Posted by Mikey_C on February 6, 2003, at 14:52:46
In reply to Anyone with panic and anxiety disorders..........., posted by tina on February 6, 2003, at 9:53:34
Tina, I've been DX'd as Bi-Polar with Mixed Episodes as well as having an adjunct panic disorder. When my anxiety gets the best of me... I feel really angry, have like huge anger outbursts that everybody tells me don't make any sense... I get huge amounts of energy... either read, study, or work out till my brain or body is just exhausted. My panic attacks come usually when I'm about to go into a social situation that I'm not really comfortable with (ex. giving presentations, going to interviews, first dates, etc.) and especially when I'm trying to fall asleep at night. When a panic attack sets in, I kind of feel kind of dizzy at first and slightly off-balance, like something isn't exactly right. Then my heart starts to speed up... if you've ever jumped off a high diving board, it's kind of the same effect... and my entire body gets really stiff and hurts, sometimes my stomach even gets upset.What have I tried doing for these? Well... I've tried everything that the other people have listed on this site... meditation, breathing exercises, warm/cold baths or showers, sex, etc. The only thing that's really worked was a Benzo. If I'm feeling like one is coming on, I take about .5mg of Clonazepam. I also take 1mg of Clonazepam every night before bed and since doing so regularly (about 8 months) it's the only period in my life that I've been able to sleep soundly. I'm also taking Depakote/Epival at 500mg per day. This has stopped the whole cycling up of panic attacks to where everything feels like it's moving in double-motion all the time. With both of those combined, I haven't really had "a" panic attack (mild or severe) in quite some time.
Now I just need to find a medication that will work with the Depakote and Clonazepam and help me with the depression side of my disorder. All the SSRIs cause me problems (Effexor, Paxil, Celexa) which I would rather live without. Any suggestions to this area would be appreciated.
poster:Mikey_C
thread:36457
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20030201/msgs/36495.html