Thought I was going to pass out

Hi A.A. I had my first ever panic attack in church! Ironic isn't it? The place that should make you feel safe and calm...but that is the nature of p/a's, they come out of nowhere.

I couldn't understand why I would have these terrifying episodes, not during times of stress or overwhelming situations, but just sitting at home, or doing ordinary daily tasks.

Mornings can be prime time for a reason though. Our bodies are experiencing the highest levels of cortisol in the a.m., setting us up for panic, if we are prone to it. Cortisol, a stress hormone, is not necessarily bad (unless it's produced in excess, or we're sensitive to it) it actually is essential to get us up and moving after sleep. It can for A/P sufferers be a trigger though, and that's probably what got you this morning.

Once I learned this, I was able to get a handle on the p/a's in the morning by breathing, and saying the mantra "I'm okay, this is just extra cortisol that I am reacting to...it will pass."

I hope that this helps, and that the rest of your day is calm and relaxing. Do your breathing/relaxation exercises, and go for a nice walk if you can:)

Take care,
Scaredy Cay

Don't mean to hijack the thread but, Kitt, can pain cause a person to faint? Because that happened to me not long ago. Well I wasn't completely "out", but I collapsed and was extremely dizzy. The pain was severe and was causing me a great deal of stress, so I'm wondering if it was that or my body was just trying to shut down or something.

debaser,

Good Morning.  To answer your question to the best of my knowledge,  fainting can also be related to fear, severe pain, or emotional distress.

A sudden drop in blood pressure can cause you to faint. Your blood pressure may drop suddenly if you are bleeding or severely dehydrated. It can also happen if you stand up very suddenly from a lying position.

Certain medications may lead to fainting by causing a drop in your blood pressure or for another reason. Common drugs that contribute to fainting include those used for anxiety, high blood pressure, nasal congestion, and allergies.

Take care and hope you are doing well.

Kindly,

Kitt

 

I've been fighting fainting 3 times today so far and it's only 1:45.  I do take a bp med, about  3 months now, but I have wildly fluctuating bp.

First thing I try is to lay down and elevate my legs. This usually works but you have to stay down a while.

Another thing I try is to run. Yep, up and down the hall to get the blood moving faster. This works too but it's easier to just lay down.