back in er

[tjd_45]

Very, very frustrated with myself today. I ended up back in the ER last night. I was on the train home after work and suddenly started to feel very very weak, like i hadnt eaten all day ( i had eaten regularly throughout the day). I managed to stay relatively calm at first and thought i would get something sugary to help with the weakness. however the shops and area i was in were very crowded and this seemed to just make things worse. Then for the first time my mouth and tongue started to go numb... I have never had that symptom before and that was enough to throw me into a complete blind panic. So off to the ER. Unable to breath, tingling in hands and feet, numbness in the mouth, blurry vision in one eye...
So after the battery of tests which all came back normal and the immediteness of the panic attack had worn off, of course i started to feel stupid and angry with myself again. Which of course doesn't help either and just starts a cycle where i feel worse and worse about myself and my ability to handle it. With my first child due next month i really don't want to be in a position where i am detracting from that in any way. Just really really down at the moment and worried about a return to the worst of my anxiety, even though i had handled it quite well for a number of years. On the surface at least i don't think the impending arrival is a stressor but is it possible that even if i am not thinking about and worrying about it consciously it is still something that is in the back of my mind and causing me issues???

[oregoncoastlady]

It's not worth it to beat yourself up. Those symptoms are scary. My first two panic attacks included numbing of my mouth and tongue. I went to the er both times. Of course, this was in the early 1980s and panic attacks were not being diagnosed yet. I thought I was having a stroke. Was told it was "nerves" by the er.  I digress. At some point you will be able to recognize your symptoms as part of a panic attack and the er visits won't be necessary. Also, having a new baby coming soon is very stressful.  Sure, you are excited...and you might not be feeling your typical "stress" from this...but it is bound to have an effect on you. And, once the baby comes, you will be so busy you won't have time for panic attacks!

[jwall378]

Don't feel stupid and angry. We all have setbacks and a lot of us end up in the ER again. Now you know that the next time you have these "symptoms", they are just anxiety related an deal with them accordingly. About 3 months ago, I ended up in the ER for the first time in years with a panic attack. I felt like I let myself down, but the more I felt that way, the less easy it was to recover from the panic attack. I'm dealing with high anxiety right now. I've had lightheadedness/dizzy for a few months now. I went to a neurologist and had an MRI done 2 weeks ago. It came back negative, but of course my thoughts are "What if they missed something?" I know it's very hard to do, but I can't running to doctor every time I get dizzy. Sometimes we have to just suck it up and deal with it. Anxiety sucks, but I have to believe it's going to make us stronger (somehow) in the long run. Remember, don't beat yourself up about going to the ER. Just TRY and forget about and move on.

[mollyfin]

This happens to a lot of people.  I never went to the ER with a panic attack but I was constantly terrified I was about to die when I first started having them.  They're scary!  Eventually they get less scary as you get used to them (though I hope you just stop having them of course).  And I think most of the people here have gone to the ER for something that turned out to be nothing at least once.  I know I have!  (Thought I was going blind with some rare eye condition...migraine.  Oopsie.)

[tjd_45]

thanks for all the supportive messages they are helping me to feel a little better about myself. Overall the panic levels are about as bad as i remember them ever being. I guess it doesn't help that i am now in a country that is half a world away from my family and my gf will be giving birth in a different country which is a four flight away. The joys of visas and emigration in certain countries. Trying to think positive and push myself through it but it is very hard when i don't have any support network to fall back on.

[Noahs Mom]

you know... I feared when I finally would get to bring home a baby that my anxiety would hinder my ability to parent or would express on to the baby.

Good news...

I'm so busy, exhausted, and in love my son that I just don't have time to have the anxiety!  I don't have time to internalize everything and be over aware of every little thing because there is something more important on my mind.  I've heard of a few different men talk about how having a child at home lessened their anxiety... I hope that's the case for you!!  Parenthood is amazing... :)

[marc]

I agree that it does not accomplish anything beating yourself up. I would accept what happened, and move to the
next step of trying to help prevent such an episode from happening again.

[Barrsgirlmichell]

I can totally relate. I myself went to the ER yesterday. I have not been officially been diagnosed w/ an Jett but I know I have it. I am so embarrasses by the constant worry that something is wrong with me. I have been dealing with the constant need to take a deep satisfying breath. Of course I google symptoms and find that it is a symptom of an embolism. So yesterday at work I called someone on their day off to come out because I was freaking out and began having chest pain at my sternum that would t go away. Of course by the time I got to the Er the pain was gone and I began to feel guilty for being there when truly sick people needed it but I felt comfort knowing that they would do an EKG and an X-ray to see my lung / heart function. The Dr. Gave me pain mess for Pleurisy but I'm pretty sure that's not what it is. Sometimes I know I have anxiety and sometimes I get. So into the symptoms I am convinced drs have misdiagnosed me. I have noticed it gets worse the more I think about it.