Quote: (08-22-2016 05:11 PM)redbeard Wrote:
I'll chime in....this post is long overdue. I've dealt with panic attacks since I was a child. It's a darker side of me that I don't talk about with anyone, and although it is a setback, I have used it as an opportunity for growth. Ask anyone who's met me, and I'm one of the most positive thinking people in the world. I actively practice positive thinking DAILY to stave off panic attacks. Let's get into it....
Panic attacks are difficult because they're a. psychological and b. irregular. Unlike an ankle sprain or acute injury which can be treated and put behind, panic attacks continue and must always be contained. Like asthma, it can be triggered at any moment without explanation and ruin the entire day. Due to that nature it's important to cultivate a LIFESTYLE that keeps you positive and a MINDSET that cannot be broken.
But redbeard what about antidepressants? No way. There are too many studies that have shown antidepressants to have no statistically significant advantage over placebo, and as The Lizard of Oz recently pointed out, a recent studied showed that bright light therapy alone (monotherapy) is more effective than an antidepressant used alone. I don't know how severe your anxiety is, but antidepressant side effects are huge and pharmaceuticals should only be used as a last resort.
I'm no doctor but I strongly believe that most psychological "diseases" are short-circuiting (not the Hillary Clinton kind). Once you accept that your body is a machine, start to think of your brain as the engine that drives everything. All it takes is rewiring and regular maintenance to change your thought patterns.
The most important thing is to recognize your triggers (for lack of a better term) and controlling them. I didn't accept that I had panic attacks until a little bit ago. Until then I figured it was just something that happened to me. Wrong! Now, I control my emotions by taking a step back and looking at myself from the outside. Once you feel yourself going down the panic attack trail, CHOOSE to walk away.
Additionally the following are all practices that have allowed me to control anxiety and panic attacks. Many of these reflect common RVF choices but I have been practicing them for a long time and consider them staples of my life.
1. 90% paleo diet, with TKD carb cycling
2. Sleep hygiene (bright light therapy, caffeine control,
3. NAC (I've only been using for 3 months but love it so far)
4. Exercise (weightlifting and team sports, in moderation to avoid burnout)
5. Gorilla Mindset/A Guide to Rational Living (I'll post more about this later)
6. Minimizing stress (choosing to remove stressors)
7. Meditation
8. Healthy sex life
9. Removing chemicals from your body
I don't have time to write about all of them, but how you think is huge when it comes to anxiety. Most of the time it's negative thought patterns that keep us locked up in anxiety. Once you CHOOSE to control your thoughts and emotions, and you conquer your own mind, conquering the world feels like minutia...
I will post more later but it'd be great if you can expand on what triggered your panic attack and why you think it happened. You've only had one instance, there's no reason to jump on the pillz. You can do this
Like you, I've suffered with anxiety issues ever since I was a kid. They didn't turn into full blown panic attacks until my late teens, and admittedly I still get them occasionally today. I second everything you said so I won't beat a dead horse. The main takeaway is that it's critical for those of us who deal with anxiety issues to cultivate a lifestyle that is conducive to positivity, and both mental and physical health.
OP, redbeard's suggestions are all excellent and they are things that I've also incorporated into my life to varying degrees (admittedly neither Gorilla Mindset nor bright light therapy did a whole lot for me). I can attest to the fact that they've helped me in numerous ways, including lowering my anxiety in general.
In addition to what redbeard wrote, I would also suggest cutting back on booze, or eliminating it entirely for awhile like I have. Same with porn. While I'm still struggling to cut porn out of my life, I do feel better in general whenever I manage to go for long streaks without it. It's about resetting your brain to a healthier state, and all of those negative inputs can only harm you in the long run.
I would definitely avoid going the benzo route at all cost. My doctor used to prescribe them to me when I was younger and I rapidly became dependent on them just to get through the day. Weaning myself off of them was a lengthy nightmare, and doing so can be downright dangerous.
Currently I practice a threefold strategy for dealing with my own anxiety:
1) Build and maintain a positive, healthy lifestyle incorporating the things that redbeard and I mentioned. This should help keep anxiety at bay for the most part, but it does require a good deal of work to maintain such a lifestyle.
2) When I am experiencing anxiety I try to implement negative visualization/CBT techniques to reason my way out of it. I can provide more info on this if necessary, or at least point you in the direction of some good resources.
3) If all else fails and I'm in the midst of a panic attack I just try to focus on my breathing, remind myself that anxiety won't physically hurt me, and then try to let the experience wash over me. It sounds weird, but I've found that accepting the anxiety, rather than struggling with it, helps the feeling pass more quickly.
I haven't completely overcome my issues with it, but this is the best strategy that I've developed so far.
Quote: (08-22-2016 05:24 PM)Kona Wrote:
Does anxiety disorder run in families? Is it a genetic thing?
Around two years ago I volunteered at the big PTSD clinic in Hawaii for veterans. Those guys all had anxiety and depression issues. I wound up quitting because the were all full of shit.
Before I left, my big theory was that being around all the other people with the anxiety made theirs worse.
Maybe if you stay away from the family members with the problems when you feel yours coming on, that will help.
Aloha!
While I'm not an expert on this subject, I do believe that certain genetic factors can play a role. I have many family members who deal with anxiety issues, and it seems like we all have a heightened sensitivity to stress. This can be good in legitimately threatening situations, but in more benign day to day stuff it's not as useful.
I do think that there's something to your theory about being surrounded by anxious people, which could also partially explain the familial aspect of it. I know that I don't particularly enjoy being around people who are always in panic mode. Even though I can empathize with how they feel, it does tend to put me in a more anxious state.
My theory is that it has something to do with our primitive tribal instincts that dictate a certain level of group awareness. When one or more people in a group are anxious about something -- a feeling that can trigger the fight or flight response (which is basically what a panic attack is) -- then others in that group also tend to experience higher stress levels as a way to prepare for some sort of perceived threat. This is a very useful survival instinct, but not particularly applicable to modern life as we now know it.