Hi kjimenez, I just wanted to let you know that I think it's totally normal to experience more anxiety when you read about other people's stories! That's one of the worst things that I can do, because like you said, it makes me worry that I'm going to get worse! In the last week though, now that I'm feeling a little better, I've been reading people's stories on this message board without that making me feel more anxious. I think it happens because when we focus tons on the panic attacks/anxiety, it feeds the anxiety and makes it worse. Usually when I can concentrate on something else, like work or even just a tv show, I start to feel better and then I realize that I just got through an hour without being quite as anxious (just the fear of getting a panic attack sometimes causes me to get a panic attack, so distractions aren't like avoidance in my case -- they are a really good thing)! Hope that helps! :)
KD