My advice :

Take a mile long run or walk every morning. Do 20-50 pushups every morning. Stay away from artificial sweeteners. Switch from drinking soft drinks/beer to drinking cold sparkling/regular water. Only eat when you're 'hungry' (vegetables, fruit, healthy cereals, limit sugar intake.) Go to bed earlier, wake up earlier. Do a small stretching routine when you feel anxious. Get plenty of fiber (Metamucil). Get plenty of protein (Protein shake). Take a daily multi-vitamin, omega-3, COQ10. Think internally positive; write your music; get rid of things that you don't ever use. Find time to practice your instrument(s) at least 15-30 min /day. Keep things f***ing simple in your life

 

Just to follow up from my previous reply, you basically need to get to a point where you're no longer afraid of getting a panic attack and then as a result of that the panic attacks will stop happening.
In order to do this you need to practice accepting (letting go and going towards) the anxious feelings and thoughts instead of fighting them and trying to get rid of them (which is what your gut instinct telling you to do and what keeps you on the vicious cycle of anxiety).
When you are no longer afraid of panic attacks THEY WILL STOP HAPPENING, since it is your FEAR of them that keeps them going.

For more info on how the Acceptance method works, you can look up "Acceptance method" by Dr Claire Weekes or go to https://cbt4panic.org/ for a completely free treatment plan based on the acceptance method.
The site mentions CBT which is the leading treatment for anxiety disorders, but the acceptance method is much more than CBT which in my opinion isn't enough in many cases if you want to fully overcome anxiety and panic disorder.

 

Last edited: Dec 17, 2022

For me, microdosing Delta 8 THC (hemp based) has been miraculous. Life changing. It's legal more places now, but not enough.

 

Ativan (lorazepam). Nothing like some nice juicy benzodiazepines for a little anxiety.

 

Pop a xanax from time to time, great to sleep on.

 

Hola,
Sufro de ansiedad generalizada, hasta el momento me va bien tomando paroxetina 20mg.
Nadar, meditar, tener un perro hermoso, comer sano me ha ayudado mucho.
Lamentablemente no podemos evitar el estrés o los malos momentos, pero creo que es bueno saber que aún se puede vivir bien con esta enfermedad.

Hello,
I suffer from generalized anxiety, so far I am doing well taking paroxetine 20mg.
Swimming, meditating, having a beautiful dog, eating healthy has helped me a lot.
Unfortunately we can't avoid stress or bad times, but I think it's good to know that you can still live well with this disease.

 

Last edited by a moderator: Dec 18, 2022

The first thing you need to do is work out if the cause is mental or physical, because treatment for the wrong reason will be pointless and could also be counter productive.

As for high blood pressure, (not sure what 21/10 means) mine was at it's worst 196/111. I cut out fried, fatty, salty and sweet foods. Instead replaced them with mostly dry cooked pasta, vegetables, fruit, fish, mixed nuts, chicken etc and TONS of fresh garlic. Now my BP is around 120/ 66.
I exercise far more on a daily basis too.

ALSO and this always gets laughs, understandably because it looks stupid but I took up yoga. Anxiety and indeed asthma attacks are virtually non existent for me now as well.

However, before you do ANYTHING, go and get medical advice for your blood pressure AND anxiety. Tell them what you plan to do IF you choose to do the above so you can be monitored. Oh and nearly forgot.. I only drink water now (and a mug of tea every morning)

I realise what I mentioned above is a complete overhaul and may not be needed to achieve what you wish, but I wanted to stay away from pills so that's why i did it, but I don't regret any of it.

Bottom line Ryck, I wish you well whatever route you choose to take. Stay safe, and everyone else too!!!

 

Guys, I can't thank you enough for all your advice. You are wonderful people, I mean that from the bottom of my heart. And you are right in everything you say

Since the pandemic started, I hardly go out of my house, I have become very sedentary. And I always say I'm going to go for a run, but I never do it. I have some small weights at home of 2kg, but when I do many series my heart goes up to 160 beats per minute, and I make the mistake of measuring my heart rate and I chase me more and that's when it goes faster and I get scared. So from now on, I will stop measuring my heart rate.
I will listen to them, because I don't want to have that horrible feeling anymore. I feel like I'm leaving my body, I don't feel my hands, my arms, I pinch myself and I don't feel myself, in short. From now on I will start walking and walking and then jogging.

I will read the articles you have shared with me, I find them interesting.

It is true what they have said that facing fear, overcomes it. The thing is that I think that 220 beats per minute can make my heart stop and that's what scares me. I'm not scared of shortness of breath, pressure in my chest, not feeling my body, etc. I am scared that my heartbeat will go so fast, if I knew that nothing could happen to me even if I have 220 beats, then my fear would go away (I think).

Do you know why I started to stop taking anxiolytics? I started taking them more than 10 years ago. But I started to have strange behaviors, like strange reactions that my environment didn't know me, chasing me who said something bad about me, depression, self-boycott (why would I do that, if it doesn't make sense). And other things. Then I said to myself, I want to be me again. And I started to leave them. Well, maybe I did it too fast.

Eating healthy, I think I eat healthy. I don't eat meat almost, I eat meat every 6 months because I want to give it up completely. But I do eat fried things lately. Also sometimes I eat and I go to bed right away or I eat lying down, I'm doing everything wrong, I know.

But I will do this thing that you have been telling me, I will start doing long walks, and push ups.

A while ago when I was 25 years old. I was making fruit salads to sell to the stores in town. I worked 14 hours a day. And I swear, I was so, so tired, that the times that "the possible attack came up" it didn't do anything to me, it's like, there was no anxiety there for me to grab on to.

Well, guys. Thank you and thank you for taking the time. I will start putting all your advice into practice.

 

Yes. Throw on an old t-shirt and shorts and some shades, walk out of your front door, and start by walking 5 min. one way and 5 min. back home. Then try 5-10 pushups - everyday. Your body will get used to it. Then, after 2 weeks, try walking 5 min one way, and 4 min back, and JOG the remaining 1 min back. I jog 2 miles a day, but I always warm up by walking 5-10 minutes first.

Confer with your doctor about weening off medication (if medically possible for your situation). @Ryck has some really good advice too. After the suggested lifestyle changes are implemented, you'll be surprised how your body asks you for healthier food, healthier lifestyle choices, etc. You just need to introduce these healthy alternatives to your body for a while. Ever crave cold water or vegetables or protein? It's very strange, but feels good. For me, everything music is the 90% driving factor. You can do it; baby steps.

 

Sorry to hear that, my simpathy, i struggled with anxiety for years, luckily i managed to keep it under control with some yoiga and breathing techniques. I ve been through a lot in life so probaly the main reason why i didn t have panick attack as well was because the rational part of my brain convinced the right emisphere that i couldn t afford a problem like that.THis said, I think that any advice you could get here wouldnt be more that shallow banter,and since you ve been on medication, the correct path to follow is keeping on relying on the help of some expert. Improvisation is only good when it s applied to some fileds, and medicine is not one of them

 

https://www.amazon.com/Healing-Power-Illness-Understanding-Symptoms/dp/159181278X

Panic attack - is an idea... where, when or who did you get this idea from?

Symptoms have meanings. They are not random events, but a manifestation of an idea, an information. It is a sign! It is something invisible (panic, anxiety, fear,...) made visible (heartbeat, discomfort, shortness of breath, trembling, dizziness...). You should then interpret what your symptoms are trying to tell you to be able to change the idea behind it.

When, for example, you are sad, you cry. It is something immaterial (sadness), turning into something material (tears). People then will interpret tears as a sign of sadness. The cure is not a handkerchief (medicine). Medicine cannot change, nor cure an idea.

The body is never ill. It is just a place where ideas (information) are expressed into matter.
( I can already imagine some eyebrows raising...)

Medicine and exercises can be helpful, but if you don't understand idea or information behind the symptoms, there won't be a path to cure (symptom masking).

I read this book 25 years ago and it changed the way I approach Illness. Practically, I have consumed a box of painkillers (toothache) since then...

The book is written originally in German (Krankheit als Weg). It is based in science and was written by a psychologist and a doctor. It is not a difficult book to read but, the translation is not always good. I have bought some books and lent it to friends. Some of them liked so much they have never returned...

We associate the heart with love (emoji) but also, feelings, broken heart, heart of stone... Breath with life...
Love yourself!

Good luck, my friend

 

Last edited: Dec 17, 2022

Hey @Ryck , Sorry to hear about your troubles, but can u remember what incident triggered you to get anxious. I'm no expert but like some have mentioned here they have had similar problems, may be someone can point you to right direction.
Btw you said

i dont think its systolic/diastolic reading!

 

Analyze your life style.
Caffeine is consumed worldwide, but many have no idea it can totally wreck your life. Even quitting can take up to a year for all the symptoms to disappear, check out forums on horrible stories about how caffeine can fuck you up.
There there is alcohol, a major no go if you have serious anxiety or depression.

 

I'm a clinical psychologist and I also have had my fair share of experience with panic attacks myself. What you experienced was most likely caused by the adaption process which your brain has to go through after all those years of clonagin. It's a drug of they benzodiazepine type and thus it's highly addictive. Tapering down the last bit of the dose is actually the hardest step and thus your body and brain will come up with all kinds of wild stuff. Always remember that these are merely reactions of your brain to the new neurochemical situation. There is no objective threat.
What can help you in the withdrawl process is - believe it or not - a daily dose of valerian root, 1500 mg in the evening and Omega 3 fatty acid, both of which have been proven to be effective in reducing stress and anxiety and helping the organism to find balance without the side-effects of psychiatric drugs. I regularly take both of those. Also, magnesium is good too. In addition to this, regular physical exercise and healthy personal relationships (if available) and try to cut down sugar as much as possible. When you feel that a panic attack might kick in, a good first aid measure can be to do something very intense that ideally absorbs your attention completely such as an intense physical exercise etc. - also look into the skills that Marsha Linehan mentioned in her DBT (they are not only helpful for BPD people, but can help against all kinds of emotionally overwhelming situations).

 

Last edited: Dec 17, 2022

I have some questions for you. What is pain?
What is cure? When can a patient can be considered cured?

Medicine cannot change, nor cure an idea.
The body is never ill. It is just a place where ideas (information) are expressed into matter.
What do you think about this?

Say, when a mother is expecting and she, for some reason, is feeling insecure, lost, alone, fearful or neglected, can this effect the child?

 

Last edited: Dec 17, 2022

This would be the beginning of an epic off-topic thread-hijacking because we would need to discuss the nature of humans and existence in itself from two very different philosophical standpoints. I like your perspective a lot more than you might assume, though; it's beautiful and empowering and I thought in a similar way in a different time of my life. I just couldn't find it to be true in my life experience and from what I know about human nature, but the mindset that it gives you when you believe in it can help you go through a lot of things.

 

Last edited: Dec 17, 2022

i would appreciate if we left scientology nonsense out of important subjects, thanks

 

I feel you brother... I had some panic attacks in my life as well and they were so fucking surrealistic it's almost impossible to explain how it feels
all I've learned is to keep repeating to myself "everything will be alright" and drink some water for the time it lasts... I don't have good advices, sorry
...but everything will be alright

 

I've spent (wasted) half of my life fearing a recurrence of panic attacks. I used to think I was dying and the fear of dying which brings about the panic is worse than actually dying because you'll live through a panic attack only to face death again when you least expect it. I'm 65 now and psychologists, psychiatrists, naturopaths, herbalists, doctors and their prescription pads haven't helped in the last 30 years.
In the 90's I spent 8 years doctor shopping Xanax. I went cold turkey after a vague suicide attempt with a bottle of vodka and two bottles of Xanax. I was sleepy but house mates arrived home and made me snort cocaine until I was ready to go out clubbing. Thanks. (I think)....
I have no advice with respect to lifestyle. I have been a gym junkie, a couch potato, I've held down good jobs, I've been unemployed (usually fired for my erratic behaviour), I've been vegan, I've eaten raw meat (Japanese style....not cannibalism)..... I've tried Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, I've kept a diary of possible triggers, my heart races, my blood pressure can be insanely low or high, my moods swing wildly, I sit making music with an unblinking resolve for months, then I lose interest and hate myself for weeks hoping for either a meteor to land on me or a new melody to burst forth in my head and have me racing into the studio......a man with purpose!
I've abandoned anti depressants and now take the odd valium (infrequent but usually 6 at a time) and twice daily pregabalin, which has been the best new treatment I've ever had.
I still get panic attacks when I'm overwhelmed. I cry a lot. More than a man in his 60's should.
I'm sorry I have no advice for you. But I really hope you find a way of coping, because a life, or even half a life of living in fear is not the way I want to life and while I am aware that people live with far greater handicaps than panic attacks, it remains a hidden and often dismissed affliction that erodes quality of life for countless people across all walks of society.
Oh! I do have one technique that I was taught. Learn diaphragmatic breathing.

 

Thanks again for your responses and good vibes. Also your experiences are very useful for me to carry them out.

Someone asked here, how did this start.
I will try to be as brief as possible (although it is very long, and very crazy).

When I was 13 years old, I got together with friends to smoke marijuana, I have smoked only three times. The third time, I got sick, I felt that my soul was going to leave my body, I don't know how to explain it, it was a long time ago, but it was the worst thing that ever happened to me, I didn't feel my body, and my first impulse was to run, I wanted to escape from that feeling, so I went to my friend's mother's house to ask for help, in my mind everything was going very fast, thoughts, all messed up things, I felt like I was dying. They took me to the emergency room, and a doctor said, "Leave him there on the stretcher until he gets over his madness", and although I asked for help, they treated me as a drug addict and left me there, I say this because if they had given me some painkiller what I will tell you later, maybe it would not have happened. At some point I fell asleep or passed out, I don't remember. When I woke up, I didn't recognize the places, in something difficult to explain, I mean, I knew I was in that hospital, but it looked different, like when you enter a place for the first time, and when we went with my uncle to get my belongings to my friend's house, his house looked different, as if it was the first time I went there. This gave me a terrible panic and I was only 13 years old, I didn't know what the hell was happening to me. And my family didn't give me any importance and left me locked up without going out. So for many years every time I went out on the street I was scared.

So it took me years to get used to this new life and to face these episodes, only when I was 18 years old I started to overcome it little by little. But after I grew up, the very isolated episodes came back.
As it has already been said, it is true, sport always helps me a lot.
It was also said here that the body is wise and tries to say something, I believe it too, because it is as if my mind wants to get out of something and I don't know what it is. And in this the pills have not helped me.
It has also brought me many problems, for example in sexuality, the asiaolitics reduce your ability to "fuck" and that's bullshit, I think you will agree with me. You feel dumb, awkward, and it's not you. And that's why this last time I said, that's it, I want to leave them.
What happened yesterday, is that the other night I didn't sleep well, so last night I woke up half confused and then a fire came up and all this started, I swear guys that I thought I was dying, in fact I went out to the street, so that if I fell dry on the ground maybe someone would pick me up from the floor, but I was already delivered.
Something crazy also happened to me that I didn't believe.
I walked across the street and a lady was coming with a dog, and the dog stood on two legs and started barking at me, guys!!! I never get barked at by a dog! It was really crazy, besides, he stood on two legs while barking at me, I know it has nothing to do with the panic attack, but I'll tell you how it happened.

Well, I just went for a walk, with my dog, we went to the square and back, we must have walked for 30 minutes.
I came back and did ten push-ups. And now I'm drinking a lot of water, and eating very healthy.

I will also try the new things they have said, about valerian, and a book that they have followed me. I have read all the comments and suggestions, but then I will download them and save them to re-read each thing.

Seriously guys, I can't thank you enough for all your good vibes, you are amazing people. And it's not that I'm just saying that because I'm a little sensitive, I really do.