Anxiety Support Group
Anxiety is a physical condition marked by intense and persistent feelings of distress, fear, angst or dread. General anxiety caused by routine day-to-day stresses usually passes quickly and is experienced by almost everyone at one time or another. However, such feelings that linger over time and are very difficult to cope with, and which lack a clear cause, may indicate...
Hi everyone,
My name is Erica, I'm 34, married with two kids, and have suffered with OCD and debilitating anxiety and panic attacks for as long as I can remember. I am on medication and see a Psychiatrist and Therapist regularly. I recently had a scary event happen to me, and I'm hoping that someone can tell me about their experience. I was sitting at my computer a few weeks ago when I felt a jump in my chest. A flutter. I continued to notice it for about a week longer, and then decided to take my blood pressure (I take medication for High Blood Pressure as well). My blood pressure was normal, but the device showed an irregular heartbeat. I absolutely lost it. I completely convinced myself that I was dying, and I couldn't stop crying or shaking. My achiles heal with anxiety is medical issues. Going to the Doctor scares me, test results scare me, oddly enough needles don't bother me at all. I went to the Dr., had an EKG done, and while my pulse was racing (probably because I'm an anxious mess when I visit the Dr.) they did not pick up any palpitation on the EKG, and he said my anxiety was the cause of my palpitations. I tend to stay away from internet searches on medical issues, because it sets me off in my brain.. For example- a few years ago I was experiencing pain from muscle, and after looking on the Internet, I convinced myself that I was having a Pulmonary Embolism... It was a pulled muscle from arm workout, but my brain, after seeing the symptoms of a Pulmonary Embolism, had me convinced otherwise. Anyway, as I was saying, I am getting palpitations every so often, maybe a few times a week, couple times a day. I do know that other people, including my therapist, have said that anxiety can cause palpitations. I was wondering if anyone else has experienced this or have heard about it? Warning, please be careful not to frighten me about other health issues I may have. My brain will run with it and I will be a mess. Thanks in advance.
Thanks for taking the time to read this,
Erica
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Years ago, I won a mirrored armoire from my job. It's in my bedroom but I rarely stand in front of it. Yesterday, I had to have a dexascan done so I had to change into a gown. There was a full length mirror in the changing room. I'm aware that I gained 5 to 7 pounds over the last year from cheating on Keto but I didn't know what it looked like. It was a reality check.
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"don't be a hate hole" has been one of my recent mantras which seems to be escaping my mouth more and more often. it emerges when i am faced with the endless list of chores i would rather not deal with. insurance. head lice. bureaucracy. in-laws. the list goes on and on and on and on, ad infinitum.reality checks requested. am i making sense?"ever'thin they is but loving leaves a rust on your...
Anyway palpitations don't kill you. They're not any change in your body. They're just you noticing your body. Or so I was told at A&E when I took myself in there, convinced I was having a heart attack. :D
I was on the train home from work and took it into my head to check my pulse while I was having one of thsoe 'attacks' I got at least daily. I was missing heartbeats. My beats would go 1,2,3 - 1 2 3 4 - 1 2 - 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 -
I was missing lots. But when I went to the hospital it was nearly all over. They sat me on the machinery for an hour or two and then the doctor came and said in terms of triage and emergency services I wasn't one; if I wanted to get a monitor and see a cardiologist that was my bag but ultimately if I had more attacks that were the same as this one, given that I'd survived this one, I would probably survive the next. He was confident that I wouldn't die tonight (of this, he hurried to append, but not necessarily something else) which was what his job as an emergency doctor was. So I got sent home.
lol. Perfect logic. What didn't kill me this time won't kill me next time. Well whoopie.
I'm clearly not dead so I just let it go. :) I was considering spending all that money on a cardiologist and wearing one of those monitors, but in the end couldn't be bothered. I don't enjoy missing heart beats, and the whump, whump as the heart starts again is unnerving, but apparently there's more than one kind of tachycardia (hope I got that right) and more than one reason for it, and the version I've got is self-correcting and not worth worrying about.
There is one where you need to be defibrillated but that's severe. And I ain't got it, so I'm fine.
I have found that staying hydrated helps minimize these sensations.
Best wishes.