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Other The truth about Panic Disorder

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RachelBigby

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People think panic attacks escalate because the sufferer gets emotional. They think it's a state of emotional terror that manifests an ever-growing fight or flight response. Panic disorder doesn't work that way. During all of my attacks, I'm completely lucid, not scared, knowing full well it's irrational. The outbursts are purely biological with no reference to your state of mind. You can't stop them by distracting yourself or thinking positive thoughts. They don't go away when you "calm down". I often lay in bed during attacks, completely at peace, ready to die if it comes to that.

Also, they're not driven by adrenaline. They may look like adrenaline on the outside, but they're very different. You don't have a surge of energy. You don't want to let anything out. Your senses are not sharpened. You're not trying to survive; you're trying to die. You just want to lay down and die. When it's over, there's no release. You don't feel depleted. Things just return to how they were as if it never happened.

My nerves operate daily cranked up to 10. If the slightest thing bumps it to 11, my nerves have a breakdown. Anything can trigger it. If I get up too early in the morning, I'll get sick. If I stay up too late at night, I'll get sick. If I eat the wrong food or watch the wrong video or have too many tasks that day, I'll get sick. I can feel one coming an hour in advance. This has been the hardest thing to get doctors to understand. I don't cause my attacks. If you know someone suffering panic disorder, please understand, it isn't supportive to tell them to calm down. Just quietly sit with them and let them know you're there.
 
Interesting experience. What I have called an “anxiety attack” for years, is like panic, crying, feeling the need to escape asap, terror, etc, but I realized within the past year that it’s more like a flashback. Sometimes I have calm ones but they are more disassociative, like being afraid of my body, wishing I didn’t have one, feeling nothing at the same time as being hypersensitive, then when I do feel something sensory-wise I panic more because I am indeed a person in a body, etc. Another thing that happens for me is sensory overload. As the noise/sensory input continues, my “world” gets smaller and smaller and I get less aware of what’s going on around me. That can escalate but I try to intervene by going somewhere calmer and quieter, or putting in earplugs to avoid it getting worse. It’s interesting how it’s different for different people. What panic disorder do you have?
 
the precursor to a panic attack is a feeling like flop sweat, like things are happening that you would rather not have happen to your ability to present and maintain an even disposition for the world, unpleasant like the day you tried to fake a book report in third grade. Thats a sustainable place, been there more often than not for months at a time, no real assignable reason for it, it is just there. I call it driving with the check engine light on.
THEN, with warning, without, who cares, I am stuck on something that has to be done, right now, life or death, nothing else matters but making this better, go away, come to an end, get started, get noticed, slide by unseen, whatever, and it is the only thing that matters, no tomorrow, dont stop me or you will be the next part of the problem, look out.
Thats my panic attack, could be hours could be seconds, could be totally unnoticed by anyone, could be the center of everyone in a 100 yd. radius’ full attention. I dont care. then its over and i am best just left alone until I can focus on stuff that is less important than THE BIG ONE.
Can I get a witness?
 
People think panic attacks escalate because the sufferer gets emotional. They think it's a state of emotional terror that manifests an ever-growing fight or flight response. Panic disorder doesn't work that way. During all of my attacks, I'm completely lucid, not scared, knowing full well it's irrational. The outbursts are purely biological with no reference to your state of mind. You can't stop them by distracting yourself or thinking positive thoughts. They don't go away when you "calm down". I often lay in bed during attacks, completely at peace, ready to die if it comes to that.

Also, they're not driven by adrenaline. They may look like adrenaline on the outside, but they're very different. You don't have a surge of energy. You don't want to let anything out. Your senses are not sharpened. You're not trying to survive; you're trying to die. You just want to lay down and die. When it's over, there's no release. You don't feel depleted. Things just return to how they were as if it never happened.

My nerves operate daily cranked up to 10. If the slightest thing bumps it to 11, my nerves have a breakdown. Anything can trigger it. If I get up too early in the morning, I'll get sick. If I stay up too late at night, I'll get sick. If I eat the wrong food or watch the wrong video or have too many tasks that day, I'll get sick. I can feel one coming an hour in advance. This has been the hardest thing to get doctors to understand. I don't cause my attacks. If you know someone suffering panic disorder, please understand, it isn't supportive to tell them to calm down. Just quietly sit with them and let them know you're there.
I agree@ But I still think for myself I must maintain my mental state: by meditation: relaxation techniques: breathing exercises:many different modalities. Can I ask for verified information on your comments: Its been forever I have thought about causation: Although biological makes sense caz As U say:often I'm not upset or hper excited. But would like to see a reference or link please If U have one Need to share with my son who also suffers from panick attacks etc. Ty🙏
 
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From what I understand it's not "panic disorder" if it's clearly tied to an emotional trigger or experience. Like @enough described, panic disorder is a chronic persistent sense of unwellness in your nerves that makes no sense. You can't put your finger on why. Attacks occur with no emotional baggage. With or without warning. I remember one time we had pizza for dinner, and I was feeling really good enjoying myself, then I took one more bite of pizza, one bite too many, and kaboom. To this day I have no idea why that happened.

My nerves break down and lose their ability to process information. I alternate from hot to cold. I go into derealization. Every body system goes haywire. I'm dizzy, nauseous, faint, have trouble breathing, heart-rate sky high. My deepest vagus sends distress signals, and I sense impending death. If it's not too bad, I'll lay quietly in bed until my body gets control back. They can go for hours.
 
From what I understand it's not "panic disorder" if it's clearly tied to an emotional trigger or experience. Like @enough described, panic disorder is a chronic persistent sense of unwellness in your nerves that makes no sense. You can't put your finger on why. Attacks occur with no emotional baggage. With or without warning. I remember one time we had pizza for dinner, and I was feeling really good enjoying myself, then I took one more bite of pizza, one bite too many, and kaboom. To this day I have no idea why that happened.

My nerves break down and lose their ability to process information. I alternate from hot to cold. I go into derealization. Every body system goes haywire. I'm dizzy, nauseous, faint, have trouble breathing, heart-rate sky high. My deepest vagus sends distress signals, and I sense impending death. If it's not too bad, I'll lay quietly in bed until my body gets control back. They can go for hours.
The thing that’s tricky about that, is that just because you don’t recognize what triggered it doesn’t mean something didn’t trigger it. It took me years to piece together what kinds of situations trigger me and why. I’ve heard that same explanation, but idk, like you can also have something deeply repressed that you don’t recognize the triggers or the trauma. This is me theorizing, I’m obviously not you, so please don’t take this as invalidating your experience somehow. It’s always interesting dissecting stuff like this.
 
@Laceymae33 this article discusses how panic disorder symptoms originate differently from anxiety symptoms. Researchers tend to assume all outward signs of distress are anxiety, but some progress has been made to differentiate.


The thing that’s tricky about that, is that just because you don’t recognize what triggered it doesn’t mean something didn’t trigger it. It took me years to piece together what kinds of situations trigger me and why. I’ve heard that same explanation, but idk, like you can also have something deeply repressed that you don’t recognize the triggers or the trauma. This is me theorizing, I’m obviously not you, so please don’t take this as invalidating your experience somehow. It’s always interesting dissecting stuff like this.
Oh you're not offending me. I know suppressed trigger is the most intuitive explanation. My main goal with this thread was mostly to say I can't just calm my way out of it.
 
My main goal with this thread was mostly to say I can't just calm my way out of it.
Yep, yep.

And that right there is the difference between Panic Disorder panic attacks, and panic attacks from PTSD, or GAD, or OCD, or specific Phobias, or Autism, or Anorexia, etc.

Otherwise it wouldn’t need it’s own classification, but would exist as a symptom in a couple dozen different disorders.

So, since you’d experience panic attacks from 2 different disorders, each with different ways of handling them? It’s a far more complex thing.
 
@Laceymae33 this article discusses how panic disorder symptoms originate differently from anxiety symptoms. Researchers tend to assume all outward signs of distress are anxiety, but some progress has been made to differentiate.



Oh you're not offending me. I know suppressed trigger is the most intuitive explanation. My main goal with this thread was mostly to say I can't just calm my way out of it.
The calm your way out of it idea is honestly super frustrating no matter what kind of panic you’re dealing with xP

Hey but on a related note, have you checked for some kind of autoimmune disorder?
 
Yes I've exhausted the medical options. Those were the doctors' first guesses. Magnesium and ginger are part of my daily regimen; they help.
 
I have generalized anxiety disorder so there is an uneasiness most of the time. I think that it use to drive me to stay so organized and busy, like a driving force, until almost exhaustion. Likely, this has been most of my life.

I only had a panic attack once, when I was away from home and needed to be home to nurse my baby, milk was coming in and I was driving in wooded area and lost.

After more trauma, I have attacks. I dont know the triggers usually. I want to get to a safe place. I find that if I stay in my room and in my bed most of the time, I usually dont have them. Trouble is, I stay in my bed and isolate. Worse since COVID.
 
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