Anxiety question? 25 yr old female?

Question

I hear anxiety is supposto start in late teens but I am 24!! I have had it for 10 months.

Started off on Celexa, then went to apo seratralin 25 mg for a week

then to 50 mg on wards.

I might want to add the reason I went on was because I was taking anxiety attacks when I ate mostly that made it very difficult to swallow.

Sometimes I would actually choke because as the food was going down it felt like my throat was tightning.

I could FINALLY eat but I had the odd attack where my breathing felt heavy so the dr doubled my dose.

I took the 100mg for 2 weeks and couldn't take it anymore.

It was way to big of an intake for my body so the pharmasist told me

to cut it all cold turkey.

A week later the choking sensation came back, major panic attacks, hard to breath, light headed, h**l all over again.

I look up on the internet (being dumb) and obviously everything leads to more serious things then they actually are.

But being anxious all the time and thinking into things I am now unsure!

I am so freaking scared, I just want answers. My dr is on MAT leave so it is too hard to be ref; to a specalist or physologist.

I feel crazy so please don't judge me but I would like some honest anwsers ....does this sound like anxiety? Have you experienced this?

I worry about cancer so much, maybe its a phobia of mine? But I think throat cancer? I just had ALL blood work done, and complete ER evaluation done due to upcoming surgery on gallbladder so I would like to think if I had any sort of cancer it would have shown on the blood work?

Thank you for taking the time to hear my song and serman.

I need help from someone real.....someone who actual

experienced what I am going through.

Answer 1

Hi,

If you feel a panic attack or feelings of anxiety creeping up on you then try this word repetition technique that I learned that helps me to quickly 'snap out' of my panic attacks:

I simply repeat the words 'cream cake' over and over in my head as quickly as I can without stopping.    You could use any word or words you like really but that's what I chose (because I like cream cakes).  It apparently works because it doesn't give your brain time to process the panicky thoughts and so helps you to relax again.  Seems strange I know ... but it works for me!

There's also a free ebook that I found really useful called 'Get Rid of Panic and Anxiety for Good'. If you want to take a look you can find it at: http://curepanicattacks.premiergold.info...    Even though I got it for free it has helped me absolutely loads!

Answer 2

I have panic, anxiety and depression, diagnosed in 1984 when I was 30 years old.  The average age of onset is simply that, an average age which means, some people get it early in life and others later.

Your pharmacists should not be telling you to stop meds cold turkey.  Obviously they were doing you some good as you had been able to eat and swallow.  We never go off our meds cold turkey, but must cut down a little at a time.  You may well have been taking more than you needed, but the return of symptoms means that you did need the meds.

The good news is, anxiety and panic will not hurt you though I know they are uncomfortable and frightening.  You are not crazy and will not go crazy...I promise.

If you still have your medicines, you can go back on them just the same way you went on them in the first place.  Then, when your doctor returns, talk to him about the meds, the dosage and seeing a therapist as well.

Don't take information from the internet to heart.  There are some good sites online and some are not so great.  If you want to learn more about anxiety disorders and good ways to help yourself, try getting this book...The Anxiety and Phobia Workbook by Dr. Edmund Bourne.  We use it in our group all the time.

This is a good website that well provide links to help...not scare you.

http://panicdisorder.about.com/