Hello.

Hi everybody, I am new to this board and have been just reading posts for the past week but I have decided to register and post. I am 19 years old and have been dealing with a lot of stress recently.
about a month ago I had what I believe was my first panic attack. I was with 2 of my friends at someone else's house who I had just met. She had 2 of her friends there. Now I was pretty uncomfortable and I excluded myself from the group and was staring out of the window when out of nowhere I felt a sharp pain in my chest and my heart started racing. I got stuck inside my head and thought I could just drop down and die right there. I felt the urge to use the bathroom but I didn't in fear that I actually might die and I didn't want to be up there alone just in case something did happen. I was very close to calling 911.
I went to my doctor a couple days after because the chest pain had pretty much stuck around albeit very dull and I couldn't help but feel anxious and worried about my heart. I had an EKG done and an echocardiogram done about a week later (The other hospital wanted me to wait a month before they could get me in, which I couldn't bear to wait that long and thought it was absurd because what if I seriously had a problem?) and the results came back fine for both of these.
The doctor prescribed me 15 .5mg Xanax to take as needed when I have panic attacks, which have subsequently been happening since. The Xanax seems to help and while I'm on it I don't seem to worry and the problems I have subside.
Now the panic attacks haven't really been a problem for me anymore and I can generally stop them by myself. I just get the racing heart and fear, no chest tightness or sharp pain at this point and that's about all they come to.
Now my worry is still that I have some sort of health problem because sometimes the chest pain comes back and other times it's pain in my left arm. Occasionally I just get a few seconds of discomfort or slight pain in other random places such as my back and today in my left leg around my thigh area. I also think I felt a few palpitations when I was feeling my heart beat earlier (which I can't stop myself from doing because I'm so worried). The pain doesn't get worse when I exert myself, but I'm afraid to push myself too hard. Most of the times there is no pain compared to the constant pain that I had before I went to the doctor and had the tests done. I feel that I'm improving but I still can't help but check my pulse or feel my heart beat pretty often which I'm sure doesn't help if it is all anxiety and panic. Also the Xanax seeming to be helpful makes me feel more assured that it is.
Now I don't know what I'm really asking here but I just kind of want to hear somebody can relate or that I am alright. I haven't felt like myself over the last month and I just want some solace. Towards the beginning of all this I felt some derealization but not so much anymore. I go back to the doctor in 5 days, but I just wish I could be there while a panic attack or something was occurring so that I could be re-assured that's exactly what it is.
Thank you to anybody who read all of this I really appreciate it.

Hi Xx and welcome.

I am sorry to hear of your anxiety/panic issues and the fears ans doublts that are a resulting.

It is common for healthe worries to linger, even after we have been told that everything is fine physically. It is just hard to wrap one's head around the idea that anxiety can make us feel so many symptoms.

We have had so many posts similar to yours....so know that you are not alone.

I am glad that you got checked out by doctors/tests and all is well...now you can concentrate on managing the anxiety.

We have an awesome self-help Resource Guide here on our main page. (1st post) In it you will find all kinds of great ideas on how to keep your anxiety levels down. There are video links to relaxation/meditation breathing exercises, ect...if done everyday these can signicantly lower anxiety. There are also book recommendations, on-line therapy and informative articles.

Using these resources may help you to get where you want to be in your recovery...however if you still feel that you would like to see more improvement, I can recommend therapy as another treatment option.

I myself did a combination of self-help and therapy and found it to be the right decision for dealing with my A/P.

Keep posting here as well. It is very healing to just talk with others who understand what you are going through. We are here to listen and support anytime!

Talk to you soon,

Scaredy Cat

Does anybody else get the pain in their leg? Like mine is under on the inner thigh. It seems once I get over one symptom it pretty much fades away and something new takes it's place... These pains always go away eventually but come back; It's somewhat reassuring that they don't stick around constantly. The pain in my leg came back while I was out to eat with my dad and grandparents and I began to feel trapped sitting in the inside of the booth luckily I can control the panic at this point otherwise I would have had another attack then and there I'm sure.

Anxiety can cause pain in diff parts of the body, especially when you're new to this anxiety cycle made worse by experiencing the dreaded "panic attack'. It will become less frequent once you've found a way to manage your stress/anxiety levels. Glad you can somehow control the panic. Just a reminder, panic attacks will not kill you. From your first panic you may experience more panic attacks but if you'll fear it less whenever it is happening, it's symptoms will eventually subside on it's own and will not last long. There are also out-of-the-blue panic attacks which will make you think there'a really something serious going on with you. Don't self-diagnose yourself using google as it can turn you to a hypochondriac like it did to me. Hope you feel better now and not to develop severe anxiety.