Panic attacks

[Forgetmenot]

Anyone else out there suffer from these horrible things.
My heart races I feel like I’m having a heart attack.and it can take me over an hour to try and stop them .I’ve tired deep breathing in fact I’ve tired everything you can think of .
I feel so scared and alone with them.

 

[sunkacola]

YES. I have these as well. It's a horrible feeling.
Some of mine have gone on for hours.

I bought a pulse/oximeter. It's the little thing you put on your finger that measures pulse rate and oxygen saturation in your blood. When this happens to me I put it on. Partly so that I can see if my heart rate is so high I should call for medical help. But also I try to make a sort of game out of trying to get the rate to go down.

I take very very deep breaths, and I may take some medical cannabis tincture if the attack goes on for too long. I keep an eye on the pulse rate on my finger and tell myself that I can bring it down if I try hard enough.

This doesn't always work.
(It's not always physically possible to bring it down, and that's a fact).
But, I don't know of anything that always works.
And I feel scared and alone when it happens to me, too. I wish I knew a way I could tell you to stop or prevent these, but I don't.

 

[Rhyl]

Do you know why you have them? Wondering if you have tried yoga or mindfulness or maybe one of the breathing apps?

 

[CalgaryChris3]

Yes, I get them as well. Sometimes it helps just to tell someone that it is happening. If you have someone you can depend on it helps to just say the words..”I think I am having a panic attack” . I find telling my husband about it calms me down and just being by his side. I also find watching a funny tv show or reading distracts me as well. Other times I just give into it and wait for it to settle down, as my therapist taught me. I don’t know if this helps but I hope so! Also reach out just like this... Christine

 

[Forgetmenot]

Thankyou for all the kind reply’s .yes I do tell someone when I’m having one .and I don’t know why.but it’s something that’s can’t be easily fixed.atm I can only be with my other half weekends so it’s very hard to have someone to cuddle up with then there happing , I’ve found cuddling my Guinea pigs helps calm me down .as there still new and scared so I have to be relaxed to relax them.

 

[sunkacola]

Do you know why you have them? Wondering if you have tried yoga or mindfulness or maybe one of the breathing apps?

That's the thing about anxiety and panic attacks........most of the time there is no "why". They can, of course, be triggered by something and in that case the person knows what that trigger is, the vast majority of the time.

But if you have an anxiety disorder, they come randomly. Middle of the day, you are just walking or reading, and wham here it is. No trigger specifically.

I always advocate for people doing yoga or meditation if it works for them. But as with everything else, it won't work for everyone, and if you have an anxiety disorder it may not be a solution at all. I am a proponent of all kinds of things that help people with fibro. I practice many things for relaxation but none have had an impact on whether or not I get crippling anxiety attacks. And, of course, once you are in it may be impossible to do any of them. You just have to live through it.

 

[Forgetmenot]

Sunkacola .I find if I think about relaxing and breathing it can sometimes start an attack off!
Just the idea of trying not to have one gives me one.and it’s like trying to explain the pain of fibromyalgia.if you don’t have them your never understand how bad they are .

 

[sunkacola]

Sunkacola .I find if I think about relaxing and breathing it can sometimes start an attack off!
Just the idea of trying not to have one gives me one.and it’s like trying to explain the pain of fibromyalgia.if you don’t have them your never understand how bad they are .

I get that.
If I start trying to describe a bad anxiety attack to someone it immediately starts to trigger rapid breathing and I have to stop and talk about something else. All I can do safely is state very simple facts: rapid pulse and difficulty breathing. That's it.

I have not found anything that prevents them or that eases them once they start, although I do lie down because I have no choice, can't stay standing, and I do deep breathing just because it seems like a good idea, although it doesn't seem to do much good. On the other hand, it cannot hurt.
Just gotta get through it, and keep an eye on the pulse meter so if it gets dangerous I can call for help.

 

[Forgetmenot]

I think if my pulse gets to high I’d pass out.I can’t lay down I always wanna run ,that’s a joke with fibromyalgia isn’t it .But you no the fight or flight response.

 

[Jemima]

I've had periods of my life where panic attacks took over everything. I used to just end up sitting on the floor in inappropriate places trying to believe I wasn't going to die! So I really feel for everyone experiencing this - it's just an awful, scary thing to go through and the fear of when they might happen next is horrible.

I do think it's worth considering (maybe you've already been there, done that, got the t-shirt, in which case sorry!) that panic attacks can sometimes be a symptom of something treatable, like a deficiency in magnesium, vitamin D or B3. Or, perhaps an indication of low-level brain inflammation (connected to fibro a lot!) Magnesium glycinate is really helping me - far less anxiety, better sleep, less negative ideation. I truly hope you find something that helps you too, because it really, truly sucks

 

[sunkacola]

Jemima, did you start taking the magnesium glycinate specifically for the anxiety? And what brand do you use? (no links...just the name, please). What dosage? How has it helped?
Excuse all the questions but I am interested in anything that might help me and others with this issue.

 

[Jemima]

Jemima, did you start taking the magnesium glycinate specifically for the anxiety? And what brand do you use? (no links...just the name, please). What dosage? How has it helped?
Excuse all the questions but I am interested in anything that might help me and others with this issue.

I'm happy to answer - especially if it helps!

I've been going through supplement studies and reviews and trying different things to help with five main issues: pain, fog, depression, anxiety, and insomnia. I read a bunch of stuff about all the different magnesium variations, and found quite a lot of content and reviews suggesting that glycinate in particular is helpful for depression, anxiety, and sleep issues. Magnesium also gets mentioned for fibro quite a bit, so I decided to try it.

So says WebMD: "Magnesium is very important for the normal functioning of cells, nerves, muscles, bones, and the heart."

From an NIH study: "magnesium is a mineral of intense interest for the potential prevention and treatment of neurological disorders. Current literature is reviewed for migraine, chronic pain, epilepsy, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and stroke, as well as the commonly comorbid conditions of anxiety and depression"

I'm using a product from a brand called KAL - Magnesium Glycinate 400. I started trying to take 400mg per day but found it made me sleepy, so dropped to 200, and then to 100 (half a tablet). I'd been experiencing raging anxiety since around Christmas - some panic attacks, but more a kind of frantic feeling very low mood,, jumping in the night, worrying at 1000 miles per hour! I wasn't expecting much - it's just magnesium after all - but I feel like all the noise has been turned right down, the panic feeling has almost entirely gone, and my thoughts are calm. I'm sleeping much better too. Maybe I've been magnesium deficient for years without realising, or maybe it's effecting me in some other way, but I'm pretty happy about it!

 

[sunkacola]

Wow, Jemima, what a difference it has made for you! Since I have magnesium tablets on my shopping list anyway, I will make sure it is magnesium glycinate. Thanks for the info!

 

[Jemima]

Wow, Jemima, what a difference it has made for you! Since I have magnesium tablets on my shopping list anyway, I will make sure it is magnesium glycinate. Thanks for the info!

I hope it works for you too!

 

[JayCS]

cuddling my Guinea pigs

My wife cuddles & talks loads with her/our guinea pigs too (for comfort too) and I enjoy shorter contacts, like watching them speeding & popcorning around our place, give them something to eat when they squeak at us and sit up and beg...