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anyone have overwhelming anxiety?

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Posted 10/14/2008 2:55 AM (GMT 0)
My anxiety is off the charts sometimes.  It's been much worse since my Fibro flared up 7 months ago.  I'm wondering if there is a connection between them?  I feel like my adrenalin is rushing through me all the time.  It's exhausting. Thanks in advance for any insight!

 

Ginny

Posted 10/14/2008 12:25 PM (GMT 0)
I totally think there is a connection. it is like a vicious circle. the more anxiety you have, the more you flare, the more you flare, the more anxiety you have.

I have post traumatic stress. I lived with high anxiety and panic attacks most of my life. I became sick w/ FMS after an armed robbery, but I had had PTSD since I was a child. a few years after the FMS dx, I finally went into intensive therapy for the PTSD. as I slowly recovered, my health improved. it took therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy and meds, and a commitment to sticking with it all, no matter how hard it was. I don't live with daily anxiety anymore, and that has been about the best thing I have ever done for my FMS. better then any pill or other kind of "cure". I believe, because of the high state of anxiety I was in that I was in a kind of constant flare the first 3-4 yrs of my dx. now I have good days, lots of them, and I really believe it is because most of the anxiety is gone.

I still on occasion feel anxiety and panic attacks and it always affects my fms. always. and never in a good way.

I hope your day today has less anxiety ginny! that IS an exhausting way to live!

big hugs,
kellie
Posted 10/14/2008 4:24 PM (GMT 0)
Ginny, anxiety and panic attacks were the beginning of all this for me. Anxiety is one of the symptoms of fibro. I still deal with anxiety. I feel like my nervous system does not process things normally. I startle very easily. I don't respond normally to emotions.

 

After 10 yrs of dealing with it I can figure out most of the time what is causing anxiety by self analyses. If it is something I have control over I can fix it. I do think I will be on meds the rest of my life for it. For me it is hereditary. It is a horrible thing to live with but we can help ourselves to overcome it as much as we can. I have not gone through intense therapy, I wish I had years ago when it first started. I guess it's never too late and I hope you do get help.

 

The busier I am the better I am. Mine has never been social anxiety and when I'm with people I have no problems. It's when I'm alone and my thoughts get the best of me or I'm in a situation where I don't feel like I'm in control.

 

Kellie, I'm so glad you got help and are doing much better.

 

My heart goes out to all that deal with anxiety.

 

luv and hugs

Marlee

Posted 10/14/2008 8:41 PM (GMT 0)
Ginny

 

I have had panic disorder for many many years.  I have health anxiety.  It had gotten real bad in the past 2 years.  Funny thing tho, I am the opposit of you...as soon as I found out it was Fibro I had, the anxirty has all but disappeared :-)   I guess where it is health anxiety I have when I found out what was wrong it calmed down.  Til the next twinge  of pain that I can't explain away anyways.

 

But, I do not take meds for it.  I have learned over the years how to control the obsessive thinking and talk myself out of a panic attack.  The thought of being on meds scares the heck out of me...(part of the health anxiety)..I told my husband, I could NEVER abuse meds cause I am too sared to ever take them.  When I get a new med, it takes me 3-4 days to talk myself into tking them.  I won't even take Motrin anymore cause there was a new warning on them about heart attacks.  I can never read the warning packets of any meds.  I have someone else do it and then they will tell me ONLY what I need to hear...LOL

 

Ok...I'm rambling...sorry...but as Marlee said Anxiety is a symptom of fibro(makes me wonder if I had had fibro for years???) so that is probably what it is.  Are there any other stressors in your life right now that may be contributing to the anxiety?

 

~Missy~

Posted 10/14/2008 10:25 PM (GMT 0)
I def have anxiety problems. I have called 911 and made them send an ambulence during a panic attack once ( how embarrasing) I tend to have months at a time with no problems at all...and then all of a sudden I have a week where I can't sit through class becuase of it. this summer I started getting it everytime I ate in a restaurant, about 3/4 of the way through the meal, and would have to go outside and sit in the car. Anxiety def. runs in my family my mom took meds for it for a while- she also has fibro. so I def think there is a link there.
thank god for my husband who is usually around and can help talk me through an attack when I get one.
Posted 10/14/2008 11:53 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks everyone for responding on this.  Seems to be #1 on my list of "this is crap, and I don't like feeling this way".

 

I saw my primary just now.  Told him my symptoms, etc, etc.  I am pretty sure I have PTSD from the "near death" medication allergy I had in the summer of '07.  Lots of flash backs, anxiety, panic, overly sensitive to noises, etc, bad, bad nightmares.  The allergy, along with my fibro is a bad combo.

 

He wants me to go to counselling.  Which is great.  I want that.  He also prescribed Zoloft.  So I'll start taking it too.  I need help.  This is bad, and he knows it. 

 

If I can get the anxiety under control, maybe, just maybe, my fibro will calm down too. 

 

Blessings,

Ginny

Posted 10/15/2008 2:08 PM (GMT 0)

Hi ginny-

I know your world well. I suffered with anxiety for years. We lack certain chemicals in our brain and once you start an anti-depressant it will balance them out and take the anxiety away.

I did counseling in my 20's too and that did help because I was too afraid to take pills. Not anymore! I do not want to ever go through horrible anxiety and depression ever again! This last bout of depression made me realize that I am going to stay on anti-depressants the rest of my life-

I take Zoloft and it agrees with me. I feel normal. (Well as normal as you can with fibro). It took about 2 weeks to notice it was working.

Let us know how you are doing. GamJill 

Posted 10/15/2008 10:18 PM (GMT 0)
heck ya i have anxiety major.. usually in crowds and crowded spaces...
Posted 10/15/2008 10:55 PM (GMT 0)
I stopped panic attacks by learning what happens during a panic attack. Certain situations or thoughts cause your body to release the fight or flight hormones which cause physical feelings (heart racing, throat constriction etc) that causes fear which releases more hormones and more physical feelings until your in an all out panic attack. So when I would start to have one I would tell myself "it's just a physical feeling". I would keep repeating that until it would go away and for years now I haven't even had one.

 

Now for general anxiety I haven't had as much luck but I keep working on it.

 

luv and hugs

Marlee

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