Have you had therapy? Or tried self help books. Son of them
are good.

hello :) trust me, you will be okay! i know it's hard to believe sometimes but you just have to keep fighting. i have terrible anxiety spells when i don't even feel in reality. but trust me... things will get better. have you tried praying? also calming music, yoga, therapy or ever writing or drawing.

Summerbabe88,

I hear you on this. You feel at the mercy of these panic attacks, and worry that there is nothing out there that will help. You have been fighting the best that you can, but they take a toll on you, and you don't know what to do. Your anxiety is making you suffer twice: once during the attacks, plus the anxiety you feel about the attacks. I get that. Panic attacks feel absolutely awful. I want to commend you for reaching out on this support group page. It tells me that you are not defeated yet, because there is still some courage and hope left. So many people suffer from anxiety and keep it to themselves. I don't have a cure for you, but I do have my own story to share.

Please know that you are not completely alone. In fact, a couple of months ago I had a panic attack that led to mini nervous breakdown. I had to take some times off of work, and I didn't know if I could go back and face my boss after my weird messages requested day after day off. I finally went to the doctor's office and they gave me some medications that have helped take a piece of the edge off of any subsequent attacks. They also put me on a fairly heavy dose of anti-anxiety/depressant medication. It took a while for it to work, but it has helped. I went back to work after a week, and told my boss what was going on. I was lucky; there was a member of his family that suffered from panic attacks, and he knew what I was going through. He understood and that was that. What I found out was that there are quite a few people who suffer from anxiety in one form or another. It's something like 1 out of every 10 people you will meet in a year have issues with anxiety. So, the problem is not that we are alone. The problem is that there are negative assumptions or stigma's associated with experiencing it that makes everyone keep it to themselves and act as if they are one of the "normal" ones. What is great about groups like this is that we get to encourage each other. We are from all walks of life. I am a college instructor, a father, a husband, a friend. We have experienced anxiety for years, but have never been defeated by it. We are everywhere trying to make life work, and we fail as often as we succeed. Some days we feel "normal," while other days it's a struggle to leave the house. For some, friends and family support help, while others take medication. For others, it's talk therapy with a counselor, while others read books. For me, it's all four! What matters is that you don't give up, don't judge yourself, and don't leave any good rock unturned until you find what you need to manage your thoughts and feelings. Build on what you did today and reach out to those you trust to find the help you need. Be encouraged that you are not fighting alone!

Extremely well said FloBro83. I really respond to the idea that we suffer twice. Once from the actual panic and then again from the anxiety about the anxiety. A lot of my angst right now is due to the shame I feel not about having these feelings, but the emotional drain I have become on my family.

Summerbabe88, you are not just putting on a brave face. You ARE brave. You're not letting the panic get the best of you and you never have. You are on this site talking with us and you still have hope. I believe you will get through this.