Anxiety overload

[paulala]

Hi all!

I'm a new mum to my 11 month old beautiful daughter and I've been having a bit of a tough time. It all started about 3 weeks after I gave birth I started to feel spaced out, unsteady, feeling like I was going to pass out and this weird pressure in my head. 5 weeks after I gave birth I got married and then 9 days after that I watched my dad die a horrific death. These physical symtoms started off mild and then got a lot worse. I don't generally feel sad so I didn't think I had depression. I went to my GP who took lots of bloods which showed I had mild anemia and low blood pressure. I was so relieved as I thought this must have been the problem so I took a course of iron tablets but my physical symtoms didn't improve and I started to get really anxious. Of course I googled my symtoms and was then convinced I had MS or a brain tumour which really added to the anxiety and became terrified that something really awful was gonna happen to me. I went back to the doctors and he asked me if anything else was going on in my life and I told him my dad had recently died to which he responding 'your mind is playing tricks on you' and prescribed me anti anxiety medication. I left the doctors in tears. I felt so unsupported and didn't understand why he put me on anti depressants when I didn't feel depressed so I didn't take them. I went back a month or so later and took my partner. I told him that I hadn't taken the meds as I don't feel depressed. He then checked me over and felt that I might be experiencing some kind of ear virus so prescribed me tables for vertigo. I never went back. I returned to work in January and things started to get a little easier. I still got periods of blurred vision/ spaced out sensation with head pressure now and again (mainly in the afternoons and usually it would go by the evening). My job wasn't really fitting in with family life so I found a new one. I started 2 weeks ago and boom my anxiety has well and truly peaked. The feeling of being spaced out and the thought that something is seriously wrong sent my anxiety spiralling and now I'm panicking about how the hell in gonna be able to fulfil my new role feeling like this so once again I google my symtoms and found a post by a number of women with the exact same symtoms and to all lead to post natal anxiety. I found a link to this site so here I am! Hello. Help! I would so love to hear from other people who have had similar experiences I feel at a total loss, like I'm going to go mad and totally freak out. I need to find some way of dealing with this Scott as it is starting to have a real impact on my life and I don't know how to change it. Does anyone know how to stop these physical symtoms? I'd be so grateful for any support!

Thanks

Paula

[monica]

Hello and welcome

I'm sorry you're going through these horrible symptoms. Your post was EXACTLY like mine 11 years ago. I too suffered from the same physical symptoms which preceded any emotional ones but which turned into crippling anxiety. I'm not qualified medically but in my case after numerous blood tests, ct scan of sinuses, eye appt and neurologist appt I had to put all the symptoms down to PNI .

Tbh it's not common for Drs to recognise these symptoms as PNI . I had the same. Even my lovely gp said she didn't know what caused them but said if all tests come back negative we'll have to say it's PNI.

You've been through so much with having baby, your dads death, wedding and new job.

there are many things you can do. Perhaps see if there's another gp who might take u more seriously. Talking therapies can help hugely in unraveling what's happening.cognitive behavioural therapy can be great in stopping negative thought patterns coupled with effective (for you) techniques for anxiety. (I can tell u some of them).

Exercise helped me hugely especially with the foggy headedness. I found that anything that got my heart rate up was particularly effective but a brisk walk round the block was good too.

I took antidepressants which were instrumental in my recovery but that's a personal choice (there are pros and cons).

Do have hope as things will improve - it might be a rocky road which is normal. Keep talking x

[paulala]

Thank you Monica,

It's so reassuring to hear you had a similar experience. It's such a strange illness. The weird thing for me is some day/ weeks I can feel totally normal and happy again just like my old self and the all of a sudden out of nowhere I get this vision thing like being a bit spaced out, unbalanced and this horrible pressure in my head. I've found those symtoms the worst! Did you have the head pressure? It frightens me so much and then I get thinking that surely this can't be pni and that's when the anxiety kicks in. Most of the time I get the physical symtoms before the anxiety!! I've had a really bad day of it today and started thinking this really isn't normal so I thought I'd go back to the doctors and see if they can rule anything else out. Then I read some of other people's posts and it really does sound like pni....I'm so confused how it can make you feel like this!

I've been really against the thought of antidepressants I don't know why but I will consider it if it's the only way to start getting back to normal. The thing that worries me about them is I've heard they make you really spaced out in the begging and that you may not be able to drive? Is that something you know about? This would really effect my new job which is something I can't afford to happen.

Thanks again for your reply this is an amazing site that seems to be supporting so many people through a horrible time

X

[monica]

Hi

I get you completely . In my case I found my symptoms would ebb and flow - when I felt better I would feel like a fraud - when bad I would also wonder if this was a symptom of something serious. The symptoms especially during my recovery, would be linked to pmt, physically feeling ill, tiredness, stressed but sometimes I couldn't pinpoint the cause. I had pressure behind my right eye and I would get shooting pains in my head.

I'm not medically qualified so can't give you a medical explanation (I wish I could !) nor whether it's the right step for you to take . It would be good if you could find a good gp to objectively talk over these issues.

Perhaps try to exercise frequently (if you can), try relaxation techniques. Look into counselling / cbt - that really can help x

[xbx]

Hi paulala I'm going through the same at the moment and have been for the past 7 months, it's really hard some days as it feels it will never end, I two have had lots of blood tests and an on the waiting list to see an ENT as at the beggining they told me it was inner ear related. If you need someone to chat to I'm here xx