hi all,

oh boy, today was unbelieveable! I was ok for most of the day, but late this afternoon, my second oldest son and I went out to the store, stopped in for some coffee, and POW, out of nowhere, this horrible anxiety attack hit! I felt it building up on the way to the coffee shop, but not badly, and I have felt that before, and I am usually able to control that. NOT TODAYA! HOLY COW! All I know, is we sat in that coffee shop, and either it was triggered off by some kind of chemical in there, or whatever, but WOW!
I began to feel very very detached, withdrawn, shakey, and like I was going to scream! I felt like running out of the coffee shop, screaming! To top it all off, there was this father with his threee small kids in there, and the youngest child, a cute little girl of about 4 was VERY ACTIVE and her voice was at a pitch that I thought would drive me over the edge! She just wouldnt shut up! and the father just kept telling her to stop it, or sit down OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER......OH MAN! I thought I was going to loose it. We had to leave. Then, if that wasn't bad enough, I started to get lightheaded (and I was going todrive home!), and my sinuses in the front of my face and forehead went NUTS! It was weird. I've never known sinus can be affected by a panic attack, but I guess so! The pressure in my forehead on the left side was really bad, not just over the eyebrow, but farther up on the forehead too, like up by the hair line! I THEN became panicky that it was a brain tumor, (naturally), and the panic of THAT just lost it's mind! I got home safley, came in the house, my husband could plainly see what I looked like. I was in a panic, thinking I had a brain tumor or sometrhing, he reminded me it's my sinuses, and told me to take Benedryl....which I promptly did,,,,and a xanax!!!! We then sat on the couch, talked, prayed, and he assured me I didn't have a brain tumor, that nothing else is being affected that WOULD be affected if i had a brain tumor,,,,you know, such as speech, vision, thinking, motor coordination....etc.....

OK, so, finally I started to calm down! OH BROTHER, I haven't had one like that in YEARS! Latley, over the last few months, I've been dealing with LOTS of peri symptoms, hitting HARD AND FAST, one after the other!!! The anxiety has been bad! I've had anxiety all my life, on and off .... BUT THIS WAS FAR OUT! The only thing that DIDN'T happen this time, was that my heart wasn't pounding wildly, I was suprised!

I just needed to vent this I guess. Hey, does anyone else here know of the connection between your sinuses and panic/anxiety? Does anyone else get that, if they have an axiety attack?

Thanks ladies!!!! Sincerely, MyDarling

I don't know why but having a brain tumor is a very popular obsession during those nasty panic attacks. Probably because of all the awful sensations going on in our heads. Heart attacks and brain aneuryisms are also in the lead. My personal favorite seems to be the tumor or aneuryism though. It's seems so real when it's happening!

Those dizzy spells while driving are equally scary. When I start feeling like that while I'm driving, I concentrate on slow, steady breathing and turn the radio up and try to distract myself. Like you, I've had anxiety and panic attacks since I was in my early 20's. I was always able to talk myself down with them until I was 46. Then,WHAM! full blown panic disorder developed. I take Xanax every day now and a beta blocker. Keeps it under control for the most part. I also have Hashimoto's (hypothyroid) which contributes to the panic and anxiety. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy techniques have helped a lot too.

It sounds like you have a patient husband like I do. It's great to have someone like that to try to reason with us when we're out there in panic attack land.

Hang in there!!! You're not alone and awful as those things are, they're not fatal.

Sierra

p.s. I've had some sinus problems too - get a feeling that something is pressing on my forehead and also some post nasal drip.

sierra, i have hashimotos too but havent heard anyone say it contributes to anxiety and panic. im really curious about any info. you might have. my biggest problems are panic and anxiety.
ive also been dealing with the sinus/post nasal drip thing. sorry this sounds gross but do you wake up in the morning and feel like theres a plug or something in the back of your throat and you have to hack it up? thick,stiky green/yellowish yuck?
mydarling, i feel for you. i know how you felt and i know how the what ifs can spin totally out of control and send us over the edge so fast. i have a great husband too who can look at me and see when theres something going on and can talk me down and convince me its just my hormones. he really takes good care of me when i need him to.
I hope your feeling better.

mydarling,

I've had many, many, many panic attacks in my life and currently have terrible anxiety. When you wrote, "I began to feel very very detached, withdrawn, shakey, and like I was going to scream! I felt like running out of the coffee shop, screaming!" sounds just like what I experience along with the lightheadedness. I've had panic disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and at times agoraphobia, my entire adult life. It's extremely difficult to live with it. I just keep trying to overcome it - I've tried many theraphies and a few medications......read many books......in the past 2 years I've had a problem driving on a highway going 55 miles an hour...when I do, 90% of the time I feel like my car is going to tip over, or I'm going to tip over, very strange indeed. I just keep moving....put one foot in front of the other and if I fall down, I pick myself up and start again. I had terrible trauma in my childhood and know that my panic disorder stems from this.....I just do the best I can and if that means medication, which I was off of all for 4 years until perimenopause hit, than so be it. I went without medication for all but 5 years in my adult life and that's not so terrible considering I've had this anxiety situation since my teens which I escaped the feelings with the use of alcohol and drugs until I got sober at 23 years old....after quitting my anxiety reared it's ugly head in my late 20's and has not stopped since. We are all here to help one another and having this site has been a Godsend to me....knowing that I am not alone is 1/2 the battle. Now, if I could get rid of this headache I would be a much happier person.

You are not alone.

Hugs,
Karen

Studio1

Panic attacks and anxiety can absolutely be a symptom of hypothyroidism. However, many doctors don't seem to understand that and will say that they are only a symptom on hyperthyroidism.

Dr. Ridha Arem who has focused his thyroid research in the area of the mind - body connection writes in his book, The Thyroid Solution, "In my clinical experience, anxiety is a much more common symptom of hypothyroidism than physicians generally acknowledge. Because anxiety and panic attacks are typical symptoms of hyperthyroidism, some patients with an underactive thyroid may become confused when they experience these symptoms yet are told they are hypothyroid. Anxiety can have a crippling effect on a person with an underactive thyroid accompanied by tiredness and depression."

Dr. Stuart Shipko of the Panic Disorder Institute who is a regular guest on this website has also discussed this connection.

Sometimes panic and anxiety can be alleviated by thyroid treatment alone, but not always. In my case I still need treatment for panic disorder even though my thyroid seems to be under control now.

Good luck,

Sierra

Sierra, what kind of treatment are you getting for the anxiety/panic? I think i do remember reading dr.shipko's transcript about that. my thyroid level is pretty low now and im afraid of it getting too low and turning into hyper. i only take 15mg of my thyroid meds and it works. i mean it has lowered it from almost 6 to 1. i would love to be able to take xanax when i need it but im afraid i'll have a bad reaction to it , or have a paradoxal reaction. and im also afraid i might like feeling calm a little TOO much and will want to take it everyday just to prevent anxiety. that would be a problem i dont want to add to everything else.

studio, what kind of thyroid med do you take ? i noticed its only 15mcg. thats great that you don't need much. and ladies i too have been stricken with the hashimoto misery. it does cause anxiety, panic, severe depression and many other horrible symptoms. i think its one of the most overlooked diseases we suffer from. big hugs , kelly

Studio,

I take Xanax .125mg 5 X's a day. Plus I take a low dose of Toprol (a beta blocker) - 25 mg a day. The beta blocker helps with heart palpitations and the anxiety too. It may be why I can get by with a relatively low dose of Xanax. I take Xanax maybe more often than most,and more frequently than Dr. Shipko recommends, but the dose is also lower than the average dose for severe panic disorder. For me maintaining a steady amount of Xanax in my system throughout the day is crucial. I've been on the same dose for 9 years.

I first developed the more severe form of PD in my mid 40's and went through a couple of different Cognitive Behavioral self-help programs. I found that I needed both medication and the tools I learned in the program to help me. Going on Xanax long term is something that needs to be carefully evaluated because it's very addictive and extremely difficult to get off of, if at all. But for many of us who have had the life long kind of PD and also have other family members with it, Xanax is a godsend and the only thing that really works well. SSRI's did not work for me and had very bad side effects.

If your doctor thinks you should take Xanax as needed, maybe you should listen to him. I have never heard of anyone having a bad reaction to Xanax before. For me, it just makes me feel normal. Sure, if I took a bigger dose it would make me groggy, but I don't like that feeling so I just take enough to keep the anxiety under control.

Good luck!
Sierra