So scared

Well, this is the first time I've ever Posted anything on this kind of thing before but at the moment it seemed like he best thing to do. So ever since augest 2011 I've been getting extremely bad headaches, really bad dizziness and. Chest pains /arm pains in the left side of my body. Also about 3 months before that, I kept getting a tingling sensation in my left shoulder. I'm only 14 and in the summer (when all this started) I lost a couple of family members and watched my father when he had some sort of fit or something. And ever since I remember, I've had panick attacks which seemed to calm down before the summer. I've had multiple doctors appointment and I've been to the hospital '& they didn't find anything wrong with me,they did an ECG, blood tests and all that but nothing abnormal came up. Seeing as I'm very young and, although i may mot be the slimmest teenager ever, quite healthy, the chance of it being something very serious is extremely little. I've been told its anxiety by so many people but considering that everything has gone back to normal at home and the pains only seem to be getting worse, I was wondering I there was anything I could do to get rid of this or at least cope with I because I'm starting my gcse's this year and because I'm in top classes, I'm worried about it effecting my grades and also friendships. Any suggestions?

[Sagitarius88]

First of all welcome to this site...we r all here to help u darling... I myself went to ER yesterday cuz ma heart rate was 160 n i was so scared... And I'm not surprised at all about ur age n panic attack cuz I was 14 as well wen I had my 1st panic attack after 3 days of my dad's death...I saw him dying i was only 3 steps away from me I still rememba that n since then it's been here I'm 23 now married and a mother but can't see a way out
Try to breathe from ur stomach not from ur chest and wen u breathe out say "calm" in ur mind it works for me
Try to avoid anxiety symptoms I know it's very hard but take baby steps I'll learn n one day u will b ok trust me from 14 to 22 nobody helped me I'm just seeing a therapist recently so as u know straight away that it's anxiety u can work alot on it
LOds of love

[kka264]

sounds like you are have a lot going on--it sounds like anxiety.  Anxiety-stress manifest itself in many ways.  Also remember we sufferers become very in tune with our bodies and the slightest change we begin to worry about.  Begin to relax--realise that you may need some downtime--in this downtime practice breathing from our stomach and through your mouth---talk urself through it---say positive things--remind yourself that this is all part of anxiety and that is becomes physical because of all the anxiety/panic running through your body--it affects your heart and even sometimes yes chest pains-  I had them too at one point.  As you begin to understand and not react to these feelings--you will realise how non existent they become.

Take it one day at a time and refrain from looking at life in a big picture--take it one minute--one second--one hour--one day at a time

[nursegirl6572]

You've taken the most important first step...seeking help..even if it's just posting in a community like this.

What you need to do is go to your PCP and ask for a referral to a psychiatrist.  He/she can then assess you and give you an accurate diagnosis.  Then, the p-doc can discuss with you your treament options.  In my opinion, the best way to treat anxiety is with a combination of medications and therapy.  Your doctor can discuss with you what would be the most appropriate treatment for YOU.

Keep us updated, we're here for you.  Sometimes just sharing how you feel on a forum like this can take a load off your mind.  You realize you are far from alone...anxiety has become one of the most common mental illnesses with MANY people suffering.  The good news is, there IS help out there!