 |
 |
Pat, I have experienced panic attacks for years. They were often very intense involing my whole body in terrible tremors and freezing. They normally would last between 20 and 30 minutes and usually would occur at night when I was sleeping. We have not been able to identify a cause but did find that Ativan could make it subside in 10 minutes or so. Usually one pill was enough but sometimes two were needed. Ativan (Lorasepam) is an anti anxiety agent and I took it in 1mg doses. It is quite effective but it will knock you out, which after a panic attack I was happy to have happen. This would be tough though if you had to travel right after taking a pill. Since my pallidotomies I have had infrequent panic attacks of much less intensity but, I still carry Ativan around for insurance, and will take one when I feel an unusuall level of stress building up. This is in frequent since the surgery. Ativan side effects can be many. For me they caused some hallucination for a limited period of time, which my husband Bob will attest too, but the relief from the panic attack has always exceeded any negative side effects. Hope you find this helpful. I saw Alan Bonanders note on the use of blue glasses and would also echo his comments but following my pallidotomies my need for blue glasses has really been diminished since I no longer suffer from the dreaded dyskinesia. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ - Nancy Martone [log in to unmask] age 50, diagnosed '77, pal '95 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ - ----------- REPLY, Original message follows -------- > From: P. Schark \ Internet: ([log in to unmask]) > Subject: Help! Panic Attack! (fwd) > I recently had two scary panic attacks in 24 hours and have been trying to > figure out why they happened so I can avoid them in the future. > > The first occurred when I woke abruptly from a sound sleep with my heart > pounding wildly. I was shaking from head to toe and had a chest pain that > mimics a heart attack. The same symptoms occurred the following day while > I was teaching a class. Although the nighttime attacks had happened > before, I never had one at work until then. In addition, during the > daytime attack I became flushed and hot all over. I passed the hot- flash > phase of menapause years ago, so it wasn't that. I had my blood pressure > taken several hours after the attack, and it was still very high. During > the daytime attack, I froze in my seat. This is only the second time > that's happened; the first was in the shower last week. Luckily I had a > good class and they were able to carry on without me. I had warned them > previously that I could experience "off" times and explained what could > happen, so they weren't surprised. Nevertheless, it took an hour for me > to get back on. > > The only variable within 24 hours of the attack was a masssage I had > gotten the evening before the first one. Does anyone know if that could > trigger an attack? We had been out to dinner before the massage to > celebrate my son's birthday. Food additives might be the culprit. My > nutritionist said a very remote possibility might be toxins released into > my system by the massage added to toxins generated by the diet/supplement > regimen I've been on. > > My neurologist doesn't have much to say on the subject, which probably > means it hasn't been researched extensively. Parade magazine ran an > article Sunday which mentioned panic attacks are attributable to faulty > neurotransmitters. Makes sense for us, but what do we do about it? > Relaxation breathing is helpful, but I'd like to avoid them altogether. By > the way, they happen when I'm "off," but it's not possible, or even > desirable, to be "on" all the time. As the King of Siam used to say "'Tis > a puzzlement!" > > I'd appreciate any input. > > Thanks. > > Pat Schark