Panic/Anxiety attacks??

[JESW]

Does anyone have any experience with these?? I think my dh may have them. He has other issues, but lately he has been having problems with excessive sweating (face/head mostly) and he gets nervous/agitated easily, feels panicky, etc. He recently had blood tests done to check for thyroid problems and anemia and other things but all test came back ok.

There is a lot of stress in our household due to our ds with aspergers - lots of home and school issues (I had to pick him up yesterday due to him having an emotional breakdown at school) Dh also has a stressful job and he does NOT handle all this well at all.

I am worried for his health as he is not a strong emtional person and this is really draining him. He NEEDS to call his dr today and get back in there, but how do they test for stress/panic/anxiety?? Will they just put him on meds? He had a disaster with prescribed medication summer of 2005 and is very leery of getting on anything else. He is also bi-polar and currently not on meds and "controlling" it on his own.

I saw my dr. on monday due to unrelated issues and he tried to put ME on meds due to all the things going on around me but I need to keep my head about me so I can take care of everyone else.

Any suggestions or experience???

Thanks!

Jill

 

[Sherri]

I think they will put him on meds. It seems like the classic sypmtoms of an anxiety attact. I get them every so often and my blood preasure sores.
My suggestion to dh is to me completely open with the Doctor. That way he can diagnose him correctly. There are no blood tests as far as I know, but if he experiences the symptoms you described, he will probably put him on Meds. based on that.

 

[Christine]

Unfortunately, there are no definitive tests for panic/anxiety. The only thing that I can really stress to you is that if this is what you suspect, please get a referral to a psychiatrist for the medication aspect of this. GPs aren't the *best* doctors for prescribing the appropriate types and dosages of anti-anxiety meds. Plus with your DH's bi-polar issues, this can get tricky. A bi-polar person really should not be taking the standard meds that GP would prescribe for anxiety (the SSRIs like Prozac, Paxil, etc). They can make a bi-polar person very manic.

 

[disneymama73]

I have them but have been able to control them with meds. My husband is very verbally abusive. I used to take Ativan at the beginning of an attack, and it would go away. Now I take Zoloft, and I don't get the attacks at all. I'm filing for divorce, so hopefully, I won't need the Zoloft soon either.

If he is bipolar, he needs to call a psychologist and a psychiatrist NOW. I hope he gets the help he needs immediately.

to you both.

 

[disneymama73]

GPs aren't the *best* doctors for prescribing the appropriate types and dosages of anti-anxiety meds.

I agree!

 

[The Mystery Machine]

He needs to seek out a psychiatrist and a therapist for counseling in addition to meds.

Since your son has Asperger's and is not going away anytime soon, it is time for him to get serious! He needs comprehensive therapy.

There is no quick fix for this. In fact all the "holding in" he has been doing is unraveling and he may sink very low into serious depression.

Call a psychiatrist & therapist TODAY! Takes forever to get an appt.

Good Luck!

 

[barkley]

also consider that your dh's stress/anxiety can result in a flareing of your ds's issues.

i have accute anxiety disorder, and dh has had issues in the past (right now he's massivly dealing with it to the point the doctor has him off work totaly)-our ds has adhd and his behaviour is markedly different during periods in which our stress/anxiety is peaked. it ends up being a merry go round of stress-we get stressed, ds reacts to it by having behaviour issues which stresses us out even more.

we are using a psychologist for ds with pediatric oversight for the meds and another psychologist for dh (with primary care physician prescribing meds as needed). both are aware of the other situation and are addressing it within the individual sessions.

def. get your dh to the doctor-even if he will be using a mental health professional it's important for his doctor to see the physical impact the situation is having on his health (my dh's doctor had to closely monitor him because his blood cholesterol went through the roof during his last episode-something that can be triggered by high stress, along with increased blood pressure, gastric distress, migranes and a host of other physcial problems).