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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 9 of 9. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by fires on September 11, 2006, at 14:24:15
I have no "panic", and don't feel "anxious". I have intermittent rises in blood pressure, headache, severe faigue/sleepiness, and mild nausea. I've been dropping things. Rather than high, my pulse is in the 50 -60 range, and sometimes up to the upper 70s.
I did have adrenalin surges the other day , but haven't had one for at least 24-36 hours. I've been in a fog all morning with no racing pulse or panic attack. I'm extremely tired.
I'm taking Parnate, Lamictal, and Klonopin + other meds for other conditions. (50 mg, 300 mg, and 0.5mg, respectively). I was doing relatively well on the meds, especially after Androgel was added for low testosterone. My endrocinologist said that it sounds like panic attacks.
She ordered me a 24 hr urine test to check for pheochromocytoma (adrenal tumor), which is very rare.
Is there a type of anxiety/panic that causes the above symptoms? If so, what do you take for it?
I'm at my wits end. There's no way that I'm going to go for therapy (did that decades ago, and it was useless). I don't know what to do if the pheochromocytoma test is negative, unless I really do have anxiety/panic.
Ideas?
Posted by Tracer98 on September 11, 2006, at 16:16:56
In reply to could his be anxiety/panic attack?, posted by fires on September 11, 2006, at 14:24:15
I have panic disorder. The symptoms you described are pretty close to what I feel. Nausea, headache and dropping things. Iguess the big question would be do you feel fearful? I don't really have attacks but constant panic. Meaning the physical symptoms hang on for weeks at a time. I hope you figure it out, good luck
Posted by Phillipa on September 11, 2006, at 18:55:34
In reply to could his be anxiety/panic attack?, posted by fires on September 11, 2006, at 14:24:15
Fires why would you want to be positive? I would think the lesser of evils and easiest to treat would be panic attacks. Love Phillipa
Posted by fires on September 11, 2006, at 19:19:54
In reply to Re: could his be anxiety/panic attack? » fires, posted by Phillipa on September 11, 2006, at 18:55:34
> Fires why would you want to be positive? I would think the lesser of evils and easiest to treat would be panic attacks. Love Phillipa
I haven't had very little luck with "panic attack" treatments. My Pdoc has seen that my anxiety is/was almost nil because of Parnate + Lamictal (I agree -- I use Klonopin for sleep). I was really doing quite well -- very near a success story.
I was hoping to be positive for pheochrom.. because 90% of the time it's benign and symptoms resolve when the tumor is removed. Usually a pretty simple surgery these days.
Posted by yxibow on September 12, 2006, at 1:33:55
In reply to Re: could his be anxiety/panic attack?, posted by fires on September 11, 2006, at 19:19:54
> > Fires why would you want to be positive? I would think the lesser of evils and easiest to treat would be panic attacks. Love Phillipa
>
> I haven't had very little luck with "panic attack" treatments. My Pdoc has seen that my anxiety is/was almost nil because of Parnate + Lamictal (I agree -- I use Klonopin for sleep). I was really doing quite well -- very near a success story.
>
> I was hoping to be positive for pheochrom.. because 90% of the time it's benign and symptoms resolve when the tumor is removed. Usually a pretty simple surgery these days.
You're entitled to your beliefs but I can't believe I'm even hearing this.Do you really want the postoperative hangovers and possible vomiting and all sorts of unpleaasantry that may or may not happen after anaesthesia, not to mention the mixture of psychiatric medications and using the right anaesthetic amounts to not affect MAOIs? And to have your abdomen cut open, a laparoscopy or not, leaving a possible scar ?
Panic attacks come in a wide variety of forms and there are many methods of treating them, including non-medication.Panic attacks are part and parcel of the autonomic nervous system gone awry among other parts of the brain, and thus you can get any response from the more primitive part of the brain stem including all described.
Posted by Cairo on September 14, 2006, at 13:30:38
In reply to could his be anxiety/panic attack?, posted by fires on September 11, 2006, at 14:24:15
You've described exactly what I have been experiencing. I feel like I've got a "short" in my system somewhere and feel wired all the time, though not anxious. I think my autonomic nervous system is not functioning well; things that are normally not stressors, such as going about your normal daily routines, are perceived as stressful and the body reacts accordingly. Probably all the trials of medications I've tried have messed up my receptors also.
Meds for autonomic dysfunction are hard to find. Lyrica helps a bit, though I felt best on Klonopin 0.5mg plus propranolol 10mg. Felt a bit mellower on that combo, though raising the Klonopin dose made me feel depressed. It didn't help my other issues of atypical depression plus chronic pain, so I just took myself off it due to probably unrational fear of benzos. I have an appointment tomorrow with a new, highly recommended pdoc. I'm going to ask him about the benzos again, specifically Valium since I need muscle relaxation and maybe that would help. We'll see if he can put his thinking cap on.
All I can say is to stay away from alcohol, caffeine, chocolate and any other assault on your system. Go to bed early, learn progressive relaxation and rest during the day. Get a massage. Watch some stupid, funny shows on television. Stay away from stress, if possible (I know...life itself feels stressful). You've got to limit the insult to your nervous system until you can find meds to help.
I wish you hope and luck. Know that there are others that share your situation.
Cairo
> I have no "panic", and don't feel "anxious". I have intermittent rises in blood pressure, headache, severe faigue/sleepiness, and mild nausea. I've been dropping things. Rather than high, my pulse is in the 50 -60 range, and sometimes up to the upper 70s.
>
> I did have adrenalin surges the other day , but haven't had one for at least 24-36 hours. I've been in a fog all morning with no racing pulse or panic attack. I'm extremely tired.
>
> I'm taking Parnate, Lamictal, and Klonopin + other meds for other conditions. (50 mg, 300 mg, and 0.5mg, respectively). I was doing relatively well on the meds, especially after Androgel was added for low testosterone. My endrocinologist said that it sounds like panic attacks.
>
> She ordered me a 24 hr urine test to check for pheochromocytoma (adrenal tumor), which is very rare.
>
> Is there a type of anxiety/panic that causes the above symptoms? If so, what do you take for it?
>
> I'm at my wits end. There's no way that I'm going to go for therapy (did that decades ago, and it was useless). I don't know what to do if the pheochromocytoma test is negative, unless I really do have anxiety/panic.
>
> Ideas?
Posted by fires on September 14, 2006, at 14:20:24
In reply to Re: could his be anxiety/panic attack?, posted by Cairo on September 14, 2006, at 13:30:38
Thanks for the info.. Since my last posted, seems that a bunch of things cause me autonomic problems.
If I move my head/neck a certain way I trigger goosebumps in my left arm, and to a lesser extent in my right arm. (I have mild degenerative arthritis in part of my C-spine). Sometimes just eating makes me very tired. It doesn't matter what I eat and it comes on very fast.
I take Atenolol, 25mg twice a day. It may not be working as well as it once did.
I've never used alcohol or caffeine. When I was much younger I was a big chocolate eater. Now that I look back, I may have been unknowingly self-medicating with it. Haven't had any for a couple of decades.
(I'm somewhat "extreme" compared to most because I believe that anyone with any "mental health" problem should avoid all of the above -- just like they are poisons).
Re: movies. Exciting ones can trigger a response also.
Thanks and good luck
Posted by AuntieMel on September 15, 2006, at 15:51:14
In reply to could his be anxiety/panic attack?, posted by fires on September 11, 2006, at 14:24:15
I have "panic attacks" and they come on with no warning and have nothing to do with anxiety. I got my first one just sitting in a (rather dull) class.
The symptoms are more a flushing and feeling of disorientation than what a person would think of as panic, so it took a bit of time to figure out what it was.
Meds don't help. I'm not a disbeliever in therapy (I go weekly) but I don't know how it would help with this.
I handle it a couple of ways. Remove myself - even just moving accross the room will help. Cold compresses on the back of my neck. Steady breathing.
And I have an oil I get at a Chinese pharmacy (or grocery) called "White flower." It's just a blend of menthol, eucalyptis and other aromatics. I put some under my nose and inhale deep. It helps.
Posted by fires on September 15, 2006, at 20:21:37
In reply to Re: could his be anxiety/panic attack? » fires, posted by AuntieMel on September 15, 2006, at 15:51:14
> I have "panic attacks" and they come on with no warning and have nothing to do with anxiety. I got my first one just sitting in a (rather dull) class.
>
> The symptoms are more a flushing and feeling of disorientation than what a person would think of as panic, so it took a bit of time to figure out what it was.I'm a little confused. What was/is it?
> Meds don't help. I'm not a disbeliever in therapy (I go weekly) but I don't know how it would help with this.Sometimes I wonder if therapy can really help anything. ;) (I'm one of the patients that you almost never hear about -- therapy made me worse!)
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