Anxiety and panic attacks

[ScattyPenny]

Hi all

I have suffered with anxiety and panic attacks for years. I manage (just about). I work and have a family but some days are a real struggle.

I have tachycardia (possibly anxiety related - currently under investigation). For this (and the anxiety) I take propranol which helps slow the heart rate down but only takes the edge off the anxiety and doesn't stop a panic attack once it kicks off (although it's a less intense panic attack due to reduced physical symptoms). I have also been prescribed Diazepam long term for occasional use which is a Godsend but I am very careful with it and only take it when I really need it (approx once a fortnight). I would never take any chances with this drug mainly because I am terrified of developing a tolerance and it not working anymore!!

I want to start on a regular medication specifically for anxiety but not ADs as I have spoken to lots of people who said they don't work for anxiety/panic. I am going to go to the DRs next week to discuss it with her.

Has anybody got any recommendations? Some I've looked into are Buspirone, Venaflaxine and Pregabalin. Anyone had any success on these?

I would really appreciate hearing your experiences on this. I'm about to enter a pretty stressful period in my life (change of career amongst other things) and could really do with something in place before it kicks off big time.

Thank you

Bump...anyone?

SSRI ADs can work absolutely brilliantly for anxiety. The only catch is that they will often make it worse before it gets better, which can mean a rough initial couple of weeks.
However, that really varies from person to person. Some sail through with minimal start-up issues.

My personal experience was taking sertraline for generalised anxiety and panic. I had a rough initial couple of weeks, really rough, but after that it worked quickly and I had no anxiety whatsoever while I was taking them.
I did get fat though! But again that's not everyone, I'm prone.

Hi

I've had anxiety/depression/panic attacks since I lost my daughter to cancer. I've been seeing a psychiatrist since I had my first panic attack, 2 weeks after she died.

Anxiety, depression and panic attacks are 3 very different things.

SRI anti depression made my anxiety worse, much worse. I have been on an old fashioned anti depressant called Dolsupin (Dothiepin), Buspar (buspirone) for anxiety and slow release propranolol (160mg) for years, with diazepam for if I panic. Recently I have also been put on Pregabalin as well.

I have to say, over the years, my panic attacks have gone. I still have boughts of depression and anxiety. I constantly feel nervous, like something is wrong (something IS wrong) since my daughter died. But I am so much better than I used to be.

I try and have as much time to myself as I can, isolate myself, but this is not healthy and I really need to stop doing this.

I hope this is helpful, anxiety sucks. Hope you find the right meds to help you feel better. 💐

fieryginger I'm so sorry about your daughter.

Do NOT take Diazepam they do not work for the root cause of Anxiety they mask the symptoms and are a waste of time and addictive. Look up L-Tryptophan it will help you.

I think diazepam can be very useful but it does need to be used sparingly which OP is doing.

Fiery, so sorry to hear about your daughter. No wonder you've been anxious. I cannot imagine how hard it has been for you x

Max - I'm glad sertraline worked for you. It's mad the way it works for some and not for others for anxiety (Fiery said it made hers worse). I just don't want to take any chances :/

Donny - I understand where you're coming from but I don't think any meds really get to the root and if there's one thing that works when I really need it...it's diazepam. It's been a life saver for me. I've never heard of L-Tryptophan but I'll look it up. Thank you.

Have any of you tried Buspirone, Venaflaxine or Pregabalin? I'm intrigued about these in particular.

Anxiety is a bastard.

Thanks for your replies x

Max - exactly, I think if you're careful with it, you won't run into trouble.

Sorry Fiery, you mentioned Buspirone. Do you think it helped at all??

Or was it the combination?

I only have experience of diazepam which, like you, I only used as an emergency measure rather than a regular thing. It might sound a bit hippy, but I've found that yoga, aromatherapy, breathing, and ASMR have helped me a lot. It's not for everyone, but might be an option if you need some extra help.

Sertraline has worked wonders for me. Like pp, I had a couple of rough weeks initially, but now I'm virtually free from anxiety and panic attacks.

Have you read the book called something like self help for the nerves? That helped me loads with panic attack symptoms.

FieryWill the Dr Clare Weekes book yes. It's very good. Dare by Barry McDonagh is similar but more current and there's a good fb support page for it too.

Pirate - I've never heard of ASMR (is is the eye movement thing?) I'll look into it but must admit, I'm quite skeptical. I've tried yoga, psychotherapy, mindfulness, CBT and seeing a psychologist. All ended up costing a fortune and ultimately fruitless. I think I've reached a point where drugs are the only option.

Fiery, maybe I should consider sertraline. I'll do some more reading up on it.

Max - I have read the Clare Weeks book. Yes it was good and made me think about anxiety differently but it always creeps back no matter how much I try to change my mindset. I think I'm just too full of adrenaline! I've just found some youtube videos by Barry McDonagh so will watch those this afternoon.

Thank you for your posts.

ASMR can feel a bit woolly to some people - I was skeptical too at first, but found it does actually help me sleep and come down from panic attacks. It's a little bit like guided meditation/hypnotherapy, using relaxing sounds and low-pitched voices to bring your brainwaves back under control. There's loads of free videos on YouTube. My personal favourite is www.youtube.com/user/GentleWhispering

Just been watching some of the videos.

They are relaxing but not something you could necessarily do if you were having a mad day at work or driving (I don't thin).

I'll start practitioner though, It may be workable.

I The Doctor said she won't prescribe anything until my tachycardia tests have ruled out any heart conditions (Personally I think it is the anxiety causing it). So, I have a bit more time to do some research.

Would still be interested in people's stories about what meds they find useful though...if anyone reads this.

practicing not practitioner :/

OMG...just re-read my post - so many typos!! Apologies.