jesternudder

Since I was a kid I've had anxiety issues and about 4 yrs ago started having full blown panic attacks quite often and was put on an SNRI with a prescription for xanax to use in emergencies. The anti-d worked well! I never had a problem with abusing the xanax and have only felt anxious enough to use it as prescribed once every couple of months. But it's been AGES (well over a year?) since I've had a full panic with hyperventilation, erratic heart palpitations, sense of imminent unidentifiable danger, numb arms and not being able to hold onto anything due to loss of hand control.

BAM- out of the blue- after a great night's sleep and while in a great mood- I had one today. Was simply terrified and wanted to hide in my house. I dug out the xanax and took one and was able to make it to work for my evening shift. The panic has passed and aside from the xanax making me a bit sleepy I feel okay-ish now except for what I can only describe as an adrenaline hangover.

When I was a binge drinker my cycle between dumbass drunken blowouts ranged from 7 to 14 days and now I'm wondering if I was subconsciously using alcohol to ward off an impending panic flare up without realizing it all that time. Food for thought! Anybody who can relate out there?

Otherwise doing OK with not drinking on day 17. While so thankful for SR I found that reading here every day was making me think more often about alcohol than I was when I was actively binging so I took a break and have been keeping busy doing non-drinky projects & chores and things like that. I had to reread my posts to see how many days it had been since my last episode. I must admit I was a bit disappointed to see it had only been 17 days but hey it's an improvement right?
Thanks for letting me ramble on.
Love, light, and strength to all!!

least

Panic attacks can be horrible, I know. I'm glad you're doing well other than that.

Anna

I've had panic attacks like that too, and it's horrible.

It could be that you were self-medicating impending panic attacks. At Day 17, your body is still recovering, so hopefully the panic attacks will stop soon, or at least become manageable.

workingonwishes

i also have a history of anxiety/panic attacks. i am able to keep attacks at bay when i am sober with exercise and maintaining as much of a routine as i can in my relatively low-stress life. obviously though, when i was drinking i was sometimes too hungover or unmotivated for these preventative measures.

i do find that when i have a full on attack they are out of nowhere. but general anxiety levels were always highest after a heavy night of drinking.

talk to your dr... he or she may recommend new eating/exercise habits, breathing or relaxation techniques, etc to compliment your medication. and i am sure everyone is different but i was told that the drinking (though not the only cause) was ABSOLUTELY not helping and that as i get more comfortable and stable in my sober life, my anxiety may subside. good luck!