Feelings of Fainting - Is this panic???? Please reply.

Discussion:

(too old to reply)

Kim

2005-02-07 17:42:55 UTC

Hi All

I've been suffering from panic attacks for 8 years now.

Last year my attacks went away and I tapered off my clonazepam.
Unfortunately the attacks returned with a vengeance.

The attacks have changed. When I get them now I feel like I'm going to
faint and feel out of it. The faintness feelings freak me out totally as I
drive to work two mornings a week and drive my daugther to school and
activities. I'm convinced it's something physical.

Does anyone else have this symptom and how do you handle it. I'm currently
taking half of 0.5 clonazepam in the am and a quarter in the pm.

Thanks for replies. I desperately need to put my mind at ease.

Kim

Rick

2005-02-07 21:23:14 UTC

Permalink

Post by Kim
Hi All
I've been suffering from panic attacks for 8 years now.
Last year my attacks went away and I tapered off my clonazepam.
Unfortunately the attacks returned with a vengeance.
The attacks have changed. When I get them now I feel like I'm going to
faint and feel out of it. The faintness feelings freak me out totally as I
drive to work two mornings a week and drive my daugther to school and
activities. I'm convinced it's something physical.
Does anyone else have this symptom and how do you handle it. I'm currently
taking half of 0.5 clonazepam in the am and a quarter in the pm.
Thanks for replies. I desperately need to put my mind at ease.
Kim

Yup. Perfectly normal, as far as a panic attack symptom goes. You are
probably hyperventilating - fast, shallow breaths in the chest region
vs. deeper breathing from your diaphragm. Wanna test it the next time it
happens? Put one hand over your chest, the other mid-stomach. If the
hand over your chest is moving up and down you are "chest breathing" and
hyperventilating. If you are breathing normally the hand over your
stomach should be moving up and down if you are breathing from your
diaphragm. Just using this exercise - one hand over the chest, one hand
over your stomach - can be enough to bring your attention to what is
going on and quickly help to correct it. Works for me anyway.

Rick

Nichole

2005-02-10 17:45:14 UTC

Permalink

Post by Rick

I totally agree with what Rick wrote. This site on breathing techniques:
http://www.healthyplace.com/communities/anxiety/christine/treatment_breathing_techniques.asp
helped me out immensely. I'd suggest giving it a look. :)

-Nichole

Rick

2005-02-11 07:53:26 UTC

Permalink

Post by Nichole

Post by Rick

http://www.healthyplace.com/communities/anxiety/christine/treatment_breathing_techniques.asp
helped me out immensely. I'd suggest giving it a look. :)
-Nichole

Hi Nichole

Meditation helps a lot too. Most meditation techniques directly or
indirectly involve your respiration rate going way down. Just stay away
from the "culty" stuff like Transcendental Meditation that wants you to
pay them a lot of money to teach you a "secret" technique.

The only "gotcha" about a lot of breathing exercises is if you are
feeling real panicky you can end up trying too hard. (Some times, I'd
swear a good long scream at the top of your lungs would help more. But
that isn't socially acceptable in most situations.) "Breathe in, breathe
out.." can turn into "I'M BREATHING IN DAMMIT! I'M BREATHING OUT DAMMIT
AND IT'S NOT HELPING!!!" 8-) You know, when you are so tense trying to
do anything to help and relax is taking waaay too much effort. I don't
know how else to describe it. But we must push on and keep trying.

Rick

Kim

2005-02-10 18:49:32 UTC

Permalink

Thanks Rick

Think my mind just goes into overdrive with panic when i feel faint. Must
practice the breathing but somehow struggle to when i have an attack.

Will give it a try though next time.

Kim

Post by Rick

Rick

2005-02-11 08:15:53 UTC

Permalink

Post by Kim
Thanks Rick
Think my mind just goes into overdrive with panic when i feel faint. Must
practice the breathing but somehow struggle to when i have an attack.
Will give it a try though next time.
Kim

Hi Kim

FWIW the scientific background of this problem is that when you
hyperventilate you are actually taking in too much oxygen. And that's
what actually makes you feel dizzy. It's not that you aren't able to
breathe and need to get more air, you are actually breathing too much
(in the wrong way) and upsetting the oxygen/nitrogen balance in your
system.

One of the more revealing exercises I did in a CBT program was one in
which they actually wanted to show you that you can induce your own
panic symptoms. So they make you sit in a chair and ask you to take big,
DEEP rapid breaths. While you are just sitting there. You can try it if
you want - it's pretty much guaranteed to make you feel dizzy like you
are going to pass out. But it certainly won't kill you. It does prove
the point that there is something *physically* going on with you, that
you are actually doing and are probably not even aware of, that does
cause a symptom.

So ok, deep breaths aren't most likely what you are experiencing when
you hyperventilate during your own panic attacks. But rapid, shallow,
upper chest breaths will do the same thing. And the point of having you
just sit there when you do that exercise is the same thing that most of
us do when we hyperventilate during an attack - we are sucking in all
this extra oxygen, pretty much automatically preparing for a huge "fight
or flight" response - which we never engage in. All that extra oxygen is
all very well and good - if you are going to spring into a fast run to
get away from danger, and actually use it. But what do we do during a
panic attack? Suck in all that oxygen... and barely move a muscle
because we seize up. Ergo: Hyperventilate - get too much oxygen - get
dizzy and feel like you are going to faint. Hyperventilating is like
getting all dressed up... and going no where. It's not a good thing.

Rick

Post by Kim

Post by Rick

Josell Paredes

2005-02-08 23:53:38 UTC

Permalink

huh

Post by Kim
Hi All
I've been suffering from panic attacks for 8 years now.
Last year my attacks went away and I tapered off my clonazepam.
Unfortunately the attacks returned with a vengeance.
The attacks have changed. When I get them now I feel like I'm going to
faint and feel out of it. The faintness feelings freak me out totally as
I drive to work two mornings a week and drive my daugther to school and
activities. I'm convinced it's something physical.
Does anyone else have this symptom and how do you handle it. I'm
currently taking half of 0.5 clonazepam in the am and a quarter in the pm.
Thanks for replies. I desperately need to put my mind at ease.
Kim

In Amen

2005-02-21 21:52:45 UTC

Permalink

[snipped] I've been suffering from panic attacks for 8 years now.
The attacks have changed. When I get them now I feel like I'm going to
faint and feel out of it. The faintness feelings freak me out totally as I
drive to work two mornings a week and drive my daugther to school and
activities. I'm convinced it's something physical.
Thanks for replies. I desperately need to put my mind at ease.
Kim

Just a thought here, Kim, you mentioned you thought it might be something
physical. If you suddenly started getting panic anxiety symptoms only
eight years ago, you may want to look into what kind of dentistry fillings you
have in your teeth. Some people have found the replacement of
silver "mercury" amalgam as a dental filling material with something else
a benefit. One of the symptoms of mercury vapor 'poisoning' is panic and
fatigue which might be mistaken for faintness feeling.
This is not to alarm you, just information that may help you. Amalgam has been
banned in dentistry in Europe but unfortunately not in North America. Symptoms
often don't show up for decades after getting such fillings.
Since the mercury vapor is released with heat and taken into your body through
your lungs, situations like drinking very hot coffee and breathing through your mouth
rather than your nose may initiate the symptoms.
This may or may not have anything to do with your case, but like many people in
your situation, it doesn't hurt to look at all areas of the problem. Most drugs do not
cure, they cover up the symptoms, leaving the problem untouched.

Mary

2005-02-21 23:20:51 UTC

Permalink

Post by In Amen

It looks like the original poster is from Brazil so maybe they do or do
not have amalgam fillings.
I notice you are with Bell Sympatico. I live in Toronto, and I noticed
last year that my dentist did two fillings and they were not amalgam. I
have lots of amalgam fillings from throught the years though, but in my
case at least, they have nothing to do with my anxiety, which was caused
by other things, which I know what they are.
I only mention this because you said amalgam is banned in Europe but not
in North America. But we in Canada are north America, and though they
may not be banned here, maybe most dentists don't use amalgam. I was
kind of surprised that my dentist didn't use amalgam any more. When I
asked my dentist about it, he said that its only in the last couple of
years that they have developed a good replacement for amalgam in the way
of porcelain, and before that, the non-amalgam fillings didn't last
long. Of course it will cost more for non-amalgam because it is probably
not widely used everywhere here yet - and costs more too. I have a
dental plan but it doesn't pay much, so I have to pay the rest myself.

Never any harm to check anything out.

Mary

In Amen

2005-02-22 02:36:43 UTC

Permalink

[snip] last year my dentist did two fillings and they were not amalgam. I
have lots of amalgam fillings from throught the years though, but in my
case at least, they have nothing to do with my anxiety, which was caused
by other things, which I know what they are.
I only mention this because you said amalgam is banned in Europe but not
in North America. But we in Canada are north America, and though they
may not be banned here, maybe most dentists don't use amalgam. I was
kind of surprised that my dentist didn't use amalgam any more. When I
asked my dentist about it, he said that its only in the last couple of
years that they have developed a good replacement for amalgam in the way
of porcelain, and before that, the non-amalgam fillings didn't last
long. Of course it will cost more for non-amalgam because it is probably
not widely used everywhere here yet - and costs more too. I have a
dental plan but it doesn't pay much, so I have to pay the rest myself.
Never any harm to check anything out.
Mary

Due to legal issues any dentist will tell you that there wasn't a replacement
for amalgam until recently. They won't tell you that dentists split from doctors
over a hundred years ago over just that issue. I did some study on it and
found a web site that researched the history of amalgam. Doctors wouldn't
allow it to be put into the patients they treated (many dentists were once
doctors/dentists). A large group of dentists at that time came from other
occupations and formed a group to allow amalgam fillings which are approx.
70% mercury and thirty percent silver. Mercury is poisonous to humans. There
are over 100 symptoms related to it. However, where ever a buck is to be made
business can lobby to get even poison passed as okay. The way they got away
with it is this: very often the mercury doesn't release from the filling for fifteen
to twenty years. I was surprised to learn it comes out of the filling as a vapor
and gets absorbed into our systems through our lungs. I thought, wrongly, that
it was absorbed into our gum tissue. Anyway, what we don't know can't hurt us,
right? There are programs to lessen the mercury in our bodies, but that requires
direction by a physician to make sure your healthy enough to go through the
cure. ironic?
Nobody, who ever got spam, will ever again put their real email address
and identity into a newsgroup post.

Mary

2005-02-22 03:07:39 UTC

Permalink

Post by In Amen

they

Post by In Amen

may not be banned here, maybe most dentists don't use amalgam. I was
kind of surprised that my dentist didn't use amalgam any more. When I
asked my dentist about it, he said that its only in the last couple of
years that they have developed a good replacement for amalgam in the way
of porcelain, and before that, the non-amalgam fillings didn't last
long. Of course it will cost more for non-amalgam because it is probably
not widely used everywhere here yet - and costs more too. I have a
dental plan but it doesn't pay much, so I have to pay the rest myself.
Never any harm to check anything out.
Mary

I can't speak about dentists except my own and he told me that the
reason they didn't use amalgam sooner was because porcelain that they
developed originally was not strong enough for fillings, but they are
better now. I've been going to him for 15 years and as far as I know, he
doesn't lie.
There is also an extra cost for porcelain fillings, so thats another
reason it could have been held back.
Where are you located in Canada?

A large group of dentists at that time came from other

Post by In Amen
occupations and formed a group to allow amalgam fillings which are approx.
70% mercury and thirty percent silver. Mercury is poisonous to humans. There
are over 100 symptoms related to it. However, where ever a buck is to be made
business can lobby to get even poison passed as okay. The way they got away
with it is this: very often the mercury doesn't release from the filling for fifteen
to twenty years. I was surprised to learn it comes out of the filling as a vapor
and gets absorbed into our systems through our lungs. I thought, wrongly, that
it was absorbed into our gum tissue. Anyway, what we don't know can't hurt us,
right? There are programs to lessen the mercury in our bodies, but that requires
direction by a physician to make sure your healthy enough to go through the
cure. ironic?

Just curious, do you post here because of anxiety issues that you feel
are caused by
amalgam fillings?

Post by In Amen
Nobody, who ever got spam, will ever again put their real email address
and identity into a newsgroup post.

Which newsgroups are you referring to?
My name is Mary, what is yours?

Mary

v***@duskmail.com

2005-03-22 16:01:09 UTC

Permalink

Post by In Amen
Due to legal issues any dentist will tell you that there wasn't a replacement
for amalgam until recently. They won't tell you that dentists split from doctors
over a hundred years ago over just that issue. I did some study on it and
found a web site that researched the history of amalgam. Doctors wouldn't
allow it to be put into the patients they treated (many dentists were once
doctors/dentists). A large group of dentists at that time came from other
occupations and formed a group to allow amalgam fillings which are approx.
70% mercury and thirty percent silver. Mercury is poisonous to humans. There
are over 100 symptoms related to it. However, where ever a buck is to be made
business can lobby to get even poison passed as okay. The way they got away
with it is this: very often the mercury doesn't release from the filling for fifteen
to twenty years. I was surprised to learn it comes out of the filling as a vapor
and gets absorbed into our systems through our lungs. I thought, wrongly, that
it was absorbed into our gum tissue. Anyway, what we don't know can't hurt us,
right? There are programs to lessen the mercury in our bodies, but that requires
direction by a physician to make sure your healthy enough to go through the
cure. ironic?
Nobody, who ever got spam, will ever again put their real email address
and identity into a newsgroup post.

Thank you

***@duskmail.com

Mary

2005-02-21 23:28:03 UTC

Permalink

Kim, just a suggestion. You might want to consider to also look in at
alt.support-panic Newsgroup and alt.support.panic.moderated Newsgroup so
you can read messages and see if you can relate to what people there
say. Its good to get various opinions and experiences, and those two
newsgroups are more active than this one. You can post there as well as
here if you like. Also, if you are worried that its something physical,
first step is to see your family doctor and see what he says, or ask for
a referral to a pshychiatrist or psychologist. Feeling faint is a common
sign of anxiety, but you need to check out the physical side first.

Mary

Kim

2005-02-23 18:18:48 UTC

Permalink

Thanks Mary

I also post on another newsgroup. Everyone has been very helpful.

I do have lots of fillings and wanted to have them replaced with porcelain
ones but not many dentists in South Africa do the procedure as its risky
removing the old fillings.

Went to my doc who ran some tests and all came back 100% so she's convinced
it's panic. It just freaks me out though as I'm convinced it must be
something else and keep worrying myself silly that it is.

I appreciate any bit of info.

Thanks
Kim

Post by Kim

[snipped] I've been suffering from panic attacks for 8 years now.
The attacks have changed. When I get them now I feel like I'm going

faint and feel out of it. The faintness feelings freak me out

totally as I

drive to work two mornings a week and drive my daugther to school

and

activities. I'm convinced it's something physical.
Thanks for replies. I desperately need to put my mind at ease.
Kim

Mary

2005-02-23 22:45:42 UTC

Permalink

Hi Kim.

Post by Kim
Thanks Mary
I also post on another newsgroup. Everyone has been very helpful.
I do have lots of fillings and wanted to have them replaced with porcelain
ones but not many dentists in South Africa do the procedure as its risky
removing the old fillings.

Yes, that is what I heard. As I mentioned I have tons of amalgam
fillings and only in the last year did I need two of them replaced, and
the dentist for the first time put in porcelain fillings and I asked him
about it as he never mentioned it while doing the filling but I saw the
mixture wasn't the usual silver, and he said he had started using
porcelain fillings a couple of years ago and would have used them
before, but the porcelain wasn't perfected enough and the fillings
didn't last long, but now the porcelain is better and stronger. It costs
more than the amalgam, and I have a dental plan which pays a portion of
my dental work, so I end up paying more out of pocket, but I don't
really care. I have no intention whatsoever to get my amalgam fillings
replace, mainly because I have other health issues and enough stress, so
can't take anything like that.

Post by Kim
Went to my doc who ran some tests and all came back 100% so she's convinced
it's panic. It just freaks me out though as I'm convinced it must be
something else and keep worrying myself silly that it is.
I appreciate any bit of info.

Well, you did the right thing by going to your doctor first. Its always
better to check out any possible physical issues first. Your doctor
could very well be right. But panic is not the same as anxiety. Panic
seems to have more symptoms than anxiety, or more severe. I have
situational anxiety. doesn't happen all the time. just certain
situations make it worse.

Not that I am a doctor, but to me it sounds to me like a driving phobia.
As I asked you, have you had anything happen to you when driving? thats
not what caused my driving phobia, but it caused me a semi phobia on the
highway. I had a bad experience driving one day when it was pouring rain
so bad I couldn't see a thing and I ended up partly in the ditch. I have
driven for the last 40 years on the highway and it never bothered me in
the least, but I never had anything happen like ending up in the ditch,
so I didn't go back on the highway after that. I could if I absolutely
had to, but it would be very stressful, and my anticipatory level is
very high about it. So I don't really need to go on the highway. I go to
places the long way around and I don't care. it takes longer, but so
what. I would prefer to keep my stress levels and my blood pressure
down.

Mary