Anxiety Forum

[motif]

Got it again, weakness in legs, tingling I thought I'd faint if I don't sit.
Did anybody actually faint during panic attack? I didn't want to check it out by not sitting because it was in cafeteria at work...

[Dixxie]

[motif]

thanks Dixxie for sharing your story.
The problem is how to make sure it is really anxiety or not
something physical, like neck spine, heart etc. I had actually for last 2 days some neck pain and tiredness. Also I read that during anxiety actually it is very hard to faint since youy have elevated BP etc, but I was really feeling like I'll faint unless I sit down.

[StevieH]

Motif
I will be honest with you.
Alot of your problems and symptoms sound almost like a mirror image of myself.I have had so many horrible and frightening symptoms over the last 20 years that I would be here all night typing.I have had that thing with the legs and at some stages it felt like my legs were up to my knees in sand,but I was actually standing on the pavement in Bromsgrove UK when one of the bad ones happened and my wife had to drive the car up the pedestrian zone to get me as I couldnt walk.This was when I was first ill and I had to see neurologists and all sorts of specialists,and they all told me that it was something to do with my mental state and my nervous system and not nothing nasty.
Hope this Helps you
StevieH
_________________
I think today maybe the tomorrow I worried about yesterday?

[motif]

thanks Stevie for you story.
I hope I'm not going to mirror you for 20 years, these few month I have enough. I wonder did you really try everything through these years?
It is very long time to suffer like that.
I heard that sometimes you're not going to get better until you solve you problem whatever it is. So it matter of finding it, although it maybe not always fixable... I slowly start to think that sometimes maybe better is to have a cancer or something like that, you know what you're dealing with at least.

[RabidBadger]

Motif is correct. It is extremely difficult to faint during a panic attack.

If you look at things on a purely biological level, unless you have damage to the brain, the only reason you faint is because the brain is not receiving enough oxygen. Most of the time this is because you get up too quick or you have been standing for a long time. It's called postural hypotension and it basically means you have done something that suddenly makes your blood pressure drop.

Your brain is a lot cleverer than you are and once it senses a significant lack of oxygen it thinks (behind your back) "I'm not getting enough blood". So it removes the biggest obstacle to blood-flow (gravity) and makes you drop to the floor. This puts your head level with your heart and before long normal service is resumed.

As Motif correctly pointed out, during a panic attack, your blood-pressure rises so your brain is receiving more than enough oxygen (making it feel a bit woosy) but you will not faint.

The one exception to this rule is people who have a blood phobia. When their phobia is triggered, their blood-pressure drops to prevent blood loss (like I said, your brain is a lot cleverer than you are) so they are prone to fainting.

Read this again, you'll be tested on it later ()

Chris
_________________
The mind is like a maze; the deeper you get into it, the harder it is to get out. www.troubled-minds.co.uk

[motif]

hi Chris,
thanks for lecture about fainting,
but why during anxiety we feel almost exactly
like I'd faint? I was pretty sure I fall if I would not sit.
My legs were completely weak, heavy eyes and strong tingling.
I wonder what is the difference when you feel faint because of e.g. heart problem.

[RabidBadger]

Hi Motif

Sorry, didn't mean it to sound like a lecture.

The difference is, if you have a heart problem there is an interruption to the blood flow and you DO faint, you don't just feel like you might.

As far as I know, there are three theories about why we feel faint during a panic attack.
1) The level of oxygen to the brain is increased because of raised blood-pressure.
2) There is a sensory overload that causes serious confusion
3) The brain subconsciously "numbs" the senses to protect itself from trauma.

I can't say which theory is correct but I have yet to hear from anyone who has passed out during a panic attack.

Best wishes

Chris
_________________
The mind is like a maze; the deeper you get into it, the harder it is to get out. www.troubled-minds.co.uk

[motif]

thanks Chris,
so I guess with fainting because of heart the blood pressure would not be elevated?

[RabidBadger]

If you have a geniune problem with your heart that lowers your blood pressure then fainting would be a possibility.

If, however, your heart rate is elevated because of anxiety, it is generally no more harmful then a jog around the block.

I don't know what state your heart is in so I can't really comment. What I can say is that I am 37 years old. I am slightly overweight and I smoke and drink enough alcohol to kill a rhino. My cholesterol is normal and my blood pressure is normal (which, considering my anxiety, is a miracle). I've been told that my chances of having a heart attack in the next ten years are 4%..

I say this to everybody. Your problem is not with your health, it is with your need to be reassured. Nobody can ever say how long you will live. There have been olympic athletes who have dropped down dead and there are also people with terminal illnesses that live a very happy life.

Life has enough danger, disappointment and tragedy without inventing your own

Chris
_________________
The mind is like a maze; the deeper you get into it, the harder it is to get out. www.troubled-minds.co.uk

[motif]

Chris,
you are perfectly right, but with so clear and positive attitude how come you have anxiety?

My heart is fine according to my docs, still sometimes
when I have short breath, chest pain or feel choking I'm anxious anyway.
The problem is that when I have an attack I cannot believe it can be so physical and trying to explain it by finding some somatic causes.

[StevieH]

RabidBadger
Your spot on in what you say and Motif I know exactly what you mean about the cancer or something like that.This thing just keeps on going.I have never been able to find a root to my illness and the last 20 years have been good that I had my children but,somedays you feel like you will not be alive at the end of it.I have had that fainting feeling,I used to feel like I was drunk 24/7 but not the nice way.I was sent for tests for MS,motor neurone,etc because I was so ill.I then got agraphobic for nearly 3 years.I am now having these horrible heartbeats that take my breath away and make you feel like your heart is going to go out of rythm.
Everyday I wake up and think Hey I'm still alive,then it hits me like a hammer I've got to get through another day. Its a horrible thing we have to live with and this is why I got so angry on the other thread,because Ive tried every trick in the book over these last 20 years and have never found anything that works.But as was mentioned WE always look for reassurance.
Take Care
And all the best
StevieH
_________________
I think today maybe the tomorrow I worried about yesterday?

[RabidBadger]

Hi Motif

Over the nine years I have suffered with anxiety issues, I have read thousands of books, articles and web pages about anxiety and how it affects you. It is easier to reassure someone else with this knowledge than get it through to my own stubborn mind. If I may use a sporting analagy, I'm a good coach but a lousy player

You question how something can affect you so much if it is not physical but the truth is their are somatic changes that do affect your physical state but they are temporary and triggered by anxiety.

When you experience fear, the hypothalamus in your brain (which is usually associated with controlling body temperature) releases a substance called CRF (corticotropin releasing factor) this stimulates the pituitary gland (also in the brain) to release adreno-corticotropic hormone, which in turn stimulates the adrenal glands (near your kidneys) to release adrenalin into the blood.

The beta-adrenergic receptors in your heart and lungs pick up the adrenalin and start to work harder because it is a sign that your blood-pressure needs to rise and you need more oxygen. Your blood-pressure needs to rise because adrenalin is also diverting blood to your skeletal muscles, which are far from your heart, to prepare you for facing whatever the danger might be.

While more blood is going to your outlying muscles, there is less available for other parts of your body - notably your digestive system and your skin. Your skin goes pale and you might experience indigestion, heartburn, nausea, belching, dry mouth, etc because your digestive system - which is not essential for getting you out of danger - is not working very well. The digestive system also feels an urge to empty the bladder and the bowel to shed any excess weight, in case you need to flee.

On top of all this, your muscles react to adrenalin and get themselves into a semi-tensed "standby" state, ready for action. This can lead to feelings of restriction in the throat and chest and, after time, all sorts of aches and pains, especially if they are inactive during this tensed phase.

While all this is happening, your brain is trying to cope not only with the fear but with an increased level of oxygen and very confusing feedback from the affected parts of your body and so it is normal to feel stunned, dazed, confused or detached.

If you look at phrases that are traditionally linked with fear - "pale with fear", "butterflies in your stomach", "sh*tting yourself" - they all have their basis in the physical effects of anxiety.

Hope this helps

Chris
_________________
The mind is like a maze; the deeper you get into it, the harder it is to get out. www.troubled-minds.co.uk

[motif]

thanks guys for tips support.
The fainting bothers me mostly because of obvious problem with daily work and commute.
As I see from yours stories symptoms are changing in time or can change?
Stevie, you said you had fainting problems, did it go away by itself? Recently I had that awful feeling even in the bed.

[Robbed]