moni_q
A couple of comments here. I would imagine that you have already researched panic. Agoraphobia is the fear of not being in control. It manifests itself in so many different ways that it is often mistaken for something else. (fear of driving, fear of exercise etc.) Having a debilitating or chronic disease or condition aggravates it. But doesn't cause it. ( I live with the pain and difficulty of Arthritis everyday plus right now Staph infection) I too used to be afraid to go anywhere because of how exercise made me feel. My heart would race and I was so scared I would trip and not be able to get up. To get out of this "jail", I had to finally just go for broke. When I start to breath too fast and my heart race, (from exercise not panic) I find a place to sit for a bit. I find it far better to go out even with the difficulty than to stay in "jail". Don't get me wrong, there were days I couldn't but at least I could feel good about the attempt. Note that this is all in the past tense.
Your Dad is right. Just don't do it then! But not quite that way! It takes time to learn the relaxation and coping skills. It takes time to replace all the negative thought with positive. And even then you have to learn to bury the negative thoughts that sneak in with so much positive that they can have no effect. Like piling sand on a fire. The heat is still there it just can't do anything so it eventually goes away. Panic is the same way. And just like this fire panic may flare up every so often till it dies. But die it will.
Unless you have been diagnosed with a mental disease, as apposed to a mental condition which panic is then you don't need the head shrinker. All the ones I know are so busy that they prescribe pills to control the problem rather than cure it. I don't blame them as curing it takes a long time. This is what therapists are for, and good ones are worth there weight in gold.
First you have to be able to relax. Breathing skills and distracting thoughts, mantras and visualization. Relaxation and coping skills overlap so you learn them together. It may seem like a lot of work for some thing you won't need in the future but right now it is very necessary. Knowing your triggers only lets you know when you are going to need the relaxation and coping skills. Some people get by never knowing what triggers there panic. They know how to stop it and that is the main thing. Making it stop.
So you have the dreaded "what if" phobia. The opposite side of that coin is "what could". What could happen. What could I do about it. What could be the worst thing that could happen. Turn the coin over. Think about it. What could be the worst case scenario and what could you do about it.
Action and reaction. For every negative there is a positive to counteract it. Learn some positives.
Stick with us. We can and will help. Post often. On the bad days vent, and on the good days brag. We are listening.
It is a proven fact that writing about it helps. Even me, who needs little help anymore. Writing to you reminds me where I used to be and how far I have come.
Davit
