This is a true life story of Amy (not her real name) and how her supposedly healthy and prescribed diet became the cause of her nightmares and Panic Attacks.
My life roller-coastered from young and successful to overweight and suicidal. More than 17 years ago I was young and beautiful with a prospering career and a bright future in London. I was going places and living life to the fullest. Nothing could get me down until the sudden onset of inexplicable panic attacks which swung my well planned life and career on a downwards spiral to destruction. My panic attack sent me from one doctor to another and never did they consider that the panic attacks and weight gain could possibly be related.

During my early 20’s when the panic attacks started, they were only occasional, but they would strike completely unannounced and out of the blue. Whether I was at the theater, watching a move, shopping or just having fun with my friends, I would suddenly be overwhelmed with terror and fear and desperately rushing outside for fresh air or just to be away from whatever could be causing the attack. These attacks would be so random that I lived in constant fear and tension of the next strike. During a flight in 1983 when another attack hit me, I stopped flying completely.

More visits to the doctor explained my condition as psychiatric and I was advised to take medication which I refused. My weight gain problem was treated with a diet high in carbohydrates which only worsened the problem. The Cambridge Diet had me drinking three sugary milkshakes every day and caused nothing but dizziness and the fast beating of my heart. I was told that I’m not drinking enough water but whatever I tried, the frequency of the attacks only increases. Some of the weight was lost, but after taking part in two hours of sport every day for 18 months, my weight remained the same. For 17 years I was constantly dieting and still my weight increased by 100 pounds.

During these 17 years I was treated by no less than 12 medical experts, but the panic attacks remained and became even more frequent until I had them every single day. I started to feel depressed, emotionally unstable and anxious all the time. I had no control over the attacks and was constantly fighting off feelings of nervousness, irritability, exhaustion and depression. In spite of how I felt, I tried hard to balance social life, work normally and hiding the fact that I was constantly at the doctor trying to find out what was wrong with me. Each time I would be offered medication for a psychological problem and each time I decline. From physicians to psychiatrists, I would be probed about my childhood, my life and my emotional state and then be offered more medication.

By 1998 things got so bad that I started believing my landlady whom I was staying with during a holiday, was trying to poison me. After each and every meal my heart would palpitate, I’d feel nauseous and sick and irritated. I was afraid to be anywhere but home as my panic attacks became almost constant, happening anytime during the day or night. I tried a couple of herbal remedies like Rescue Remedy and Aconite and although these temporarily calmed the attacks, they would just return with a vengeance an hour or so later. I was told by my doctor that these were only sugar pills and not really working, insisting that I needed drugs.

My life had become a nightmare. By 2002 I was in a constant state of anxiety and panic attacks every hour of every day and every night. I was living with mood swings, loss of concentration, exhaustion, terror, memory loss and blurred vision. At night I’d wake up shaking uncontrollably in a cold sweat, frightened and scared. I kept a bottle of sweet wine next to my bed which I would then take a sip of and wait for the terror and anxiety to abate. My craving for sweets was explained by my doctor as a need for comfort foods and that my problem was psychological. Twice I had to call an ambulance during the night. The first time I thought I was having a heart attack and after a thorough checkup I was told that there is nothing wrong with me. On the second occasion I rushed myself to my doctor and she explained that my migraine, blurred vision and heart palpitations where “just a panic attack”.

I found it very hard to keep my anxiety and illness a secret from my co-workers but that also seemed impossible to do. In April 2000 I was dismissed and 2 months later I starting thinking of ending my life. This one was just not worth living. I eventually gave in to medication and was prescribed Paroxetine by a locum doctor after a two minute consultation. One tablet later and I became agitated and then slept for a few hours, feeling like a zombie when I finally awoke. It seemed then that I could not live without to drugs, but also not with them. It was then that I called the Samaritans. Two previous therapists could not cure me and I had no reason to believe they could either. Still she convinced me to go see her.

Five minutes into my consultation with this kinesiologist, she diagnosed me as hypoglycemic and that my pancreas was not functioning properly. She explained that I was producing too much insulin each time I had sugar, flour, rice and caffeine products and that this overproduction was driving my blood glucose levels down too fast, causing adrenaline to surge, followed by panic attacks. She told me my brain is unable to store glucose and that it is the first organ that malfunctions when too much insulin is produced. My trembling was due to the drop in blood glucose and heart palpitations, mood swings and everything else associated with my panic attacks.
Because I had a serious Candida yeast infections, my pancreas was malfunctioning. The yeast infections was caused by antibiotics which were killing all the good bacteria in my body. These antibiotics I had taken only four months before.

The kinesiologist treated my Candida with a proper diet for a couple of weeks and then put me on a hypoglycemic diet. I was allowed NO sugar. At this stage I was desperate to try anything, even this diet which I though could not possibly cure my anxiety.

I started searching the internet for support groups and hypoglycemic diets. After reading the articles and all the symptoms related to my condition I became furious at all the doctors who have known about my symptoms, yet treated me for everything but hypoglycemia. I started to research and read everything I could find about my condition. I learned then that the Aconite pills I took were not just sugar pills, but were made of sucrose which helped my condition. The sweet wine I drank during my night terrors, helped not because of the relaxing effect of the alcohol, but because of the sugar it contained. I learned also that my body craved sugar not for comfort eating but to raise the glucose in my blood. By raising the glucose with sweet foods I’d immediately start to feel better but then the sugar stimulates the pancreas to overproduce insulin. The insulin in turn lowers the glucose in my blood, thus lower sugar again and the result would be a panic attack. Again I would reach for a sugary snack only to restart the glucose and the same cycle would continue. I have literally been on a sugary rollercoaster all my life.

I started to eliminate certain things from my diet like caffeine, sugar, white flour, bread and rice and within a couple of days, my panic attacks disappeared. Within weeks all other symptoms disappeared and I felt better than I did in more than 17 years. I was even happier to realize that my problem was never mental and that I never needed those psychological examinations and visits.

I was guided by my kinesiologist that my body has been through terrible stress over the last 17 years and that my internal organs need to rest and heal. I learned that my weight problem was due to the fact that my body could not metabolize the carbohydrates I was told to eat by my doctors and that during all those years, it was stored as fat. The advice given to me by my doctors to eat food containing sugar had only worsened my condition. This was also why the Cambridge diet made me feel as sick as it was high in sugar contained no proteins or anything of nutritional value and was only damaging my pancreas. I then realized the link between panic attacks and weight problems and tried to read up about it as much as I could find.

My doctor would never acknowledge that my condition existed. She only told me that she was glad I am feeling better and could give no conclusive answer to why my symptoms disappeared when I stopped eating sugar. All my mood swings, sensitivity, tiredness and depression disappeared as long as I stick to my new healthy diet.
I have recently visited all those lovely places I could which for years I could not visit or enjoy and not one panic attack gripped me. I can mingle with people, take long flights to anywhere and sit in small crowded places with not so much as a single bit of anxiety or fear. It is finally all over.

Unfortunately my medical records state that I suffer from a psychiatric illness and although this was posing problems for me to find a new job, my doctors would not amend or make changes to my report. At 42, with 26 years of work experience, I was unemployed, but I would not back down. I had started my own company and am now very happily self-employed.

I am still struggling with loosing weight. Damage to my pancreas, metabolism and insulin mechanism, aided by years of yo-yo diets has left my system too weak to aid in weight loss. I am currently eating a low carbohydrates diet and although the weight is still a problem, my blood glucose levels are normal, stabilized and I am feeling on top of the world.

Panic attack has always been my enemy for many years now. And somehow this week, there seems to be more and more episodes of panic attacks happening to me, especially when I’m driving. It get worst when you’re stuck in the middle of traffic jam in the middle of highway with no exit routes. I’m not sure what triggered my panic attacks, prob too much Asian ghost movies and real ghost documentaries.

Luckily for me, earlier that week I have rented a book from the state library. And it’s a book about understanding your dog behavior. The book was very easy to understand and with simple language and tone to it. Additionally, the book is full of graphics and photos of dog doing silly thing. And silly me I forgot to bring it home and has left it in the car, which ends up a good object for me.

So there I was in the middle of the traffic jam, in the middle of highway with no where to escape, and my impending doom panic attacks is just around the corner, I knew it’s going to hit me as my heart was starting to pump quicker and my hand was starting to sweat and felt tingling. And I know to avoid panic attack is to know how to control them, and in which one must engage in something mentally, as what I’ve done last time as well. Controlling panic attacks is merely diverting your attention to something more interesting or fun, as long as it makes you stop thinking about the panic attack symptoms.

So this time I pick up the book an start reading. Stopping each moment as the car in front move a bit. While reading the book, I start to imagine my silly dog at home has done this and that before, as shown in the pictures on the book too. Your mind tends to absorb and focus on things that are more interesting, or so….but mine is functioning that way.

And before you knew it, I have managed to stay in the car, in the middle of traffic jam, for more then 20 minutes. And I reached home save and sound, as usual and without any episode of panic attacks. For me, this is a good tactic for controlling panic attacks.

Many people today suffer from panic attacks and the fear of getting such an panic attacks at inappropriate times.  By recognizing what triggers your attack and knowing how to handle it, you can manage it and stay calm when you need it the most.  Often, the fear of the panic attacks is greater than the cause for the panic itself. The below tips could be helpful when coping with panic attacks.

Coping with Panic Attacks Techniques:

By teaching yourself to breathe deeply and relaxing your muscles, you can avoid an panic attacks when you feel it coming on.  Close your eyes for a few seconds; concentrate on taking deep rhythmic breaths and relaxing your muscles from your neck down to your toes, visualizing the fear leaving your body as you relax.

Sleep is very important and periods of good rest will help avoid a panic attack.  Create a space of calm and ambient in your bedroom or wherever you intent to spend a night.  When traveling, pack your favorite pillow or blanket, burn relaxing scented candles, play a CD with soothing sounds and remove everything from the room that might distract or upset you.  Lavender is known for calming the nerves so spray a lavender fragrance or oil over your pillows and breathe it in deeply.

If you are prone to panic attacks at night, try to do a couple of relaxation techniques before bedtime.  This can include soaking in a warm bath, breathing exercises or meditation that helps you focus on pleasant thoughts to keep the unpleasant ones at bay.

Exercise is and has always been the greatest stress buster to controlling panic attacks.  As soon as anxiety sets in, take a long walk or run and count your steps.  Again visualize how your fear diminishes with every step you take and don’t stop until you feel in complete control again.  You don’t have to exercise only when you are anxious.  By keeping fit and continuing a daily workout, your levels of stress in general will decrease and so will your chances of a panic attack.

Always make sure to have a good supply of the things that help you relax handy for whenever you might possibly need it.  Chamomile tea is well known for its calming properties and drinking it before bedtime will certainly induce a healthy and deep rest.  Avoid caffeine as it can make you heart beat faster and cause restlessness.  Alcohol should also be avoided as this could impair your thinking ability and prevent you from knowing what to do to help yourself.  By eating and staying healthy, you also reduce the stress that unhealthy food has on your body and mind.

It’s good to know what to do in the case of a panic attack and self help is always useful.  Knowing what triggers your attacks and how to deal with them could help you to coping with panic attacks without additional medication.  More self help advice and benefits are available on my blog to assist you and guide you back to total control. And wishing you all the best in coping with panic attacks and controlling panic attacks at the same time.