Hello. My name's Anna, I'm 23 yrs old, and I've been trying to understand some of my symptoms when I have a panic attack. I think it would help me explaining what happened in detail. I've never been able to talk to people that have had this happen to them too.
I had my first attack 2 years ago and have had three more since then. When I was first told that what I had was a panic attack I didn't really believe the doctor. Mainly because I didn't have any worries at the time, the doc kept saying theres something im worried about a test maybe or the future, but there honestly wasnt.
My first attack was when I'd just walked out of the shower I started to feel dizzy so I sat down. All I'd been thinking about was what movie I might want to watch that day (I was on uni holidays).
I kept getting more dizzy then my hands tingled. Then they started seizing up and my fingers when in odd directions. My muscles in my arms also pulled up so that my lower/upper arms were touching and my hands were near my lower neck. My legs started too and I couldn't walk. Seriously if theres anything to make you panic further its having no control over your body! I had no idea what was happening. After about 10min I had feeling in my legs again and could walk to the phone but my arms/hands/fingers were still seized up and wouldnt move so I knocked the phone to the ground and dialed my parents with my toes.
What I can't figure out is why I cant find this symptom listed in all my searches? I've read about numbness/tingling but my limbs were completely immovable, not like I froze and couldnt move them as in nobody could move them.
The next panic attack I had was in a car with friends (once again not worrying or thinking of anything much) and I made the mistake of having my hands closed when it started. As soon as the part started where my hands seized up they clenched hard, like harder then I could ever physically accomplish myself, and my nails cut into my hands so they bled. I yelled to my BF and he tried to release them but it was like trying to pry apart a concrete slab. Shortly after the whole seizing up thing reached my legs I had probably the worst pains I've experienced in my life. I'm not a girl that likes to show when I'm upset. I don't like to cry in front of others. I dont scream at pointless things. But it hurt so much I think I was screaming or making some amount of noise (as I was told by the people around me afterwards). It felt like I was being stabbed in the chest/stomach/I think other places too cause it felt like it was happening all over but those two I can really remember. After about 5-10min it stopped and everything started coming back to normal.
The ambulance told me that the reason this happens is hyperventelating? Although neither I or my friends remember a significant change in my breathing. Nor can I remember a change in breathing the first time. Can you hyperventalate without realising?
The second attack really affected me. I think it was the extreme pain that I experienced which has me petrified of another attack. I have had two more since then but luckily an ambo gave me a tip to sing a song or nursery rhyme over and over if you get any starter symptoms. I think it helps regulate breathing and gives you something to focus on. If theres a tips section on this forum I might post this idea there too because it has already stopped two of my attacks before they got worse.
Anyway I'm posting to ask if anybody else experiences these symptoms during their panic attacks. Also it's nice getting some feedback from people who know what its like.
