Anxiety is severe...

[Aburg163]

Hi everyone. Second post here as my last was so helpful when I asked about anxiety medication. I did get some after a bit of an interrogation from a GP ( had to book a private video service through an app as my usual doctor wasn't around for two weeks ) and they couldn't understand how I can be so severely anxious in terms of physical symptoms ( cannot swallow any solid food at all, throat is so tight in certain environments I 'choke' on my own saliva and my heart starts thumping if I try to ignore it and then won't stop for hours and hours even once home. It has been a normal occurrence for me to go ten hours without water at work because of this then have to doze off to relax and set an alarm to wake up when I get in ) but my mood is okay. I did get some help from my sister in laws best friend who very kindly reached out having experienced swallowing issues with anxiety a long time ago and she recommended a great book to me that I have been reading however I wanted to read this to support my medication not as an alternative. I was given propranolol from the GP in the end who said they hoped it would calm me down enough that my throat didn't tighten so much and it has certainly calmed me, but my throat is still SO tight. I am much better drinking liquids now which is something but I was wondering if anyone else takes anything that can alleviate the tension in my throat? I am in a good-ish but very hungry place now and feel like this would be the final hurdle. I'm sure if it was any other symptom I could potentially play the slow game but I'm down to 7.5 stone and really, really hungry. No matter how much I try I just cannot relax my throat enough to eat unless I'm extremely drunk ( tried it a few days ago at a barbecue and was eating and drinking normally) which I can't do, I'm not much of a drinker anyway and desperately want my life back. Any recommendations? Thank you x

I have no advice on overcoming the anxiety, but are liquids any easier to swallow? You could try and get a prescription for something like Ensure, which would help you get the calories and nutrition you need.

I suffer with extreme anxiety too (sometimes 3 plus panic attacks a day) but what you are going though sounds awful. I’m so sorry. Have you asked your GP to urgently refer you fo psychiatrist? They have more powers in some ways. When did this start ? Do you think it could be a form of OCD?

@Aburg163I have had this exact thing over the last few weeks - lost a stone in a fortnight!! Feel like I can’t swallow my saliva never mind food, I have been able to drink though but my throat feels like it’s closing and then I panic which causes chest pains and racing heart. Like you, the doctor prescribed me propranolol but only 40mg once per day and it helps in the morning and I am able to eat but I could not tell you the last time I ate a dinner so I do think I need to up this. The GP also gave me diazepam which has helped massively when I have got to the frenzy stage to help calm me and help me to sleep. Im also like you, my mood can be ok so when the doctor advised the next step would be an anti depressant for anxiety of the propranolol didn’t work I was very hesitant but I think it may be a good option for me. This is new to me as I have never struggled with this in the past but it is horrible and so so scary. Could I ask what the book is that you have been reading and what your propranolol dosage is? I’m hoping to get through to my doctor today to try and see if I can up mines.

Hi Op, I have a milder version which results in me having to eat my food very slowly as I fear things getting stuck in my throat, I panic & feel like I’m choking. A few months back I started waking up many times through the night, gasping for air, feeling like I was dying, choking & couldn’t breathe, fortunately that has more or less stopped, it started as I was progressing with trauma therapy, I can confidently say that for me it is my anxiety/trauma manifesting in unpleasant bodily sensations. You most likely need to have a chat to someone, seek some form of therapy.

I have Huel meal replacement drinks most days for breakfast which are very good, very liquidy, can add fruit or almond milk to make them thicker but with water or skimmed milk they are thin so easier to swallow, it might be worth considering something like that to get some nutrients into your body for now, obviously building back up to food.

I can recommend looking into Polyvagal/Vagus Nerve reset & somatic exercises to help relax & discharge trauma from your body, very safe simple exercises to get some quick relief, the first exercise here with Sukie Baxter is quick & very good -
This one from Peter Levine is also a very simple & safe self soothing exercise -
Another Peter Levine video explaining nervous energy in the body -

All the best

Are your iron levels ok @Aburg163? I only ask as I get really anxious and stop being able to swallow when mine are very low (I'm currently anaemic)
My gp gave me some meds to help with my anxiety but the fact they were pills, albeit tiny, it was still a huge hurdle to cross. When I did manage to take them it did help.
That aside, I know when my iron gets really low due to the anxiety ramping up and then the swallowing issue starts again. The first time this happened, about 5 years ago now, I lost 12kg in a very short space of time as I just couldn't eat, or only tiny amounts of milky ready brek.

@longtompot

Are your iron levels ok *@Aburg163*? I only ask as I get really anxious and stop being able to swallow when mine are very low (I'm currently anaemic) My gp gave me some meds to help with my anxiety but the fact they were pills, albeit tiny, it was still a huge hurdle to cross. When I did manage to take them it did help. That aside, I know when my iron gets really low due to the anxiety ramping up and then the swallowing issue starts again. The first time this happened, about 5 years ago now, I lost 12kg in a very short space of time as I just couldn't eat, or only tiny amounts of milky ready brek.

Hi ladies thank you all for your replies. Sorry I ducked out the thread I've had a really busy week with big family birthdays and celebrations that were like a nemesis to this anxiety however funny you mention this @longtompot I have had a blood test as my GP thought the same. Would make a lot of sense as even when swallowing I didnt eat red meat or probably get enough iron tbh, my diet was a bit like a teenager grazing in the treats cupboard but as soon as this is sorted that's never going to be the case again! I do think the OCD suggestion seems to be valid too as I've looked it up and didn't realise how much our bodies tune into the stuff that should be automatic when stresses and thus starts the vicious obsessive cycle. Thank you all of you will be recontacting my GP over the next couple of days as I'm off work and have no social events looming over me which is fab. Thanks again hope you're all ok x

I’m sorry to read this. It’s horrible - I’ve been through it. I also recommend you push to get referred to a psychiatrist. They’re much better at finding the right medication for you. Most GPs aren’t great for this (in my experience).
When I had this i was prescribed those milkshakes to drink which contain all the vitamins etc. The doctor explained that when we get low on food and nutrients it makes our mind more prone to obsessions.
I was eventually prescribed medication that helped me (Pregabalin and Cipralex) after a fair amount of trial and error.
The Claire Weekes book was really helpful too.
Good luck. You’ll get through this but you do need the right support and the right medication.

[quote SpecialK01]@Aburg163I have had this exact thing over the last few weeks - lost a stone in a fortnight!! Feel like I can’t swallow my saliva never mind food, I have been able to drink though but my throat feels like it’s closing and then I panic which causes chest pains and racing heart. Like you, the doctor prescribed me propranolol but only 40mg once per day and it helps in the morning and I am able to eat but I could not tell you the last time I ate a dinner so I do think I need to up this. The GP also gave me diazepam which has helped massively when I have got to the frenzy stage to help calm me and help me to sleep. Im also like you, my mood can be ok so when the doctor advised the next step would be an anti depressant for anxiety of the propranolol didn’t work I was very hesitant but I think it may be a good option for me. This is new to me as I have never struggled with this in the past but it is horrible and so so scary. Could I ask what the book is that you have been reading and what your propranolol dosage is? I’m hoping to get through to my doctor today to try and see if I can up mines.[/quote]
Hello! @SpecialK01aw so sorry to hear you've suffered too! Sorry for the delayed reply I'm super new to mumsnet. I've only joined because of this and I'm so glad I have. Its awful for us but there's comfort in knowing we are all one of the same. I'll dig the book out tonight as I left it at my brothers house where I've been carrying it around with me like a bible! I'm not sure of the name but it did lead me to finding two massively helpful people including an OCD coach called Robert James ( he explains what it actually is, a form of OCD called sensitorimotor ocd / hypervigilant ocd which is basically ocd being a nasty trickster using any usually automatic bodily function we would do without thinking and making us conscious of it. He has a great podcast about how he used to be obsessed with how his mouth felt and would zone out of the present moment in panic inwardly assessing it. I'll link him below along with an amazing YouTube channel I've found. This is all thanks to the poster who mentioned OCD as until now not one person, GPS or any type of therapist had picked up on that. I have since reached out to my mum as she had severe ocd when I was little to the extent she would apologise for us being late to family events and reluctantly stand at the living room door in a certain spot tapping the door handle until her brain let her go. She really seemed to get it and I feel better even just knowing it's an obsessive response rather than something I'm stuck with forever. These are the links... this video made me feel a million times better. I've not signed up to his online course yet as I am thinking perhaps I'll start with meds then try to commit myself to some sort of prolonged therapy as at the moment my anxiety is telling me it won't work after glimmers of.hope. He actually has a video on how your anxiety will sabotage anything that could work and why sometimes its better to take the edge off with meds first then start longer treatment and I appreciated this as I really don't think he's after money etc and I trust his advice from this. He does mention exposure response therapy a lot also and there's books and things on that which I may try after a bit of research. Best of luck to you and thank you for replying to me x