Benzodiazepams

[Guest Julia59]

Thank you Miriam,

I appreciate your opinion---but I guess we'll have to agree to disagree on this one.

I didn't mean to sound like i'm ragging or attacking---so I removed the post.

Of course we all know the obvious---that we need to go to ER for such things---especially if they are out of the norm for us.

There are ways to go about telling someone that they need to go seek medical help---without scaring the pants off them.

Medical professionals witness a lot of terrbile events, but I don't think it's necessary to give ALL the details. This can only scare some people.

In fact it can be irresponsible for a medical professional to tell a person too much information pertaining to the condition/or medical events a person is experiencing which could lead to panic, further aggrivating the condition. The person needs to examined to determine what should be said to help them improve their situation.

I'm trying---but like I said, I can be a box of nuts and bolts when trying to explain something.

I just think caution should be used, and knowing the right time and place to discuss fatal events in past medical emergencies.

Again, I think a lot of people on this forum are to be commended for helping a lot of people seek good medical care. As always----anyone with any indication of heart problems should seek immediate medical care.

I don't think important medical information should be kept from people---not ever----this I mean, between Doctor and patient. It is up to the doctor of that specific patient to determine how serious their situation is. All we can do is suggest that they seek medical attention if we fear something is serious, but even if one is not sure, it's always to be better safe then sorry and go get things checked out.

I've been going through some rough times myself and "arrithmia's" have been more frequent for me as well. Tonight is my sleep study which I hope explains atleast partly why I have a worsening of symptoms.

Miriam, I want to let you know that you are an important part of this forum and a blessing to all of us.

Julie :0)

[Miriam Poorman-Knox]

sorry

[JLB]

Julia,

I wasn't so much replying to you.? IYour cousin was totally inappropriate- alittle knowledge.......? Remembering that we do have dysautonomias not every post has to do with us individually.!!!!!? I guess inmy brain damaged way I was trying to empower.? We know what we know. We will learn more constantly.? I do not know of ANY doctors who withhold information.? It actually is malpractice if they do.? so my process is to pick the threads that work and let the others go.? Adding stress regarding stuff thats not for us makes the crazy adrenoline flow more freely, and I don't need that.? I don't think we are taht far off!!!? Only I would have told your cousin that I? didn't need to hear stuff like that.!!!!!!!!Miriam ?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I think your tone is unnecessary and hurtful.

I don't feel empowered, I feel torn down by your words. I am also quite aware that posts are not in direct reference to me individually - I am not the neurotic the medical profession has labeled me as being. My symptoms are real, and potentially life-threatening, and Janine's words were placed on a public forum; therefore you, and she, must assume the members will read her thoughts for their own use and towards their own point of reference.

Janine is NOT my MD. She isn't anyone's, as far as I know, at least not on this board. If you think her words were necessary, and had no potential to cause fear - just completely benign and informative - then you're plain old mistaken. She could have placed her cautions here without revealing the fact of the many people she's seen die in the ER from heart rhythm disturbances.

I don't think you have the right to address me the way you did. It was condescending, not comforting. It reminded me of the way the doctors talked to me, which is why I stopped going to them for so long. And it has served only to keep me from being honest about my fears. I wasn't exactly flooding the board with them in recent weeks; I put my thoughts here today only in response to Julia's saying exactly how I felt.

I suffered for over 20 years before finding out what I have, and then was thrilled to discover that it's not a deadly condition. Janine's words took that assurance away from me, and it's impacted me. I'm aware that I don't deal with that fact to your standards of empowerment, so I'll be here only to read from this point on.

And I'll keep my fears to myself.

JLB,

First we have NO guarantees in life. Second your doctor can doa test to see if you have sudden cardiac death probabilities and get a pacer or whatever **** chaney has. Third all of us have heart abnormalities, yet we go on if I panicked everytime I had a run of abnormal rhythms I would be paralyzed by fear. I think you are there. Get the work-up by your new doc, compression, fluids, salt, etc and you will have the best opportunity as the rest of us. Ragging on an ER nurse for telling us that we should be seen when certain things happen!!!!! That is responsible. I think its important for us to not put each post as if it were specific to US.!!!!!!!! It's info that we need to read and "file" and learn more. I don't mean to sound like a mean spirit, but I've read too many posts that attack certain people for sharing their info. Doctors may keep things from some people. However that I know is NOT the norm. Make your list of questions and take it to the doctor. Good luch with your appointment. Miriam

And you shouldn't attack the ones who are damaged or bothered by the info. No one has "attacked" her like you have me. And BTW, she didn't only tell us to "be seen" - she went much farther than that.

You know, some of us have trouble GETTING decent medical care. I tried for decades. As a result, I have a 20-year history of an "Anxiety and Panic Disorder" dx following me everywhere, and I don't blame myself that no MD will look beyond that. But believe me, I've been plenty tough for the 20 years people have been speaking to me the way you did here - perhaps, at my age and with my body as worn-down as it's become, I'm just exhausted.

I really didn't need this whole thing right now. This hurt. Bad.

Goodbye, everyone. My apologies for anything I've done to offend.

Take care,

Jen

[Miriam Poorman-Knox]

sorry

[RunnerGirl]

JLB / Jen:

If I could give you a big hug right now, I would. As I and others who have dealt with heart rhythm disturbances have posted to you before, we know how anxiety-provoking this symptom can be. But please re-read what I posted to you earlier. And read this from another thread:

{http://www.DINET.org]}showtopic=2624&view=findpost&p=24902

You've said you have already had an extensive medical work-up. TRUST what your doctors have told you - that you have a troublesome, quality-of-life-altering, LEGITIMATE condition - but not a life-threatening one. Don't let a reference to 'people dying from arrhythmias' sway you from the facts about your own personal case as told to you by your own, personal, knowledgeable doctors. Most docs really don't want to tell someone there's nothing wrong with them, or that their condition is not life-threatening, when, in fact, it is - if not because they are genuinely trying to help us, then at least because they don't want to get the pants sued off of them! :-) You see my point: Your doctor(s) have no interest in giving you false information, or hiding the truth from you.

Another point I'd like to make, as delicately as I can, is that people with POTS (or other forms of autonomic disturbances) can and DO often have co-existing medical conditions, including anxiety and/or panic disorder. I, in fact, have suffered from both. I happen to think one accentuates the other, and that a misfiring of the fight-or-flight system is at the root of both. I know I didn't CAUSE my ANS problems by worrying or being stressed. And neither did you. But I know my anxiety magnified my symptoms, which in turn magnified my anxiety - and so on and so on...

Jen, would you be willing to admit that treating the underlying anxiety caused by your (understandable) worry over your very real, very frightening physical symptoms and what they mean for your long-term prognosis could perhaps help you feel better physically and mentally, giving you more strength to cope with your ANS troubles? This would be a good first step. I fear you feel you are caught between a rock and a hard place - afraid to admit you need to treat your anxiety for fear it will be tantamount to admitting there is nothing else wrong with you. Please don't let this fear keep you from getting the help you need. I needlessly suffered for a number of months because I refused to treat my 'anxiety' - which I believe was mostly a symptom of my ANS troubles - because I KNEW I had something else going on. Not 'just anxiety.' So, great. When I finally got to an EP and a hypertension expert who knew about ANS troubles, they said, yeah, you've got something else going on - can't chalk this up to 'just anxiety'. But we treat it by treating the symptoms. What were my symptoms? Anxiety, a hair-trigger heart rate and irregular beats galore, and spikes in my BP. What was the treatment? Beta blockers, SSRIs and benzos - the same things used to treat anxiety! I felt validated, but also a bit stupid. I prolonged my suffering to make a point - but to whom? I don't know.

Anyway, pardon the ramble, but your posts sound so full of despair and I really, REALLY felt the need to reach out to you. I was there, Jen, right where you are. And I made it through that period and today live a mostly normal life. Actually, I live a BETTER than normal life - I live an extraordinary life. Not entirely free from skipped beats or tachycardia or anxiety - but I'm no longer preoccupied or paralyzed by it. You can get there, too.

Best to you,

RunnerGirl

[Michelle Sawicki]

I'm locking this topic to avoid any more hurt feelings. Please note that I have read much of the published literature on POTS and everything says the associated arrhythmias are considered benign (not life-threatening). However, you should always consult a physician if you are experiencing arrhythmias.

Michelle Sawicki