Is this what a panic attack is?

[SugarSkyHigh]

I was on a course, in a place I had never been before and with people I had never met before. Not that that's a problem per se, I am fairly sociable, but maybe if someone familiar to me had been there, this would not have happened.

I suddenly got very very frightened. It started with me having thoughts about whether I really existed, or whether anyone else existed and it was all just a dream. It felt really really really claustrophobic, like being buried alive. I was terrified. After a while it went away. Is that a panic attack?
I've looked through panic attack threads but so far haven't seen anyone mentioning this symptom but perhaps I'm just not looking hard enough.

It would really help to hear if anyone else gets this TIA

[Ifeelsovulnerable]

I dont know honey but wanted to say I read your post and feel for you / hope someone comes along who knows

[YommyMommy]

Hi SugarSkyHigh,

I suffer from anxiety and what you experienced may well have been a panic attack. It can make your thinking very irrational. Panic attacks make you feel terrified, claustrophobic - in that you just feel you need to get out of the situation. Did you have any physical symptoms? They can be anything from - increased heart rate, feeling hot, dizzy, faint, pins n needles, feeling like you can;t breath properly and more. Not nice at all, but like you also experienced they do pass and they aren;t dangerous at all - just very scary!!

I hope that helps a little. It might not have been a panic, bt if you are worried about it go speak to you GP.

[MitchyInge]

Sounds a bit like dissociation or derealisation - can you google these and see if they fit? Are you feeling ok now?

[MitchyInge]

here's a link

[SugarSkyHigh]

thank you everyone, I have found that link helpful Mitchy, it did feel like derealisation... Yes I'm ok at the moment, although on fluoxetine and have been on some form of AD for around 8 years now! Was diagnosed with PND after 3rd DC, now aged 9yrs. Although really I had suffered from depression on and off from adolescence. Having the DC kind of stopped me slipping through the net anymore, as before, it had never occured to me that what I was suffering from was depression.

As for the derealisation/panic... I had panic attacks a long time ago, but without the derealisation; it was a case of heart racing, fear that I was going to have a heart attack and die.

What I describe in my OP happened in the summer, and had not happened to that extent before. It hasn't happened since, although if I think back about it I can get it to come back but I can stop it too if you see what I mean. That time I couldn#t stop it, and yes YommyMommy I did have physical symptoms - racing heart, feeling faint, horrendous butterflies in the stomach (a bit like going down on a rollercoaster).

Sorry to ramble on, I am so grateful for the feedback from you all.. thank you toIfeelsovulnerable too