Just wanted to share an experience I had.
One night I had some friends from work come over, and they wanted me to smoke some pot with them. I'd smoke the stuff before, but had alot of bad experiences with it. Usually resulting in anxiety and such, although not every time was a "Bad" trip.
I'd had several beers by the time they arrived, and I was smoking pretty hardcore considering I hadn't touched the stuff in ages. I had the HUGEST panic attack ever. It was like I left the entire planet and was in this zone of terror. The awesome thing was that I came through that, and overcame it. My friends talked me through that time, and I was able to turn it all around and feel really good.
It's been a moment of clarity for me ever since. Knowing that even in that extreme of terror, I was able to overcome it and be fine.