r/Anxiety • u/Sea-Raisin-2629 • 15h ago
Helpful Tips! Constant Panic attacks
Hi everyone! I’m a 37 year old mom of 3 who has had anxiety all her life. It’s come and gone and I’ve never been medicated for it. For the past year or so, I’ve been having what I believe are panic attacks (almost daily). My body shakes, I feel my heart pounding out of my chest, I get a feeling of doom, I can’t think straight. This mostly happens at work or in public but also today I woke up sweating shaking and heart rate was 120 bpm. I’ve seen a cardiologist in the past so I made an appt this morning to get an EKG just in case and it was normal just showed Sinus Tachycardia (104 bpm) it doesn’t help that I have white coat syndrome as well. I’ve had my heart checked, had an echo, EKG, holter monitor and blood work and all came back normal.
Deep inside I know this is anxiety but I can’t help to think what if there is in fact something wrong with my heart. My HR sits high for a good amount during the day. What if I’m causing damage? My Dr prescribed me propranolol to try and take to see if that alleviates the symptoms. It’s the worse right before my period and a few days after. I saw an endocrinologist and she said hormones aren’t causing this cause I’m still having a cycle? Idk
Has anyone been through this? I can’t live like this I need to be there for my kids and I’m just always stuck in my heart and head 😩
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u/ccard23 15h ago edited 15h ago
I can relate to all of this. My anxiety is usually managed without medication, but my son started pre school and I was sick for three weeks straight. I think being sick broke my nervous system and I felt the same as you - constant panic attacks. I ended up in the ER too because my heart was doing all sorts of funky things.
I take Toprol (long acting metoprolol) and have since I had my son. I was put on it for severe pre-eclampsia. I do think it helps with my anxiety and overall, controls my heart rate very well when I’m not sick. If I’m sick, all bets are off and things are a bit rough. I also notice an uptick right before my period too with my anxiety and heart palpitations and I wake up a lot basically having a panic attack, sweating, and shaking.
It might be worth it to try an antidepressant, too? I have a bottle of Zoloft in my cabinet waiting for me. I do think it’ll help me, but it’s so hard to take that first step and I’m so nervous to start it. I have been on Lexapro in the past and it helped me significantly. I just don’t want to go back on it because of potential cardiac risks.
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u/Sea-Raisin-2629 14h ago
Thank you for replying! Wow sounds like you are going through something similar. The beginning of preschool is rough!
What crazy things was your heart doing? And what cardiac issues can those meds cause? This is also why I’m scared to start SSRIs but I’m leaning into the idea of trying propranolol because the physical sensations and my heart rate increasing really drives me over the edge.
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u/ccard23 9h ago edited 9h ago
I was having a lot of PVCs and having horrible panic attacks that would take forever to go away and my resting heart rate was like 115 just sitting on the couch… 😅 I’m used to having a low heart rate because of the beta blocker (like 50s/60s).
It’s honestly such a niche fear - I have a lot of cardiac anxiety because of genetic mutation and try to avoid things that can cause something called QT prolongation. It’s not very common and usually only an issue for people on other QT prolonging medications or have underlying prolonged QT intervals. I’ve never been told I have this, but it’s an irrational fear of mine nowadays and I’m too scared to go back on Lexapro even though I was on it for years and helped me a TON.
I hate when I’m sick and my heart rate is high… it causes me SO much anxiety.
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u/Sea-Raisin-2629 8h ago
Oh I totally get that! And I feel the same about the QT prolongation. I didn’t know lexapro could possibly cause that. I wonder if Zoloft is the same?
So I now have an awful sore throat and body aches which would explain why I’m feeling especially crappy :(
Wishing health to us all!
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u/Lazy_Put_3512 15h ago
I went through it - including the part with all the EKG and many others, father or 3 so I can relate.
it went away 2 years ago after anxiar and proxac and problems started again this year (stopped Prozac 1 year ago) and started again treatment but Cipralex this time.
So there is hope even though adapting to Prozac was hard the first time and imposibile the second time (fluoxetine). For now Cipralex is way more better with me.
Also, I am going to therapy but somehow doesn’t feel that it does the trick so far.
Get your family to support you during the first weeks if the doctor recommends you to start on SSRI or something like that.
There is hope, things can get better and I am sure they will also for you. You need to find the solution for you even if you need to go through several fail attempts.
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u/Sea-Raisin-2629 14h ago
Thank you for replying. I think it’s time to medicate and start therapy.
I’m glad things are getting better for you!
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u/psychpineapple3 10h ago
Clonidine (another med that controls heart rate) has really helped me. Not the pills though, the patch. I’m a mom of 2 and when my body gets used to anxiety, it likes to really get into it and wake me up from my sleep. If my body is calm in the daytime, it’s calmer at night.
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u/AdBulky2703 5h ago
Do you wake up feeling internal jitters or like there’s electricity going through your body
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u/Ok-Ninja2139 9h ago
I can relate to this big time. I’m trying to work up the courage to take L-theanine. When I had my heart checked out the cardiologist said to take magnesium at bedtiktbinstead of propranolol
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u/Sea-Raisin-2629 8h ago
I’ve been taking magnesium and usually it does help! But looks like now I’m going to have to give propranolol a try. Also heard great things about L-theanine but scared yo take it.
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u/Both_Lawfulness3611 8h ago
Iron deficiency
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u/Sea-Raisin-2629 8h ago
No I actually got checked and am not deficient. I wish this was the case so I know there’s a legitimate reason for it !
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u/catzeppelinqueen 8h ago
I’m 37F (turning 38 next month) and all of this started happening to me too in the past 10 months. I think for me it’s definitely hormonal, to be specific perimenopause. My cycles are still mostly the same, but some months they are late now. Look into the perimenopause sub and see if you can relate! You can still have a regular cycle during peri. I got put on propranolol and it’s helped massively
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u/Sea-Raisin-2629 7h ago
I suspected this could be a possible cause but thought I was too young? I’m glad the propranolol is helping! Also going to try it out and take a look at that sub. Do you take it twice a day? Or just when needed ?
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u/catzeppelinqueen 7h ago
I thought so too, but apparently our hormones start to change in our mid to late thirties and from reading through that sub 37 isn’t all that uncommon! And anxiety and panic attacks is one of the first symptoms a lot of women may experience. I take it twice a day, morning and afternoon.
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u/mythandriel17 7h ago
You may be in the early stages of perimenopause. I was 40 when I had my first panic attack and my anxiety has been heightened ever since. Once I got on HRT it improved greatly! Maybe try that first before the other meds?
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u/Sea-Raisin-2629 7h ago
Yes I see a lot of other posts mentioning this too. The problem is no one will prescribe the HRT for me because they don’t believe that could be the cause.
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u/BarbieDollButtkins 6h ago
Yes Perimenopause I’m going through this right now had cardiac monitor and everything cleared Perimenopause
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u/thinkgoodalways 13h ago
We give so much as mothers in every way and sometimes we don't realize that we need to support ourselves more. I'm here to say , you got this! You will find the right method of help and get back to yourself soon!
CBT therapy is supposed to be really helpful.
If you take the medication route I highly reccomend starting on a low dose and working your way up bc some people have a harder time on it. I'm on day 8 so can't say much about it helping yet :/
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u/thinkgoodalways 13h ago
Also have you checked thyroid , iron, ferretin, b12 and vitamin d. So many deficiencies can impact heart rate and panic.
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u/Sea-Raisin-2629 13h ago
Yes I checked all of these! My thyroid is slightly on the lower end but t4 is normal so my doctor wants me to restest and says they it’s not low enough to cause my symptoms.
Also you’re so right. I have really just been prioritizing everyone else. Good luck on your journey as well 💗
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u/unfortunate_kiss 15h ago
34 YO mom of 2 here- I’ve dealt with varying degrees of anxiety my whole life, sometimes debilitating. It sucks. I was always worried how it would effect my kids and luckily my 10 year old is very compassionate and understand the anxiety when it happens. I understand being stuck in your head. I recommend doing what you’re doing, taking care of your body and your mind. Consider seeing a therapist or a psychiatrist.