Wellness

[RedTop]

My 25 year old nephew has anxiety attacks; they started 4 years ago, and it seems he is always having to come home early from work, or going to the doctor for his anxiety. My nephew is an extremely smart, but very sensitive young man, and an only child who has a lot of pressure on him to be successful and independent. He also has a helicopter mother who has babied and protected this boy since he was born. My nephew talked to me recently about his anxiety attacks, and based on everything he said to me, I looked at him and told him "to grow up". My nephew hangs onto every word that everyone says to him; he over analyzes absolutely everything that affects him, and he does not get over his struggles and move forward with his life, because as he said, "he gets hung up". Pure and simple, I think my nephew has created his own anxiety, and that he seems to enjoy wallowing in it. It has been 3 weeks since our talk, and my nephew has not had an attack, no coming home early from work, and he has made another big decision in his life that I find very encouraging. I am anxious to see where he can go from here.

For those of you who suffer from anxiety, I am sorry, and I hope you find solutions that work for you. My post is based only on my nephews situation, and the conversation I had with him. There is no hidden meaning here that is meant to reflect on anyone else's personal situation.

[paie]

Had this problem too.....more people have this than you think. You are not alone! I never took meds. But not opposed to them. I stopped all caffeine and that seemed to help. Someone had suggested singing a song really loud to drown out the bad thoughts during an attack...that has worked many times for me. Seems to get better as you get older....at least it did for me. Take care....

[ahoymate]

How much caffeine is in your diet? Caffeine is a contributor to anxiety attacks.

[aydinsgma]

I really enjoy reading these comments. I have been humiliated, yelled at by my husband and to,d "it's just all in your head, I had one panic attack and told myself never again" by my mother.I feel a support system is vital and something I have never had.

[aydinsgma]

I really enjoy reading these comments. I have been humiliated, yelled at by my husband and to,d "it's just all in your head, I had one panic attack and told myself never again" by my mother.I feel a support system is vital and something I have never had.

[NickelEmily]

If you are looking for a holistic approach, you may want to try meditation or breathing exercises. If you are interested, Potentials Unlimited has a great tape on relieving anxiety and stress. It's a combo of subliminal in music and self hypnosis. It was given to me by my sister years ago. I swear by it and listen to.the subliminal music at work and the self hypnosis before bed.

[Moon Child]

In addition to the other good advice you have received and your doctors' input, I would strongly advise you to add a nutritional approach. Certainly cut back the caffeine. AND add green leafy veggies! Since I began green smoothies everyday my anxiety attacks have been eliminated. Once I skipped a weekend and I started feeling anxiety by Sunday evening. I have read other green smoothie advocates' claims that it uplifts their mood so it's not just me. Thankfully I do not find the need for any meds. And I think exercise is very important too however I struggle with that. Good luck to you.

[cutesky]

Ask your Dr. for some Atenolol. It works for me. Actors use it to prevent anxiety attacks before a performance. It's actually a blood pressure med, but it works for anxiety attacks. It will give you a new lease on life.

[Sunshine]

I understand how awful you feel as I've had panic attacks off and on for many years. Prozac works well for me. I take 20 mgs. Xanax works great too, but my Drs. don't like prescribing it. Before I started on anti-depressants, I would wake up feeling anxious. It was awful. There were times that I couldn't leave the house b/c of Agoraphobia. I went to a shrink for awhile. I never wanted to take anti-depressants either, but I was desperate to feel better. I hope you find something to make you feel better. Oh, and I do deep breathing and meditation. They seem to help too.

[LilacTree]

I don't know what prescription drug you are on (probably an antidepressant, which does nothing for anxiety).

If I may, I would like to suggest Xanax (alprazolam is the generic). You could do well on a very low dose, and there are no side effects as long as you monitor yourself and never increase the dosage without consulting your doctor.

IMO, nothing cures anxiety and panic attacks more efficiently and faster. It's an old med, and it's cheap, so doctors rarely prescribe it anymore . . . plus it is used on the street combined with other bad drugs, which is another reason doctors don't like to prescribe it. Obviously you wouldn't be doing that.