Fear of panic attacks destroying my life.

Hi , Im 19 years old , I had my first panic attack 1 and a half years ago , I have not had one since but I constantly live in fear of having another one! a couple of weeks after my PA I started to worry loads about getting another , it came to a point where I couldn't go into a shop without feeling sick , It took me about 2 months to fix this problem , I grew from it I faced my fears and I dealt with it ,
I feel so alone , I have read the forum and have seen a lot of people like me but because I don't know them in 'real life' I will always feel alone.
I'm so lost and don't know what to do anymore.
Anyone help me?

YOUR POST EDITED FOR CONTENT OF WHICH IS AGAINST HW RULES..1 and 2
lyn

Post Edited By Moderator (Howlyncat) : 7/11/2010 7:44:55 AM (GMT-6)

yes i can try n help if you give me a chance

Post Edited By Moderator (Howlyncat) : 7/11/2010 8:01:27 AM (GMT-6)

Thank you kitt , But it can't be as easy as that? I don't even know how to let go of it , I have lived with this fear for so long Its become a part of me..

Howlyn like I said I have stopped its been 3months now..I understand that you had to edit the post no worrys , therapy? I really don't want to be put on meds , I don't believe its a good idea , they just make you avoid the problem.

Whosaid,
When I was 17, I had my first panic attack, in the middle of the night. It woke me from my sleep. To make a looooong story short, I am now going on 46 and am on disability. I did not know there was help out there. I really didn't!!! If I had known and gotten help back then, perhaps my life would've turned out differently...I'll never know for sure. I am telling you from my own hard won experience: SEEK HELP. Just because you go to a therapist does not mean that you'll have to get on drugs. No one can make you take anything that you don't wish to. You also need to have a thorough medical check up. Thyroid problems and other physical problems can cause panic attacks. It would be good to rule these out. Yes, go to the doctor and hold nothing back. He/she needs to know the full scope to help you best.
It is good that you faced down your fear, but it is still lingering there. Maybe it will always do so. Maybe not. Your chances are better if you intercede while you're young. I ended up avoiding so many things that now I'm severely limited. Beleieve me, you don't want to make my mistakes.
A book that helped me was "Hope and Help for Your Nerves" by Dr. Claire Weekes. You can find it cheap online or maybe even at your library. I wish I'd had it when I was young.
I wish you the very best.
Keep posting!
janet

I can relate to the anticipation of the next attack thing. I had my first real panic attack in May 2009, thought I was dying, went to the ER, etc. Since then I had been improving gradually and slowly... but making progress nonetheless. Then three weeks ago I had an attack that lasted for two hours. I was crawling along the sidewalk 90 minutes from home and while plenty of people stared, nobody offered to help or ask if I was OK.

Since then I've lost faith in the safety of the world. I no longer feel like I can trust that in an emergency you can depend on the people around you. Now I'm afraid to be alone and very anxious about leaving the house. What began as anxiety became panic and now is moving towards agoraphobia. In the last several weeks I've been sitting around, ruminating, worrying constantly about the next attack. When will it happen? How bad will it be? Will I be strong enough to survive this one? When will I feel safe again? I thought I was doing so well and then this two hour thing happened.... It's really hard to stay encouraged.