Struggling

[Scott1 0]

For the last 3 weeks I’ve had shortness of breath and lately I’ve had chest pain and I’m worried that I’m gonna have a heart attack or stroke or that I’m having silent heart attacks.  My therapist  put me back on lexapro 2 weeks ago after I weened off 2 months ago but it’s been 2 weeks and I’m still having shortness of breath so what if it’s not anxiety this time- what if my body is telling me something.  I had shortness of breath and heart fears 5 years ago before I was put on meds and at the time I was in and out of the ER and going from doctor to doctor and saw a cardiologist and everything came back normal at the time.  But what if this time it’s different. Shortness of breath, plus chest pains, rapid heart beat constantly anybody deal with these issues constantly? I need advice or someone to reassure me 😞 

[MARC 430]

Odds are it is anxiety, but I would call your physician and explain your symptoms and concerns. 

[Ironman 196]

Heart palpitations and hyperventilation are part of anxiety, yes.

[jonathan123 2368]

Hi Scott. As everyone says, these are all anxiety symptoms. It may be good to know why. FEAR!!! Fear is always at the root of anxiety. No fear no anxiety. When we enter into fear of any sort our body reacts accordingly and in the only way it knows. The mind says 'danger' and the brain, which is just another organ, responds automatically. It puts you in the fight/flight mode. The adrenaline glands which produce the fear hormone, are turned on. Now this is not a conscious act. It's automatic.  You begin to breathe fast and your chest feels heavy. This is so that when you want to run away from danger you take in as much oxygen as you can. You may want to dash to the toilet to lose weight so you can run faster. The heart palpitates because it needs to pump blood faster, and all the other symptoms of anxiety/fear follow. Now to our ancient ancestors who were confronted with big hairy Mammoths, this was the only thing to do. Run, and as fast as possible. We have inherited that experience and it's good we have because it keeps us away from dangerous situations. But when it begins to frighten us that's when it becomes real anxiety. It's so difficult for us to realise that what happens is perfectly normal behaviour in the presence of fear. We set up the old viscous circle, fear/ symptoms/ fear!! A dog chasing it's tail. Acceptance of all the symptoms is the only real answer. Elimination of the fear of fear. Go easy on yourself. By all means seek medical advice, but you have already done that.  

[Scott1 0]

But is it normal to have these symptoms 24-7?

[Scott1 0]

38 minutes ago, jessica james said:

I want to know are you stressed out about something? Your symptoms are pointing towards anxiety since you mentioned every thing comes up normal. So I would suggest you to contact a good therapist. I will help you alot. I used to get anxiety attacks and my symptoms were same, mainly shortness of breathe and heaviness on chest. Lexapro basically inhibit the uptake of serotonin and is used for the treatment of anxiety and panic disorder. But it does take time to settle and show its effect on your body. I used to take Xanax and Lexapro too but I realized they work to a limit. And our body gets immune to high dosage. I would rather recommend you to use alternative therapy treatment options. That will help you alot. Please also know what is anxiety.  https://mangoclinic.com/anxiety-management-guide-2020/ Everything is mentioned in it with complete details including medication. Hope it helps. 

I started lexapro 10MG in December of 2019 and was on it until December of 2020. Then I got off and started getting these symptoms I described above and my therapist put me back on lexapro 10 mg about 3 weeks ago.  The first time it took 4-6 weeks to work.  I figured this time it would work in a shorter time since I was already on it for a year and only got off for one month. 

[jonathan123 2368]

In answer to your question Scott, yes it is 24/7 it's still with us. If you could switch it off now and then for a bit of peace you would. 

Medication is fine, in the short term, but getting to the cause is important too. Is it possible to get any counselling? For any effect there has to be a cause. That's the immutable law of physics.  Look at your life style. The way you live and how you respond to people. This is not something that just happens. You need guidance and help. It can be a childhood problem and so often is. Please don't fight or struggle with 'IT'. That's a  war you can never win.