Hi all - You are experiencing panic disorder ....I know that at first its so hard to believe that panic could be causing all this but after a full workup, if everything else is normal, its panic. Im 43 and have dealt with this since my 20s....for me the hardest part back then was trying to find all the answers, etc....it wasnt until I admitted / accepted my condition and got the proper treatment....therapy, low dose meds, diet,excercise ...then i started getting better. Its hard when you are young and first get these feelings/pains but trust me, Ive been there and so have many...its treatable and you can/will get better but you must see a doctor and get ontrack to get better....I have been in and out of remission since my 20s but even when I relapse, Im able to deal better with panic because I know what it is.....and believe me, I have been thru so pretty rough times with it, including blackouts and seizures but I managed to function, work, etc and try never to give up...I even ran the NYC Marathon! Good LUck

Hi, I am having a pain in my chest right now after reading your post. I,like you,have since day one have felt that my panic attacks were heart attacks...after a year of seeing my doctor and medication I am just now getting to a point where I don't panic about my pains. I do still get a bit anxious however and need a little peace and quiet to regain my composure. My heart goes out to you and I hope that you do find a good Dr. like I did that can help you get a handle on it. I found that once I started experiencing more good days than bad that the bad days were easier to handle and also became fewer and fewer. Rose

Hi! I was actually relieved when I read your post. Everything you described sounds very familiar to me. My biggest symptom with my panic/anxiety is the chest pain and feeling as though I am having a heart attack. I am only 21 and in reality I know that there is nothing wrong with my heart. I work out almost every day and am very healthy. But in the back of my mind I can't shake the feeling that there is something wrong with my heart. I think this makes the daily chest discomfort that I feel even worse. I seem to always have a dull ache in my chest and like you I will occasionally have pain in my left arm. These are the very symptoms of a heart attack! It is just hard for me to get a grip on the fact that panic/axienty can also cause these syptoms. I hope that it eases your mind to know that there is some one out there that has almost the exact same syptoms that you do. I know it does mine. Has your doctor put you on any medications? My doctor has put me on Zoloft and it has worked very well for me. I feel I am able to deal with this now where before I started taking the medication I just felt like I would never be "normal" again. Like you I always had thoughts of death. I was so scared of dying and the questions that go along with it. Like what happens after you die? These thoughts would really depress me. The Zoloft has helped so much with this, though. I know I am rambling. I was just so glad to know of some one going through what I am going through. I hope you keep in touch. Good luck.

George, Your post was heartfilling and we hope that you will find answers to all your questions here in The Panic Center. As you can see there are many individuals who will talk with you, give you advice and with that you may find the answers. Have you tried our Panic Program? Many members have done so and they find that the program has helped them understand their anxiety and panic. If you look to the left of the screen under "Tools" you will see many of our free tests and programs. We hope that you will continue to share your stories with us. Remember, you are never alone. Anxiety and Panic affects us all and we are all here to help each other. Take care, Melanie _______________________________ The Panic Center Support Team

george you are not alone there are millions of people like you,the thing is you just dont see it around you for instance your friends,they all apear normal to you and you probabley question why this is happening to me.george i am 26 and my panic disorder and severe deppresion began to take hold of my life at 18.i have been agoraphobic for the past 2 years ,i hane not left the house,by all means that does not mean it is going to happen to you.george i understand your situation fully and so do other people on this site you hang in there and i know how tough and disturbing the condition is,talk to your famaily and let them know what is going on a support system is crucial.if there is anything else you have a question on be free to ask take care jonathan

Hi everyone! I'm a new member here, and I think I feel a little relieved that I can find some people other than physicians who may be able to understand my situation. This may be a very long post, but I have a lot to say. About four months ago I was away at college (I'm 18 years old, btw), sitting in my dorm room, when I began to feel a pain in my shoulder and my chest. I went to the internet looking for some answers, fearing something terrible. I found a list of symptoms of a heart attack, and I then had what I now believe was a panic attack. My chest pain grew, my breath went short, I started to feel a surge of heat (no sweating, however), and I felt like I was going to die. Of course, at the time I thought I was having a heart attack and went to the emergency room. They did an ekg, an x-ray, and some bloodwork, and released me with a diagnosis of atypical chest pain. I felt fine again until a few days later, when I had a duller chest pain and some shortness of breath again. I went back to the hospital, and again they found nothing wrong. The doctor diagnosed that I was suffering from acid-reflux disease, and perscribed Prilosec. And wouldn't you know it, I felt fine until I went back home over a month later. However, when I got back home for the summer, the dull chest discomfort returned, and it never goes away now. Occasionally I become short of breath, and I get several other different symptoms. I occasionally get pains in either shoulder, elbow, or hand, which are either sharp or dull, and go away after a few minutes. I get numbness or tingling in my hands. As I said, I always have a discomforting feeling in my chest. I tend to feel a little "wobbly" or "unsteady," in that my legs sometimes feel a little heavy and I don't quite feel right when I'm walking (I don't really know how to describe this symptom very well). I get numb feelings in my jaw and my face. I often develop a small "tick," where a small part of my arms or legs will pulse up and down as if it were twitching. This goes away momentarily. I know I'm probably forgetting a lot of things, but I've felt several different things in the past few months, espacially this summer. I've been to the emergency room once this summer, a couple months ago, and they once again said nothing was wrong with