What happens when you freak out?

[heydani]

Hey guyss ! just curiosity again...

when my emet is realllllly bad, like im talking the extreme cases, i have some rituals i go through.
First, I freak out, and grab rubbing alchohol (the smell apparently takes away nausea), then i find fresh air somehow. then i grab some form of clothing to breathe deeply into. then i listen to my ipod, and squeeze between my index and thumb (its a pressure point), next i call my boyfriend who just reassures me,.

But then its gets scary, my hands go numb to the point they are locked, and my legs shake so bad i cant stop them.

Just wondering if this is normal, or if any of you guys have nausea rituals.

[AmberG89]

Hi! Yes I do... my legs don't shake really bad- but I do find something that won't allow me to think about me being N*..... I self-talk myself out of it, and then get warm coke/pepsi and try to breathe, while self-talking myself out of it. Works every time for me!!!!!!

[stephenie]

I take a shower immediately. I use tons of soap and shampoo. I just like the good smells. I put on a cartoon. I get ice packs and put them on me. And I rock back and forth.

[arora]

i have to be alone when im freaking out. usually i like to just lay in bed but my head propped up. i have to have a fan blowing on me...for some reason being cold helps me not feel it as much? i shake a lot. and i basically pinch or dig my nails into my skin. weird i know. but i try and distract myself with some pain somewhere else on my body. i click my tongue sometimes too lol. just do a bunch of distractions. When im coming down from the "episode", its like the best feeling though. and then im EXHAUSTED.

[spilled_milk]

I start to feel extremely n*. I wipe the corners of my mouth frequently, and check the temperature of my forehead with my hand and then compare it to the back of my neck. I also clench my teeth REALLY hard, to the point where I'm really wearing them down. I start breathing really shallowly, sometimes whimpering, and sometimes shaking uncontrollably. My heart races. I mess up my hair and pull it hard. If I'm with someone else I clench their hand or dig my nails into their hand. I also put my hand on my stomach, and I drink sips of water often and lie down if I can. Usually to stop the panic completely I have to start crying, and then I will start to relax. After that, I'm exhausted too! Its like a pressure lifts off my entire body.

[TheSweetThinker]

My hands immediately fly to my hair on the onset of a freakout, lol...I yank and twist my hair roughly, grab some mints or ginger candies (which I always keep by my side) and shove them into my mouth, try to lie in a comfortable position on my bed, shakily turn on a feel-good movie for a distraction, and start breathing deeply as I rationalize the situation. That's the only thing that can fully calm me down: I have to prove to myself that there's no logical reason for me to be sick, and that I'm just panicking.

[heydani]

i just feel bad, because i'll call my boyfriend at 3 am freaking out, and i just feel so bad. I also squeeze other people's hands to the point they can't take it. And i cant eat or drink anything, cause im afraid to open my mouth :/

And stephanie, do showers really work ? I feel like I would just be freaking out more in the shower. :/ haha

[fixxxer2012]

if someone is sick in my home i bug them too much and ask if they feel alright constantly, even if its just a darn cold.

[NatalyKay]

When I get REALLY bad, I take really fast deep breaths. I always run my right hand through my hair, and just mess it up. I go outside and get some fresh air if I can and just sit out there and try and talk myself out of the panic. Usually I think about whether or not I have/had an appetite, and that usually calms me down. Then I think of why I would actually be sick, and recently I started thinking about the people I look up to being sick, and how many times they probably have v*ed. That calms me for some reason haha, then I take a xanax when I'm able to actually open my mouth..

I'm always afraid that I'd freak out in the shower too actually haha, I feel like I can't move or do anything while I'm in the shower..

[TheSweetThinker]

recently I started thinking about the people I look up to being sick, and how many times they probably have v*ed.

Haha I do this too! I think it's that whole "if they can survive it, so can I" mentality, which is a pretty positive way of calming down.

[NatalyKay]

Haha I do this too! I think it's that whole "if they can survive it, so can I" mentality, which is a pretty positive way of calming down.

haha, happy to know I'm not alone with that!

[CocoTango]

Aha! This is so weird! I do all those things too!

I just grab my hair and twist and pull it and then just keep running my hands through it. I take huge deep breaths frantically and then I pinch and scratch my right arm. I have little crescent moon shaped scars now where I dig my nails in. I shake a bit. I keep thinking 'oh my god, oh my god, I'm gonna be sick? Am I gonna be sick? How will I know?' I ask mum and dad over and over 'do I look ill? do you think I'll throw up now??!!' and then I go to a mirror and look at myself. I see that my cheeks are red and so are my lips - these means I'm not pale and I'm not ill. Then I wring my hands, and clap and slap things and click my tongue. I need a distraction. I listen to music or play a game online. Anything to distract. Ah. It's awful. But after, I feel SO tired. Haha. Weird.

[ann32]

I suffer from severe panic and my symptom of panic like most people on here is nausea which in turn makesmy panic even worse. When I panic I immediately take a Xanax bc I do not know how to calm down on my own. My attacks are so extreme that tv and things like that do not break me from the attack. After I take the Xanax I take a zofran just in case. The other symptoms I have a numbness in my face, hands, and legs. Also my eyes burn, my head hurts, I get the shakes, my teeth chatter, but I do clench my jaw, I will scratch my chest, not to break the skin just for the sensation. I will rub my arms or play with my hair. But I cry too, make tea, then I'm normally fine. God I hate this phobia and having panic attacks.

[ann32]

Oh and I do take hot showers too! They always help me!

[stephenie]

Cocottango we could be twins. I'm the same way with everything.

[stephenie]

i just feel bad, because i'll call my boyfriend at 3 am freaking out, and i just feel so bad. I also squeeze other people's hands to the point they can't take it. And i cant eat or drink anything, cause im afraid to open my mouth :/

And stephanie, do showers really work ? I feel like I would just be freaking out more in the shower. :/ haha

You know everyones different and its the craziest thing but that's about all that helps me is a COOL shower. Can't be hot. I guess in a way the cold distracts me.. maybe? I don't know. But yeah the shower is a must for me

[Rebecca85]

If I'm having a major freakout than either I run or hide, or if I can't then I hurt myself. But I don't feel like I'm in control of my own body. Then afterwards come the shakes, hyperventilating, etc. People often think I'm having an athsma attack because my breathing gets so wheezy and noisy! Then I go into like a trance concentrating on my breathing and rubbing my arm or something to calm myself down.

[4077girl]

I just try to be as cold and alone as possible. I could never get in the shower when I'm panicking, unless it was a very fast and freezing cold shower, just to shock me out of freaking out. If I'm not actually nauseous, I chew gum and drink water. I am all fidgety and my eyes feel funny. Sometimes I try to play with my dog, depending on the severeity, that helps. Usually as soon as I "escape" from wherever I am (out shopping, at school, etc.) I feel fine again. But if I get in a panic when I'm aleady alone, it's usually harder to get it to stop, so sometimes I have to take klonopin.

[heydani]

Thanks for all the responces guys (:
It means a lot to know I'm not the only one with all these stupid rituals ):

[FUNTEAM]

I have to lay down on a solid unmoving surface (beds move to much) and hum to my self or yell at people.

I can be very rude to people when I freak out, but I usually apologizes afterwards.

[ricci]

When it gets really bad I lay down on my bed and try to relax! Pepermint and water help too!! But I really try to be alone its much better!! If I'm already out sometimes i bite my lips or even pinch myself to get distracted from all this anxiety.

[bepretty]

My main ritual at home is to take my blanket and pillow into the bathroom, usually with ginger ale or Sprite. And Tums/Gas-X. I like how it's low to the ground and cooler. And near a toilet. Lately, I've been chewing ginger or peppermint gum. I've also been writing, too. I tend to rock back and forth, rub my arms, mess with my hair, wring my hands, tremble, maybe whimper. Crying makes me gaggy and hyperventilate, so I make myself not cry. I can't have anyone touch me or be too close until the panic comes down. I'm too scared I'll v on them.

Now when I'm away from home...man. I'm a mess. It's very hard to conceal panic around others, like at work. I have been resorting to sipping Sprite compulsively, chewing gum, hand-wringing, pushing on a pressure point...anything. The worst is when I have to retreat to my safe place - the bathroom.

[heydani]

i completly understand, except thats me at school

[Sweet Illusion]

I need to be warm, which is hard when you're in the grips of nausea and you feel like you can't move. I try and boil some water for a hot water bottle as quickly as possible, microwave warm milk to sip on, and I breathe really deeply to try and lessen the gag reflex feeling.

[Donnylutz]

It's almost somewhat funny reading these.........we really do some odd things don't we???

My rituals have changed so much over the years.

When I was young, like 1st or 2nd grade, I would lay in bed and just push on my bladder, eventually wetting the bed. I would also constantly spit out any saliva in my mouth.

Next I moved on to not being able to lay in my bed. I would lay on my hard-wood floor and shake. I did this for several years. Somehow I thought the shaking would help. Even trying to lay down on anything comfortable was impossible.

Then came the Tums......oh I loved...and still love the Tums. I know they don't really do much and I was told by one doctor that taking too many could actually upset my stomach. But I LOVE Tums!.....

Also when I was a kid I would lay on my living room floor, shaking, and I had a large peppermint candy cane hidden underneath the couch. I would suck on that while I was shaking......

Once I turned 21 things changed somewhat....I found when I was really anxious a quick rum and coke would really calm me down........

It's odd how many have mentioned going outside....that is also something I used to always do, even in the middle of winter.....I would go lay on the ground and shake. I now will sometimes go outside, but I don't lay down or do the shaking thing anymore.

Now I have a new weird ritual. When I start to feel panic at all I start to burp....well not actually burp because I've never been able to burp, but just small little burps. I do it almost all day long...it's become almost 2nd nature. Lately my panic attacks have been happening a lot more frequently and when I'm about to fall asleep I sometimes jump up, almost like I wasn't breathing, and desperately try to do my little burp.

None of our rituals really have any science behind them......but who cares. They make us feel better.

Now that I'm back in therapy and will be trying out some meds soon, I'm trying to stop the burping and focus on my breathing. It's SO HARD, but I'll get there.

I've never done it, but does anyone else have the plan that if you are ever about to V, that you'll do something crazy like a back flip or hit your head into a wall? I've always thought that would distract me enough and stop the V.........again I've never done it, but I've only v'd once in the past 14 years.....so who knows :-)

Donny.....

[sachiko]

Man, I'm so glad to have found this website. Just discovered this last week. I don't feel so ashamed anymore.

Anyways, I recently had one of my "moments" and I did the following:
-lie down and breath deeply
-I start to feel really shaky
-break out in cold sweats
-my heart RACES and it scares the HELL out of me
-brush my teeth more than once
-dancing the hula or do some sort of calming motion that usually consists of my hand gently traveling in an downwards motion, so that I mentally and physically feel that things are being pushed downwards instead of coming up
-control my breathing, meditation
-playing WORD games on my phone, preferably those that are not timed because that worsens my anxiety--nothing that consists of turning/looping or any sorts of those sickening motions

[heydani]

It is weird, we do the strangest things, especially to people who don't understand. We must look crazy to them haha. But if it works, then I guess that's all there is to it.

[kacy63]

I always clench my jaw & have to take little sips of ginger site or sparkling water - super cold. I hate when I'm feeling n. , I think of everything I could have done or eaten that would cause me to get sick. When I'm feeling n. I can get very mean to those around me until I feel comfortable again

[sachiko]

I always clench my jaw & have to take little sips of ginger site or sparkling water - super cold. I hate when I'm feeling n. , I think of everything I could have done or eaten that would cause me to get sick. When I'm feeling n. I can get very mean to those around me until I feel comfortable again

That behavior applies to me too! I get grouchy and I demand things to make sure I don't feel worse. Turn the TV off! Be quiet! Stop yelling please! I don't like the smell of that! Etc...