Monthly Archives: January 2013

I’m no stranger to panic attacks. I was officially diagnosed with having them in 2005, but I know that I had some prior to that.

My diagnosis came after I was in the emergency room for not being able to catch my breath and having fuzzy vision. I had just been fired from a job that I was enjoying. I got in trouble at that job for something that I didn’t do, and once that was proven, my boss fired me for a stupid reason to get me out of there. I was so upset because I didn’t do anything wrong, and my family was out of the country so I couldn’t talk to them, and I got myself so upset I had an attack.

After that first attack, I was given medication (Klonopin) that has almost always helped me. I’ve been the emergency room a total of 3 times (including that first time) for attacks because the medicine wasn’t working the way I feel it should. But normally, my attacks are very mild. And fortunately for me, almost all of my attacks come from a predictable situation (flying and the dentist).

But for some reason, on Friday night, I had one of the worst panic attacks I’ve ever had.

It started pretty simple. My rib cage was feeling tight. That can mean heartburn or a gallbladder issue normally, so I wasn’t worried. I took an antacid and sat on my couch to wait for it to take effect.

It didn’t do anything and I started to sweat like crazy. Then I started to hyperventilate and I was terrified. I don’t ever recall having a panic attack like this, and I freaked out. I thought I might be dying. And then I did the worst thing you could do when you are freaking out about symptoms.

I googled it.

And google said that I was having a heart attack. I know that I’m overweight, but my heart is in great condition. So I had to keep telling myself that I wasn’t having a heart attack. I took some Klonopin and hoped for the best.

By this point, I had had my symptoms for about 15 minutes and was getting light-headed from the hyperventilating. I decided to lay down on my bed because if I was going to faint, I wanted to be somewhere safe.

I debated about calling a friend to take me to the emergency room (or to call an ambulance), but I don’t have the same insurance that I did when I was first diagnosed. In the past, all medical things were free (never had to pay for my hip surgery or any trip to the ER). But now, I know that a visit to the ER would be $500, and I don’t even want to think what an ambulance would cost.

I think that I did pass out, because the next thing I remember was my symptoms were going away and it was about an hour after the start of them.

I have no idea what caused this panic attack, but it was a reminder of how lucky I am to have mild attacks most of the time.

Why am I putting this out here? Why not. I talk about everything else in my life, so why not this. And I’m saying all the not so fun details about it because maybe I can help someone out there not feel so alone with similar symptoms.

If you do have panic attacks like this, I highly recommend seeing a therapist. I did, and that’s how I’ve kept my attacks at bay most of the time. Medication is something great for emergencies, but I don’t want to have to depend on it every day.

Here’s to hoping that the rest of my week is slightly less dramatic!

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One Bad Hour (or Hating Panic Attacks And My Gallbladder) Stopping A Panic Attack (or Only One Health Issue At A Time) Less Panic At The Dentist (or Am I Finally Over This?) Surviving The Dentist (or Testing My Panic Meds) Another Year Another Dentist Panic (or One Medications Overriding Another) Working Through General Panic Issues (or Dealing With Lack Of Control)