Hi Judy, I congratulate you on quitting smoking. Good on you!!! It got me to thinking though about what if anything that might have changed in your diet that might be causing the rapid heartbeat. Do you drink coffee or tea (Caffeine can cause a few problems with rapid heartbeats or palpitations) are you chewing gum, eating candies to help with the cravings? I recently had to give up chocolate and realized how much candy I was consuming and how it was throwing me off so I am now trying to cut down on the candy. I know that diet can play a huge role in our disorder and how we deal with it so I thought that you might want to check into that. Thanks for listening.

Maggie, Don't despair. As you can see you're not alone and stress in your life can certainly contribute to a regression. Keep putting the tools you've learnt here to use and keep adding to your repertoire. Just as you said, somedays all we can do is take it one day at a time. Danielle _____________________ The PC Support Team

Hello Maggie, Sorry to hear that you have medical issues to deal with, I am also sorry that you are having a rough time of it as of late. I thought I would answer your question in case it might help. Yes I have had periods where I felt great for very long periods of time and then my anxiety/panic came back full tilt. I have been dealing with my generalized anxiety disorder and panic attack disorder with agoraphobia for many years. The beauty of it is. I have had long periods of time where my life was really great; I had no meds and barely thought of my anxiety at all. And I am talking of periods of many years! But then something happens, an overload of stress in my life and this thing comes back to bite me in the ***. I used to get really angry and discouraged at this. But I find that since I have accepted that I suffer from this and might have to deal with it on and off during my life time I don't feel so angry or anxious about it. Ok acceptance of this and myself is an ongoing process at the moment really lol. One of the lessons I am learning but I find the more I accept it and myself with it the more at peace I feel and the more I feel up to dealing with it. Resistance causes much stress. But anyway, yeah, I have the experience of feeling great then relapsing. I had had a 5 year long run that was great with no meds before December. But if there is only one thing I can say that is reassuring is that it gets easier, easier to get back up after a stumble. I find that this time around I am integrating things more easily, applying them to my life more easily, and getting better faster. See, as you learn to deal with this, you learn tools and techniques and they stay with you so that the next time you need them they are available. So it does get easier and hey, if you have forgotten some of your tools you can just come back on here and redo the program :) Anyway, I wish I could tell you this will go away and will never come back for you and hey, it could, crazier things have happened, I know somebody who had panic disorder and hasn't has a panic attack for 15 years! But if it doesn't just go away, I can assure you, it get easier and you can have a good quality of life and lead a good happy life with this. That is what I am learning this time aro

I'm sorrry I haven't been on for a a while, but I have been undergoing treatment or a medical issue and have been trying desperately to stray as far from the panic/anxiety as possible. For a while there I was getting quite a bit better, but now suddenly it seems everything is coming back again. I am having panic attacks again and anxiety every day. I am SO sad by this, and I am feelinng pretty hopeless. I know I should be taking it a day at a time, but I am finding myself in a panic that this is the way I will be for the rest of my life again. Has anyone here ever had a few months where they felt quite a bit better and then the panic returned full tilt? Thanks... Hope you are all well.

Hiya Judy! First I want to congratulate you on your 75 days smoke free. As an ex-smoker myself I want to say grats, I know how hard it is! As for the anxiety, I am sure refreshing your tools by looking at the CBT program here for the fiorst or second or...time would help. I find some times a refresher course on my "anxiety kit" can be very helpful. But you can do this. I know you can do this. Both the quitting smoking abd the getting your poanic under control. I wish I had more to say to help. But remember, this too shall pass!! -Diva

Hi judy, Welcome to the site! Thanks for sharing your introduction here with us. You have found a great place to share your feelings of panic with members who truly understand what it is like to have these feelings. Don't feel discouraged about having symptoms of panic, you are not alone and help is available. In addition to these online forums and our anxiety test, we have a great online program that many here are having great success with. The Panic Program is not talk therapy. It's not about medications either. It's a treatment program thats all about getting you actively involved in your own improvement. It teaches you things you may not understand about panic and agoraphobia, your own panic, your own panic cycle, and as you learn and get involved, you begin the journey and the process of taking back control from a fear that at the moment is controlling you. It's about doing. And in doing, it's about recovery. The Program guides you through the process of getting back this control. It prepares you for this, one single step at a time, and gives you some homework to bring you along from session 1 to session 2, and onward, in a series of 12 sessions over a period of twelve weeks. We look forward to hearing from you again soon. Casey ____________________________ The PC Support Team

hi everyone. havent been here for awhile. ive been to the sister site quitting smoking.ive been quit now for 75 days thinking that maybe this would help my symptoms but so far it hasnt. im back having my panic for past wk. rapid heartbeat, my heart feels like its quivering, and the usual symptoms of panic. i cant seem to get my heartbeat to slow down after it starts. it stays for hours at a time. my med i take for it doesnt seem to want to work. im also getting depressed from all thats going on. yes ive seen my dr. and she says its panic but im beginning to think otherwise. is there any hope for us? sorry to sound so down but i am down. any words of encouragement?