Major Anxiety - Head pressure, ears hurt, nauseous

Hello all,

I'm new to this board, and just want to know if there's anyone else out there going through what I am. I was taking Effexor for the last 4 years for anxiety/panic attacks, and decided to stop it this year as it was numbing me emotionally and causing too many unpleasant side effects. Once I got through the hellish withdrawal period, my anxiety has returned with a vengeance. I mostly seem to have issues with health anxiety. I have convinced myself I have several life threatening illnesses/cancers in the last week, and I do have several physical symptoms that are scaring me. My head feels full and intense pressure, my ears hurt a bit and I'm having fluttering noises in them, my stomach is nauseous, I cannot eat and am very bloated. My throat doesn't hurt per say but feels really sore and tense, and the pain im feeling is like its closed up or really tight and aches. Anyone else have any problems like this? I've scheduled a full physical for next week and am terrified of what they may find.

Hallo babyblue and welcome to HW. I am sorry you are having a rough time. You know your full physical next week could be just what you need. They will probably give you a clean bill of health and maybe put your mind at rest. How long have you been off the Effexor now? What dose were you on? What unpleasant side effects did you have? I am just curious as I am on Effexor (have been for nearly a year now). I get joint pain, sweating, weight gain and loss of libido!

I would suggest you see a counselor but definately talk to your doctor about this when you are there. Maybe you can figure out why you are so afraid and learn to control it. I hope you are feeling better soon.

Hello and Welcome I agree you need to address this with your doctor .......You have already got great input so I will just say that there is so much support and care on here that it is really unbelievable .....you will come to see this for yoursel as you post more often .....Take care and again Welcome ......

Babyblue,
I am new here as well. I do not have any trouble with anxiety and I guess I have been blessed by God with the patience to fight stressful issues with an open mind and stay on top. As a result, however, my loved ones and those I deal with in the business world every day rely on me heavily and I have found that the stress, though hidden well, became the most damaging thing to my body over the years. Though I am a strong and healthy person, I have had health issues which have arisen which I can trace back to a time or period of time where my mind was stressed and my health and immune system suffered due to acidic conditions in my body.
I am not suggesting that this is the same thing you are facing, but I must recommend Hypnotherapy. There are a few info pages on this site about it. I was amazed at my bodies ability to heal itself if I would get out of the way and let it. Many times the acidic conditions of our cells, which anyone will agree is the result of stress, become breeding grounds for viruses, bacterias, and even inhibits the ability of our bodies to accept and use the nutrients and minerals it so desprately needs causing them to pass on out of the body unused. Artificial sweetners (diet sodas) and processed preservatives are the most dangerous 'alkali resistant' food products which cause stress to increase and sometimes even contribute to weight gain. An Alkali-enrichment in your diet to reduce the anxiety symptoms and Hypnotherapy either by a professional or self-imposed should bring amazing results in the reduction of anxiety-enduced illness.

Babyblue,

Oh, I so know where you are right now, as I am smack in the middle of it too.  I've been having the severe bloating you mentioned, and that combined with a couple of not perfect results from a blood work up I had last week, has me in quite a tailspin.  I'm terrified of health issues and always imagine the worst.  The doctor's appointment you have will be good for you, hopefully it will put your mind at ease.  I finally called my doctor today and asked that she discuss my blood test results with me (I had received them in the mail and had not talked to anyone) and asked if any of this was something to be concerned about.  She told me that there is nothing there that she would waste a minute worrying over...The relief that washed over me was unbelievable.  Best of luck at your appointment, let us all know what you find out. 

Love,

Junebug05

Great input handsopen thanks
Welcome to Healing Well......
I too do the relaxation and brething techniques also an online (free CBT workbook)MoodGyms.TriningProgram
Again glad to have you aboard
Lyn