How panic attacks feel

[Orchid]

Does anyone else feel this way? My main and probably only symptom of a panic attack is that I feel like I'm going to throw up. I don't really have a stomach ache, I just get that feeling in my throat(that my doctor said was globus) and it gets worse and worse. I don't get the feeling that I can't breathe or that I'm having a heart attack, just that feeling. This might be why my emetophobia started???

[TheSweetThinker]

That could be why your emetophobia started, yeah....I think, for anyone with emetophobia, it all starts from just thinking about it too much! If you were having frequent globus sensations that reminded your brain over and over again about the prospect of vomiting, then it's understandable that you'd come to fear vomiting altogether, having thought about it so often. It's kind of the same as the "dentist waiting room" effect; the waiting and the anticipation is worse than the actual procedure (and you will find that several emetophobics have said that when they finally vomited, it wasn't nearly as bad as their brain had made it out to be).

But anyway....whenever I myself suffer a panic attack, my mind races, my heart pounds, I subconsciously start pulling at my hair, I too get that globus/nauseated feeling in my throat, and overall I just feel like the walls are closing in on me, with the feeling of impending doom....after I finally calm down, I feel very lethargic and fatigued. =P

But I still refuse to take any medication for it....I believe that a strong and stable mind is all one needs to overcome panic attacks. Mental strength and stability can be learned through practices like yoga, meditation, or even karate, all of which emphasize and utilize of self-control (something for which we emetophobics always seem to strive).

[Orchid]

Good wording, I think you're right. I should bring this up to my therapist. And I too am in the process of getting into a routine of yoga and relaxation. I take xanax but there's been times where I felt too nauseated to swallow a pill and I had to let my brain take care of things, and guess what, it does. During a panic attack I also get very shaky and I feel completely exhausted too afterwards.

[astoria]

This happens to me too. I feel bad, like I am going to throw up but don't get a stomach ache. But I think that this type of emitophobia is just as bad as the others because it can still literally ruin your life. I take Zoloft, but maybe I need higher dose, because whenever I am in a place where at any moment I can't just walk out and go to a restroom (school, the movies, stores, etc.) I feel terrible, my hands sweat, and I feel nauseated. I just need to know how to get over it.

[meir446]

I take zoloft too! I ALSO think I need a higher dose! When I have a panic attack i start to sweat and breath hard then i feel like i am going to throw up but i dont have a stomach ache.

[Erica1649]

My panic attacks have a few aspects. Nausea, feeling of wanting to vomit, chills or sweats, shallow breathing. It sucks.

[astoria]

I know right. Everything just feels not real.

[easty-b]

I get a dry mouth, nausea, tight throat and at the climax, I wretch and choke. It's bad cos everyone thinks I'm about to throw up which is not what I need as you can imagine!
Does anyone else get that choking/wretching? Post back if so as I think I'm the only one...

[Blushes]

My throat tightens up really badly and sometimes it's so bad I almost gag. The biggest physiological symptom I get aside from that is my heart racing almost a hundred beats per minute until I start hyperventilating and I get really dizzy/weak. What I do is I breathe through the mouth until I get enough air in my lungs, then out through the nose.