Are these panic attacks???

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-04-2003
Are these panic attacks???
5
Fri, 09-08-2006 - 11:32am

Hi Everyone. Thanks for taking the time out to read this.

Back in February, I had some strange things happen to me. Now, they are happening again, and with the same pattern as before. First off, I am 26 years old, and have never had these things happen to me before February and again now.

Back in February I was sitting at home watching a movie with my husband and all of a sudden I had these symptoms, and in this order:

-LOUD ringing noise in my ear
-inside of my ears got hot (wierd I know)
-heart started racing
-I tried to put my head down, but was very scared I was going to faint
-got up walked over to where my husband was sitting and told him I thought I was having a panic attack--and he said "Well don't panic" :)
-I got a little bit of a body buzzing??
-The world seemed like it just didn't really make sense to me I guess...not irrationally, like it was going to end...but I was second guessing things I guess.

That all was followed by 2 weeks of sudden dizzy spells, extreme fatigue, night sweats and wierd heart palpatations. I went to an Urgent Care 2 weeks after that "attack" and they ran a numerous amount of tests including and EKG, white blood cell count, all of that stuff. I guess the symptoms were better, but I just needed to go to ease my mind. Nothing came back irregular...no answers...they said it was probably anxiety. BUT I wasn't under any more or worse stress than I have been in the past.

NOW....7 months later. It happened again. Fortunatly, I was in a situation where I COULDN"T freak out. I was in the middle of telling a story to the neighborhood moms where I nanny for and all of a sudden.....Loud ringing noise, heart was racing, body went kind of numb, inside of ears got hot, I felt like the world just did a quick spin around me. WIERD!!! I just kept on with the story and pretended nothing happened. I wasn't in a situation to where I was nervous, or uncomfortable. I am a very confident person and hardly ever feel super nervous. My husband left to go work in New Orleans for the summer on May 18th, and just returned last week. So, if this all stress related, shouldn't it have happened while he was gone??? not when he got back?? It just doesn't make sense to me. Unfortunatly I don't have insurance, but have a good family doctor I could go see that wouldn't run any unnecessary tests. Panic attacks do run in my family, so that is why I am concerned. I just don't know if that is what this is. I had the worst night sweats last night...only lasting a few minutes...but this is starting to worry me a bit.

Any suggestions would be great...

THANKS....

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-11-2004
Fri, 09-08-2006 - 11:50am

Hello! Nice to see you;) Some of what you have experienced MAY be a panic attack. Unfortunately, we cannot diagnose you. That must be done by a medical professional. In spite of the fact that you did visit urgent care, it would be in your best interest to see your regular dr. who knows your history for an evaluation. There are medical conditions that mimic panic, such as mitral valve prolapse, thyroid problems or even low blood sugar. You may not have been tested for these things @ urgent care.


Having panic attacks for 36 years, I can say that sometimes I have no trigger. They come out of the blue with no stressful events surrounding them. I am convinced that most of the research is right that anxiety/panic is caused by a chemical imbalance. Being a born worrier & having read lots of people's feelings on the subject, we seem to be the sort of folks who want to get things nailed down. Get to the bottom of things & find out why this is happening. That isn't always possible & I have learned to focus on staying well.


Please post anytime. Feel free to read what others have to say about anxiety. Check out our *coping tips & tricks* folder below. We care about you & want you to feel better. Don't be a stranger. Good luck & GBU! (((hugs))) jan





 

 


 



iVillage Member
Registered: 03-22-2003
Fri, 09-08-2006 - 12:42pm

Yes, it certainly sounds like it could be panic attacks, but as Jan said, you need a medical professional to diagnose you.

Sheri Ann

iVillage Member
Registered: 09-12-2003
Fri, 09-08-2006 - 5:38pm

I'm going to say the same thing the other ladies have already said. It could very well be panic attacks but... Go make sure everything else is checked out too. If it is panic and you already handle it that well, you are very lucky! You handled it very well to stay talking to the neighborhood ladies. That takes control. I read that during a panic attack a person will not faint. I read the physiological reason too but can not remember it well enough to repeat it! That is always a good thing to remember during an attack. Hope all turns out well for you!

Hugs!

Laura

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-04-2003
Mon, 09-11-2006 - 9:06am

Thank you all so much for being so sweet. This has been kind of scary for me. It does run in my family and at this point, my mom is completely convinced that it was a panic attack, but same as you ladies she doesn't want to say for sure in case it is something different. I had a little bit of an episode over the weekend. I was supposed to go to a bachelorette party over the weekend and I lost my ID. Well at the girls house where we met, there was someone that was going to let me use her ID. Well I didn't want to take the chance with that. I didn't even ever do that when I was younger..just makes me nervous. Anyways....they were all looking at me saying things like "Just try, just try" While all 25 girls eyes were on me, I felt the room closing in on me, my ENTIRE body got hot, and I got realllly dizzy. How scary, and actually embarrassing. My best friend was sitting behind me and knew what was going on and I told her I needed to go outside. I just about lost it when I did. My insides started to shake uncontrollably. Another friend of mine is a physicians assistant, and had some Xanax, and gave me one to take home with me. It did calm me down, but I really want to beat this without medication. Just a little background on me.....I was captain of cheerleading from 7th grade through my senior year. I am NOT afraid of being in front of people. I am a singer, and also have no problem singing in front of hundreds of people. I am confident and a total social butterfly. I will be devastated if this ends up being a "social anxiety" thing. This is not who I am. I guess thats why this is hitting me so hard. I am not afraid of being around people, and am slowly starting to worry. BUT....is it only because I am constantly thinking about this, that it keeps happening?? Maybe its all mind over matter. I am going to start working out regularly, incorporating a lot of yoga and breathing...cuz maybe thats all I need. Anyways, thanks so much. I will be back to let you know what happens at the dr.

THANKS!!!

HUGS!!

Becky

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-22-2003
Wed, 09-13-2006 - 9:34pm

Becky, you have such a positive attitude!

Sheri Ann