Posted by IsoM on January 9, 2002, at 14:03:49
In reply to What Happens To You During A Panic Attack?, posted by MaKi on January 8, 2002, at 13:45:52
I don't have a panic disorder but have had a few panic attacks. The most often & the worse was when I was coming off Paxil.
I'd often wake up bolt upright in bed (no memory of dreaming) with the feeling like death was impending. My heart was racing & beating very loud & hard, I'd shake badly & simply have a very overwhelming fear that can't be put into words. Even writing this, I can still feel part of it, it was so profound!
While I knew what it was & in a small part of my mind, I realised nothing would happen & it would soon fade, the emotional part KNEW the end of the world was upon me. I know this sounds trite but I don't know otherwise how to express the terrible, real sheer TERROR I felt coursing through me. I wondered if this is what an antelope feels just as a lion is leaping on it to snuff its life.
I occasionally had feelings like this in strange or unexpected surroundings but never with the force they had as when I discontinued Paxil.
> I've been suffering from a Panic Disorder for the last two years.
> I usually have a panic attack when I leave the house, especially
> when I go to a shopping mall or around alot of people. When I'm
> having a panic attack, I start feeling nervous, my heart starts
> pounding and I start feeling nauseated. The first thing I do when
> I walk into a store, ect..., is look for the bathrooms, then I
> slowly start feeling better. My panic attacks usually last a few
> minutes but it feels like they last a very long time. I've spoken
> with a few different people who also experience panic attacks and
> so far, no one's ever experienced the symptom of nausea, most say
> that they usually feel faint, dizzy or hyperventilate. For the
> four weeks, I've been taking Effexor XR and when I need to go some
> place, I usually take half a clonazepam. I've noticed a change
> during the last few weeks so I'm assuming that the medication is
> working. The thing I want to know is if anyone else experiences
> nausea during a panic attack, is this a normal thing or should I
> be worried that it's something else? If anyone has any advice or
> a similar story to tell, please let me know, I'd really like to
> know if there are others that are going through the same thing as
> I am.
>
> Thanks again,
>
> MaKi
poster:IsoM
thread:89326
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20020103/msgs/89454.html