Is this anxiety or illness

[kelly]

I am so grateful to have a chance to post here.  I have been having severe anxiety for almost a year, since my baby was born.  I had a difficult delivery and had some weird physical things happen after the baby was born.  This caused me to be terrified that I was dying.  Ever since then, I have had a constand barage of physical symptoms, all of which have been chalked up to anxiety.  First it started with severe headaches, and I had a CAT scan and spinal tap (one week after birth of baby).  Then I had heart palpitations and was tested for heart problems.  All tests came out OK.  For months now I have continued to have headaches (they say severe tension headaches) and heart palpitations.  I've also been having weird symptoms like severe joint pain, tingling in my hands and feet, muscle pain and weakness, twitching, neck pain, and pressure on a point in my spine.  I'm terrified that I have MS or something equally as horrible.  My doctor feels it is due to anxiety, and they are all somatic complaints.  I would actually be grateful if that were the case.  I'm terrified.  I want to be healthy for my baby.  My question is, how can she know this without doing an MRI to rule out a neurological disorder such as MS?  How can you know if it's a somatic complaint or a genuine illness?  I know I have had tests for other illnesses that came out normal and could be attributed to anxiety.  But how can joint pain and pressure on the spine be anxiety related?  I can deal with the anxiety diagnosis because that's treatable.  I just want to be sure I'm somatizing (is that a word?)these symptoms and they're not for real.  Please help!  Thank you so much for this service.

[HFHS MD - RG]

The short onset of your symptoms (a year ago)and an association with a stressor (birth of baby) makes a physical diagnosis unlikely.

The best "test" to have is seeing a psychiatrist and be adequately evaluated. If you are truly suffering from anxiety, you would respond (not having any physical symptoms less or none at all), to the medications positively.

It unnecessary to do all tests when your history and physical examination suggests that you may be suffering from anxiety.

I advise that you consult a psychiatrist and ask for his professional opinion.

[Avi Thecat]

Kelly;

I'm really sorry to hear about your pain and discomfort.
As to whether or not it's somatic, my experience has
been that most MDs don't know enough about clinical
psychiatry to make a fair diagnosis, and are always
quick to dismiss aches and pains as psychosomatic,
even though their grasp of the term can be rather tenuous.
It seems to be a catch-all phrase for any disorder
that can't readily be identified and treated, and
perhaps it is a persisting legacy of the medical
view of the "hysterical" woman. A lot of my female
friends have reported being dismissed as "hormonal"
or "melodramatic" when they report similar conditions.
Ultimately, only a certified psychiatrist has the
clinical knowledge and experience to diagnose somatic
conditions, and I would advise you to consult one
on a regular basis.

Another thing you could try is ( if your medical
status permits ) to go on a low dosage of
an antianxiety drug such as clonazepam for a little
while and see if it helps. If it doesn't alleviate
the physical symptoms, you may want to explore
the pathology in more detail and have more tests done.
I suffered from a severe anxiety disorder for about eight
months, and it got so bad that every single night, I
felt as though I was dying of asphyxiation. It was
terribly real for me, and nothing could convince me
that it was just a delusion. It is scary how the mind
preys on the body sometimes. But, as you can read
in my posting on Serzone, certain drugs and psychotherapy
(underline lhe latter twice! it makes SUCH a huge difference )
can help, and once you gain perspective on your condition,
the fear tends to abate.

Here's wishing you good health!

Take care,
-avi

[kelly]

Thanks so much for responding.  It is a huge relief to hear that physical illness is unlikely.  Although I know that doesn't rule out any physical illness, it's encouraging.  And Avi, thanks for your response as well.  I see a psychologist weekly, but have never seen a psychiatrist.  My doctor started me on Prozac to see if that would help the anxiety and depression at all.  I only started a week ago, so there have been no results yet.  I'm anxious to see if it works.  She already warned me that sometimes you have to try more than one drug to find one that works.  I'm hoping that I will see a reduction in symptoms soon.  Thanks very much.

[y]

I believe that you got good, thoughtful advice from this posting.  I too have had the weird symptoms.  Once I had both hands go to sleep while driving.  I also had the feeling of not breathing, sweaty palms, muscle pains, vomiting, inability to sit still, lump in the throat,shaking, and several other things.  I was diagnosed as Panic Disorder and General Anxiety Disorder.  They put me on an anti-depressant, and I am feeling better by the day (I just wish it would work faster!)  Good luck with your precious baby :)

[kelly]

Thanks, Y.  He is indeed a precious baby and I thank God for him every day.  I just wish my time with him so far hadn't been so tarnished with the anxiety.  It's constant and so severe that I have a hard time enjoying him sometimes because I'm so preoccupied with worrying that I have some horrible disease.  I just want to be better so I can concentrate on him and feel physically more able to play with him, etc.  Thank you for sharing your experience, which turned out to be anxiety.  It's very encouraging.  Sometimes it's hard to believe that all these physical symptoms could really be anxiety.  I just started on Prozac two weeks ago and am very hopeful that it will help, although I am having increased shaking and nervousness as a side effect, which my doctor says is just temporary.  I'm hopeful, and it helps so much to hear about people who share similar experiences.  Thanks.

[y]

Kelly, you are already being a great mother for caring enough to want to give your child the perfect mother.  Just do your best--that's all anyone can ask, and that's all you can give.  I am sure that with a strong woman such as yourself, your child will grow up to be a very fine person.  All mothers wish they could give their child the moon, but can't, so please don't be so hard on yourself.  Any woman goes through an adjustment period after their children are born (I am sure many woman can vouche for that!), and it's too bad, but human, that you have to go through this.  Just keep your faith and try your best, and your child will be truly blessed  :)

[Roseann Jimenez]

Recently I had just completed my normal exercise routine when all of a sudden I had shortness of breath and lightheadedness.  This lasted for about 15 minutes.  The week following I experienced shortness of breath after every workout and the times of this occurring is increasing.  I am also experiencing fatigue, lightheadedness, shaking, weak feelings, anxiety that something bad is happening and fear of dying.  I was checked out by a doctor two days ago who performed chest x-rays, an EKG, and took blood samples.  The results were normal.  I have hypothyroidism which I am taking medication.  My question is could perhaps my symptoms have anything to do with anxiety or panic attacks?  My grandmother has suffered from anxiety all her life and my mother had post-partum depression.  I am a 22 year old "healthy" female who is about to work full time in four months and presently suffering from financial problems.  I am a full time student and not experiencing too much stress from school.  Please write back, thank you!

[Val W.]

I too have been having physical symptoms for the past year, starting with reflux and heartburn severe enough to go to the ER.  After a whole series of tests I was put on Prevacid, which helped for a while.  Then last Oct. I started having frightening episodes of heart racing at night that would wake me up.  Back to the ER - but no real diagnosis.  This has continued with also a big rise in blood pressure.  They are "spells" - heart races at about 135 bpm, blood pressure rises to about 170/100.  This can last as little as two or three minutes - normal blood pressure is about 120/80, pulse about 77.  I've had ECGs, echocardiogram, holter monitoring, all normal. The diagnosis has been anxiety.  About two weeks ago I had an episode out in public.  And last night I was feeling very anxious, could not go to sleep for fear it would happen again - so at 2:30 a.m. I drove myself to the E.R.  Almost didn't make it, had a SEVERE panic attack going up there.  I was sure I was dying - was really surprised that I didn't!  Blood pressure was 190/88 when I got there - within 30 minutes it was 132/82.  I know from repeated E.R. visits that my problem is panic attacks and anxiety- and I have started seeing a psychologist.  But after the attack last night I am very shaky today, already worrying about what's going to happen tonight.  No way will I ever be able to get a good night's sleep again!  

My stomach problem seems to have started all this, and it is a big part of the panic attacks.  The pain is very real, so it is a real illness - but I'm starting to accept that a big part of the problem is anxiety.  And I'm scared to death of having more panic attacks!  Just wondering if anyone has input on how they deal with panic attacks and anxiety?

[Narelle]

I suffer from post-natal depression and I too had physical manifestations of the depression. It may be worth your while to seek out a support group for PND in your area too, as you will meet women in the same boat and it really helps.
Good luck
Narelle

[y]

Evidence suggests that hyperthyroidism can cause panic disorder.  My psychiatrist keeps urging me to have my thyroid level checked, because he thinks that could be the whole problem.  Glad you are on medication, Roseanne.       I was scared to death of having panic attacks again too, Val.  I actually had agorophobia.  I could do nothing but lay in bed and read.  I learned that fear of panic attacks is called "anticipatory anxiety". I just got used to it with time and medication, and it slowly goes away.       I hope everyone feels better.

[Johnny Pfab]

I am experiencing many of the same symptoms everyone else is.  Heart Palpitations, a fear of dying, and anxiety.  My life is noy overly stressful, but almost on a daily basis, I fear that something is really wrong with me.  In addition, my family and friends think I'm a big joke and laugh at me when I tell them how I feel.  I haven't gone to a doctor yet, because my mother tells me it's an overactive imagination.  Not true.  I would give anything to let go of my feelings of neverending doom and anxiety.  On top of that, I'm a hypochondriac, and I believe that my headaches are somatic.  When I do go to checkups, I'm considered healthy, but I'm not convinced.  Recently, my boyfriend had surgery to remove a cyst on his backside.  He was very upset about the location and the time off work he had to take.  He said to me,"At leasy I really have something wrong with me.  You only imagine it.  I wish my problem was my imagination."  He doesn't realize the internal sruggle with these feelings (and not knowing) can be far worse than a diagnosed physical condition.  The fear of not knowing makes things worse, yet I'm also afraid of the doctor.  I wish my family and friends could take a walk in my shoes for once.