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Topic: Panic attacks anyone? (Read 890 times) |
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Carl_D
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Just came out of a bad one. Been having panic attacks for years, but never bothered to notice any frequency in relation to being episodic with CH prior to going chronic.
Some I can shake easy, some take awhile. Also get the urge to 'jump out of my skin' if it were possible.
Ironically, one thing that calms me down in a bad one: music. I put on music and focus on the song, the beats, the counts, the notes and chords, trills...helps to distract from the attack. If you get them or ask someone who does, the more you focus on the attack itself the worse the attack can be.
I've got a feeling I'll be fighting off a few more of these buggers between now and OUCHFest (Sunday.)
OMG!!! It's only 5 days til OUCHFest. Only one song of our 3 song demo for the event is done, and I am trying to get print media involved in Alton and keep getting the 'talk to so and so' and 'she'll call in a day or two' and then no word.
Wanna know the best part? I woke up at 7:30am Sunday morning. I have not been to bed yet. Almost need to hook an IV up to the coffee pot, and you know I am gonna have a Trex shot loaded before I do lie down because I know with me, if I elude the beast for a decent amount of time, when I do finally drift off to la la land, I wake up with a raging LEVEL 10 kiss of the day!
I'll shut up now,
Carl D
the above illustrates the left and right lobes of my brain
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Paigelle
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Re: Panic attacks anyone?
« Reply #1 on: Dec 2nd, 2003, 11:50am » |
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Hey Carl. I tend to have panic attacks right before I am hit. You are right, if you don't focus somewhere else, you will make the attack alot worse.
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aprilbee
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Re: Panic attacks anyone?
« Reply #2 on: Dec 2nd, 2003, 11:51am » |
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Wow, you just totally described me!!! I have panic attacks too, I like to listen to music also when going through one! If I do focus on it too much it seems to get worse, I was taking 75 mg of Effexor XR for a bout 5 months and it worked great, but I started having them again and now I'm on 150 mg, it has stopped the panic attacks...I have never related them to CH...I've had CH since I was 12 and didn't start having panic attacks until I was 25 or 26 something like that...
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Paigelle
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Re: Panic attacks anyone?
« Reply #3 on: Dec 2nd, 2003, 11:55am » |
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Oh I have had CH since I was 10. But I didn't have panic attacks until I was in my 20's either.
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floridian
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Re: Panic attacks anyone?
« Reply #4 on: Dec 2nd, 2003, 12:08pm » |
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Yeah, my panic attacks started several years before the clusters. Serotonin is one factor that contributes to panic. Serotonin is messed up in CH. Immune messengers like tumor necrosis factor and other interleukins can also cause depression and anxiety. These are messed up in clusters. Melatonin is anxiolytic (anti-anxiety). Clusterheads don't make much melatonin. The list probably goes on and on ....
If cluster headaches hit the maximum on the physical pain dimension, panic attacks can hit the maximum on another dimension. Natural response of most people is to tell you to relax - but most panic attacks have a physical cause, and should be treated accordingly. Psychological techniques can prevent the condition from feeding on itself, but I don't think things like CBT are the best or only way to go. The average panic attack won't kill you (even though you feel like you are going to die), but untreated panic disorder can wear out the heart or cause other life threatening problems.
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Carl_D
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Re: Panic attacks anyone?
« Reply #5 on: Dec 2nd, 2003, 12:17pm » |
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on Dec 2nd, 2003, 11:55am, Paigelle wrote:| Oh I have had CH since I was 10. But I didn't have panic attacks until I was in my 20's either. |
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Damn, and I counted it rough starting with CH at 17.
I always wanted a son. His name would be Wyatt (hence naming the lead character in my book.)
After doing my own research and weighing the possibilities of clusters being hereditary, I made the conscious decision that I will never have a child.
I can deal with having CH. Yeah right - who am I kidding? I deal with it as well as a crackhead handling pleutonium, but my point, all humor aside... I couldn't deal with it if my child came to me with those familiar tears saying "Daddy my eye/head hurts." That I could not deal with. I look at my niece and nephew and the thought of them ever getting something like CH, again...I can't deal with that.
There's just something about seeing a child suffer that proves to me that there can be no existent merciful perfect god who would allow this to become of his creation. I went to church and studied the Bible for many years, and I simply cannot believe in the existence of god. But hey, that's just my opinion.
Shutting up again,
Carl D
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Paigelle
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Re: Panic attacks anyone?
« Reply #6 on: Dec 2nd, 2003, 12:22pm » |
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Some research say clusters aren't hereditary. In my case it is not true. My grandmother and mother had them. Neither one of them has had one in years, but I remember my grandmother getting up in the middle of the night for weeks and pacing the floor. I am hoping it is all just coincidence and pray my son will never have this problem.
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cootie
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Re: Panic attacks anyone?
« Reply #7 on: Dec 2nd, 2003, 1:05pm » |
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Carl there are sum good meds out there that treat panic attacks succefully...jus my opinion....but maybe sumthin for them would help you ? I took Paxil (Paxil bad bad bad 'for me').....it worked great and fast......does real good for sum.....but there's other meds for it. I gained too much weight on Paxil and then created anuther issue plus quit cold turkey and got drastically ill a long time. Anyhow.........you've got alot goin on rite now and are prolly gettin ovewhelm'd. Brad has 6 brothers and sisters........several of his sisters suffer migraine and there on triptan's. Heard there grama had sum sort of aweful intense ha's and had to have a cold rag on her forehead.....we never found out if they were CH or migraines. So it kinda seems at least migraines run in his family. Hope ya git sum rest before the Ouchfest and sum PF time Pam
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Cause and Effect......"Cause is the effect concealed, Effect is the cause revealed"
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floridian
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Inositol has been shown effective in treating panic, and it is better tolerated than other meds like SSRIs. I found that a short term prescription of xanax was also useful in quashing panic attacks - I was taking 1/2 or 1 of the smallest tablets per day (0.25 mg) and it made a big difference. No problems quitting after a small dose for a short time, but it can lead to a dependency over time.
Check out TAPIR - The Anxiety & Panic Internet Resource, at: http://www.algy.com/anxiety/
Quote:J Clin Psychopharmacol. 2001 Jun;21(3):335-9.
Double-blind, controlled, crossover trial of inositol versus fluvoxamine for the treatment of panic disorder.
Palatnik A, Frolov K, Fux M, Benjamin J. Ministry of Health Mental Health Center, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheba, Israel.
Only 70% of patients respond to current treatments for panic disorder, and many discontinue drugs because of side effects. myo-Inositol, a natural isomer of glucose and a precursor for the second-messenger phosphatidyl-inositol system, has previously been found superior to placebo in the treatment of depression, panic disorder, and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), but a direct comparison with an established drug has never been performed. A double-blind, controlled, random-order crossover study was undertaken to compare the effect of inositol with that of fluvoxamine in panic disorder. Twenty patients completed 1 month of inositol up to 18 g/day and 1 month of fluvoxamine up to 150 mg/day. Improvements on Hamilton Rating Scale for Anxiety scores, agoraphobia scores, and Clinical Global Impressions Scale scores were similar for both treatments. In the first month, inositol reduced the number of panic attacks per week (mean and SD) by 4.0 (2) compared with a reduction of 2.4 (2) with fluvoxamine (p = 0.049). Nausea and tiredness were more common with fluvoxamine (p = 0.02 and p = 0.01, respectively). Because inositol is a natural compound with few known side effects, it is attractive to patients who are ambivalent about taking psychiatric medication. Continuing reports of inositol's efficacy in the treatment of depression, panic disorder, and OCD should stimulate replication studies. |
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Madame_DeFarge
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I found that when I'm in pain the music thing helps. My family thinks I'm out of my mind when I tell them that I do mathematical formulas in my head to music to keep part of my mind off the pain. They firmly believe that to do this is insane and I am the only one in the universe that does this. When I go to the ER I always have my headphones and music with me. When the doc listens to what I have in the CD he is amazed that something like that could help. (I use "heavy metal bagpipe music" since it can be very complicated and multi layered)
So.............I'm not unique..............cool
Madame
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cootie
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Re: Panic attacks anyone?
« Reply #10 on: Dec 2nd, 2003, 1:21pm » |
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jonny turned me onto a band named STAINED.......I am in love with the song Fray'd.......I'm a supporter but have panic attacks when I have too much time to 'think' and need to keep busy. Drivein I tend to get overwhelm'd with thoughts about everything and I BLAST my awesome car's stereo while driveing.....mostly only been listenin to Stained lately esp the 4 Shades of Grey CD. Has alot of 'pain' dealing songs on it.......and I have my own pain Pam
It DOES work....but ya can't always blast music when a panic attack hits. I would if I could tho !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And disapear in it...............
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Cause and Effect......"Cause is the effect concealed, Effect is the cause revealed"
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Paigelle
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Re: Panic attacks anyone?
« Reply #11 on: Dec 2nd, 2003, 1:44pm » |
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I understand the "too much time to think." I try to keep myself busy and keep my mind occupied. If I don't, I get overwhelmed with worries. Music does help that. I like Stain'd too!
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Carl_D
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Re: Panic attacks anyone?
« Reply #12 on: Dec 2nd, 2003, 2:26pm » |
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I LOVE STAIND!
I'd kill to have a voice as pure as Aaron Lewis...but man oh man...ask anyone, I am a music junkie.
Right now there is an album that is so important to me, I can't quite explain it. It features my fave vocalist of all time, Maynard James Keenan. While Maynard is prolly better known for his spot in TOOL, he has also done the lyrics and vocals for both albums from "A Perfect Circle".
This new album, "Thirteenth Step" - it is so important to me, I almost feel like it is too good to share with people who might not get it, and yet - everyone in the world should hear this album.
However, the soundtrack of my life was lain back in '98 when I became chronic with CH...
Nine Inch Nails - The Downward Spiral. I felt every word on that album!
Just sharing the music,
Carl D
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thomas
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Re: Panic attacks anyone?
« Reply #13 on: Dec 2nd, 2003, 2:32pm » |
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Bill Ward "Ward One - Along the Way" The greates rock/metal album of all time.
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Paigelle
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Re: Panic attacks anyone?
« Reply #14 on: Dec 2nd, 2003, 3:24pm » |
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I haven't listened to Nine Inch Nails in along time. Trent Reznor is an interesting creature.
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Karla
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Re: Panic attacks anyone?
« Reply #15 on: Dec 2nd, 2003, 4:14pm » |
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Carl as was mentioned earlier there is meds you can take for panic attacks. I am on 150mg of effexor and also taking alproazolam. It does wonders for me.
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| « Last Edit: Dec 2nd, 2003, 4:15pm by Karla » |
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Karla
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Paigelle
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Re: Panic attacks anyone?
« Reply #16 on: Dec 2nd, 2003, 4:28pm » |
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I use to take something for panic attacks. They were bad in my early 20's, but now the only time I have them is right before I get hit. I have learned how to control them pretty much any other time. It is like Cootie says, you focus on something else like music.
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thomas
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Re: Panic attacks anyone?
« Reply #17 on: Dec 2nd, 2003, 4:29pm » |
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The only "attack" I have is the "devil dance." We all know what that is. That is also the only thing I panic about.
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jonny
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Re: Panic attacks anyone?
« Reply #18 on: Dec 2nd, 2003, 4:37pm » |
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You just get done spending a few hours inhailing a quater ounce of coke, its three in the morning and you open the fridge....AHHHHHH!!!!!!....NO BEER......time to panic, wheres the Nyquil...I have to come down fast, I cant just sit here.....LMMFAOROTFF 
Ahh, the good old days....LMMFYBO
...............................jonny
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thomas
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Re: Panic attacks anyone?
« Reply #19 on: Dec 2nd, 2003, 4:42pm » |
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on Dec 2nd, 2003, 4:37pm, jonny wrote:
What's ybo in lmmfybo?
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jonny
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Re: Panic attacks anyone?
« Reply #20 on: Dec 2nd, 2003, 4:43pm » |
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Yam bag off
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thomas
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Re: Panic attacks anyone?
« Reply #21 on: Dec 2nd, 2003, 4:45pm » |
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OMG That is too funny.  LMAO. Hey there's another one for you in funnies and jokes.
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| « Last Edit: Dec 2nd, 2003, 4:46pm by thomas » |
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Renee
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Re: Panic attacks anyone?
« Reply #22 on: Dec 2nd, 2003, 5:17pm » |
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klonazepam (an anti-seizure drug) taken daily at .5 mg is a good preventative that will keep most all panic attacks far away along with one of the many ssri's. stay away from weed...it can manifest the worst panic attack you've ever had. if in extreme cases and you know your heart is fixin' to quit and you just can't be still and know for sure you're a gonner, take 1/2 to 1 xanax and talk a walk outside with a tall glass of water. be close to the bed in 20 min. cause you will fall free of the panic and fast asleep. keep sipping water until the panic eases as that will keep your throat from closing up on you.
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23 years of battling the beast, 9 years chronic......uneducated docs/nurses make me irate.
The fungus among us is for real!
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Rick_K
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Re: Panic attacks anyone?
« Reply #23 on: Dec 2nd, 2003, 6:50pm » |
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klonazepam may have helped my panic attacks but after my cycle started last time it seemed to bring on a CH. Never had a problem with xanax. Needless to say dumped the klonazepam, back on xanax.
Seems like a lot of us have panic attacks or anixety problems along with CH. For me clusters started years before any anixety problems showed up. Just lucky I guess.
Rick
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episodic since 1969........damn
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5-string
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Re: Panic attacks anyone?
« Reply #24 on: Dec 2nd, 2003, 7:46pm » |
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Hey Carl_D,
Sorry about the attacks, They suck. I never thought to associate them with clusters. I just thought mine were caused by my general fear of people. But they did start getting bad when my clusters started. Which(btw) was the same time I threw the booze and drugs down the toilet..hmmm.
One time I was giving a banjo workshop and had a total panic attack right there in front of 15 people. Man did that really suck.
I feel for you. What helps me is to let go completely,close my eyes and breathe slowly and deeply....hang in there,
...Mark.
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