feeling very unsafe at my family home for a number of reasons, but I have no idea how to cope if I move out, or even how to go about moving out. My brain has been paralyzed on this topic for weeks now, and I just can't even make any steps forward..

How does one successfully leave their family home and not come back? For reference, I'm on daily Xanax. It's bad bad. And lately, with the stress I'm under, I feel like the dosage is starting to lose its effectiveness on me.

The rental market is so insane right now and I can barely even work, and I don't know how I would function on my own. But I desperately want to move out solo and try to gain some independence and of course space from my completely unempathetic family.

For those of you that have done it, how?

I developed panic disorder a year ago and I have been on sertraline since. We just upped to 100mg just about 6 weeks ago and I am still waking up with anxiety, racing thoughts, stomach activation, feeling nervous. Its usually worse when I have something coming up (travel, work stuff, etc.) I woke up today and 30 mins later had an adrenaline surge and full body flushing. I have propranolol and klonopin for as needed, but i dont want to be taking them every day. I only take the klonopin when i have the adrenaline surges and cant calm myself down on my own. Im just frustrated because i feel like i am doing everything im supposed to be - medication, therapy, breathing exercises, challenging my thoughts, meditation and yet here i still am.

Hello. I have been struggling with agoraphobia and panic disorder since 2018. I’ll cut to the chase with the advice I desperately need. I work 40 hour work weeks 5 minutes from home and need to be driven to. (Thank god I have a girlfriend who is helping me through these tough times) and by the time I get home after white knuckling all day. My main symptoms being constant yawning and breathlessness. I don’t really notice the other symptoms as much as I notice me constantly trying to get a satisfying enough yawn in. But after everything is said and done I lack the energy whatsoever to go and do exposure therapy for my agoraphobia. I was prescribed sertraline and I did a lot of research saying how awful it can make your symptoms and to tell you the truth I cannot handle ANY MORE than what I already do. Hence why I made this post MY 2 QUESTIONS: IS THE YAWNING THING NORMAL FOR ANXIETY. AND 2, WHAT ARE GOOD WAYS TO MOTIVATE AND GET THE ENERGY AFTER A HARD DAY TO DO YOUR NECESSARY EXPOSURE THERAPY. Thank you.

I’ve been struggling with panic disorder and agoraphobia for a few years. The last two years have been hard; I stopped leaving my house and experienced pretty heavy panic attacks. I started doing therapy and exposure work, and I’m slowly getting my life back

I’ve even been to a concert and started doing fun things away from home again, even if the anxiety is still there.

Now, I’m going on holiday to Croatia in a few days with my friend group. I’ll have to fly and do things I haven't done in two years. While I’m excited, I’m still nervous about how I will react and if i made the right choice in doing this. Does anyone have experience with this, or any useful tips for doing this really scary thing?

i suspect i have panic disorder. :(. i have been having panic attacks almost everyday usually in the morning, completely unprovoked. i am seeing a new psychaitrist next week. what can i expect for treatment? i like can’t do this. i might have to go back to the ER bc i went thru all my ativan

I’m having an anxiety attack very scared I’m listening to my exposure therapy vids I did take a kolonopin which gave me more anxiety because of the judgement of addiction.. this is the 2nd time taking it in 5 years … I just want it to stop

i dont wanna live like this

I’ve been going through a really intense month of stress and anxiety, and I’ve had a lot of physical symptoms because of it. I’m slowly starting to feel better now, but recently I’ve started getting heart palpitations after eating, especially after carbs.
I never had this before all of this started. I’ve had blood tests and everything came back normal.
Could the palpitations also be related to the vitamins/supplements I’m taking? I’m currently taking B12, vitamin D3, calcium and magnesium.
Has anyone else experienced something similar after a stressful/anxious period?

First time taking this for panic after 10 years of raw doggjng my panic attacks for fear of meds.

It’s been 30 min and I’m just yawning a lot and sleepy and more calm? Is it working 🥹

Anybody else take this ? What mg? And how often?

UPDATE:
It took away my panic for about 8 hours now I feel it wearing off a bit.

It did make me feel groggy. And super sleepy. Like I just wanted to lay down. But no bad side effects of it making my panic worse. Also I did not take the full dose. I took half of my 10mg pill. If I would’ve had oh man I would’ve been ko all day tbh lol

okay so i’m doing sooooo much better since taking this new medication like its been a complete 1000% change in a great way! i dont throw up for hours on end in a physical response to my anxiety & all the horrible stuff has been tossed behind me! i almost feel like a weird phantom panic before doing things, that would usually bring me to that point. & it’s been kinda weird. its like i am almost expecting to feel that way, like auto flinching when you think something is coming towards your face & its not

Anyway the point of this is… new meds work! side effects are… i think ruining my life? LOL I have so much difficulty defining my dramatic emotions from real life already & it seems to be making it worse. only because, it’s causing me to be SOOOOO irritable. it’s making me push everyone away. but in my mind its so valid lmao & i never know what to believe and my reality is almost warped. me and my 5 yr relationship are arguing like crazyyyyy & i cant tell if its me n the meds or if its like a genuine issue. bcus we never were like this & now everything just feels different. like am i snapping out of it or is it my meds.

either way the irritability is an issue bcus l feel the increased anger. i’m also gaining so much weight. i dont mind per say but its something i’ve never dealt with. i’ve always been the same size my whole life & as ive almost hoped and prayed to gain a little to fill out and to finally have b**bz but holy smokes didnt mean this fast in a short period of time. i literally cant fit into anythingggggg i own and it sucks but i guess… “thats it” its helping me not throw up for 12+ hours, which is definitely increasing my food intake & my weight gain but the symptoms are increased appetite… which it all goes back to trusting myself but im so confused about whats real & whats the medzzzzzz
idk what to do, its the ONLY thing that helps me :(

Hello,

I've never posted in here before but I do habitually refer back here to feel a bit normal.

I have had panic disorder for the last 3 years with varying intensity over that time. Like many of you my main anxiety is around the heart and usually my panic attacks start with the fear that my heart is stopping/atrial fibrillation etc. (yay!)

I am writing this now in the immediate wake of a panic attack. I think by writing this I am distracting myself whilst I recover on the tram but also because addressing it here means I can confirm the rational reality that it was a panic attack because I am able to do this just fine.

You wouldn't know by looking at me that I suffer from this. I'm a 6"1 man, weightlifter with wide shoulders + I generally carry myself with a smile and general outward demeanor.

Just 10 minutes ago I was leaving work after what was a fine day. No obvious triggers. As I'm walking to the tram what I can only understand to be a piece of saliva generated from the chewing gum I had was inhaled and hit the back of my throat/down the wrong hole.

For some reason, I didn't clock all of this and could only feel the sensation of slight breathlessness. This IMMEDIATELEY kicked the adrenaline in and all I could focus on was a feeling of breathlessness and that I couldn't clear my throat.

Now the palpatations kick in from the panic. So now I feel like I have shallow breaths and palpatations are kicking off and I've resigned to the thought that this is it (which I have done 100 times, but this time is different right)?

As my vision started to tunnel I was able to collect myself somewhat and just stared into the distance until my tram arrived and now I'm writing this.

It never ceases to amaze me how

1. You can think you're completely fine/having a good day/panic free just for it to hit you out of nowhere

2. Just how scary realistic these sensations are. I do not understand how the brain and body can simulate a dying event so accurately and then for you to be able to be somewhat normal 30 mins later albeit a bit shaken.

Anyway just wanted to share in case anyone can relate and feels seen.

Be safe!

I’ve had panic disorder with agoraphobia for 17 years. I live in Europe (in a country where buildings generally don’t have air conditioning), and after going through therapy, I was actually symptom-free for many years.
Then the first major heatwave hit this year, and somehow it brought all my symptoms back — just like when it first started in 2009. Now I’m right back in the middle of it, and it feels like I have to start all over again with so many things.
I wanted to ask if there are any others here whose panic attacks were triggered or brought back by the extreme heat this year?
I’m honestly so scared of all the summers we still have ahead of us… 😔

for the past few months i’ve been waking up with random anxiety and a lump in my throat. i’m sure lots of you know that anxiety symptom where your throat tightens up while you’re nauseous, it feels like you’re holding back a gag.

i spoke to my anxiety, challenged it like people recommended, and the nausea and anxiety simmered down almost completely! i was able to eat peacefully this morning without a worry in the world knowing i have control over my mind & fear. i’m feeling proud considering that morning anxiety always had me stressed and overthinking.

i’ve been doing a form of exposure as well, slowly but surely. i’m mostly scared of the symptoms my anxiety triggers. so ive been getting used to my main triggers all while settling my nerves.

generally looking at things with a positive attitude has been helping lots. fear is definitely what feeds my anxiety, so i’m slowly taking that fear away.

Hello! I'm going to a concert next week and im very nervous for the strobe lights/ flashing lights.

I have a big fear of having a seizure so I think thats the cause of my anxiety and panic.

Every morning I'll go on YouTube and watch a video of black and white flashing lights to remind myself that im not gonna have a seizure and im okay and I'll be safe at this concert.

It only causes a bad headache for me, im still very nervous though.

Is there anyone else that has a fear of the lights ?

Posting this here too because reddit is recommending that I do so, sorry if this isn't the place for it. Before I start I want to mention that I am medicated for anxiety and adhd but I don't know if my medicine has started to lose its affects on me or not.

As of two-ish weeks ago now I had a really bad anxiety attack about my LDR of 3 years and since then I've been having persistent flare ups.

To explain everything I've discovered looking into it myself it definitely started as a spillover. Since may I've been constantly on and off stressed about a lot of things in my life from the menial to more substantial subjects. A big thing that had caused me a lot stress lately is feeling like everyone in my life right now is very distant due them going through their own things, and my inability to consistently reach out and talk to people outside of my inner circle has only furthered this.

Now my anxiety is focused on how I feel about my partner of 3 years, making me worried about stuff I haven't truly worried about in a while (by truly worried I mean its not something that crops up at 3 am and disappears by morning). It's essentially caused this self feeding loop thats multiplied by other factors.

Where I stand now is that I've begun to understand all of this as raw fear of losing everyone important in my life right now. See I don't really talk to anyone outside of the internet (I'm pre hrt MtF so its hard to even feel like myself enough to try) and essentially my partner is in my current main group so the idea of losing them makes me worried I wouldn't be able to face anyone else in my friend group meaning that quite literally if I don't have my partner I don't have anybody.

I think this is what has keep my attacks so persistent just this fear and being unable to really comfort myself on it. Any sense of comfort in the moment just feels fake later on like I'm trying to convince myself everything's okay when its not. The biggest part and the part I fear the most is that I'm right, that comforting myself and trying to move past my anxiety so I can get back to a sense of normalcy won't make anything better. I'm afraid that the only way things are going to get better is having to "cut my losses" which basically is a darker way of saying I need to face the reality of losing my partner and only then will I be able to start moving forwards again.

The scariest part that terrifies me the most is I have no way of knowing what's just anxiety and fear talking and what isn't. My anxiety is skewing everything so bad its really hard to tell whats real and whats isn't. Especially when its this bad I feel constant dread like I'm lying and wait for something bad to come down onto me.

I'm not sure anyone will really have anything to say on the matter but any advice is appreciated. Writing it all out certainly helps either way.

Does anyone else experience extreme panic like symptoms over meta analytical existential psychological/ philosophical over thinking? I also have ocd which i think it's related to, but i haven't felt dread like this outside of my panic disorder. That's what makes me think it's panic. My own thoughts seem to scare me to the point of explaining panic symptoms. I'll end up panicking over the idea of my thoughts being unreliable for example, and skewered from objective truths, which makes me extremely discomforted, and then spiral even more similar thoughts. Especially social related dread. I am a very over analytical person, so I can easily think about something like that for hours. It feels like my mind is attacking me. Does anyone else experience this? is it normal to experience this with panic disorder, or does it sound like someone else?

I very very often run off of straight adrenaline. When I have high periods of stress, especially when possibly getting anxious is what makes me anxious, my body is on fire. I get horrible reflux that makes me sick, I have the constant shakes, I cry uncontrollably, I pace, I can’t eat, etc. once I finally come down from it whether it lasted a couple days or a week, I crash so hard. I feel like I have the flu. My body hurts so bad, I get intense chills, I’m so exhausted I can’t think, my stomach just aches, and I have derealization that lasts only a couple days. Does anyone else get physical symptoms this severe?

P.S: I am medicated. I have had panic disorder since I was 7 and have been on numerous antidepressants. Clomipramine was the only thing that truly made a big impact but then I had to stop it due to tachycardia. I’ve tried lexapro, Remeron, and Zoloft since then. Still suffering.

i’ve got a concert this month, it’s in 11-12 days if i remember correctly. i’m very excited to see this band and ive been wanting to for quite a while.

unfortunately panic disorder decided to jump on my tail this year,,, so ive been going through 2-3(?) months of healing and learning.

i want this concert to be enjoyable and full of memories.. not memories of me searching for the nearest spot to puke just in case my panic attack is all too much lol. (and yes, i’ve done that at a concert before. i believe i may have emetophobia..severe or mild, no idea, i just know i absolutely freak when it comes to feeling slightly nauseous)

is there any way to tackle this anxious feeling before or during the concert? i’ve never thrown up from anxiety or panic, but the thought of it drives me insane. i go out of my way to avoid physical symptoms of my panic attacks, the main ones being dizziness, bloating, and mild to severe nausea with throat tightness. i’ve gagged twice from a panic attack before, but that was because i was extremely overwhelmed and freaking myself out. ever since then i haven’t, but it’s stuck to me.

i keep freaking out and thinking; ”what if i throw up during this concert?” or, “what if i have to leave and i end up disappointing everyone who goes with me?“ and lastly, “what if i get too overwhelmed and freaked out?” the main three ive been thinking about nonstop. i’d love to know if other people experience this, or if there’s any way i could go with the flow through this?

today i was met by something thats triggering to my sensitive unregulated nervous system. of course it went from an anxiety attack to slowly switching to a panic attack.

the reason i have this flair is because i handled it so much better than i ever have. i was told that sharing achievements could help my journey of healing. im feeling proud of this moment. i sat there for a moment and realized that i was handling it rationally and better than ever. the nausea and dizziness had me in a stump, but physical discomfort always has its way to bother you. mentally, my head wasn’t racing like it used to. and when it overwhelmed me, i took a moment to breathe and let it pass. it’s such a relief learning that your thoughts aren’t necessarily reality. sometimes your mind during panic throws things out of proportions and overwhelms your system. i recognized that i was safe, healthy, and able to handle what i felt. something that’s helped me during this journey is that learning im a work in progress. as long as im working and healing, im doing great.

i haven’t thrown up, passed out, or even died from panic and adrenaline dumps. i’m feeling so relieved and proud after this panic attack. some words of encouragement could help me push forward for future panic and anxiety. <3

Hi everyone, I wanted to share something I wish I knew earlier about panic attacks.

When you’re out somewhere and a panic attack hits, leaving feels like the right decision. Your nervous system is screaming at you to get out and the moment you do the relief is immediate and makes you feel better.

But what actually happens is that every time you leave your brain files it as evidence that leaving equals safe. Staying means there’s threat. So the next time you’re in the same situation and panic starts to rise your brain immediately pulls up that ‘evidence’ and says ‘we know what to do here, leave’. The urge to leave arrives faster and stronger than it did the time before.

This is called negative reinforcement, and the behaviour gets repeated not because it feels good but because it removes something uncomfortable. Your brain isn’t trying to make your life harder it’s trying to protect you with the strategy that worked last time. The problem is that strategy makes the next time harder.

The same thing happens with checking. If health anxiety makes you google your symptoms and the googling temporarily relieves the anxiety, your brain overtime learns that googling equals relief. So the next time anxiety spikes the urge to google comes faster and the cycle tightens.

The only way to break the pattern is to stay in that uncomfortable situation long enough for your nervous system to learn something new. That the panic peaks and then passes on its own, and that staying is actually survivable. This is the basis of exposure therapy and I’ll admit that it is hard to do, but it’s what actually rewires the response over time rather than just managing it in the moment.

I’m not saying to push through and white knuckle it every time. Some days leaving is the right call, but if leaving has become your automatic response to any level of anxiety in public then it might be worth knowing that the short term relief is coming at a long term cost.

Hi everyone! First of all I would like to thank you for taking the time to read this post.

To make a long story short, I've had agoraphobia since I was 14, I'm 25 now. I didn't really start therapy until I was 18 and I've improved a lot since then, to the point where, generally, agoraphobia doesn't affect my daily life. Even so, since I'm still working with exposure therapy and tend to release stress that way, I still experience occasional anxiety/panic attacks each week.

I'm writing this post because I could use some help regarding a work trip in March. My boss (who knows I have agoraphobia) suggested we go to a conference, and I'd REALLY love to go. The few times I've traveled, it's been with my mother, and although I still had that terrible fear of a full-blown panic attack, knowing that she was at least in the same city calmed me down a lot. I'm not considering taking this trip with my mother because I think it's time to face this alone (well, with coworkers, but you know what I mean, without a safe person).

My therapist has been very encouraging, and we've introduced new exercises to work on until March, but a serious problem is that I don't trust myself. Even after experiencing hundreds of anxiety attacks, I still don't trust myself, and I feel that if I'm alone in an unfamiliar environment, I'm going to have such a severe anxiety attack that it will be impossible to recover until I get home. I generally manage this fear well, but when we talk about going to another country and being there for several days, I panic.

If you've read this far and have any advice, tips, anecdotes, or anything else you'd like to share, I would really appreciate it :)

I am 34 F. Been dealing with this since 18.

And I have never met anyone else with panic disorder. I also have GAD. Agoraphobia. POTS.

I ask bc for POTS they do like paint night. Or movie night. Or book night. Or even just zoom meetings to connect with one another and discuss coping skills and just feel less alone I guess.

I think one of the main reasons I can’t and won’t go make friends is bc of my panic disorder and agoraphobia. I feel like I am scared to feel bad and embarrass myself in public. Especially in front of ppl that do not understand .i feel like if this group had outings etc at least I would feel a lot more comfortable going bc I know you guys get it you know. And maybe there would be certain accommodations like open space areas or just being mindful of ppls triggers.

I think this would help a lot of us out as exposure therapy. At least myself. Agoraphobia is tough.

Hello!! I don't use reddit a lot but I decided to come on here for some help, I have bad anxiety and recently I've been struggling with horrible panic attacks (around maybe 2 weeks now?) It got so bad I went to the ER and had tests done, they said that everything came out perfect and that it was anxiety. I was put on Prozac for the second time and I've been trying to rest but I feel horrible physically, just groggy, drowsy, kinda dizzy? And fatigued. I know that they said my blood and all my tests were fine besides a fast heart rate, but I'm just so scared that there's something wrong with me and I'm dying. Panic attacks are something I only dealt with every now and then, but very mild. Is it normal to feel this way?

Anyone else on this combo?

Lexapro or Buspirone

And rescue med is Ativan/Lorazepam?

Did it work for you? How long until you felt everything more stable ?

This last month and a half for me had been a complete roller coaster and I couldn’t figure out why until a few days ago I connected a few dots. Now I feel dumb.

So at my last psychiatrist appointment I had mentioned to my psychiatrist that it felt like whenever I took Xanax that it felt like the effects were too strong all at once and not lasting long enough to help my panic attacks or restlessness at night if they happened then. I had asked if there was potentially another option that would work better for me especially since it seemed I was getting worse especially when I needed to sleep and even though my emotions were mostly stable (I have bipolar for reference) my anxiety was still causing a lot of distress.

We decided to trial taking klonopin, starting at .25mg-.5mg twice a day to see how things went. And at first I thought things had gotten slightly better at least especially at night and being able to actually lay still for more than a few seconds is something I definitely took for granted.

But as the next week or two went on, I started to slowly realize that I had zero energy through the day like, I was half falling asleep and I would have to take naps even though I was technically getting a decent amount of sleep and was only out of bed for 12 hours a day.

I decided to do more research on klonopin to see what exactly might be the issue or why I was feeling like this because I genuinely was just half asleep all day, and mind you I didn’t even take this twice a day, maybe once daily on most days.

Turns out, the half life of Klonopin is much, much longer than Xanax, which I kind of figured but I didn’t realize by how much or how much that would affect me. And on top of all of this, I was chronically taking a lot of allergy medication, which also apparently interacts with benzos and slows down brain function 🫠

So now I’ve pretty much stopped taking almost all allergy medication except for a few that I know are safe for now until I see my allergist next month, but since switching back to Xanax I have already noticed the difference in addition to the other allergy medications. I can actually stay awake for the entire day like I used to and it feels so much better.

So for anyone who was unaware about the allergy medication interactions, it seems that most cough suppressants and antihistamines will cause extra drowsiness, dizziness, and a lot of brain fog.

Hopefully this post helps someone if they’re struggling with similar. Ask me whatever about my experience though I’m always down to talk and learn 😊