No… this is not a panic attack!

Know the Symptoms, even if you do not suffer from anxiety. 

Well, my first blog post is not about sunshine, rainbows, or yoga. That’s right, it’s about panic attacks. If you suffer from anxiety and have experienced a panic attack, this will probably seem very familiar to you. If you are like me, you wouldn’t even know what a panic attack felt like, but you should give this a read so that you know the signs and potentially avoid a frightening experience.

I have surfed through life pretty easily. I am a libra after all. I have always dealt with challenges head on without much anxiety, if any. It has been quite a ride, but a pretty smooth one at that. I was recently visiting my mom in Newport, RI and over indulged in some tasty local beers and went to bed without eating much. Of course, the next morning I was sick to my stomach but I couldn’t bring myself to eat anything and had a 2 hour drive back to CT to get to work.

I had to pull over a couple of times because I was not sure if I was going to vomit or not. I knew I had to eat something, so I called the take out place close to work to pick up a grinder. In the mean time, my commute was dicey. I felt like I could not stay awake, my mouth was numb and my hands and feet felt like pins and needles.

I figured it was just my hangover, until I pulled into the parking lot to pick up my grinder, and I could not get out of my car. My whole body fell asleep, tingling and frozen in place. My hands tightened up like claw hands, and I started to freak out. I work at a hospital and I see a lot of different diagnosis and symptoms, so of course I started to think of all of the worst case scenarios; spinal stenosis, stroke, etc. I fumbled to get my phone and called 911.

I was crying, terrified, but surprisingly I still felt pretty calm. The fire truck arrived and they started asking me questions about my life, what was going on, and how I had been feeling, and what was troubling me. I couldn’t believe they were not rushing me to the hospital. I repeatedly asked them what was wrong with my hands, and they just kept asking me questions. I couldn’t understand, and then the paramedic stated, “Ma’am, you’re having a panic attack. You need to control your breathing.” I thought this was outrageous. My immediate response was, “No! This is not a panic attack. How could a panic attack make my hands turn into TRex claws? I am a freaking yogi, I know how to breath!” (Might I add, my Sun sign is Libra, ruler of my logic. My Moon sign is Leo, ruler of my emotions.)

At this point, the paramedics were in my passenger seat taking my vitals and continuing to ask me what was going on in my life. I was outraged. I wanted to be seen by a doctor. I wanted an MRI. I wanted to know what was wrong with me, and then I caught glance of my mala beads in my center council (thank you spirit) and closed my eyes.

I decided to humor their diagnosis of a panic attack. I began to control my breath in true yogi form and ignored what was going on around me (after I demanded someone go in and get my grinder). To my surprise, I started to gain feeling in my feet, my hands began to loosen up, and my worries of a spinal abscess drifted out of mind. I was shocked, and still was not 100% convinced it was a panic attack, so I took the ride in the ambulance.

The doctor confirmed. What happened to my hands is called carpopedal spasm, and it happens when you hyperventilate. I know, I was not hyperventilating. I was driving, feeling sick, and craving a grinder. Well, when you are nauseous for an extended period of time you may have irregular breath patterns which cause the gases and acids in the body to become imbalanced in a slower manner than hyperventilation, however has the same outcome. It happens slowly and builds up as time goes on. This is exactly what I experienced. I had no emotional trigger, no anxiety, just a hangover.

I am sharing this because this was one of the scariest moments of my life. Had I known these symptoms before hand, I would have started to pay attention to my breath a lot sooner, and probably could have avoided the trip to the emergency room all together. If you ever experience this, pay close attention to your breath and do your best to slow it down and even hold it for a few seconds. Give yourself a few minutes to just breath slowly with even inhales and exhales. If your symptoms do not go away after you have calmed your breath, you may want to call your doctor.

What to do post panic attack…
REST! Take care of yourself, get some rest, and allow your body to heal and get back to it’s equilibrium. Stay hydrated and eat warm soft foods (or the grinder).

Namaste,

Theresa

P.S. Have you ever experienced this? I would love to hear your stories in the comments. Any other words of encouragement or advise!