Thanks for all the input everyone. Your experience and support has helped bring issues to light :) Josie ______________________________ The Panic Center Support Team.

Jo, I have suffered from severe anxiety and panic attacks for about 3 1/2 years now and I also have an 18 month old son. He was not planned but was not a burden by any means. He has been a blessing. When I first found out I was flooded by fear. What if I get this, what if I get that, I have panic attacks so what if this hurts the baby or my health, etc. After the first month of feeling nauseous and dizzy, things started to get better. By the fourth month I felt great and even stopped having panic attacks. If I felt funny or anxious I told my fiance who reassured me and if that didn't help I would call the doctor if I was concerned. At the end of my pregnancy I became sick and developed preeclamsia, which can be harmful, but it was caught early because of weekly check-ups and good medical care. I was induced the following day and made it through labor (labor was the easy part for me). I was in labor for less than six hours and pushed for less than a half an hour. I stayed focus on having a healthy baby and that is what I had. My high blood pressure from the preeclamsia never went away but I am thankful getting through it all. If I could do it, you can too. When you get pregnant things change and you become more focused on the baby and his/her health so you eat better, rest more, and try to stay stress free. With proper pre-natal care you will be fine and your doctors will watch for things, like rising blood pressure and severe swelling. And don't let labor scare you too much. I got to seven cenimeters dialated without an epidural and then took the epidural. It was fine after that so I recommend the epidural. They even offered me a narcotic of some sort to help relax me but I refused and I got through it. It was just something that I had to do and had no choice but to do it. If you decide to have children, you will be fine and you will survive. Women have done this for ages and lived and now medical care is way better. There are rare cases of maternal deaths from childbirth but they are extremely rare cases and often times the mother has a pre-existing condition. Keep that in mind and try not to worry or beat yourself up about it. Let me know how things go for you :)

Well that is how i deal with the having kids thing lol As for other stuff i don't always fare as well. But remember be kind to yourself and love yourself the way you are. -Diva

Basically i just do what i can to get better and put off having kids and accept it. I tell myself i know two women who had kids in their 40s and were fine and the kids too. So i just ease up on myself and accept the situation as is. I know this is of no comfort to you probably but it is how i deal with it. But looking at things straight in the face and accepting them while working hard to feel better and better. -Diva

Hi Diva, thanks for your response its nice to know that its not just me when it comes to kids, thing is it does not feel like anxiety anymore its I just come over feeling odd, or faint or whatever it doesent feel like it use it when it would be a panic attack its not like that anymore so I guess that must be good in some way, I have a major thing about driving the car without an adult with me I did have a car accident when I was 17 and have never got over this whole driving thing at all and it gets worse, I feel like its all getting worse as I get older or maybe not worse but not better, I would love for me and my Husband to have a child of our own we have a nephew which we adore, how do you deal with this. I spent all day thinking about it as I work for myself so only work a few hours a week. I had to give up my job because the anxiety was to much. Best th ing I did.

Jo, I must admit i am nowhere near to being ready to have kids and i am almost same age as you. My anxiety is high enough that i don't feel ready. But it does not make me a failure. and it does not make you a failure. None of this does. So you have anxiety disorders. You are not a failure. You did not ask for it and everyday you get up and you deal with this and you get through another day. and that is winning. and even if you have an off day you are still a winner just because you got through another day! You are being to tough on yourself. I think you need to be kinder to yourself and love yourself the way you are. What you have to deal with is tough but you deal with it in your own way and that makes you a winner in my book. -Diva

Hi everyone, not shure where to start really so this might go on a bit, I feel like a failure at everything really, I love swimming but always feel shakey for a while after probably muscles so as soon as we get ready to go to gym I start feeling like I am dreaming, not with it and everything really strange, today I had one glass of wine and totally lost it, was shure I was going to pass out emy legs went jelly and everything just seemed strange I had to tell myself I was in my house, I always feel funny to a certain extent, can just be sat there doing nothing and can feel like my head hasd twitched, or suddenely feel like I am somewhere else other than home, not with it, can happen when out somewhere just like switching the light on, but the main thing at the moment is never being able to have a child of my own as I am not capable as I have so many feeling on a daily basis and feel faint at nothing at lot, how can I ever carry a child let alone give birth I know I would freak and pass out for shure and then what if you die haveing a child as I read about a condition that someone died of in the local maternity hospital here, and now bugged by it on my mind all the time even if it is rare how would I cope with any complications, I am 32 now and my neighbour has just had her first at 32 had a c section after and induction. This is a huge issue for me so would appreciate and help.