kristi, what you went through at the hospital was very scary and it sounds to me like you have been a little traumatized by it. I'm definately no expert but I think when we go through a stressful or scary event even something like fainting and hurting yourself we can develop post traumatic stress disorder. If you talked with a psych they may not classify it as that, but I know from personal experience certain situations I've been in that frightened me have stayed with me for a long time and caused me to panic when I find myself in a similar situation. I think those of us who are sensitive and prone to anxiety take events that someone else may be able to shrug off much more seriously and we carry it with us. My psych told me my brain is like a sponge I absorb everything that goes on around me and I remember everything that has happened to me. Every hurt, every fear, every painful situation and at times when I least expect it they come out in the form of anxiety and panic. What I'm learning to do is understand that just because I was upset or hurt in a situation once doesn't mean it will happen again.

I am 21 years old and have started getting MAJOR panic attacks/anxiety. It all started when I went for a job interview about 4 months ago. It was a hospital job and I was doing a 1 day orientation wchich I had to watch all procedures that day. Well it was about 8 a.m and I was feeling fine. While I was watching an operation (not a bloody one) just a mild one...the doctor looked over at me and asked me if I felt faint at all. I said no because I felt fine. Well about 2 minutes later I felt extremely HOT and my hearing started to fade and my eyesight as well. I knew I had to sit down because I have fainted before and know how it feel(SCARY)! So i told the doc that I was going to step out of the room for a minute and he said ok. When I left that room I was in a small lab room af some sort when I noticed there was no where to sit down. I couldn't control my body and fainted head first onto the marble floors hitting my head along the way down. Next thing I know I wake up with about 3-4 doctors surrounding me. They started screaming "you need to go to the E.R Right away. I said why? They said look at her lip...just then i noticed something in my mouth. It was half of my lip I had bitten into. GROSS! So needless to say I went down and got a bunch of stitches. I have a fear of hoispitals to begin with so don't ask me why I should have even went to this interview. Anyways since that day I have a MAJOR fear of fainting and MAJOR panic attacks. They seem to occur if I am in any kind of crowds or grocery stores or malls. Just being around people or in any kind of confined spaces. Like if I am in the car I feel like I can't breathe. My breathing is what is scary.My chest gets really tight and I get the chills really bad sometimes too. My heart feels like it is racing and is going to come out of my chest and I can hear my heart beating.Then I get nautous and want to vomit or lose my appetite. I get hot and sweaty and It is just scary. But I can't get rid of the symtoms for like a week so I have to confine myself to stay inside my house and not be around anybody...and then I will be okay for about a week and the same thing happens again! Does anyone else know anything about what I am experiencing??? Or what could help me...PLEASE any info would be great. Thanks, Krysti

Mind just started one day out of the blue, I have no idea why or where it came from.

hi there jaime, i just want to know whats causing this fear of fainting that you have, i too have the same feeling. mine is like one time i was driving and i had chest pains felt like i couldnt breathe. had to open my mouth. i went to the doctor and everything was ok. now am pretty scared driving alone, but there are just this times that the attack comes and goes. when i just drive around the neighborhood i feel quite calm but when were talking about trips to the highway there it goes...i get cold clammy hands, feel like my jaw is locking so on and so forth. i dont know what to do with it. see, i always think that when im feeling weak, am gonna collapse or faint and no one would be there...this freaks me out. havent been to a psych yet cause i feel like its much better talking to someone who shares the same problem as mine...hope we both get through this:)

Ok, thanks.

Yes, it is a bit hard to explain but the fact is that people who panic do not faint. If you you search this Support Group forum under "faint" or "fainting" you will see that the topic has come up a couple of times. But with more than 750 registered users for the Support Group and many more people checking out the posts, it would appear that for people using this support group, as for people with panic in general, fainting is a very rare event and most often associated with another kind of problem, for example, a fear of blood and injury, or other medical condition. It may be possible to hyperventilate until you pass out, but it isn't very easy to do, even if you try very hard. Your body will just not let you do it. In addition, it seems likely that there is more than hyperventilation going on when people panic. If you find out more, please keep us posted.

I think certain symptoms are better for some and worse for others, I actually begin to black out and it wouldn€™t scare me as much if I wasn€™t driving at the time. I start fading in and out. And I agree I need to find a way to get rid of them all together.

Thank you Anne-Marie, this is my goal to actually reduce and perhaps even get rid of my PA's. I am sure that it can be done with help and hopefully the Programme will enlighten me and guide me on my way to recovery. :)

Hi Gerry, while many people use distraction to cope with their panic, this does not get rid of it though. The program teaches interoceptive exercises to challenge anxious thoughts in order to reduce them or get rid of them altogether.

Jaime I have had panic attacks for over 20 years, with dreadful heart palpitations and I have never ever once fainted. I feel light-headed and disorientated and I get that awful 'want to run' feeling and I can't just sit down, so I walk or run around. I find that if I am out in public and I get a PA, the best thing to do is 'something' to take your mind off it. I was once in a supermarket and I could feel one coming on, I dropped my basket and bent down to tie up my shoe-laces. Thing is I was wearing boots without laces :) But it worked for me. I think the fear of PA's and their symptoms is the biggest hurdle we all have to overcome. Hope this helps. Gerry