Messages From The Heartland

[David In Indy]

if I can find it!!

Brad!! You come do it too!

It's over in the Polling Place! I think we called it "News Quiz"

[Katie77]

Oh dear sweet David, I've had those panic attacks too, and I know how you feel when they are upon you, and I'm sorry you went through that again.

I had therapy years ago for depression and panic attacks, and was told DONT WATCH THE NEWS.....and I didn't...and it does help.

Also, try to watch comedy shows, light hearted shows on TV or movies. A good belly laugh creates endorphins and they help your body and mind feel better.

Treat yourself to something good, either a favourite food, or drink, or a chocolate, or something that makes you feel good.

Cuddle your pets, they say touching our pets is great therapy.

And most importantly, THINK POSITIVE.......concentrate on the positives in your life, and not the negatives.

And dont be frightened to talk about what is worrying you, sometimes when it comes out in the spoken words it doesnt seem as bad as it does when its tossing around in your mind....you have plenty of friends here who are good listeners, use us all you want.

Take care my friend......

[David In Indy]

Oh dear sweet David, I've had those panic attacks too, and I know how you feel when they are upon you, and I'm sorry you went through that again.

I had therapy years ago for depression and panic attacks, and was told DONT WATCH THE NEWS.....and I didn't...and it does help.

Also, try to watch comedy shows, light hearted shows on TV or movies. A good belly laugh creates endorphins and they help your body and mind feel better.

Treat yourself to something good, either a favourite food, or drink, or a chocolate, or something that makes you feel good.

Cuddle your pets, they say touching our pets is great therapy.

And most importantly, THINK POSITIVE.......concentrate on the positives in your life, and not the negatives.

And dont be frightened to talk about what is worrying you, sometimes when it comes out in the spoken words it doesnt seem as bad as it does when its tossing around in your mind....you have plenty of friends here who are good listeners, use us all you want.

Take care my friend......

Oh No!!! Not you too Sue!! You suffer from them as well?

I'm so sorry to hear about it honey! I hope you haven't had any of them recently.

Thanks so much for the tips! I appreciate it and I will remember what you told me. I just hope these things stop soon. I can't take much more of it.

{{{{{SUE}}}}}}

[Katie77]

You will be OK sweetie, YOU WILL BE......I know you will be. This WILL pass.....

YOU WILL FEEL GOOD AGAIN.....XXXXX.....{{{DAVID}}}}

[David In Indy]

You will be OK sweetie, YOU WILL BE......I know you will be. This WILL pass.....

YOU WILL FEEL GOOD AGAIN.....XXXXX.....{{{DAVID}}}}

I think I will feel better again soon too Sue. Thank you!

(((SUE)))

I just wonder though. Maybe I should allow these panic attacks to happen and get them out of my system? Or should I continue to fend them off like I did today?

Dr. Giles (his first name was David too!) was the doctor who first told me about them, but I don't remember him saying if I should fight the symptoms or allow them to just take their course. He gave me pills... three of them. Xanax, Restoril and Doxapin. But he no longer practices and since I've lost my job I don't have health insurance anymore. I wonder if I should allow the panic attacks to happen and get them out of my system? Or maybe they are doing great harm to my body? I really don't know.

I instinctively try to fight them off, but when I do they really don't feel like they went away. I just put them off temporarily, so to speak.

[Katie77]

David, I always find the best way to get it out of my system is to talk about what is going thru my mind. Just turn it into a verbal thing, no matter how mixed up it might seem.  Its when its bottled up inside you that it seems to grow and just get worse. You have to empty it out. If you have no one listen to you, then write it out, get on the computer and just write what is going through your head. It has to come out.

I am a believer in medication, because I am a believer that these things are caused when the chemicals in our brain get out of order, and we lose our logic and our ability to put problems in perspective. It doesnt change the actual problem, it just makes us logically work it out better and that in turn helps us solve it, or accept that we have no control over it.

I take one tablet every morning. It is an anti anxiety medication called Lexapro. If I have to take this tablet for the rest of my life, so what. I have to take a cholesterol tablet for the rest of my life. Both are controlling a physical ailment, and neither less important to my quality of life.

Something I have also learned and tried to live by, is to stop wasting energy or anxieties on things that I have NO control over. Im not saying not to care about things that are not personal, Im saying, not to get anxious about those things. If you have NO control, you are not going to get it, by making yourself sick over it.

Something else that therapy teaches you, is that YOUR ARE NOT ALONE and YOU ARE NOT GOING CRAZY. You would be surprised at the number of people who go through exactly what you are going through. Your symptoms are written in text books. Believe it or not, it is a common phenomenom. Look it up on the net, and you will think they are writing about YOU.

The good thing is that people do get through these attacks, they find a way, whether it be by medication, or other means, they learn to control it.

My best advice is to spill it out, empty it out of yourself like you are givng yourself a cleansing.

[Kelda]

((((DAVID)))))

[CellarDweller]

((((DAVID)))))

[Shasta542]

Hi David. I hope that you are feeling good today. It's Friday--that's a plus to me.

One of my very good friends in town NEVER watches the news.

So far, I have never had those panic attacks. My cousin has told me before: "You don't worry enough."  That may be true.

But I did have a boyfriend once who had those. We had tickets to see the Eagles and he was in the midst of getting one. He came over and lay down for awhile before the concert, but he couldn't go. He left his ticket and went home. He said he couldn't go because of the crowd.

I called a friend last minute and we went and had a great time.

How sensitive am I?  It's probably a good thing I'm not a nurse or a doctor.

Well. He had paid good $$ for those tickets -- and it was supposed to be their last tour.

Anyway---turn off the news and rent a good comedy to watch. Laugh, laugh, laugh!!! Maybe that'll help.

Love you, David. 

{{{{{{{{{{DAVID}}}}}}}}}}

[David In Indy]

Hi David. I hope that you are feeling good today. It's Friday--that's a plus to me.

One of my very good friends in town NEVER watches the news.

So far, I have never had those panic attacks. My cousin has told me before: "You don't worry enough."  That may be true.

But I did have a boyfriend once who had those. We had tickets to see the Eagles and he was in the midst of getting one. He came over and lay down for awhile before the concert, but he couldn't go. He left his ticket and went home. He said he couldn't go because of the crowd.

I called a friend last minute and we went and had a great time.

How sensitive am I?  It's probably a good thing I'm not a nurse or a doctor.

Well. He had paid good $$ for those tickets -- and it was supposed to be their last tour.

Anyway---turn off the news and rent a good comedy to watch. Laugh, laugh, laugh!!! Maybe that'll help.

Love you, David. 

{{{{{{{{{{DAVID}}}}}}}}}}

Oh God Shasta, there is NO WAY IN HELL I could go to a concert whilst suffering a panic attack. The noise, the flashing lights, the crowds.... nope. Absolutely not.

So far today, I am feeling pretty good. It is sunny and warm outside (in the low 60s F) and I walked Cody through the neighborhood, chatted with neighbors and I'll probably go out and pick up sticks in the yard later on this morning. They are predicting rain later in the day.

And I have the news turned OFF! I am watching an interesting program on the History channel about the Titanic. Very interesting. They are studying the debris fields from Titanic on the ocean floor. Apparently the debris can tell the scientists a lot about the final moments of the ship and what really happened. The program is called Titanic Moments.

I love you too Shasta!