One morning I was taking my kids to school and we were running late so I became very anxious, which started to snowball into a panic attack . My teeth began to clench as I clutched the steering wheel tighter and tighter. I remember praying to God, “please don’t let this happen in front of my kids”, who were five and seven at the time. Pulling up to the school I hurried them out the car and kissed them goodbye. As soon as they were inside I pulled away feeling defeated. I had no choice but to pull over beside the road and let the attack happen. I worried that I might be having a heart attack or a stroke. I thought I was dying, and my worst fear was to leave my children behind motherless. I began to gasp for air as my throat closed. At that moment I just wanted to run for safety. I didn’t want to die. Then I started crying loudly, forcing my body to relax, and I began to breathe. I went home feeling hopeless and defeated, again. This happened to me on a daily basis, sometime twice a day for months. I became so depressed that I didn’t have an appetite and ended up losing 20 pounds. My doctor was concerned, so he prescribed me Xanax, a low dosage because I had a low tolerance for most medicines. I only took half of that which was just enough to calm me when needed. I thought I was losing my mind and that scared me. I had to do something, if only for my kids. Keeping this to myself was never an option for me. I knew it wouldn’t help, so I reached out to my family and friends. I quickly found out who my real friends were. I began reading self-help books along with the Bible. Then one day I saw an infomercial of a woman speaking about depression and panic attacks. Those two words got my attention. I knew this was something I had to look into, so I ordered the package that this woman said helped her with her anxiety and depression. At one point I thought I was the only person in the world suffering with anxiety disorder until I open up to more people. This was a problem that so many people suffer from, and most didn’t know what was going on with their bodies.
Casey. S, age 31, of Mansfield Texas and an old coworker of mine, had her first attack at age 21 but believe she had some form of anxiety as a child because of the many phobias she had. Anxiety disorder is said to be inherited, which in Casey’s case seems to be true. Her mother once suffered from panic attacks, and her grandmother was institutionalize because many years ago they didn’t know what was wrong with her. As I talk to more and more people about this disorder, I realized that it was very common. You hear about it on the radio and T.V, you also read about it in magazines. So You have to wonder, how do some people not realize that they too suffer from this disorder? In my case, I didn’t want to label myself as having any disorder. When I first read the material I received from Lucinda Bassett, I cried tears of relief to know that I wasn’t weak and that I could get better.
Dora. M, age 46 of Dallas Texas and a friend, also suffers with anxiety. when she becomes stressed her chest tightens and then comes a shortness of breath. Tencia. C, age 41 of Las Vegas Nevada, one of my best friends also experiences tightening of the chest right before her hands began to tremble. Then comes fear of losing control. These ladies and I have so many things in common. One of those things is, that we managed to keep it together in front of our children. The idea of having to explain to our kids, why their mother’s were falling apart,, was not something either of us wanted to do. When I chose to order attacking anxiety and depression from Midwest Center it actually saved my life. I’ve learned tools that will help me control emotions that normally turn in to panic attacks. It saddens me to know that there are so many people who suffer from any kind of anxiety or depression, but the reality is that this is common.
All you have to do is turn on the news or pick up the newspaper and you can see why America is under so much stress even our children are stressed. In the material I read, Lucinda Bassett said the most important thing to do is keep the faith, pray, meditate and turn to higher power. I keep those words with me along with good, positive and caring people. So if you suffer from anxiety attacks or depression seek help from a health care provider don’t go it alone. Negative thinking becomes a habit, so you have to break it just like you would any other bad habit. Also keep a journal with you and don’t limit your life by being afraid to get out there and live. After all life is a gift and you only get one, so live it to your fullest.
I wrotet this article years ago, It just so happens to be just as relevant today, especially right now. With all that’s going on in the world. The pandemic forcing us to stay away from our loved ones, some people even losing their loved ones. It’s no wonder why we are all so stressed and depressed today. People not working, and facing hard times, and not knowing when this will end. This is why I wanted to share this article with you because I want people to understand what their bodies may be going through as well as their emotions. Take moments that you need to take care of yourself, because again, you only have one life and we will get through this together.
Beyond Young 