Constant state of panic. Any advice?

[BuckinghamPalace]

Hello everyone, I have NC.

I’ve always been a fairly anxious person which has started mainly since having my child 6 years ago. I think I had undiagnosed PND.

For some reason I became really over sensitive to noise at the time (fear of waking the baby? No idea!)

Anyway, this has manifested and it is now out of control. Recently we have acquired new neighbours a few doors down that shocked me after they moved in by playing loud aggressive sounding hip hop in the garden. They also speak extremely loudly. DH asked them to turn the music down at bedtime & they did & were really apologetic.

This has turned into the next few things

1. me feeling fearful of all noise from that house
2. the actual people in that house
3. feeling panicked constantly
4. feeling fearful
5. me desperately wanting to move ASAP
6. me crying frequently throughout the day
7. anxiety making me feel sick
8. I can’t eat

I had a short course of Valium a few weeks ago but obviously can’t be on it for long. It helped loads until my next panic attack came along which I can’t fully recover from.

I have self referred for CBT which starts with a phone conversation tomorrow.

What more can I do? We are looking at moving because we need to anyway but that’s not going to happen overnight.

If anyone has been through similar - please let me know how you broke the cycle.

I really miss myself

Get your hormones checked - an oestrogen imbalance can give you extreme anxiety. Have a look at someone like Dr Newson’s site

Ask go for propranolol that helps anxiety for some people, if you can’t get any more diazepam.
Gp can also prescribe an antihistamine if your having trouble sleeping
Try and eat if only small things rather than a meal
Soup, banana cereal yogurt toast

Anxiety sucks I know exactly what your going through. Don’t let it beat you, your stronger than it x

Hello. Thanks for replying :)

I’m already on propranolol 80mg a day (for another reason though). And all this fear and panic is felt on top

I have generalised anxiety which got progressively worse in my twenties where I ended up in a cycle of not being able to eat/ sleep/ had constant palpitations. I too was given propanol but in the end I needed an ssri. It was the turning point for me. I couldn't believe that I could feel so normal. Sure I still get anxious about things but it doesn't overwhelm me. Best thing I ever did as I got my life (and sanity) back

That takes me back OP. I have something similar and sadly haven't found a cure, despite CBT and years of trying. However I later found out I was autistic and hypersensitive, and hopefully you're not and can get over things easier.

The things that helped me: earplugs for night and Sony noise reducing headphones for the day. White noise machine and fans. Slow breathing exercises for if/when the panic starts and a reminder that I've been through this before and been okay, and I will again.

I also went on to mirtazapine earlier this year to help with my sleep and it's been brilliant, I am fairly certain its helped with my anxiety too. It might be worth a try?

These are the ones- I bought and tested almost all the ones out there, and watched countless videos online about them all, and these were just the best I could found - Sony WH-1000XM3 Noise Cancelling Wireless Headphones www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07GDR2LYK/

@Oxyiz yes! I do believe I am autistic! I’ve been wondering it for years since I was at university.

I mentioned it to my GP once and he said “what’s the point in labelling yourself?”

So so pleased to hear about SSRIs helping @Twinklelittlestar1. I’m going to request them during my call today.

I would do anything to feel normal. My husband is such amazing support!

What a rubbish doctor! It might be worth pushing for an assessment, although it can be a few years wait. It was life-changing for me and it has a masssive impact on everything. I remember a poster here years ago saying there's some evidence that autistic women experience the menopause differently for example - I also sometimes hope that knowing I'm autistic might help people understand my reactions more if I ever had to go into hospital or a care home for example.

If you are on the spectrum, I genuinely feel that we get traumatised more easily than others over certain things, almost minor forms of PTSD. Women on the spectrum especially seem to be sensitive to things like noise.

There's no easy answer or cure but anti-anxiety medication can help hugely over time (especially after 4-6 weeks use). We can also be especially sensitive to medication, so the first few weeks of use might be especially tough before they really help.

Also sorry, the app keeps taking out my paragraphs and turning everything into a wall of text!

Thank you for your info / insight. Really helpful hope you’re ok.

My husband bought me ear plugs bless him!