukemia because of the high huraber on my blood test.. it was "Immature Granulocytes" where the normal range was less than 1 and mine was 3! He said i dont have leukemia but never told me why the nuraber was so high. This did not relieve my anxiety.
I am afraid to say anything to him because i am afraid he will do the same thing the other dr did and drop me. I am thinking maybe i should go to a neurologist? Maybe i need a MRI of the brain.. I cant help thinking.. I am 58 now .. not in my 20's when i started with panic attacks. back then i didnt really worry about cancer.. but now I am afraid the chances of having cancer outweigh the chance of it just being anxiety.
I am going to call the dr tommorrow and let him know the zoloft is not working and seems to be bringing on panic attacks.. but i dont know what to say to him about the blood work.. I would like him to run his own blood test but again i dont want to get him upset.
 
Thank you kaybug:
I cant believe how bad i am feeling. I cut my dose down today to 12.5 on the zoloft. right now I am nauseas 24/7. The only time it goes away is if i take my xanex? I dont feel it can be anxiety. I dont think it would last this long.. doesnt it come in spurts? I ran down to the drugstore and asked pharmacist what i can take for neausea. also told him i think i am having bad side effects from zoloft. I told him about the severe panic attack on had on the highway after 3 days of being on zoloft. He said I havent been on the zoloft long enough for it to cause these problems. I thought side effects can happen almost immediately. I cant help wondering if he is saying this because he works in the pharmaceutical field therefore doesnt want to say anything bad about any drug.
I have been feeling so bad i was considering going to emergency room but i dont think they will do anything but send me back home.
A friend told me i should have caled the dr even though it is the weekend but I am afraid to do that after my experience with the other primary dr.
I forgot to mention I am also losing my hair but that has happened before when i am under stress. also my bp meRAB can be causing it but of course i also wonder if there is some serious illness causing it also.
 
The way I look at it, you have every right to request these tests, do not back down. Even if he says, I dont think that is what it is, tell him you want them anyway for your peace of mind! Keep me updated
 
It could be a thyroid problem, the hair thing. And yes, Zoloft can cause this effect that quick. Untill you see a Dr. that does what you ask him to do, I would continue xanex, to help relieve the symptoms you are having now. At least it would help untill they have run the tests that you want them to run. Zoloft did the same thing to me. Paxil, Celexa, works best for me, but everyone is different. I would just take the xanex untill they run all tests. It is hard, I know, but we have to face our fears head on, or they can for sure control us.
 
Hi, So sorry you are dealing with panic! Stress is a real condition & it has brought on panic attacks for me in the past. I am understanding your distress,
believe me. First of all, try not to be alarmed at your blood pressure levels.
It can vary depending on the time of day you take it and what is going on around you--even how you are breathing can make a big difference. In fact,
I have found that I can prevent my panic attacks by deep breathing. Count to 5 when you breathe in deeply, hold for 20 seconRAB(or as long as comfortable) and then breathe out forcefully for 8 seconRAB. Getting all the stagnant air out of your lungs helps lower blood pressure. Deep breathe 4 times in a row and it really does help.
My reaction with Effexor was similar to yours. I had rolling panic attacks for 4 hours after my first dose, and the psychiatrist was mad at ME for taking it at night instead of in the morning like she prescribed. I never went back to that dr, nor do I take ANY antidepressants ever again.
Please hang in there and try to relax. You will find a good dr and they can help you. Just try to eat healthy until you get a diagnosis. And don't give up!
God bless...
 
zoloft does cause more anxiety, all these antidepressants do

it happened to me with zoloft and it is happening to me with this MAO i am taking now

I don't know what to do anymore
 
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