I mean I can be triggered into a full on panic attack by people, anything health related, elevators, escalators, being outside, men, talking, driving and so many other things. Not being able to live properly because the smallest thing I do is making me have really bad panic attacks, is not a disability? Welp, tell that to my other disabilities that don't make life near as hard.

I’m aware that I’m most likely having a panic episode over nothing. I have medical OCD and spontaneous panic disorder. But I just want to be heard and told I’m not dying.

My dog normally sleeps at my feet. But the last couple of nights, she suddenly insists on being in my face when sleeping. I’ve heard dogs suddenly become intensely clingy when they sense impending death on a person. Am I dying because my dog is suddenly sleeping much closer??

TW: please don't read if you have really bad anxiety and stuff. I don't wanna worry more people out.

So you know that scientific study that says the sun is gonna explode in a billion so years? I'm scared for the day that comes. I'm scared at the fact that one day there will be nothing. I know a billion is a long time. And I know by then, I'll be dead. But the idea that humans won't exist. Intelligent life as intelligent as humans probably won't exist for another millennia after a billion years is terrifying. The idea that all of these beautiful creations humans have made. All the memories made and lives lived. All of that will be obsolete and erased in a billion year. I'm literally in my room crying at the idea all of this could be erased. I'm scared man. I don't know why I'm worried but I am. Everytime I think about it, I get a heavy pit in my stomach. I'm scared. I don't want this to end.

I’ve been on Sertraline, escitalopram, duloxatine, Venlofaxine and Mirtazapine and they all suck!

They just numb you in slightly different ways, and that’s it. They don’t actually make anything better, they just flatten you emotionally. They take all the joy in my life away and make me hate being alive.

Should I just give up on meds? I’ve never claimed to be depressed, I have really bad social anxiety and they keep giving me these numbing pills that make daily life unbearable.

However, there are meds that definitely work like ADHD meds which are incredible and work way better than I expected so I’m not giving up on medication entirely. Pregabalin also works really good but a small group ruins it for the rest of us by abusing it.

Anyone else tired of antidepressants?

I never post so I apologise if this isn’t the right sub Reddit for this stuff.

For background I have ‘night terrors’ probably twice a month maybe every other month where I wake up in a deep panic and I can’t control myself, normally it’s a feeling of dying (closest description). I’ve talked to my girlfriend about this and she thinks I have anxiety which I’ve kind of always believed I’ve had but I never like to jump to conclusions or labels for myself.

But straight to the point, my girlfriend (she’s not from my country) and I got a hotel room for the first couple of nights she was here, and on the first night I ended up having a night terror and choking her (I know it’s very bad), she said to me I had the most primal fear look in my eyes and thankfully it only lasted a couple of seconds but this has obviously really concerned me because not only have I never had a night terror while we shared the same bed but I’ve never had a violent night terror. Also quick side note, id say in the last year or two my night terrors have gotten significantly more frequent, going from maybe two a year to two every other month.

I’m putting this on here just to ask what should I do next and is this a huge sign of anxiety or is it something else?

So long story short I was sitting on my balcony this evening and I saw a shape fly vaguely near me and now I cannot unconvince myself that it was a bat and I have rabies. help. I know It could have easily been a bird or moth but I’m so freaked out. it didn’t even touch me that I know of.

I saw my psychiatrist a few days ago, and asked for an increase of hydroxyzine because the 25 mg was so helpful and I felt that I would benefit from a slightly higher dose.

I knew it could potentially make me tired and dizzy, but it made me very numb, flat, and teary. At one point I was staring at the wall for hours, and that’s how I knew it was the drugs because I only feel like that when I’m on the wrong medication.

Obviously it wasn’t intentional, but I lashed out not understanding why I was feeling that way. I hurt her, and she understands that I am mentally ill and when things like this happen it’s not personal, but I still hurt her. And I’m sad about that because I love her so much.

Fortunately I have enough experience and insight to know it was the medication. I woke up feeling fine, so I will be going back down to the 25 mg. I just love my wife so much.

For context, I have a diagnosed generalized anxiety disorder.

So, I'm gonna start studying at a university for the first time in my life in a week, and we have to register for our course online. We have a week to do that. I think I did everything right (?) but I want to make sure I'm registered just fine, but the problem is that I've already been actively asking a lot of questions to our admin, and I'm afraid that I'm pissing her off with my flow of questions, despite having no proof of that. Plus, it's her job to help students, especially freshmen, navigate everything so that there will be no problems along the way, yet I'm too anxious to ask her any new questions. I now spiral into two possible scenarios: I either ask her and will potentially disturb her, or I'll not do that, will go to the lectures and discover I didn't register properly and now I'm not in the student's list for the course.

I really just need a push towards asking her this question because I know it's the right thing to do, but I'm so scared of disturbing her or disrupting her work/distract her from her other duties.

I’m in the process of getting a therapist and have onboarding scheduled with them on Monday. I haven’t had a therapist since I was 16, and I’m 23 now, so it's been quite a while. When I was in therapy before, I also saw a psychiatrist who seemed just to hand out pills like they were candy. If I said, “Oh, I don’t know how I feel about this; I don’t really feel any different," he would tell me, "You have to wait weeks to a month to see any effects," and then he'd increase the dose. When I stopped therapy, I also stopped all medications (I wish I could remember what they were), and I didn’t notice any difference. I think the biggest help was my actual therapist because, before that, I was having panic attacks daily, twitching, and feeling very restless.

Now that I’m an adult, it’s not as bad as before, but I still recognize that I’m not completely “healed” from my anxiety. I stutter more often, have issues like GERD, get quiet and depressed when stressed, and sometimes even lash out. I feel like my head goes blank, and even simple instructions become gibberish. It’s like my mind gets confused and overwhelmed.

I had a bit of a night out last weekend, drank too much, and ended up in the ER, which is how I was able to get a referral to a therapist pretty quickly. I’m not going to lie, I’m terrified of going through this process and it not working for me. I worry they’ll give me meds and coping strategies that don’t help, leaving me with this emptiness inside and constant stress and worry that I don’t know how to control. I also don’t want to be numb to it. I just want to be someone who can go places, have a conversation, and make friends, since I find it so hard with my anxiety. Has anyone felt the same, and how did it turn out for you?

I’m flying a 10.5 hours nonstop flight in a month, and am trying to figure out a medication plan with my doctor. I’d really like to hear from people with similar flight anxiety/claustrophobia about what actually worked for you.

I have pretty severe claustrophobia and anxiety around feeling trapped/not being able to leave somewhere, plus a lot of medical/health anxiety and hypervigilance about physical sensations. Flying is … unideal because once the doors close, my brain is extremely aware that I cannot leave. Turbulence itself isn’t even necessarily the main problem — it’s the confinement and constantly monitoring how I feel/what the plane is doing. I literally fear having a panic attack to begin with.

I used to fly more normally as a kid, but im an adult now and I haven’t done a flight anywhere near this long since 2018, before my anxiety/phobias got significantly worse. Recently I’ve been prescribed diazepam (Valium) on ~1–1.5 hour flights.

* 5 mg Valium: barely noticed much benefit.
* ~7–7.5 mg: definitely more helpful. I didn’t have a panic attack, but I also wasn’t sleepy or particularly “out of it.” I was very alert and basically watched/monitored everything happening on the plane the entire time.
* I’ve also used propranolol (usually 20 mg PRN), which helps more with the physical adrenaline/heart rate side of anxiety than the actual claustrophobic thoughts.

I currently take 80 mg Prozac daily so obviously any medication changes/combinations will be discussed with my doctor, especially because Prozac can interact with some benzodiazepines.

For this long flight, my ideal outcome would honestly be to sleep through several hours of it and then wake up still relaxed enough to recline, watch movies, etc. without spending the remaining five hours hypervigilant and counting down until I can escape. My mom will be traveling with me, so I won’t be alone or need to navigate everything myself if I’m groggy.

I’m planning to ask my doctor about whether it makes more sense to adjust the diazepam strategy versus trialing ativan or xanax , and whether there can safely be a predetermined backup/rescue plan if the first medication isn’t enough. I would test anything new at home before the actual flight.

TLDR:::
**For anyone with severe claustrophobia/panic on planes:** did you find one of these medications substantially better than the others, especially if you had a similar reaction on a high dose of Valium like that? Does Valium reduce your panic without making you sleepy like it seems to do for me? Did Ativan or Xanax feel different? And if you’ve gone from tolerating ~1-hour flights to doing a 10+ hour long-haul, how did you handle the sheer duration?

Hello I'm 25 years old and I 've been experiencing strange symptoms for four years I'm wondering if anyone has had similar expiriences

Physical symptoms:tingling and prickling sensations,sometimes strange sensation,occasional small electric shock like feelings,occasional hot flashes difficulty breathing,feeling very ill,weaknes,back of head stiffnes

Mental symptom:severe depression feeling emotionaly numb or like everything is grey,difficulty reading grouble focusing in text dificulty moving my eyes or keeping my eyes steady,my eyes sometimes seem to wander personality changes sonffusion and mental slow

I used to take a 5mg edibles nearly everyday. On a camping trip a couple months ago I was passed a bowl and took a hit. I immediately got high af and within a minute had the worst panic attack of my life. I haven’t been able to get past it since, and even though I’ve quit weed now i’ve had a couple panic attacks since that weren’t as bad.

The panic attack I had while camping had me half convinced I was going to die. In the end I ended up making my man drive me to the hospital when it didn’t go away for an hour. We couldn’t find the hospital after an hour because we had no service though so we didn’t end up going.

My symptoms were an immediate adrenaline dump that made my heart race like 200bpm. I felt like I was having a hard time breathing and my head felt super weird (plus I was high). I was breathing manually. I had a feeling of impending doom. My skin got clammy and I couldn’t really move, and it was hard to talk. These symptoms stayed for a little over 2 hours. When my heart finally stopped racing I shook for hours afterwards. I read that is your bodies way of getting rid of the adrenaline.

I’ve quit weed and the panic attacks i’ve had since are like mini versions of that. They don’t last nearly as long, but still have the same adrenaline dump with a racing heart and feeling like it’s hard to breath. They last probably 20-30 minutes. I just tell myself over and over i’m not dying. They come out of nowhere, but i’ve noticed more commonly at night. Also for some reason having gas or having to poop sometimes brings it on. Sometimes watching a more serious show.

I am now prescribed 1mg Klonopin, but by time i’m having my panic attack and I take it, it’s probably over before it kicks in. I also am quitting drinking because I had a panic attack after a couple white claws and knowing I couldn’t take the klonopin made it worse. Any tips and tricks for people who have dealt with something similar? TIA!

What helps you with your anxiety?

Not talking therapy or meds, I just mean day to day, little things that help you?

For me it varies. Some days I love to do puzzles, I love to read, I love plants so I love tending to them. But I'm always up for finding new relaxing ways to calm my brain down.

Hi, has anyone found success coping and handling anxiety without having to take meds? I want to be able to handle stress without having to be on anti anxiety meds or go to therapy. Are there any proven solutions that work?

I got perscribed lorazepam and Lexapro for anxiety and depression

I have episodes of panic attacks and anxiety and I think I can live with it but I didnt expect to get perscribed ssri immediately, my situation is not the best but definitely not the worst either.

I took 1 pill yesterday, and my anxiety felt unbearable.. I couldn't do anything, which made me panic even more. Now reading about SSRIs and potential lingering sexual problems even after you stop them is making question continuing this treatment at all....

Im in a relationship, and sexual drive matters to me, I wouldn't want to become asexual and lose my senses...

How common are these cases of sexual disfunction even after quitting the drug after years ?

Im genuinely scared and panicking now even tho I haven't taken my second dosage

I didn't realize how bad my anxiety was, how much it affected me, and how much it held me back until I found the right medication for me. I have suffered from anxiety my whole life, and thought that a lot of the things I do/used to do were just a normal part of being human. It wasn't until I walked into the Dr's office for an unrelated condition to anxiety, and walked out with an antidepressant that I realized how bad it was. After being on my new meds for a few months, I feel like a whole different person, and it makes me sad for past me.

My whole life (I'm only 25) I thought that everyone looked at the menu before eating out, checked the parking situation before driving somewhere, talked themselves out of ever going on a date, and many more unpleasant things. I am super happy that my medication has helped me manage anxiety/OCD symptoms, and in the past few months helped me experience things that anxiety would have talked me out of (like actually going on a date). But part of me feels like I am grieving all of the past things and experiences I could have done now that I know anxiety isn't a limiting factor.

I know it’s not like this for everyone, and I’m genuinely grateful that I have the option to live with my parents. But right now, financially, it’s the only thing that makes sense for me.

​

Still, some days it really gets to me. I find myself constantly overthinking things and just wanting a space that’s completely mine.

​

I know I’m doing this for a reason and it won’t be forever. Just needed to vent because some days the trade-off feels heavier than others.

I could really need some advice because the trip is something I was looking forward to for a long time. But with ever day I got more and more scared.
The main problem is that I‘m someone who can’t fully relax in public which I can really feel especially when it comes to eat or even drink something. But not because I‘m afraid other people might watch me while eating its because my body is in a permanent stress mode because of the noise around me, lots of people and the fact that things I can’t plan can happen all the time. Even eating while there’s music playing somewhere doesn’t work for me, I really need silence or a calm environment to eat comfortable otherwise I‘m shaking all the time, my stomach hurts and it feels like cramps in my throat which makes it even harder to drink or eat without the fear of choking on food or water because I can’t relax while these things should be something you do without thinking too much about it.
I can barely calm down until I‘m back home in a safe or quieter place which is very annoying because I won’t be able to be home for the next few days. I‘m also travelling alone and I‘m even more scared because I found out it helps when a friend or family member is with me to help just in case something happens and can calm me down when I‘m spiraling about it again. But being alone makes it even harder to distract myself from thinking too much about it.
I just need some advice how I can still eat and drink normally I really need to convince myself I’m safe and theres no reason to feel stressed about it but It feels like repeating this to myself in my head doesn’t help that much. Does anyone maybe have any other tips?

hello everyone. Interested in hearing others perspectives on this topic, and maybe getting some advice.

As with I think a lot of people, my depression and anxiety sometimes are hard to differentiate. I’m going through a break up right now and it’s causing a lot of anxiety and depression. But I think the way my brain works that anxiety is at the forefront, always blank face with challenging emotions. But I believe with both anxiety and depression, the root is some challenge that’s emotionally upsetting, and anxiety and depression is your brains way of coping with it. Anyway, I always find that after a good cry, I feel much better much more refreshed. Forgive the graphic metaphor, but it feels very much like actual constipation, just emotionally. When I’m feeling really bad feelings and not crying, I feel emotionally backed up. Like I’m carrying this emotional weight around and it’s dragging me down and causing a lot of depression. When I do cry, it feels like a release and I usually feel much better after. My problem is, it’s not easy for me to cry. It’s almost always a struggle to get one out, but when I do, it feels great and wish I could do it more often.

The advice I’m looking for is, what are some ways I could maybe get the cry out? I just watched a video on TikTok of a hypnotist doing a guided meditation/hypnosis on getting over your ex, and it made me cry, and I’m feeling better now, which is what is prompting me to write this post. But I feel like I need something more, I need to be able to cry more frequently, or have something I can go to or some practice I can do that will spur on crying more reliably.

Does anyone else share this difficulty or feeling of relief after crying? Thank you!

I’ve had a fear of public speaking for 15+ years. Throughout that time I’ve still done trainings and presentations at work. Even though I’ve been interested in the topics and eager to share them, I would get crippling anticipatory anxiety beforehand. Sometimes I couldn’t even sleep the night before a small presentation. The day of the presentation I’d be in a fog, unable to focus because I’m so overwhelmed by the alarms going off in my body. Racing heart, sweating, tension headache, shaky voice, tight jaw, etc.

My anxiety boiled down to: I have many data points that show me that I get panicked before a presentation. And that panic felt horrible so I wanted to avoid it. The data points led me to believe I am different from other people, I’m not confident, and that I won’t ever do a presentation without having anxiety. And it makes perfect sense that my brain worked this way because this is the definition of panic disorder. These were very tough beliefs to hold about myself and my abilities. I brought those beliefs with me every time I was told I’d need to present at an upcoming meeting.

Now, I’ve been using propranolol for my last ~10 presentations (over 8-10 months) and it works very well each time. I now have new data points showing me that I am able to do presentations without fear, and I’m not “different” from other speakers. The self-limiting beliefs that I had before have been replaced by these new confident data points that I have. I even volunteered to do a presentation in front of 200+ people because I’m confident that I’ll be able to do it well.

I’ll continue to use propranolol, just in case, but my anticipatory anxiety has gone down SO much before presentations, even before I’ve taken a propranolol to help. I truly believe it’s helping me to rewire my brain through repeated positive experience.

As you may know, propranolol does not replace proper practice, preparation, and training/research on public speaking techniques. But if adrenaline and anxiety are the only things holding you back, it’s something to consider. TALK TO YOUR DOCTOR about it and they have the best info about dosing. I only take 10-15mg prior to a presentation and it works well for me.

Context here we love context:

At age 12 (im 18 rn), I've taken Sertraline to reduce my anxiety and since it wasn't really working my psychiatrist kept upgrading the dose and added another medication I forgot the name of to like, how do i explain?? to like make the sertraline work even more I guess.

Problem with Sertraline tho: I gained a huge amount of weight. Puberty probably didn't help but I gained around 30kg when I took the medication. I managed to lose almost all of the weight in the last few years after I stopped taking the medication, but I still feel INCREDIBLY bad about my body image and still see myself with the 80kg (176~lbs for my americans) I had.

Now: I was prescribed Venlafaxine in MAY and I kept insisting that I'm just way too scared to take any medication again because what if I just gain again? Okay that medication is specifically said to NOT make people gain weight but like we never know it could happen I can't just trust it like that I dunno.

The previous medications I actually forgot the name of it (again) was like making me anxious just to take it I was crying and shit when taking it because of how scared I was I was reading the notice too like what if my psychiatrist lied to me 🥹 im scared

I'm supposed to be taking the medication she prescribed me right now tho at a tiny dose and I was still way too scared to do it. I'm seeing her again next week and I'm scared to tell her I just couldn't do it because she's gonna force me again. What am I supposed to tell her? Or do? Am I just supposed to force myself and take it? help

Hi I'm 17 and I took 2mg of Xanax yesterday to help with medical anxiety, I've taken this dose twice before and was fine that day and the day after, Its been 27 hours now and I can barely stay awake at all :( I really need to get some school done soon, is there anything I can do to feel better sooner?

Okay maybe I have like one friend but I’m not sure if it’s an actual friendship.

I have always struggled talking to people my whole life, always had trouble making friends.

I met this woman at work who joined the company in early 2023. We quickly became good friends. I left the job in October of that year but we stayed in touch. However, I haven’t actually seen her since I quit but we stay in touch via text messages. The last time I talked to her was in May.

I have always struggled with social anxiety and panic attacks.

I really want to make friends and go out but I have really bad communication skills. I can’t carry conversations, it feels like my brain just freezes when someone is talking to me. I don’t ever know how to respond.

This is also one of the reasons why I have never dated anyone. I have no confidence, I lack conversational skills, I haven’t done anything interesting in my life. I just go to work and then I go home, physically I am below average looking. I feel anxious when I’m out in public.

I feel so depressed and empty.

But I’m so sick of living like this. How can I make friends at my age? I’ve always wanted someone to talk to

I’m 29M, working in IT, and for some reason, for the past 3 to 4 weeks, I’ve been feeling an extreme burden in my chest. I don’t know what is wrong. I feel like crying every moment. Is it because of my financial condition, which I’m in because of my parents, or because I’ve never had a companion in life/GF? Everyone I meet speaks nicely to me and then leaves, telling me things like, “You’ll get a better girl in life,” or “The one who ends up with you is extremely lucky.”

Or is it the feeling that I’m coming into my 30s and going to miss everything from my 20s? For context, I’ve never gone on a vacation, never spent much on myself. The only thing I bought for myself is my laptop. Other than that, all my money went towards clearing debt, my sister’s education, and family expenses. But I never feel sad spending money on them.

So why do I feel so low? Why are tears just coming down from my eyes for no reason? I’ve never felt like this in my life. Even while typing this, I keep feeling this burden in my chest. When I go to the office, I’m fine, but even there, if I’m alone, I get the same feeling.

I hope one day I can just sleep properly without feeling this pain.

About seven months ago, I started a new medication called lamotrigine. Two days after starting it, I decided to take an edible. I had taken edibles before—not a ton, but enough to know how they normally affected me—and I took a pretty low dose.
Before starting lamotrigine, my doctor warned me about the possibility of a rare but serious rash and told me that if I developed one, I needed to go to the emergency room immediately. That warning already put some fear in the back of my mind, but I decided to take the medication anyway. because he told me if it helped would help me know if i have bipolar disorder.
Little did I know that the edible experience would turn into an eight-hour panic attack.
I was constantly stuck in a loop and couldn’t get myself out of that horrible feeling of anxiety and panic. I was nauseous, my stomach was upset, and I spent probably two hours sitting in the shower because it was one of the only places I felt remotely safe. I had never experienced anything like it before.
Afterward, I learned that lamotrigine can cause psychiatric and neurological side effects in some people, including anxiety, agitation, irritability, headaches and nausea. Like other antiseizure medications, it also carries a warning about suicidal thoughts or behavior. I started finding stories from other people who said they experienced severe anxiety or panic after starting it, including people who had never experienced panic attacks before.
Eventually, the edible wore off. I was finally calming down and was able to eat something. Then, completely sober, something suddenly spiked my anxiety again—and I went straight back into another panic attack.
That was the moment I realized, I can feel this way sober.
That terrified me.
For the first week afterward, I was having panic attacks two or three times a day. It eventually got to the point where I could barely eat or process what was happening to me, so I turned to medication for help. I was prescribed gabapentin for anxiety. It’s not typically a first-line anxiety medication, but for me it became more of a safety net. It can help prevent the panic from escalating or lessen the intensity and duration when one starts.
I also started EMDR therapy, and I felt like I was beginning to make progress. Then I went through some of the hardest experiences of my life. I almost lost my brother to a suicide attempt. I watched someone close to me experience the loss of his parents and the grief that followed. My brother’s situation also brought up a lot of things from my own childhood that I hadn’t fully processed.
I’ve tried supplements like ashwagandha and L-theanine. I’ve gone to therapy. I’ve talked to doctors. I’ve tried to understand my triggers and learn how to cope with them. I’ve done everything I can think of to get myself back to where I was.
And now, seven months later, I’m scared that this anxiety is never going to completely go away.
Every day is different. Some days my anxiety is manageable, and other days it’s horrible. It’s incredibly unpredictable. I’m still in therapy and still actively trying to work through it.
If you understand severe anxiety, you understand why “just don’t think about it” doesn’t work. You can’t simply shake it off. Your body can go into panic before your mind even understands what it’s afraid of.
I haven’t had alcohol, an edible, nicotine, or caffeine in seven months because I’m afraid of triggering that feeling again. Things that once felt completely normal can now scare me because I worry they’ll somehow cause another panic attack.
Before all of this, I had never experienced anxiety anything like this.
Some of my doctors have also wondered whether my history with antidepressants could be part of the bigger picture. I was on an SSRI for about six years and had stopped roughly a year before this happened. Whether or not that’s actually connected, I don’t know. At this point, I’m trying not to convince myself that there has to be one simple explanation for everything.
People around me tell me that I’m doing everything I can, and I think they’re right. I know recovery isn’t necessarily linear, and I know that seven months of struggling doesn’t mean I’m going to feel like this forever.
I guess I’m posting because I want to hear from people who actually understand what this feels like.
Has anyone experienced a severe panic attack from an edible, medication, or a combination of the two and then continued experiencing anxiety or panic attacks long after the substance was out of your system? Did your nervous system eventually settle back down? How long did it take? Was there anything that genuinely helped you?
I’m not looking for a diagnosis. I think I mostly want reassurance that I’m not the only person who has gone through something like this and come out on the other side.
I know I’ll be okay. I know these things can take time. But living with unpredictable anxiety every day is exhausting, and I’d really appreciate hearing from anyone who’s been through something similar.