I might actually be dying

[mochi]

so I've been having panic attacks every night the last few weeks and now I've developed muscle weakness, I went to an ER today but the doctor didn't really examine me that much, just told me my muscle tone seemed okay and perscribed me an anti-anxiety medicine

I have a proper doctor's check-up on May 9th, but the panic persists and I'm afraid I could have something horrible like ALS (which is admittedly not likely but the sudden muscle weakness is terrifying me), and I have nobody offline to confide in since my parents dismiss all my health concerns believing I'm a Hypocondriac

 

am I being crazy or do you think I might really be sick?

Edited April 23, 2018 by mochi

[Doom Metal Alchemist]

Mistakenly thinking you are dying is a very common symptom of panic disorder. This happened to me. I was put on medication in 2003 and haven't had a panic attack since.

[scoobdog]

It's "dying."

And, by muscle weakness, what do you mean exactly?

[mochi]

 

Just now, scoobdog said:

It's "dying."

And, by muscle weakness, what do you mean exactly?

sort of a heavy feeling, not tingling, more like it takes more effort than usual to move my arms or legs

[scoobdog]

Usually (but not always) a disorder of the nervous system would include repeated spasming and involuntary muscle movement.  Having heavy motion isn't unusual for a panic attack.

[mochi]

1 minute ago, scoobdog said:

Usually (but not always) a disorder of the nervous system would include repeated spasming and involuntary muscle movement.  Having heavy motion isn't unusual for a panic attack.

okay then, that calms me a little, I haven't had any involentary muscle spasms, I've been a little shaky but I attribute that to panic, I haven't flailed my arms or anything severe like that, I suppose it probably is just bad panic

that said I also seem to be sort of unable to breathe through my nose

[scoobdog]

Just now, mochi said:

okay then, that calms me a little, I haven't had any involentary muscle spasms, I've been a little shaky but I attribute that to panic, I haven't flailed my arms or anything severe like that, I suppose it probably is just bad panic

that said I also seem to be sort of unable to breathe through my nose

That would be allergies.

I think you'll be all right.

[Phillies]

thought you had a head doctor who sorts this stuff out. 

 

[Hornshire]

You are dieing.

Such is life.

[mochi]

5 minutes ago, scoobdog said:

That would be allergies.

I think you'll be all right.

something else that sort of calms me is that my blood pressure is apparently just fine

 

I imagine if I did have a nervous system disorder that it wouldn't be

[mochi]

10 minutes ago, Phillies said:

thought you had a head doctor who sorts this stuff out. 

 

don't yet but this episode is a wake up call and I'm going to

[Danger_Jules]

Ben Gay and bananas can help with your muscle pain.

 

Good luck.

[mochi]

1 minute ago, Danger_Jules said:

Ben Gay and bananas can help with your muscle pain.

 

Good luck.

I'm allergic to Bananas so it's entirely possible I do have a potassium deficiency now that you mention it

[scoobdog]

9 minutes ago, mochi said:

I'm allergic to Bananas so it's entirely possible I do have a potassium deficiency now that you mention it

Pretty sure you don't have that either, but your doctor probably would catch anything like that after bloodwork is done.

[Phillies]

28 minutes ago, Kweerie said:

You are dieing.

Such is life.

so inspiring 

[Ric]

You're probably not dying. 

[Satou Kazuma]

i felt like dying.

 

after a night of heavy drinking and massive hangover the next day, years ago.

[NSAID]

When I was a kid, there was at least a month where I couldn't move my legs beneath my knees. Since they did tests and never found an answer, I have to assume it was an early spike in whatever half baked somatoform disorder makes me think I'm dying every time I get a cold right until my nose starts running. it stress, maintain an electrolyte balance and avoid getting upset about anime for a few weeks.

[katt_goddess]

Scoob already hit it. It all sounds like anxiety / panic and the thing about that is you end up winding yourself up over it which just makes it keep going. 

While the doctors do their bloodwork and check-ups, you find something peaceful and non-challenging to do to help alleviate the panic on your end. Go outside if possible and read under a tree if the season currently allows. Have a small pot of tea and just enjoy it slowly. Something that openly encourages you to slow down and breath for a bit. 

[mochi]

1 minute ago, katt_goddess said:

Scoob already hit it. It all sounds like anxiety / panic and the thing about that is you end up winding yourself up over it which just makes it keep going. 

While the doctors do their bloodwork and check-ups, you find something peaceful and non-challenging to do to help alleviate the panic on your end. Go outside if possible and read under a tree if the season currently allows. Have a small pot of tea and just enjoy it slowly. Something that openly encourages you to slow down and breath for a bit. 

sounds like a plan, (they didn't run blood work but I imagine the all over check up on May 9th might, and if not I'll ask them to just to put my mind at ease)

I intend to start spending more time outside already

[Drunkenwarrior]

It may not be panic attacks...it may be your heart having issues

[mochi]

40 minutes ago, Drunkenwarrior said:

It may not be panic attacks...it may be your heart having issues

my blood pressure tests as normal

[Drunkenwarrior]

1 hour ago, mochi said:

my blood pressure tests as normal

Im not a doctor...I dunno man

[That_One_Guy]

3 hours ago, mochi said:

so I've been having panic attacks every night the last few weeks and now I've developed muscle weakness, I went to an ER today but the doctor didn't really examine me that much, just told me my muscle tone seemed okay and perscribed me an anti-anxiety medicine

I have a proper doctor's check-up on May 9th, but the panic persists and I'm afraid I could have something horrible like ALS (which is admittedly not likely but the sudden muscle weakness is terrifying me), and I have nobody offline to confide in since my parents dismiss all my health concerns believing I'm a Hypocondriac

 

am I being crazy or do you think I might really be sick?

I'm actually going through something similar. I'm having weird shit going on in my chest. Don't feel like you're weird for getting it checked out. You're doing the right thing man. I know how scary weird body shit is. I have an appointment tomorrow because this feeling I have in my chest, while not painful, is persistent and scary. But yeah, get that shit checked out. You're doing the right thing. 

[KreiaDidNothingWrong]

You have panic disorder.
Congratulations, you can be part of my club now.

[Poof]

My most recent hormone doctor is very comforting about estrogen and blood clots and avoiding them. Everytime he tells me "don't mess around. The first symptom of a blood clot can be death" and im like "gotcha doc if i have any death ill let u know"

[Juice McKenzie]

crazy

[SlappyKincaid]

100% guaranteed just really bad panic attacks, but medical investimagation should be done just to be sure.

[nameraka]

Yeah. I’ve had panic attacks and they straight up feel like you’re dying. Get checked out to be safe, but try to do something to occupy your mind in the meantime. Thinking about it will just make it worse.

[mochi]

6 minutes ago, nameraka said:

Yeah. I’ve had panic attacks and they straight up feel like you’re dying. Get checked out to be safe, but try to do something to occupy your mind in the meantime. Thinking about it will just make it worse.

if the weather is nice tomorrow I might go to a mall or bookstore, part of why I have this panic could be because the lapse in things to do over the winter and spring made me too sedentary and I've spent most of the last 2 months laying in my bed doing more or less nothing but drawing

Edited April 24, 2018 by mochi

[lupin_bebop]

You had a panic attack. Generalized Anxiety Disorder fits better than ALS.

ALS is chronic, and has specific symptoms. It's famous, Lou Gehrig's Disease, so I don't think you have it. It's rare patients last 30+ years. Also, slurred speech is pretty obvious.

[PhilosipherStoned]

smoke weed every day.

[mochi]

Just now, PhilosipherStoned said:

smoke weed every day.

(if it's proposed as a solution I may look into Medical Marijuana..it's legal with a license in my state)

[PhilosipherStoned]

 

[mochi]

12 minutes ago, PhilosipherStoned said:

 

nah I looked it up you can only get it if you have Physical health issues in my state not for depression or anxiety

 

if I had money I'd move to LA, it's Actually legal there

[PhilosipherStoned]

same..

[Sandstone]

So the likely hood of you having an actual medical illness as severe as ALS is unlikely at this point. The cause your anxiety could be a number of things, it could be Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Panic Disorder, or OCD. I have OCD, and in particular, have OCD symptoms related to what is typically referred to as "contamination phobia" which is somewhat similar to what you are describing. It is one of the triggers that landed me in the hospital mental ward for the first time, I was convinced I had HIV after sleeping with one guy whilst using protection and knowing he was tested negative beforehand... these are the types of irrational obsessions associated with mental illness and are not a joke. You should seek out a therapist, but rest assured you may have a sense of impending doom but you are logically unlikely to die. Do not despair bud.

[Neko]

I've seen panic attacks...hopefully never have to go through one.

 

It does make you seem like you are dying but you aren't.  Just gotta breath.

[mochi]

On 4/23/2018 at 11:59 PM, lupin_bebop said:

You had a panic attack. Generalized Anxiety Disorder fits better than ALS.

ALS is chronic, and has specific symptoms. It's famous, Lou Gehrig's Disease, so I don't think you have it. It's rare patients last 30+ years. Also, slurred speech is pretty obvious.

Generalized Anxiety Disorder sounds like the most likely diagnosis at this point, as I also have back pain, and back pain is a symptom

[scoobdog]

On 4/23/2018 at 4:48 PM, katt_goddess said:

Scoob already hit it. It all sounds like anxiety / panic and the thing about that is you end up winding yourself up over it which just makes it keep going. 

While the doctors do their bloodwork and check-ups, you find something peaceful and non-challenging to do to help alleviate the panic on your end. Go outside if possible and read under a tree if the season currently allows. Have a small pot of tea and just enjoy it slowly. Something that openly encourages you to slow down and breath for a bit. 

That's excellent advice.  Unfortunately, I rarely calmed myself down enough to do any of that when I had panic attacks.  In the event you can't get yourself to slow down, it helps to find an activity that is challenging but not mentally taxing - something that will require all of your attention without requiring you to think a lot.  Examples might be training for an athletic endeavor or engaging in an art project that requires you to travel around your city. 

[mochi]

15 minutes ago, scoobdog said:

That's excellent advice.  Unfortunately, I rarely calmed myself down enough to do any of that when I had panic attacks.  In the event you can't get yourself to slow down, it helps to find an activity that is challenging but not mentally taxing - something that will require all of your attention without requiring you to think a lot.  Examples might be training for an athletic endeavor or engaging in an art project that requires you to travel around your city. 

yeah I've calmed a little since you guys talked me down from my fear of ALS but I'm still panicking, playing video games sort of helps for right now but long term I'm gonna need actual help from a psychiatrist/anti anxiety meds

[scoobdog]

Video games can work if you're participating as part of a team.  Single player games can be frustrating and that won't help.

For what it's worth, I had some pretty bad panic attacks when I was in my late teens and early twenties, but I've been much better in the ensuing twenty years.  A lot of time, the anxiety goes away as you get older.  It's different for a white, hetero male than for a black, gay male for obvious reasons, but, still, much of the anxiety that comes with maturing through your twenties goes away.

[katt_goddess]

2 hours ago, scoobdog said:

Video games can work if you're participating as part of a team.  Single player games can be frustrating and that won't help.

 

Not necessarily. 

One thing I found that's ridiculously simple, violent and safe at the same time is stomping goombahs.   I ended up spending an entire afternoon on some goombah filled planet in Super Mario Galaxy 2 just smashing the crap out of everything while dealing with doctor stuff. It funneled all the pent up energy and panic into something that wouldn't require getting wall plaster and stitches. Very cathartic. 

So maybe find some rabid mobile fungi and stomp the crap out of them. It's not people violence and it's just jumping up and down. 

[mochi]

4 hours ago, katt_goddess said:

Not necessarily. 

One thing I found that's ridiculously simple, violent and safe at the same time is stomping goombahs.   I ended up spending an entire afternoon on some goombah filled planet in Super Mario Galaxy 2 just smashing the crap out of everything while dealing with doctor stuff. It funneled all the pent up energy and panic into something that wouldn't require getting wall plaster and stitches. Very cathartic. 

So maybe find some rabid mobile fungi and stomp the crap out of them. It's not people violence and it's just jumping up and down. 

calm farming simulators like Stardew Valley are a good thing to calm me....which is what I ended up playing

 

 

if you guys have any other suggestions for nice calming games to play on Steam that'd be nice (''>3>'')(''<3<'') (I'm in a better mood right now than I have been in like 2 months so that's a good sign)

[AstroCreep]

You need to go to your PCP, have him check your blood and stuff, see if he or she thinks you should see any specialists.

[PhilosipherStoned]

Stuff like this helps me relax as well..

when I'm really wound up and thinking dark thoughts it seems to put me at ease..yuki

 

Edited April 26, 2018 by PhilosipherStoned

[PhilosipherStoned]

Holy shit that was supposed to be a an old school japanese flute compilation, but I've copied the link for it multiple times and it still posts this...This guy is kind of my role model when it comes to rap, and music altogether at this point though so fuck it. That's really weird I'm listening to the japanese music now, but it puts his video here when I copy the url.. 

the fuck. I think youtubes favorite tracker must be off or something..Finally fixed it.. For some reason my youtube url was showing a diff than the vid I was trying to post. I havent had that issue before. I suppose it's because I used my favorites playlist to get the vid..

Edited April 26, 2018 by PhilosipherStoned