“Charles Darwin probably had an anxiety disorder. It has been argued that he most likely suffered from panic disorder with agoraphobia. He described his illness as a "sensation of fear....accompanied by troubled beating of the heart,sweat,trembling of muscles." ”
I am in my third year of being a "survivor." I found this website shortly after I went to the emergency room with the terrifying experience of my first panic attack. I posted my story then...Now, almost 3 years later, I'm realizing that I'm not alone and not ashamed of my condition.
Hello there! I began having panic attacks in 1971 at the ripe old age of twenty one. At that time the term "panic attack" or "panic disorder" wasn't around that I know of. My story is very long but I will try and bottom line it with the most important details.
I am a depression and anxiety/panic survivor. After going through thousands of dollars of tests from cardiac to intestinal I FINALLY found a doctor who diagnosed me with depression with anxiety and panic disorder. She told me that depression is not a mental disease, but is rather a medical, chemical disorder of the brain that is treatable.
Posted by: RedbeardNC on Wednesday, August 08, 2007
I am a 34 year old male, about 225 pounds, in decent but not the best shape. I suffered my first panic attack at age 23 - I didn't know what it was then. I was a music teacher who was invited (translated: set up for disaster) to conduct a supposedly-all-arranged community orchestra for an upcoming musical, and at the first rehearsal only two musicians showed up.
When I first started with my panic attacks, I was in grade 5. The first memory that comes to mind when I’m asked about my very first attacks in when I was watching Titanic with my parents. My parents insist it was a different time, but that is the first time I can remember. Watching the characters on Titanic die triggered something, and I snuggled up to my mom, scared to death that she was going to die.
I was 29 when I had my first and only child. She was born in October a totally beautiful and healthy baby. We started construction on our new home in November and were scheduled to move in Feburary. I should have been on top of the world. A beautiful new baby and new house. However, the night before we moved, I had my first panic attack. I was lying in bed and all of a sudden, for no reason what so ever, my heart started jumping out of my chest. I was trembling uncontrollably and could feel my pulse actually below my sternum where my aorta would be and I thought, "I'd better get to the emergency room, NOW." I thought I was having a heart attack or an aortic anurism. After a full night in the ER and every test imaginable, they determined there was NOTHING wrong with me.
Another story on this site reminded me so much of myself that I felt compelled to share my experiences. I recently had a beautiful, healthy baby and felt so blessed. I have security, a loving spouse, and we are building a home right now. Life is great, right? Last summer, at breakfast, I noticed a sharp pain in my neck, followed by shortness of breath, racing heart, and blurred vision. I knew I was dying...what else could be happening to me?
