My experience with caffiene can be dependent on where my mood already is and just how strong the coffee is. Sometimes I can drink a mild coffee and get a mood boost, other times it sends me over the edge to almost physically shaking and mentally racing. I'm coming to believe that sugar is also a culprit. I put a lot of sugar into my coffee and recognize that I really don't like coffee but putting sugar and chocolate into it makes it palitable. I spent two days recently sticking to decaf and found it a huge help. My doctor is sending me for blood tests just to rule out any diabetic symptoms.

My first pdoc told me to cut caffeine out of my diet completely because it would increase my chances of getting a panic attack. It did work, but I started drinking caffeinated things again. I have been cutting down lately though and I'de like to continue it.

Thanks for your support and experience! Allergies are tricky, so take the time to talk to your doctor and pose your concerns if needed :) Josie, Support Specialist

Wow. Thanks Diva. It is so nice to have someone who can totally relate to me. I too as a child was always afraid of something bad happening so I was a very cautious child. I never seeked any psychiatric help because it wasn't severe but as I said, I just was overly cautios. My friends thought I was a weirdo but everyone always said I was just always too "old for my age." This whole full feeling thing is very new to me. It kind of scares me because I don't want to eat because I am afraid of that feeling again. I am now just eating very small portions. This way I am never full or never hungry. Something interesting someone mentioned to me is to get checked for food allergies. They said that sometimes a food allergy isn't necessarily a "rash" but a reaction that can give you "drunk or floatiness" like symptoms which would trigger a panic attack. Interesting info there huh? Like I need more to think about... lol Anyways, thanks for your response. I found it very interesting that we have so much in common. Dina

HEllo Dina, I just wanted to day that I could relate to you. First, that too full feeling can send me in a panic too. It really annoys me when it does. But there it is, it makes me feel like i need to lie down do deep breathing and wear absolutely nothing tight since my own body feels too tight on me lol Just wanted to say you are not alone in this. Second, I wanted to say you are not alone in having had a good life and still having panic disorder. As I have said in another post : "But I think my life was pretty good all in all. My mom is super great and my dad and me get along much better now When I was a child I cannot recall any abuse from anyone. On paper, my life looks perfect. Hard-working father, loving mother, great siblings, financially comfortable... just perfect. Yet I developped GAD and panic disorder early on. And yeah, my life in reality was not as perfect as it looked on paper but to me it doesn't explain my disorder per se." And I really meant it! I was not abused. I Should have been having a great childhood but I was a child that was afraid all the time! But my mom is and was great and my dad is and was good to me. And I have great siblings! When I say my life wasnèt perfect as it looks, all I mean is that my dad was a workaholic and my mom felt sad cause he was never home. And that we were uprooted a lot for my dadès work. HArdly traumatic events. And yet I was a child that was afraid all the time and I couldnèt explain why. Later as a young teen, I was diagnosed with GAD and Panic Disorder with agoraphobia. And I still couldnèt figure out why. As I said I had a good childhood. And the psychiatrists who were sure I must have been abused. But I knoww darn well I wasn't and that is what I told them. At first, I felt bad that I had this ÈdisroderÈ for no reason. Why was I so scared and such, why did I have depression on top of it if my life was good? What kind of ingrate was I to complain and be so messed up when my life was actually a good one? But then I go over that and figured, I am not the first in my family to have this and certainely not the last. That is part of who I am. Anyway, I digress lol. I just wanted to say, I really can relate to what you said. I have had a good life and still I have this. It makes it hard to figure out the why of this. Then again I have learned I do not need to know why I am the way I am. I just need to accept myself and learn what I can do to cope and live happily :) Anyway, thanks Dina for sharing with us :) I really could relate to what you wrote and it is nice to see a story that sounds like mine out there. -Diva

Hello all- I haven't been on here in quite some time. I have been doing well, meaning no panic attacks! Until tonight that is:( I went out to dinner, had a glass of red wine (which I only have like once a year) and after I ate I got this full, sick feeling. I thought I was going to throw up. I also went into a full fledged panic attack right at the table in the restaurant. I went to the bathroom and washed in cold water. I also had to undo my bra as I felt it was too tight or something ( I know weird, right?) Anyways, I have been reading through the forums and saw the discussions about where panic attacks have all stemmed from; childhood, hereditary, etc. I had a wonderful child-hood. My parents were like the Brady Bunch, no kidding. My brothers however all have demons of their own. 1 is an alcoholic, 1 is a drug addict and one is agoraphobic. The agoraphobic brother shared with me his anxiety and how long he has had it. He said even as a child, he was petrified to take medicine. Not even a tylenol. My mother has confirmed this to be true. He never smoked, did drugs or anything like that, but is now agoraphobic and will not leave the house. I on the other hand never had this panic thing until I was 33. I am now 39. I did find out though, I do have mitral valve prolapse and my doctor says it could in fact be from this condition. He said it is like a huge fear for me now knowing I have it even though it is not a deadly condition that needs immediate attention at this point, but enough to sit in the back of my brain and trigger panic attacks. Anyways, just thought I would share all this with you all and try to figure out why I am getting anxiety all over again when I was doing so well:(

Hi everyone, Interesting discussion on caffeine. Thanks for sharing your experiences! Casey _____________________ The PC Support Team

I have completely cut out caffeine, as I find I am guaranteed to feel anxious ALL day even with just one cup of coffee and if I have more than that, I feel as though I want to crawl out of my skin!! Also, I have cut WAY down on my sugar intake. I find that it really makes me irritable. I still have some sugar, but very little. I have found honey to be ok, though.

Hiya Georgie! I just wanted to say I get what you mean about that full feeling. In the past I have had bad panic attacks over feeling too full. I think part of it for me is that i find I canèt breathe as deeply when I am too full. Plus, What I think in my mind about it does not help either lol. I guess I could have gone with the whole thought challenging thing for this one ( and if I over eat by accident, thought challenging is what i do to deal with it!) but all in all what I do is make sure not to overeat lol! I eat smaller portions more often during the day . I eat helthier and in the end eat the same amount of food just spread out differently. Funny thing is I feel healthier now lol. I am sure you will find a way to deal with that too :) As for spicy foods I got that too. I think part of it is because of the effect spicy foods has on my body. It can sometimes give me heart burn (which give me pain in my chest which freaks me out) can make me sweat, my nose run, etc.. Some of those things are similar to how I feel when I panic! HEnce why spicy food has in the past made me feel panicky I think. But i do love some spicy food! I managed to really desensitize myself to it. I used the tools from this site (thought challenging, exposure and Interoceptive exposure). Now, I eat spicy foods now and then and feel fine. I am sure you will figure this one out for yourself too :) -Diva

My doctor told me to cut out caffine and things with heavy sugar since it has the tendency to make anixety worse. Plus I also get vivid dreams when I've had to much caffine or sugar too. Odd how the body works.