Does anyone else suffer from panic sessions or severe anxiety where you feel you can’t breathe whilst driving alone? It’s been a year since I was hit with depression/anxiety and OCD and now I can’t go out or drive alone. My depression is more or less gone but my anxiety and OCD are quite high. How do I confront this fear of something bad happening to me whilst driving alone because I feel like I can’t breathe and that I’ll die.

Hey! Just wondering if anyone else has dealt with something similar. A bit of background: I have POTS and had a horrible flare up in March which led to us calling ambulances; I started on meds which didn’t agree with me; the POTS flare passed and left me with horrific anxiety on a level I’ve never experience before. I was still able to go out and do every day things like grocery shopping and see my nan but nothing more. Fast forward a few weeks my uncle dies and the grief and stress triggered a massive migraine, and bc I’ve never had a migraine before it scared me and I thought I was having a stroke or something. The migraine passed but my brain latched onto the fear of it and how it felt to have one. Long story short since the beginning of the year it’s been one thing after another. A few days ago I had the worst panic attack ever downstairs in my house (felt like I couldn’t feel my arm or face) and it sent me into a spiral. I am now terrified to leave the house in case I have a panic attack outdoors, it just feels so unsafe. I went to the shop with my dad yesterday and felt so bad, but i managed to do it and I was proud. Tried again to go to a different shop closer to home because I was already feeling bad, and it was horrific. I started having a panic attack, felt faint, my arm and face went tingly, so we went back home. I’m trying to challenge myself every day but I am really really struggling and not sure what to do at this point. I tried fluoxetine but had horrible side effects (which included a horrific dip in my mood) so I had to stop them. I’m seeing my doctor tomorrow to tell her everything and explain how difficult it is, but I’m just SO scared all the time. It’s like my body is constantly scanning for danger. It’s got to a point where it’s been going on for so long I’m just desperate to try anything to help me feel just a little bit better. I’m not asking for much, I just want to be able to go to the shop without feeling like I’m going to die. My question is has anyone else dealt with anything like this? The panic attacks are terrifying, and even though I know they’re “not dangerous” it does not help because they’re still so so scary and even worse when I’m out of my bedroom because if I’m by myself I can kinda lie down, do some breathing and talk myself round. I just don’t know how to get over this and I’m so so sad because I’m 31 and scared of being stuck like this forever 😭

So a few months ago a suffered with a really bad panic attack (I didn’t know what it was at the time) and my anxiety has never been the same since. It’s almost like I had to relearn living life with this new anxiety. I have had to force myself into uncomfy situations to remind myself that this will not over come me. It seems that my anxiety stems from being in a place I’m not familiar with or have this feeling that I may be stuck and can’t get out back to a place where my body feels at ease. I wanted to expose myself to a very uncomfortable situation to prove that I will be ok. So I took myself and 15 year old brother on a 3 day long trip to 2 major cities NYC and Philly. I did have some small moments where I felt heart palpitations or that I couldn’t relax (mainly driving into these cities/ being stuck in traffic is what spiked it) But over all I’m feeling really happy with how I managed the trip. I think I’m just mourning the person I was before this anxiety. A few years ago I would’ve never felt that kind of anxiety on the trip. Maybe leading up to it. But I’m hoping the more I continue to force myself out of this bubble that anxiety wants to put me in, I will begin to regain the ability to be away from home and relax again.

Iiii am horribly, terribly afraid of driving. I'm almost 19, and getting my license - or really even getting in a car and driving myself - has eluded me for quite some time. There are a lot of unknowns, and it's very hard to reconcile with; even on familiar routes, every drive's gonna be different, there are gonna be different people on the road than there were on a successful drive (and obviously I can't trust other people, because I never know what could happen), there might be construction or a wreck or some other hindrance in the road. It's tough to process, over and over, that I can't read the future, let alone control it to circumvent any Possible woes. I've never experienced a severe wreck or anything to justify this fear, the worst I've done is mix up the brake and gas once in an empty lot (nothing and nobody harmed aside from some fear on my end, just a scratch on the car!) yet I'm Petrified of causing an accident, hurting myself or especially someone else, and incurring debts a college student like myself can't pay off. Even so, not having my license is.. frustrating! It's easier and more comfortable to avoid practicing and actually getting there, but at the same time it's hard and disappointing because I have no independence in the way of going to work, shopping, or seeing my friends or partner. It's a real back and forth conundrum of "Phew, at least I can't drive" -> "Oh no I can't drive" -> "Oh no I have to drive", rinse and repeat. I'm headed off to college now, really running out of time (I've booked an instructor for myself and may end up in a position to test this week.. I leave Friday 😟) and more antsy than ever. Anybody else ever feel/felt this way?