breathlessness/severe agoraphobia
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From: lepus29@gmail.com on 18 Apr 2006 18:11 Does anyone else have breathlessness throughout the day with panic attacks and GAD? I have days where I just cannot seem to catch my breath. It is very disconcerting. I'm very agoraphobic right now and I don't know if I should chalk this symptom up to anxiety or if I need to be seen by a doctor. I don't know how I would make it to a doctor's office right now. I was seen in the ER in February for a panic attack and they took chest x-rays, did an EKG, etc. Everything was fine. It feels like there is a tight band around my chest or that someone is constricting it. I remember having a symptom like this one many years ago and having a blood oxygen level taken and it was normal. Anyone else? I have another question. Has anyone ever been severely agoraphobic and if so how did you break out of the pattern? I feel trapped. I am on some meds but I cannot get to my doctor or therapist for more help. They won't help me unless I come to them. I am trying to desensitize myself and have made some strides. I manage to walk to the end of the block now when it used to be that I could barely leave my bedroom. It just seems like wherever I go I have a panic attack. I feel trapped and am starting to get very depressed. I know I am in terrible physical shape and have become deconditioned when I used to be an endurance cyclist. I try to do larger things to desensitize myself (go to the drugstrore, go for a drive) but have such awful panic attacks while doing them that I just give up or become exhausted. I don't fully understand how desensitization works. I have had panic attacks for 20 years, shouldn't I be desensitized to them by now? I'm at the worst I have ever been with my experience with panic. At least I could get to the doctor before. I just don't know what to do. I can't get to the doctor and I couldn't even get myself admitted to a hospital! Someone give me some hope, please. -- ========== Please DELETE this text block when replying! ========== Contact the moderators at: asapm-board(a)stump.algebra.com The charter is available at: http://readystump.algebra.com/~asapm ========= This notice is added to each approved article ==========
From: Monarchdancer on 18 Apr 2006 19:49 On Tue, 18 Apr 2006 17:11:06 -0500, "lepus29(a)gmail.com" <lepus29(a)gmail.com> wrote: ::Does anyone else have breathlessness throughout the day with panic ::attacks and GAD? Hi, Welcome to ASAPM! Shortness of breath is a common symptom of anxiety. It sounds like your breathlessness is anxiety related but only a doctor can tell you that for sure. It couldn`t hurt to have a thorough exam from your doctor. You want to rule out physical disorders as being the cause of your symptoms. ::I have another question. Has anyone ever been severely agoraphobic and ::if so how did you break out of the pattern? I`ve gone through a few periods of severe agoraphobia where I was pretty much housebound. A few things helped........meds like paxil, cognitive behavioral therapy and finding a local support group with people just like me. :: I feel trapped. I am on ::some meds but I cannot get to my doctor or therapist for more help. ::They won't help me unless I come to them. What meds are you on, how long, and what dose? What kind of therapy and for how long? The more we know, the better we will be able to help you. Is there anyone that would be willing to accompany you to the doctor? Some options......find a doctor and therapist that is closer to your home, make your appt the first of the day so you are in and out in a fairly short time. I do that often with doctor appts and it helps a lot. If the waiting room is hard for you, explain that to the receptionist/nurse/doctor and ask if they could put you somewhere else to wait. Try to find a therapist that is willing to make housecalls. A friend of mine who was severely agoraphobic found a therapist that made house calls. ::I am trying to desensitize ::myself and have made some strides. I manage to walk to the end of the ::block now when it used to be that I could barely leave my bedroom. It ::just seems like wherever I go I have a panic attack. I feel trapped and ::am starting to get very depressed. I know I am in terrible physical ::shape and have become deconditioned when I used to be an endurance ::cyclist. I try to do larger things to desensitize myself (go to the ::drugstrore, go for a drive) but have such awful panic attacks while ::doing them that I just give up or become exhausted. I don't fully ::understand how desensitization works. I have had panic attacks for 20 ::years, shouldn't I be desensitized to them by now? Unless you are taught the proper way to desensitize yourself, you are probably reinforcing your panic instead of desensitizing yourself to it. I strongly recommend that you find a therapist that practices cognitive behavioral therapy. CBT will teach you how to change and challenge your negative thinking. It will also give you tools in which to manage and control your panic and agoraphobia more effectively. Paxil helped me a lot......CBT helped me even more to get out of my house and to start living again. :: I'm at the worst I ::have ever been with my experience with panic. At least I could get to ::the doctor before. I just don't know what to do. I can't get to the ::doctor and I couldn't even get myself admitted to a hospital! I hate saying this........but you have to push yourself and go to the doctor. During my last severe setback, my husband had to drive me 40 minutes to my therapy appts. It was hell.....but it was worth it. ::Someone give me some hope, please. There are many people here that have been where you are right now. I`m one of them. I`ve gone from being housebound to being able to a lot with very little anxiety. I still have my battles but life is so much better now. Sometimes I almost feel normal :) Never give up and never lose hope. It really can get better. Some information for you.......... Here are some informative links on cognitive behavioral therapy... http://panicdisorder.about.com/cs/therapycbt/ http://www.cognitivetherapy.com/ http://panicdisorder.about.com/cs/therapycbt/a/cbtintro.htm Here is a very informative site on anxiety and panic disorder. http://panicdisorder.about.com/ On agoraphobia http://panicdisorder.about.com/od/agoraphobia/ http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000931.htm Here you will find all sorts of self-help techniques like deep breathing and muscle relaxation exercises that can help decrease your anxiety and panic. http://panicdisorder.about.com/od/selfhelp/ You might want to check out the following books from your library: "A Guide to Rational Living", by Albert Ellis, Ph.D "Feeling Good, The New Mood Therapy", by David D. Burns, M.D. "How to Control Your Anxiety, Before it Controls You", by Albert , Ph.D I highly recommend this book! Chapters 7 and 8 deal with desensitization. "The Anxiety & Phobia Workbook", by Edmund J., Ph.D. Bourne I think you would benefit greatly by joining a local support group. Here is information on how to find one. http://www.adaa.org/Public/index.cfm http://www.mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/databases/ ~The NIMH Referral List can help you find a support group in your area. If there are no groups near you, you may want to form your own. Some of the sources listed can aid you in doing this. NIMH also has a Resource List that provides some self-help information about panic disorder, including books, articles, and videotapes. (Call 1-800-64-PANIC) ~American Self-Help Group Clearinghouse http://mentalhelp.net/selfhelp/ or www.selfhelpgroups.org There they provide a keyword-searchable database of over 1,100 national and online "self-help" support groups for most any specific illness, disability, addiction, bereavement situation, parenting, caregiver concern, abuse, or other stressful life situation; suggestions on starting both community and online mutual help groups, research studies; and a registry for those trying to start new national or international support networks that don't yet exist in the world. ~They also have a listing of local non-profit self-help group clearinghouses worldwide at the same site, which can provide information on local anxiety support groups: http://www.mentalhelp.net/selfhelp/selfhelp.php?id=859 Some more links for misc information......... http://groups.google.com/group/alt.support.anxiety-panic.moderated/browse_frm/thread/35761d947db03a74/976253b8fef0c6b7?hl=en#976253b8fef0c6b7 http://groups.google.com/group/alt.support.anxiety-panic.moderated/browse_frm/thread/8691e85a0fd7aadf/ff158516ea900db1?hl=en#ff158516ea900db1 http://groups.google.com/group/alt.support.anxiety-panic.moderated/browse_frm/thread/f6f796e8ae59860c/ca0bf88baa205102?hl=en#ca0bf88baa205102 Please don`t hesitate to use this group for support and advice. We will do our very best to help you through this rough time. Jackie ~*~I`m an angel! Honest :) The horns are just there to keep my halo up straight~*~ -- ========== Please DELETE this text block when replying! ========== Contact the moderators at: asapm-board(a)stump.algebra.com The charter is available at: http://readystump.algebra.com/~asapm ========= This notice is added to each approved article ==========
From: lepus29@gmail.com on 18 Apr 2006 22:59 Wow! That's a lot of information! Thank you! I'll answer your questions first. ::What meds are you on, how long, and what dose? What kind of therapy and for how long?:: I am on Klonopin 1mg 3 times a day. I've been on this dose for 9 months. Previously I was on 1mg twice a day. Then my panic increased and my psychiatrist increased my dosage. I've been on almost every medication except the MAOIs. I don't react well to SSRIs or SNRIs. I had the best luck with Tofranil. This recent surge of anxiety was brought on by a specific incident I believe. I woke up one night last October with my heart racing very quickly, feeling out of breath and paralyzed. I called 911. At the hospital they said I had hypothyroidism and had also experienced a panic attack. They gave me some medicine and told me to see my doctor which I did. Then two weeks later I went to my parent's vacation home. I woke up with my heart racing again. I went to the ER again. My heart rate was in the 140s-160s. Again, they said it was anxiety. Ever since these incidents I have been petrified of my heart racing or having another attack. I can't exercise or do anything really that increases my heart rate. My heart just seems to take off a lot more easily now but everyone says it just anxiety. But I've had anxiety since I was quite young and I don't remember my heart ever beating this rapidly. I've been in a downward spiral since October. My world has become smaller and smaller and my actions more and more restricted. I just have a lot of trouble believing there is nothing wrong with me other than anxiety. I'm just so tired physically and mentally. For therapy I've done CBT and DBT (Dialectical Behavioral Therapy). It's been on and off for over 20 years. No one has been able to get through to me. With my therapy right now I am afraid I am a bit stuck. I am getting services through the county. I could maybe get a private therapist and psychiatrist but to be honest there are not very many good ones in this area. I seem to have exhausted my resources in that department. I do have someone who will accompany me to appointments but frankly it never helps alleviate any of the anxiety. I don't have a "safe person" so to speak. It's my understanding that most people with anxiety have someone with whom they feel safer out in public. I do not have anyone with whom I feel safe. Right now my therapist won't come to the house because she thinks I have to get there on my own to overcome this. I think I need more skills. We are at an impasse. I really don't know who else there is to go to for therapy around here. Honestly, there aren't many therapists here. My therapist is a CBT and DBT therapist. I am not sure how good she is with panic disorders though. Frankly, I have never found one who is that great with panic disorders. My psychiatrist is affiliated with my therapist and they both agree that they will not see me or prescribe anything until I get there. Problem is their office is 30 minutes away, downtown, tons of people around, etc...basically the building has every trigger I have so going there is like walking into the bowels of Hell for me. They just don't seem to understand how bad I feel. They just aren't willing to meet me halfway on anything! I don't feel like I have the tools to get there either. I have tried to explain my situation to my regular doctor and I get nowhere. They don't understand. They just say to get there and will make no concessions. I do meditate. I just never can seem to do it when I start to panic. I think I am going to have to learn to desensitize myself alone. I have some of the books you've discussed. Time to really start studying them I guess. I just feel trapped because I have tried to get myself help even to the point of trying to get myself admitted to the hospital and I couldn't even get them to do that! Then I don't feel like I am really being given the tools to be able to make these efforts to get to the doctor's office. I think I am just being told to do it and deal with it. I just don't know what to do. I'm quite sure I've exhausted my options here in terms of therapists and psychiatrists due to insurance reasons, etc. This is the worst it has ever been and I am scared to death. Thank you for all the resources. I will check them out. Hopefully something will be able to help me. I know I have to do it but I wish I had some better tools. When I start panicking I really don't know what to do even after all these years! It's ridiculous. I thought this newest therapist was going to take me places and talk me through panic attacks but it hasn't happened and now that I am at my worst where is she? But I don't know who else to turn to... -- ========== Please DELETE this text block when replying! ========== Contact the moderators at: asapm-board(a)stump.algebra.com The charter is available at: http://readystump.algebra.com/~asapm ========= This notice is added to each approved article ==========
From: JimD on 19 Apr 2006 00:24 lepus29(a)gmail.com wrote: > Wow! That's a lot of information! Thank you! <snip> > I am on Klonopin 1mg 3 times a day. I've been on this dose for 9 > months. Previously I was on 1mg twice a day. Then my panic increased > and my psychiatrist increased my dosage. I've been on almost every > medication except the MAOIs. I don't react well to SSRIs or SNRIs. I > had the best luck with Tofranil. Have you asked if you can increase the klonopin? Maybe try xanax which is faster acting? Are you still taking the tofranil? > This recent surge of anxiety was brought on by a specific incident I > believe. I woke up one night last October with my heart racing very > quickly, feeling out of breath and paralyzed. I called 911. At the > hospital they said I had hypothyroidism and had also experienced a > panic attack. They gave me some medicine and told me to see my doctor > which I did. Then two weeks later I went to my parent's vacation home. > I woke up with my heart racing again. I went to the ER again. My heart > rate was in the 140s-160s. Again, they said it was anxiety. Ever since > these incidents I have been petrified of my heart racing or having > another attack. I can't exercise or do anything really that increases > my heart rate. My heart just seems to take off a lot more easily now > but everyone says it just anxiety. But I've had anxiety since I was > quite young and I don't remember my heart ever beating this rapidly. Have you asked your doctor about a beta blocker? A beta blocker like atenolol will stop that rapid heart beat in its tracks. I used to have high blood pressure and atenolol brought it right down, no rapid beating. > I've been in a downward spiral since October. My world has become > smaller and smaller and my actions more and more restricted. I just > have a lot of trouble believing there is nothing wrong with me other > than anxiety. I'm just so tired physically and mentally. I can relate. I was doing pretty well for about 3 years and then this past December had a relapse of symptoms. I have been fighting to get better since then, though I am still dealing with anxiety, panic, depression and some obsessive thoughts that cause anxiety. > I do have someone who will accompany me to appointments but frankly it > never helps alleviate any of the anxiety. I don't have a "safe person" > so to speak. It's my understanding that most people with anxiety have > someone with whom they feel safer out in public. I do not have anyone > with whom I feel safe. Neither do I. I want to be alone when I have panic since having anyone around makes me more panicky. > My psychiatrist is affiliated with my therapist and they both agree > that they will not see me or prescribe anything until I get there. > Problem is their office is 30 minutes away, downtown, tons of people > around, etc...basically the building has every trigger I have so going > there is like walking into the bowels of Hell for me. They just don't > seem to understand how bad I feel. They just aren't willing to meet me > halfway on anything! I don't feel like I have the tools to get there > either. Are there any small practices near where you live? I found my pdoc right down the road because I didn't want to have to drive 45mins into Orlando to see a pdoc. The only negative to this is that he doesn't accept my insurance so I pay out of pocket and have to submit bills to get reimbursed. > This is the worst it has ever been and I am scared to death. I can totally understand. Come to the group often and let out your worries, anger, etc. It helps to just let it out : ) > Thank you for all the resources. Jackie is great with all those resources. > ... I am at my worst where is she? Again, I can relate. My primary care doctor basically told me she didn't want to "deal" with me when everything came crashing down this past December. I have not been back to see here since and never will. My prayers and best wishes to you, Jim -- ========== Please DELETE this text block when replying! ========== Contact the moderators at: asapm-board(a)stump.algebra.com The charter is available at: http://readystump.algebra.com/~asapm ========= This notice is added to each approved article ==========
From: margrove2 on 19 Apr 2006 00:44
On Tue, 18 Apr 2006 17:11:06 -0500, "lepus29(a)gmail.com" <lepus29(a)gmail.com> wrote: >Does anyone else have breathlessness throughout the day with panic >attacks and GAD? I have days where I just cannot seem to catch my >breath. It is very disconcerting. I'm very agoraphobic right now and I >don't know if I should chalk this symptom up to anxiety or if I need to >be seen by a doctor. I don't know how I would make it to a doctor's >office right now. I was seen in the ER in February for a panic attack >and they took chest x-rays, did an EKG, etc. Everything was fine. > >It feels like there is a tight band around my chest or that someone is >constricting it. I remember having a symptom like this one many years >ago and having a blood oxygen level taken and it was normal. > >Anyone else? > >I have another question. Has anyone ever been severely agoraphobic and >if so how did you break out of the pattern? I feel trapped. I am on >some meds but I cannot get to my doctor or therapist for more help. >They won't help me unless I come to them. I am trying to desensitize >myself and have made some strides. I manage to walk to the end of the >block now when it used to be that I could barely leave my bedroom. It >just seems like wherever I go I have a panic attack. I feel trapped and >am starting to get very depressed. I know I am in terrible physical >shape and have become deconditioned when I used to be an endurance >cyclist. I try to do larger things to desensitize myself (go to the >drugstrore, go for a drive) but have such awful panic attacks while >doing them that I just give up or become exhausted. I don't fully >understand how desensitization works. I have had panic attacks for 20 >years, shouldn't I be desensitized to them by now? I'm at the worst I >have ever been with my experience with panic. At least I could get to >the doctor before. I just don't know what to do. I can't get to the >doctor and I couldn't even get myself admitted to a hospital! > >Someone give me some hope, please. your doctor is commiting "abandonment" it is a litiginous event-you can sue them for it. If you cannot get to their practice it is clearly evident that you need to try meds until you find one that helps get you there and then with therapy like you thought your therapist was going to do-called in vivo or experiential stuff, you can get better. If imipramine helped why are you not on it-if it helped desipramine or other tca meds may help as well-beta blockers can reduce heart rate and an adequate level of a benzo can offset panic attacks and lower levels of generalized anxiety-cbt takes alot of work and lots of time and a good doc who knows how to use it-most don't. Bottom line--it is time to find another set of doctors, but you can still get these ones to script some meds for you and see if that helps enough to get you to another doc or find one that can come to you if needed-some still do this-you need to find them though -- ========== Please DELETE this text block when replying! ========== Contact the moderators at: asapm-board(a)stump.algebra.com The charter is available at: http://readystump.algebra.com/~asapm ========= This notice is added to each approved article ========== |