really loved the book DARE about managing panic disorder, i know everyone’s different but this was life changing for me personally. Happy to provide a summary if anyone wants the cliff notes.
Echo everything else said, getting a good psych you look forward to seeing/spending time with is paramount.
Yeah its the breathing thing I think is my whole worry. I tried a zone 2 long ride and had to give up yet when i did some sprints etc I didn’t have an issue. Just daily breathing now.
I suppose i am lucky i was only issued 2 weeks worth of benzos which is pretty standard these days.
I will have a look into the DARE book im willing to give it a try.
What this thread has proved im not on my own. You always feel like its only you and dont really appreciate other peoples struggles. So anyone else there suffering I wish you all the best and im happy to chat if you need either here or PM 
Another day of 45 minute intervals and 30 mins Yoga and I instantly feeling better.
I have started taking Citalopram and have for past 5 days and noticed my heart rate doesn’t get as high during tough intervals. I don’t know if that’s because I had previously been overtraining (doubtful) and having a long reduced activity rest or the tablets are having an effect.
Oh and I have drastically overhauled my diet cut out all the chocolate (which was probably 3/4 bars a day) cut out coffee another 3/4 cups a day and introducing more whole foods cooked from scratch and gone caffeine free drinks like peppermint tea and turmeric tea.
In case it helps just one person I have just signed up for a free trial of audible and you get one download free so I have just downloaded DARE. It’s just over 6 hours long. If I find it useful I will purchase the book
Hi, first of all, thank you for sharing. I had very bad anxiety and stress a few years ago, I was unable to exercise due to being totally fatigued from the shakes/tension in my body. Professional support, friends, acknowledgement, talking, taking small steps and accepting this will take time will all help. In addition one main thing that helped me was changing the environment which was the main issue for me, this is not always possible. I didn’t take medication and I will never know if that was the right or wrong thing to do. I have several friends that are on long term medication and they are all managing ok.
I still have bad days from time to time, but do my best to manage, and now back training and enjoying life.
Keep safe and know you are not alone
I know the benzos work brilliantly i think im 10-12 days on citalopram and my anxiety sky rocketed and i phoned DR who said she really should have prescribed the benzos for 4 weeks until the citalopram kicked in so she gave me another 3 weeks worth.
She did say because I do yoga, meditate, cycle and run and got over anxiety very quickly in the past she thought an initial 1 week of benzos would have done. Im very lucky she is so understanding and seems like she actually cares.
I will let people know how i get on with DARE.
So three weeks in and I feel great! I dropped Benzo from 3 a day just to survive to 1 a day at same time as 20 mg Citalopram a few hours before bed.
I’m very lucky I’ve had no adverse side effects to the Citalopram. Alongside all the other things I have done I listened to DARE audio book.
It’s more about confronting the anxiety instead of managing it and has also helped.
Hopefully things will keep on the up.
Have you read “the Chimp paradox” . I cant remember the authors name - possibly surname ,Peters.? He talks about your “chimp” as the emotional , non thinking part of you. Your computer brain is the thinking side. He discusses this and helps you find ways to access your computer brain, when your chimp is screaming its head off!
Sounds like your worry cup is overflowing, and you just cant take anymore , and as each problem occurs your coping mechanism reduces until you have your panic attack. Having some yoga time + training time planned every day will also help . Hope things improve for you, and remember ,it wont last forever
I agree that everyone suffers this in his own way and try to cope in different ways. Someone can get out of this situation without pills, someone is not and this is normal. I do not understand people who think that professional treatment for anxiety and depression is ridiculous (I have several such people in my environment). I also experienced a similar situation in life,
I read a lot about this, found articles,papers studydriver.com/anxiety-disorder-essay/ and tried to find my own way out. Finally the change of scenery really influenced me, I felt a certain reboot. But if I had to, I would not refuse treatment.
Not sure if this is the right thread for my issue. Ever since getting a x-wind induced speed wobble 7 years ago, I am absolutely terrified of cross winds or winds in general. Things get worse during the descend. As a result, I tense up and get speed wobbles all the time. Not fun and very dangerous.
Working with sports psychologist did not help.
I am starting to wonder if going on mild anti-depressants would help in being able to channel the anxieties into something positive instead.
I think I’m week 5 or 6 now and they have really helped. But what surprised me was it has helped with things I never thought bothered me.
I now realise a lot of things I did or said were avoiding a situation that I thought were 100% not even an issue. I.e taking certain routes home or to work, parking in a particular spot, picking up the iPad to keep my mind busy.
Now I don’t know if anti depressants will help in your situation but somebody above mentioned the book dare I think that could help. I wish you the best and hope you manage to resolve your issue
Hi Tim, a chat with a hypnotherapist might be worth a go, I’ve had great help working with one for different mental issues. Pm me if you want to chat
I’ve been on anti-depressants for years, I’m sorry and happy to say. They probably saved my marriage (wife takes them too). I don’t think they reduce performance, particularly compared with the lethargy and lack of focus I had before I started taking them. Know before you start that, in general, they are a devil to get off of. They also commonly affect sexual desire and maybe performance. At 62, that’s not a major consideration for me. In fact, it probably keeps me married.
I’ve been coping with anxiety/OCD and panic attacks for 15 years now ever since I had my first panic attack at age 18. Meds saved me. I see a psychologist and practice yoga and meditation and don’t drink or do any drugs but I still need the meds. Some people just do and so you have to weigh the pros and cons. Usually someone will take them for a while, feel better, get off, and rebound. If you really do need meds then don’t even bother with worrying about addiction because I know I’ll personally be on for life. But because of the meds (lexapro 25mg, klonopin 4mg) I’m able to live.
Well 6 years ago I took lorazepam for 3 weeks did the linden method and within a couple months was over it, but it seems so different this time and I do worry being stuck on Citalopram for rest of my life.
It’s mental health awareness week in the UK and my employer has put a lot of time and effort into supporting it and I am amazed how many people have suffered or are suffering from anxiety and will now openly admit it.
In my search for alternative therapy and looking into mindfulness and meditation etc I am currently trying the Wim Hof Breathing and cold shower techniques it’s very early days buts it’s definitely different and interesting.
My friend has a severe depression. At first it was not so scary, but the last month was very difficult for him and his family. So he started taking medication (I don’t remember which ones) and he got really better. If you are interested in anti-depressant drugs or want to know how they affect on health, you can read for example on online pharmacy
Just an update: I did end up taking anti depressants I started Citalopram 20mg and can honestly say its changed my life. I was so reluctant and didnt wanna take pills for rest of my life.
There is very little online first hand experience of people starting it or using it for anxiety. But within 4 weeks i was feeling amazing, euphoric at times that lasted for a good month then it settled down and my anxiety eased 90% day to day nothing bugged me. Someone parked across my drive- so what who cares, someone acts really mean or says something horrible instead of instant anger and anxiety I was so understanding I honestly felt sorry for them. I would think whats going on with them, what struggles are they facing that is making them like that.
I’ve now passed that stage and would say things are even. Non to little anxiety but the Buddha like patience has gone and I’m how I was before starting the meds just without the crippling anxiety.
I have also been more open to other natural medication. Definitely reading about psilocybin etc i did try but no effect due to the anti depressants. But once I’m off hopefully soon definitely explore that world more.
Natural medication are a good choice one you will finish your anti depressants. When I was dealing with anxiety I tired kratom and it had a good effect on me. For a long period of time I had numerous panic attacks, a lot of anxiety, and almost depression. I tried many types of anti depressants, but none of them were good, they were making me more depressive, but beside all of this I had to work, so decided to move to something that will give me energy and will relax my mind as well. Eventually I made the decision to buy kratom online since I knew what is kratom , a beginner set, for the start, and the outcome was even better than I was expecting, with a clear mind and full of energy I am living my life now, thanks to this
Some months ago I’d posted above how hypnotherapy had helped me with depression, anxiety and some questionable life choices. It was really little more than a patch and didn’t deal with the cause of the problems.
Thankfully a friend had recommended the Thrive program which I completed with one of their coaches.
So much of our mental health issues are brought on with how we react negatively to our experiences and the environment we live in, and we do it in ways we don’t realise.
Highly recommended
I’m 6 weeks off the citralopram. Tried another 2.5 g psilocybin which had little effect. I was looking at edibles and specifically Kratom. I microdosed 0.4 psilocybin every 2 days but doesn’t work for me so looking for next best thing
