Teen panic attacks, scared, can't sleep, feels sick. whats going on?

Question

teen age 15
first of all, i think what might be causing my panic and stress is Atrial Fibrilation.. its like this arythmia type problem with my heart. it goes into a wierd beating rythm sometimes. and i read all about it and IT SCARED ME SO MUCH because it's actually dangerous you can get a stroke and everything.
So now for no reason at all i'm having panic attacks VERY scared throughout the day, and night i can't even sleep i only slept and hour last night. what's going on? my dads taking me to see a doctor today later on after 5 hours. but i feel really sick and scared, and very tired. whats happening and why cant i calm down im like shakking. and this happened yesterday and before yesterday. it's like i cant take a break, i'm allways panicing no relaxation. is this bad??! i am so scared whats going on:(?!?!!!

WHY CANT I CALM DOWN?!?! :'(

Answer 1

Listen. I have been through this. You need to understand what is happening. First of all. Quit trying to go on the internet and diagnose yourself. That is never productive and will only make things worse. Next, understand that heart palipitations are very common for teens and mean nothing. It is because of hormonal changes and other factors. Lastly, you need to understand what is going on.

You are stressed. Lots of things cause stress. Even good things like weddings or vacations can cause stress. You are physically changing, emotionally changing and you have a lot of responsibility and no skills for managing stress. This causes you to have elevated physical stress reactions like higher heart rate, higher adreneline, ect. Because you do not yet have the mental tools to understand or channel this energy, it becomes psychosomatic (causes physical effects) and drives your paranoia and fear.

Once you are afraid, you will start to hyperventilate which rids your body of CO2 (It is a buildup of CO2 that prompts someone to take a breath not the absence of oxygen, this is why it is common for anxious people to breath from a paper bag). The absence of CO2 makes it appear like you do not want to breath. The tension causes your muscles to tighten and your hyper-awareness starts to sum your "symptoms" to mean something bad which they do not. As you hyper-ventilate, you also become dizzy and feel as though you may faint which is perceived by you to mean you are drifting away.

All of this works on each other until you are in a full blown panic (fight or flight) mode.

It is very difficult to control but you can do it. You need to first realize that the heart is a very tough muscle and has a design life of 120 years. If you are really hard on your body, the design life is cut in half. When you feel fear coming on, you need to reduce your breaths to 6 breaths a minute. It will not feel like it is enough air but it is plenty. This will cut down on some of the physical effects of you reacting to your fear. You need to mentally try to pull yourself together. Taking a hot shower works well. You might look into temporarily being put on a really good sedative like klonopin until you can handle your emotions.

I was an EMT for years and have dealt with anxiety many times. Everyone gets it but for some people it is problematic. It will not last forever, so you have that to look forward to. Good luck.

Answer 2

Aww I know what you are going through. I suffer from panic disorder myself. The best thing to do until you get diagnosed is to breathe very deeply and slowly when you feel the wave of panic come over you. Try your best to think of something else besides the heart trouble you think you are having. And, by the way heart palpations and irregular heartbeat as well as rapid heartrate are all actually symptoms of panic attacks and stress. My heart beat gets irregular and I feel like its jumping sometimes. Paxil CR has helped me immensely with the panic attacks. Just be completely up front and honest with the doctor when you go. And don't worry...you are young, and chances are you just have panic/anxiety disorder. Good luck to you!

Answer 3

You need to talk to your parents and your doctor about how you're feeling. If this is purely anxiety related to your immediate health, your doctor can help put you at ease about your condition. If this is something more, like anxiety disorder, your doctor can help discuss with you some coping techniques (a lot of people are able to get through bouts of anxiety without any medication, and find it preferable, as the side effects of medication can be unpleasant). Ask about treatment options like massage therapy or meditative yoga. Some insurance plans will actually cover massage or fitness classes if you have a referral from your GP. You might also find water activities relaxing.

Answer 4

Hi Jamz,
In 2007 its easily treatable. Please go see your Doc and it starts fromthere.
As far as sleep read this,
Hello, just wanted to let you know of a miracle pill that puts you to sleep, available over the counter, is actually very very beneficial for your health, the health of your brain and is only 3 bucks!! I had trouble falling asleep for years. I would lay in bed, and think and think and think for hours before I could fall asleep. It was literally driving me crazy!! I had tried every over the counter sleeping pill on the market and nothing helped. I turned to Nyquil and that did the trick. I had been drinking Nyquil almost every night to go to sleep until I stumbled upon this miracle sanity saving nutritional supplement named MELATONIN. And you can buy it at any GNC health food store. I advocate GNC because the melatonin they use goes through 85 different quality checks before its bottled. Buy the sublingual melatonin. The kind that dissolves underneath your tongue tastes like cherries and it’s good for you!! If you have any questions before you buy it the sales associate at GNC should be able to answer any questions you have. It comes in 1 mg, I take 2 right before bed. The only side effects are weird dreams for the first two nights if any at all. Should be taken at regular bedtimes in the evening.
God Bless
P.S. after you try it and it works don’t forget to tell others about it. You could be saving someone else’s Sanity

Answer 5

Millions of people have a heart murmur or mitral valve prolapse. The Dr. will give you a beta-blocker to regulate your heartbeat and some anti-anxiety medication. You'll be fine, many people live with this condition, including myself. Start exercising regularly to help stress and regulate your heartbeat. Don't freak out! Be sure to ask the Dr. about taking antibiotics before surgery and dental work to prevent infection.

Answer 6

I belive yes you are having a panic attack because you are so scared of the heart thing. I would suggest that you go see a doctor about your heart to put your mind at ease.