My first was about 10 years ago. Went to the ER thinking I was having a heart attack. Have you ever had one? It’s not fun at all and like a runaway train.

Cannot say that I have, or at least never thought I had one.

Find the root cause of the issue.

There's not necessarily a root cause. Discussed with my doc years ago. It's one of the things he reviews in my annual. It's embarrassing to discuss. I was not going to post about them until I saw something that made me want to share. There's no need to be embarrassed. More people have them that you might think.

They are allegedly brought on by a number of things but often stress. I learned to short-circuit them using relaxation techniques. Didn't want medication.

There are triggers that still pop up every now and then but I'm able to manage. It has been about 3+ years since the last one. It can go for many weeks or months without any signs. They can sneak up on you.

For those that have not had one, there is this general attitude you can just "tough it out" but that isn't the deal. It helps to recognize what it is. The panic can send your blood pressure up and then you really don't feel well. A lot of stuff can trigger it, going broke with no way out, nagging wife, screaming kids, dead end job, dog barking all night.

My heart is starting to race for no reason, more frequently. Hell, last night it was when I was laying down, no stress that I know of. It went away as quickly as it came on. Although, I did learn yesterday that both of my nieces are moving back to Texas. They were raised to believe their uncle (yours truly) exists as their "step-and-fetch-it". They...want...things. It's what they do. I just recently got that side of the family to move out from living in my head. (Their father, my brother, died.)

You've shared this much - share some of your relaxation techniques. Martinis and cigars are beginning to take their toll.

Mine first of two was about 14 years ago. I was working in some high pressure oilfield sales and crude was in the crapper. I went to the ER as a 26 year old thinking I was having a heart attack. I was terribly out of shape at the time and my cholesterol and blood pressure were out of whack. That combined with the stress was what caused it. The second and last one (to date) was on an airplane after a heavy weekend of drinking/fishing. The A/C went out right about at take-off, and I was in a bad way. It was a 80 minute flight from Port A to Midland, and I sincerely thought I was going to die on that plane.

Shortly thereafter, I started getting in better shape, got off the BP and Cholesterol meds, and I haven't had one since. They are pretty dang scary if you don't know what they are.

When I feel one coming on I try to immediately change the scenery and what I am doing. Like go outside (preferably) or to another room. Then do something different, fun with tools, tools, gardening, play with dog, cleaning, straighten up, etc. Make sure you breath deeply. Then after doing the "short-circuit" as I call it, if possible, then go lay down, or relax in a quiet place, and think of something fun or funny, for awhile.

If I let the trigger snowball, it's like a runaway diesel engine, with no control until it burns out.

I like beer and booze. But I don't believe it helps with this.

Creekrunner, you might want to get an ECG to check for afib. I didn't have it a year ago, but now I do.

Yep, stress induced. Seemed to happen more at night for me. The wait for daylight was long. Been a while since I had a full-blown attack, but I do get "mini" attacks once in a while. Now heights are a problem, even tall roadways. And don't even ask about planes, elevators and MRI tubes!

I've dealt with this some in the past. Luckily no longer, because I know the causes and what to expect. From people I've talked to and my own experience, there's always a root cause. For me, it was when I was stressed and physically unwell. That usually happened because I got stressed, drank in the evenings to try and alleviate the stress, then I'd feel crappy the next day. Sleep is off, stress goes up, and add in tiredness/hangover, then the panic attack ensues.

If you haven't had one, you can't understand what it's like. One of the worst feelings in the world. The things that helped me in those moments, was to talk to someone about it while it was happening. Something about describing what I was experiencing helped me out quite a bit. I needed to be careful with who I shared with though. People who don't understand anxiety can make things worse by responding with the "eh, you're fine, tough it out" approach or by overreacting and adding anxiety to the situation. Neither approach is beneficial. Helps to have someone that's been through it.

If I'm taking care of myself (eating decently, getting good sleep, not over-indulging) and mitigating the stress in my life, it's not longer an issue. Exercise also helps immensely. If it does pop up though, you learn ways to cope and that feeling doesn't freak you out quite as much.

Luckily my faith is stronger now, which in turn reduces my stress. Relying on God lifts the burden (Matthew 11:28-30). I also don't drink like I used to; alcohol exponentially increases anxiety in my case.

As for medication, I shared this with my doc back in the day, and he prescribed me a few 'emergency Xanax'. In case of a panic attack. Turns out I didn't actually need to use it, but having that parachute available to me actually helped with the anxiety.

No one that doesn't know me well, could guess that I've dealt with anxiety/panic attacks. I'm a very calm, laid-back, even-keeled person. A lot of people struggle with this and are just afraid to talk about it.

In my opinion, people's brains are asked to handle too much these days, hence the medication and panic attacks. Back in the day (pre-internet/cellphones?), life was simpler. Technology didn't follow everyone everywhere and people worked with their hands. I'd venture to guess that no one ever had a panic attack after a long day working in the fields; at least I never do.

Sorry for the long post; Hope something in there helps somebody!

I had them until I started taking an SSRI. sometimes you can't get away from the things that cause you the stress.

Yes I can catch most of the time before in spirals into full blown attack.
Been to the E.R. three times and was told panic attack.
Alcohol seems to trigger it when in excess "hungover"
Thinking about driving some places are a trigger.
Just having my bottle of Lorazapan brings comfort.

Both my parents were worriers. Dad basically worked himself into a mild heart attack around 56. (Extremely rarely drank at all and was fairly physically active.) Then, he had a bad reaction to Valium and proceeded to have a full-blown nervous breakdown. (I have ZERO stressors compared to the weight this man carried on his shoulders.) As a 14-year-old boy, it, of course, freaked me the hell out. Dad flushed the Valium down the toilet. Mom got out the Bible and we read from it every evening before supper. (She could come through when she absolutely had to, otherwise, the men were supposed to handle things. ) Over time, he got his confidence back and returned to work, fearless as a tiger. I'm 62 now and the old physical body is starting to break down. I have very little mental stress whatsoever. 'Course, I think being half-insane helps a lot with that.

Treated (counseled) literally hundreds of people that have called 9-1-1 for them. It comes in as chest pain. But when we learn of dizziness, head ache, and hand cramps we know what it is. The hyperventilation removes too much CO2 from the body (yes you are supposed to have some) that's what causes the physical symptoms.

Slow, deep breaths is the only solve. Seen plenty of people with SpO2 98-100% but CO2 below 30. That's the problem. Normal respiratory rate for an adult at rest is 12 to 20 per minute. We've had people take a deep breath, hold it, let it out, repeat. Fixed em right up. You can't control your heart rate, but you can control your respiratory rate.

I have never had one, but my ex girlfriend did. She got the mandated covid shot for work, and then got covid soon after. She was sick, coughing and having hot/cold spells. I did my best to comfort/take care or her and then all of a sudden she just started shaking uncontrollably and was struggling to breath. She said she needed her meds for ADD, so I got her some water and she took her pills. Then it got worse. I was about to scoop her up and run to the ER. Her whole body was shaking like crazy and was struggling to breath. I've never seen anything like it outside of electrocution. She finally calmed down, but that was a wild hour. She is on meds for anxiety and ADD. I don't know if that happened because she was off her meds (she was) or what. We figured it was a panic attack, she explained that she has had a few in the past. Scared me.

I've never experienced this but I'm curious if caffeine or sugar have anything to do with this? More specifically, Monster, RedBull energy drinks and the like. I tried a Monster drink once and felt wound up tighter than a $3 watch until it wore off.

That's just overstimulation. A true panic attack is a million times worse. Hard to explain.

Doubt it. I’ve had a few and they all happened a day or two after having a fun weekend where a lot of drinking took place. Went to the hospital twice thinking I was dying.

Had my first one about a month ago. Up until that point, thought they were complete BS and just a crutch for ppl to lean on who felt "overwhelmed"

I ran into a stretch of 3 days with little to no sleep and the last day being a lot of driving and outdoor physical labor with a single day round trip to the lease. Got home everything was just fine. Tried to go to bed that night and could not go to sleep. Heart was beating out of my chest. Tried to relax and calm myself down...heart continued to beat out of my chest and now felt some flutters. Tried to lay down again and now my left shoulder starts a dull aching pain in addition to my heart stuff.

Tell the wife im driving to the ER and on the way there i now have pain in my should and in my left arm. Getting more worried almost to the hospital and now feels like someone is stabbing me with a hot knife through my chest. Honestly, did not think i was going to make the 7-10 min trip to the ER w/o dying. Made it to the parking lot, didnt even find a spot just left the truck somewhere in the middle and went inside. No heart attack everything was 100% normal i guess except the old brain.

My panic situations are caused by being in a place I care not to be. Jury duty, funerals, unwanted class and family reunions. After a good sweat..... deep breathing and getting my mind occupied usually sends them away.

Not really panic attacks, but my whole life I have had to leave any room where some idiot DEMANDS attention. I believe "attention whore" is the technical term. I'm not talking about a scheduled presenter/speaker or anything like that, but someone that thinks they're the "cat's meow" in some amateur talent and tries to "take over" the room. It kinda feels like a panic attack. I have to get outta there.

Once in a men's Bible study when this pompous guy (that worked as a helicopter mechanic on the "good" side of the fence in Vietnam, but he projected himself like he was a LURP) announced that all Native American tribes nursed they're children to 12 years old. (Cabeza DeVaca witnessed bizarre nursing in Texas, during a famine/drought.) Another time was at the Big Bend music festival and some church friend's kids, who had played at the event, were casually jamming in the Holiday Inn Express breakfast room (Alpine) and this woman, who wasn't good enough to be in the festival, first asked to join in, then tried to perform a concert. There's been a few other times when someone is obviously not right in the head and is starved for attention. It feels like I can't breathe, and I refuse to give them my attention. I have to get out of the room. I can't stand it when someone is so wrong and they announce they're completely erroneous "fact" with complete confidence. Kinda like Cliff on Cheers. I'm sure there is a tie-in to my compulsion to correct spelling or grammar on here, although I make plenty of mistakes myself.

Interesting. I knew deep breathing helped, but didn't know why

I learned recently that fitness doesn't matter when it comes to panic/anxiety attacks. I'm an extremely fit 30 year old and had 2 within a span of 3 days. The second one was so bad I called 911 and had fire and ems at the house. I tried what JG suggested before calling and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't stop what I was feeling. The back of my head was tingling, I felt like I couldn't swallow and the back of my throat was very tight, legs were shaking, pain in my left shoulder and arm. All things that make you worry more and freak you out more. Ems ran an ekg and checked all my vitals. I told them I didn't want to go to the ER unless they thought it was absolutely necessary. Explained that I lift hard 6 days a week, eat an incredibly clean and healthy diet, don't smoke and hardly drink but that I was running on very little sleep and stressed from a lot going on with work and life. They said those factors likely triggered an anxiety attack.

Since then, I've started taking ashwaganda daily. It could totally be a placebo, but I've noticed a substantial difference, and absolutely no negative side effects whatsoever. Consider reading up on it if you haven't. Might be worth a try.

Old Alcoholic's called it The Horror's! Alcohol withdrawal plays hell on the mind and body just kind of short circuits everything, the hangover that won't go away. Well there's one way to make it go away. at least for a while.