How do you guys cope with the symptoms?
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April 8, 2007 at 6:33 pm
Today I was sitting around trying to eat and suddenly just felt fatigue in my shoulders and my hands felt weak and I started stressing. I calmed down eventually by watching some golf and realizing I wasn’t in a life or death situation. I thought back and realized that every time I had an “anxiety attack” it was actually me stressing about an actual health problem exhibiting its symptoms on me. So it wasn’t just me freaking out, it was me being worried because of some real physical ailment. I have some anti-depressants and tranquilizers but Im scared of that crap. They make me into a zombie and I don’t get rattled on a regular enough basis to warrant taking it.
Im wondering how you guys cope with feeling fine one minute then feeling weak or getting sudden sharp pains etc?I’m getting a grasp on handling this better without drugs. I tried counseling but the counselor was pretty negative in general and told me she was or used to be manic depressive 😮 Definitely not the pep talk I was looking for.
Am I just being a punk here or do you guys struggle with this too?
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April 8, 2007 at 8:26 pm
Oh, I panic, like you!
Seriously, it’s scary, and I tend not to talk about things like my arm hurting when I talk on the phone because I think people will think I”m being a baby. Or the sharp shooting pains, or the numbness in my hands… I’m considering go back into therapy, but I’ve yet to find a therapist that’s good with chronic illnesses like this one.
But for now, I find that yoga helps when I can do it. I bet watching golf can be just as effective.
-marie
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April 8, 2007 at 9:59 pm
grawplyr I agree with Marie. Yoga is a big help…learning exercises in deep breathing has really helped me. I vibrate inside and some times it gets so bad I am afaid to take a step or it is so bad it is making my vision shake. I have learned to just stand and take a few big deep breaths until it calms down. Sound produces pain for me. Some sounds just shoot up my tailbone and up my spine and burn and cause extreme pain for just a few seconds. That might also set off the vibrating. You do what works for you and advise you care giver that it is doing this. For me I close my eyes so I don’t get sick at the stomach. I also turn and touch that person to let them no I am having a problem but not to panic. Numbness while holding the phone or holding on a pencil or a fork can cause my muscles to go into a cramp. It does not last for a long time, so I have not been taking any meds either. See if you can find something that works for you. The weightlessness while in the pool I found is a great stress releiver for me and it is easy to get worn out in the pool and not know it till you come out and gravity hits like a ton of bricks. I always take my cane and leave it near the steps for when I come out of the water. Till I get my sea legs I am a little unsteady. But as my strenght comes up I notice that is getting better too! Lets us know what works for you!
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April 8, 2007 at 10:01 pm
IMO, a good therapist would give you some tools for minimizing panic and anxiety — for instance, visualization exercises, EFT (the “tapping” routine), or self-hypnosis — until they found something that worked for you. I use all three of these at various times and I find that it keeps things from getting out of hand. Sometimes, you know, you start with a “real” symptom but then make it ten times worse by the way you react to it; I think lots of people do.
One problem is knowing when your stress or anxiety is impacting you. If you are used to stoically bearing your troubles (like me), it is not always easy to acknowledge when something is scaring you.
The book Living a Healthy Life with Chronic Conditions (ISBN: 0923521534) has a lot of good strategies for dealing with stress and anxiety.
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