Thanks for that Meeshyell - might take a look on e bay see if it is available in the UK.

After my awful Friday and the panic attack from hell - I have just been out in my car ALONE for the first time in two months. Drove for about 20 minutes with my radio turned up full blast and singing so hard that I did not have time to think about panicking. Feels really good now, plus the weather in the South of England is absolutely beautiful today.

If I could just get over the waking up at 4am with churning stomach, I might begin to see a glimmer of my old self.

Hope all is well with you today.

Lizzie xx

Lizzie thats fantastic that you were able to get out and drive and overcome your anxiety. sometimes distracting yourself works wonders. well done hun, keep up the good work. xx

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We strongly advise anyone wishing to take up vrt or start/change/stop medication should consult their doctor first.

Hi Lizziew !

You are very brave for getting out and driving !

One thing I always tell myself when i am close to panic is that I remind myself

I have had so many of these, I have never passed out, had a heart attack or died !
It IS NOT POSSIBLE !!

When you are in a calm state , in your mind, tell youself YOU WANT to have a panic attack !! ( sounds crazy) but try it, see if you can make yourself have one !
I finally screamed out come on you EVIL %$%$^$ monster come get me LOL
and there was absoulutely no way I could make myself have one

The mind is tricky but when you can learn to control your thoughts and change them when need be............ You will be very amazed

Instead of saying OMG my heart is pounding , Its making me dizzy Im going to pass out
Tell yourself something else

O k here we go again, I have gotten through this before , even when it has been worse , I was ok I am not in danger ,panic attacks can not hurt me this will pass ........... and it does
and each time it will reinforce those thoughts and you will get control !
It is difficult but with practice you can do it too !

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Michelle

That's it in a nutshell!

Been going back to all my old anti-anxiety routines again, I have ordered that book you recommended too.

One thing though with the whole panic disorder/anxiety problems is the tendency to become a hypochondriac, I am guilty of this and have even been doing it of late, focusing on every little thing my body does and over analysing it thus increasing awareness of it until its symptoms become more acute than it actually is.

like a cough is an asthma attack, a bit of trapped wind is gastric flu, heartburn is angina and so on....

I really have to keep a grip on this way of thinking!

i have notced for myself that when I am in the middle of the panic attack,
I can feel each heart beat , each tingle every physical feeling that I get, in turn comes the thinking pattern that something is physically wrong

after the panic attack disappears............. I continue monitoring my physical feelings because I am so scared of them and having a panic attack come on.... so you watch for it !

I think thats what brings on the hypocondriach part of it ! panic attacks are so scary we become sesitized to EVERY heart beat or feeling in our body

but again for a person that does not have panic.......... they too get speeding heart, ect.... but it does not affect them the same way as it would us because of our thinking patterns !

So I totally agree with you ! I do have asthma as well, so when my breathing becomes labored I check the clock ...... wait 5 minutes to see if it subsides if not I take my meds, but I hate taking the meds cause they give me heart palpitations and then I get panicky LOL total visious circle, but I am getting better at changing my thinking pattern with this specifically !

Great that you ordered that book !
It gets to the point, no mumbo jumbo technical stuff in it !
when I read I want an answer and it gets you to the pattern fix excercises quickly

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Michelle

Another trick is to turn on some music and just dance the anxiety away.
Sounds a bit strange but let me tell you any armour when chasing the panic away
works.

Michelle I had to chuckle when you swore at the panic attack I have been there myself....
I was in my car at the time parked and a few passerbys gave me the but you
know it did not bother me. One thing I know it sounds strange but my confidence level
is much higher since I have learned to cope with the anxiety/panic side of things.

Well there is a 'silver lining' in everything if one looks.

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Friends are like pillars on your porch
Sometimes they hold you up and
Sometimes they lean on you.

We strongly advise anyone wishing to start/stop or change vrt or start/change/stop medication should consult their doctor first.

Hi to everyone,

Just wanted to mention that I found a really great website tonight. It's full of information that you don't have to pay for and loads of info about beating panic attacks. It gives different breathing exercises, how to plan out self exposure and tons of other helpful stuff that I have never seen before on the internet. Address is www.anxieties.com if anyone fancies taking a look. Even breaks down the cycle of worrying with negative thoughts and how to address them.

Lizzie

LOL Sandy , good to hear I am not the only one who swears off the invisible madness monster! I can picture you dancing and swearing and letting all hell break loose hehe..
I think when you finally get to that point things start to turn around and you gain more control...... made me finally realize I had to kick its ass so it would stop kicking mine !
funny thing is I think it has really helped.

The other day after my ENT told me a diagnosis of Meniers under my normal thinking pattern I would have froze up an hour away from home but I manged to get back before I let loose and even then it was not as bad as it normally would of been

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Michelle

Lizzie, thanks for that link - it looks really good

I'll put it in the Links section where people will see it.

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"Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, martini in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming "WOO HOO what a ride!"

We strongly advise anyone wishing to take up vrt or change/stop medication should consult their doctor first.

Hi lizzie, hope its helping that site

I've now got the book that I ordered "been there, done that, do this", first impression is that its a very good book indeed!

Though I'm still troubled by the BPPV starting off the anxiety, this is different to what I've experienced when I just had panic disorder (i.e. all in my head), physical symptoms are now a trigger rather than the old mental trigger, I'm curious how others dealt with this or adapted to it.