Panic Attack / Pots Attack @ 6:30pm

[delphicdragon]

Scary new symptom for me.

I'm stressed. Well, beyond stressed. I'm in the middle of my General Exam for my PhD, it's Christmas (first without my father), and the 7th is the 6th anniversary of some really bad events that happened in my life.

Every day at approximately 6:30, I freak out. Nausea, Tachycardia, Paranoia, Cold, Clammy, etc. This happens whether I eat or not. I have no idea how to stop this or if this is POTS or stress related. Usually, by 8:30, I'm fine, but it really puts a cramp in supper. I would normally just not eat, but I'm underweight as it is, and don't want people to get the idea I'm anorexic.

My mother is suggesting medication. I don't know what kind she wants (assuming Paxil or something like that, to calm me down), and I really don't want to go that route, because once I'm on it, I don't see myself ever getting off it. :-(

Any advice on what to do? I don't want to go to the doctor because there are too many sick people there. Help!

Sara

[TypewriterGirl]

Hi Sara,

I'm so sorry you're having a rough time. Sometimes antidepressants are very helpful in getting through tough times. Stress and not eating will exacerbate your symptoms. I know many people who have been on antidepressants and gone off when things are less stressful. Best of luck to you,

[Mrs. Burschman]

Also, sometimes antidepressants HELP POTS SYMPTOMS. A lot of us take them, even if we haven't had problems with stress/anxiety, because they calm down the sympathetic nervous system, which tends to be out of whack in a lot of us. I get PHYSICALLY sick as a dog when I don't take my Paxil.

You're right about not getting off of them, however. I don't see that happening for me anytime soon, unless I find some miracle cure elsewhere.

Amy

[juliegee]

Please describe your symptoms in detail.

[Jan]

My advice...

First, eat supper early. Like at 5PM. And drink lots of liquid and salt your food. That way you can eat in peace and not risk losing more weight. I don't always know when I am hungry and I have had some pretty awful symptoms come on while I am attempting to make dinner. So eating early will also help if by some off chance hunger is bringing on the symptoms.

I don't know if you are on any meds but consider if this happens at a time when one wears off.

Second, you need a mantra. Like "This will be gone by 8 or so" "This won't kill me" Don't fight it. Just tell yourself it is temporary, and you can ride it out. If relaxing in a dark room with a candle helps, do that. If being active helps do that. Watch TV or do a puzzle, read. I find when attacks hit, I feel better doing nothing. I tell myself I can get through it and relax. I think over stimulation brings on those kinds of symptoms for me. Some people need to be distracted. Do what helps.

Third, stop dreading it. If it is anxiety or stress, being afraid it will happen can actually cause it to happen. Your body is reacting to either stress or just POTS and it isn't your enemy. Your body is trying hard to cope but has gotten it wrong. Talk to your body and comfort it. You are in this together. Your body doesn't want to feel this way. Encourage it. I know this sounds kind of stupid, but I found that it helped me to think of my body as my friend, and not as the enemy.

You are under tons of stress, and stress makes any illness worse. EVERYONE, not just those of us here on this board, get physical symptoms and panic like stuff under stress.

I think what is happening to you sounds normal for someone as stressed as you. I personally wouldn't even consider meds until you get through the holidays and your exam because things may calm down a great deal for you.

I have dreams around the holidays that my dad are in. I used to wake up sad because he is no longer around. Now when I have the dreams, I am happy to see my dad. I am sorry for your loss, just know that it won't hurt as much with time.

Good luck, if things don't get better you can always consider meds.

[potsgirl]

I don't want to encourage meds either, but sometimes they're simply a necessity. I'm on Paxil, and it's helped my POTS symptoms quite a bit. If you're worried about long-term usage, and you really need some help to get through this period, I would ask for a month's prescription for Xanax. It works right away, and is often used for short-term high stress periods. Of course, positive self-talk and imaging and meditation also help. Also, I went to a counselor for a time when I was first diagnosed and angry and depressed.

Hope you're feeling better soon!

Jana

[gomindy21]

I have had panic/POTs problems. I would first suggest talking to your specialist/physician, etc. Currently I am undergoing progressive relaxation therapy. My therapist has actually worked with Dr. Grubb on some research with this a while ago. I've only started it this week, and it has helped out tremendously with calming my system down. It actually is a series of muscle constrictions/releases and breathing. So, if you are not big on medicines, this might be something that is helpful.

[EarthMother]

My undergraduate thesis involved an experiment with progressive relaxation techniques, there's a lot of good research that it can help a great deal with stress. My first meditation track I recorded used a varient of Jacobson's Progressive Relaxation: http://coolkarma.com/free-videos.html

If its the same time each day, i'd suspect blood sugar instability. When I dropped a lot of weight in a POTS crash last year my blood sugar spikes and crashes were horrid. Once these go out of whack, its not a matter of eating well <every two hours a small meal with protein, whole grain carb and a fat> and then you feel better. It took me SIX MONTHS with a reactive hypoglycimic diet before I stopped flaring before or after meals. For me, I needed to really increase my whole food fats, like real butter and whole milk. I still start my day with four ounces of whole milk because it seems to stabilize my blood sugar better than anything else I tried.

Nothing wrong with meds if they work for you. All of us have different body chemistry and we sometimes need to go through several trial and errors before finding something that helps. Good luck to you on your healing journey.

~EM