These Panic Attacks Are Driving Me Crazy

[Marla]

Hello you all...

This is my second post. First of all, thank you for the kind replies to my intro thread. I was happy to see that there is indeed support here...

I am not ready to write everything that happened to me just yet, but what I can say is that the trauma was so severe that I left the state and moved to another as I just couldn't stand it anymore... Aside from the PTSD, I also still have several broken ribs and catatonic depression where I feel like I am just non-existant.

I just got back from my therapist. She is very nice and even calls me sometimes just to see how I am doing. Though I still struggle telling her everything...

I take Diazepam for my anxiety. but lately, it's been getting worse. I have flashbacks everyday... don't want to fall asleep at night because of nightmares... and the panic attacks are never-ending... I have at least two attacks a day. Had three yesterday. My entire body goes into paralysis and I feel like I am dying... in those moments, I wish I was dying...

The valium helps a little... makes me feel a bit calmer... my therapist told me to count things when I go through those moments... no problem there since I also have severe OCD thats really gotten worse where I count everything... every step I take , every breath I take... every leaf I see.. every snow flake...

how do you guys deal with these panic attacks?? Do you take anything special for that or does EMDR or whatever its called help you ??

Sorry i made this post so long. My mind is all over the place right now , so I apologize!!!


Thanks for the support. I don't know any of you, but hopefully I can make some friends here.


Marla

 

[Deleted member 541]

@Marla Welcome to the forum.... Yes, it's a community full of supportive people. Anxiety and panic attacks are, (I think) the worst symptoms of PTSD. I hate them. I hate anxiety. The thing with anxiety and panic attacks.... You have to really figure out what's causing them, and then face whatever that it. I know that sounds crazy, but avoid the cause doesn't help. If you can't get a grip on the anxiety then it just gets worse.

Meds work, but the only cover up, help to ease, or whatever you want to call it, but they don't stop the anxiety.

Example..... if I have to know drive anywhere that I'm not familiar with, I ALWAYS get anxiety. So, I can either cancel the trip, or I can face it. I choose to face it and do the trip. Yeah, it's uncomfortable, but it does ease up, and the anxiety won't kill me. By doing this, my anxiety has gotten better over time. It doesn't last as long and it's not as debilitating as before. I used to have severe anxiety yrs ago, but working on my trauma and facing the shit that caused it, has made things so much easier. It's hard, it makes you sick, but it does get better...

 

[Justmehere]

I take Diazepam for my Anxiety. but lately, it's been getting worse. I have flashbacks everyday... don't want to fall asleep at night because of nightmares... and the panic attacks are never-ending... I have at least two attacks a day. Had three yesterday. My entire body goes into paralysis and I feel like I am dying... in those moments, I wish I was dying...

Most benzos will wear off over time for anxiety with PTSD, and sometimes they will even cause rebound anxiety. I suggest talking to your prescribing doctor about something like Vistaril or Propanolol or another medication suitable for on-going relief.

The valium helps a little... makes me feel a bit calmer... my therapist told me to count things when I go through those moments... no problem there since I also have severe OCD thats really gotten worse where I count everything... every step I take , every breath I take... every leaf I see.. every snow flake...

Is your therapist trained aware you have OCD and trained in CBT? A therapist who knows about OCD and knows how to treat it would know that engaging in the compulsive behavior is bound to make things worse. That's how OCD works. The more one does the compulsive behavior (like counting things) the worse someone with OCD will feel, but the compulsion is so strong, they do it even more, and they feel worse, which pulls them to do it more... and around and around the vicious cycle of OCD goes.

It makes a ton of sense your therapist's advice is unintentionally backfiring and the panic attacks are increasing instead of getting better if she is suggesting you engage in the compulsive activity. (I used to have an OCD diagnosis.)

For someone with OCD (which I used to have) a good solid CBT therapist is KEY, and trauma focused CBT is even better when someone also has PTSD.

For now, grounding skills are very important. With OCD, it's very important to start to replace the compulsive behavior with a new skill to manage the anxiety. Here is a pretty good thread about grounding skills: Grounding Techniques : Group Effort Article You can also use the search bar above to find a lot of posts and articles about grounding skills. (Here is a shortcut: Search Results for Query: grounding | My PTSD Forum)

One of my favorite ways to stop a panic attack is something I learned in a inpatient PTSD program: holding ice. It gently brings the body out of the flashbacks about the past into this present moment now, and it automatically calms down a bit. Other safe strong sensations (like smelling essential oils) can do the same thing. Mindfulness techniques can also help connect to this moment now and thus calm PTSD related anxiety. DBT is a great therapy that teaches a lot of mindfulness skills, and there is a lot of free self help info online about mindfulness too.

The key to all these skills is to practice them a lot. Several times a day, when symptomatic, and not symptomatic. They won't work super well at first, but over time, they will work better and better.

For long term relief, therapy top resolve the trauma (EMDR or other forms of trauma therapy) may help, but the first phase of such work is symptom stabilization and this usually means getting really good at these skills and others.

 

[Hcs]

I am so sorry, Marla. Anxiety is AWFUL. I often say that I would sell a body part to get rid of it.

I am currently doing EMDR. For the single incidents that are more recent, it was basically like a cure. What I'm running into is layers of old, compartmentalized stuff, so that's been really difficult to process. It's helping, but it's been really hard lately to hold all of these new emotions. A good EMDR therapist would be able to talk to you to see if you're ready.

Regular mindfulness has helped me overall in addition to understanding why I react certain ways that I do. The Body Keeps the Score is one of my favorite books. When I'm in full-blown panic/anxiety....well, I haven't figured that out yet.

For OCD and anxiety, there's also something called DBT (Dialectical Behavior Therapy) and RODBT (Radically Open Dialectical Behavior Therapy) that are supposed to be very helpful.

Good luck :) I believe that it can only get better <3

 

[Leighlee87]

Omg, this sounds a lot like me in the beginning. Mentally/emotionally, and I moved states.

#1 Focus will be getting you stable. Honestly, easiest, fastest, safest way, meds. You probably need daily anxiety and antidepressants, something that keeps you even keel 24/7. Are you seeing a psychiatrist? Go ahead and talk openly about where you are at and the fact that the feelings are constant. Finding the right medications in the right dosages takes time, but once in place it will bring with it a lot of relief.

#2 Coping skills. You have to tell her about the OCD and counting thing, it's important cause even though it feels good in the moment, it actually feeds into the anxiety. Ever notice how awful it feels not to act on the impulse? The more you feed it, the stronger it gets. With OCD behaviors, anxiety feeds anxiety.

#3 Emdr will be a lifesaver, but you aren't at that point yet. Stability and a toolbox full of coping skills first.

#4 The best advice I have for anxiety is to stop what you are doing and go somewhere quiet. I used to try to fight through it and continue doing whatever it was that had to be done. That was until my therapist told me to just stop. Dont. Find somewhere quiet and calm until you feel yourself a bit more centered.

Skills.

Breathing helps a lot. Breathe in through your nose for 4 counts, hold it for 4 counts, and release it through your mouth very, very slowly. Repeat as many times as needed.

Find something soothing. As silly as it sounds, those adult coloring books are a great way to distract and calm your mind. It kinda puts you in a neutral place.

Yoga helps if I'm feeling anxious but not in a panic attack.

There is an app called myptsd that is worth its weight in gold. It's created by the VA and a ptsd organization. You put in what it is you are struggling with (staying present/ anxiety/ depression/ anger/ etc). It has you rate it, and then it provides you with a multitude of coping skills. It leads you through meditation exercises, visualization tools, sounds/music, breathing exercises, exersizes that help you release tensign throughout your body. Etc.
Check it out, there might be others out there lime it too. You can probably find these same exercises on YouTube.