anxiety.....arg!

[quietgrrl.livejournal.com]

so i keep getting really bad anxiety and sometimes anxiety attacks the first couple of days of my period. this is a recent thing and i was wondering if anyone knew of anyways i could correct this (sans going on the pill or something unnatural like that). is there something i could do to change my diet or some homeopathic way to treat this?

i remember someone had mentioned earlier on this list that progestin imbalance can create anxiety. is there anyway to balance that?

Comments

anxiety advice

[gezellig-girl.livejournal.com]

The best ways I've found to beat getting anxiety attacks, all the time:

1. Get 8 hours sleep. Seriously.

2. Drink enough water. Being even a little dehydrated can make anyone a little off.

3. No caffeine - or at the very least avoid it as much as you can. (This one is the hardest for me and my husband both.)

4. Eat something! Nine times out of ten, when I start to feel panicky or shaky, eating something helps. I don't know if it's the change in blood sugar, or if the blood is rushing to my gut to digest all the food I just anxiously crammed in, but it helps. One of the best things to eat: a banana. The potassium and the B vitamins will really help (and it's so portable).

5. If you're already into the full-blown panic attack, block off one side of your nose and continue breathing normally (don't try to take deep breaths to compensate). The reduced oxygen will help, and you can usually do this in public without looking too weird. If you're at home, breathing into a paper bag will help, too.

6. Kava and/or valerian will also help, but you'll need to figure out how much to take without it making you sleepy.

Re: anxiety advice

[winterknight.livejournal.com]

the water thing is HUGE. i'm just now finding that out! so is vitamin B supplements, i take a mid-range supplement 3 times a day and i have a prescription supplement for PMS. i'm trying the Vitex (Chasteberry) to try and help my progesterone levels. both excess and deficiency of progesterone can cause anxiety. lovely, eh?

Re: anxiety advice

[gezellig-girl.livejournal.com]

The water thing really *IS* huge! I had a boyfriend, years ago, who had terrible crippling headaches. He'd seen doctors and neurologists and no one had an answer for him. He took like ibuprofen like they were Pez. Then, I noticed all he ever really seemed to drink was tea or the occassional beer. I convinced him to drink as much water as possible for a week and see how he felt. No more headaches. He'd had the equivalent of a really bad hangover for the past couple of years.

How would anyone tell if they had too much/little progesterone, anyway? I never noticed any relation between when I have panic attacks and my period. I do know my attacks are related to food in some way (maybe hypoglycemia?) because if I have some sort of processed carbohydrate for breakfast (like a bowl of cereal) and then don't get around to eating lunch soon enough - forget it, I'm totally fucked.

Re: anxiety advice

[winterknight.livejournal.com]

i honestly don't remember the details. i know that some of the deficiency symptoms were over eating, skin problems, and anxiety, that's all i remember. i just looked it up on Yahoo, i think i did "progesterone deficiency". low blood sugar is a factor for me too. i don't eat cereal for breakfast, i eat lentil or bean soup, usually. it makes a huge difference.

Re: anxiety advice

[edrecovery.livejournal.com]

:O) This is the same herb my sis took in a last ditch effort to balance her hormones before trying Clomid.

IT WORKED, and she is now expecting a baby in August :O)

So, YAY HERBS!

As for whether this problem is progestin-based, only a blood test could tell you definitively (poster).

I am a "medical 'professional," but I am also very holistically-minded. That to me means embracing "Western" and "Eastern" medicine and everything else out there. Use it all.

I WOULD recommend being evaluated by an OB/GYN (general practitioners might be too quick to go a purely psych route and place you on Xanax or any of several other meds). Although there is NOTHING wrong with meds, I support your decision to try the alternatives available. But, a doc may be able to help you ascertain what the problem is (or at least narrow it down) so you can seek out the best alternatives.

Good luck to you.

Ugh...

[linzbinz.livejournal.com]

I get really bad anxiety attacks the week before my period, and then the first few days of my period...and it sucks, because I'm already ON medication for anxiety attacks! Do you drink anything with caffine? Perhaps if you do, you could stop a few days before your period. Other than that, maybe you should just go to your doctor and get some Xanax or something. Good luck!

[mzarmageddon.livejournal.com]

I used to get terrible panic attacks and still have anxiety. I'm on Celexa right now, and they are totally gone. I'm in therapy for the anxiety. My doctor said that after taking it for 6 months to a year and a half my brain will be toatlly reprogramed and they will never come back. So treating it is temporary. I like to do things naturally, but this was one thing I could not handle on my own. Some things you just have to take a pill for. Anyway, if you're scared of going on meds, don't be. They've saved my life.

[amylynn.livejournal.com]

Celexa is a beautiful thing. I got migraines on it after six weeks, though. Bummer.
I wasn't aware they'd started using it for anxiety stuff, but it makes sense, as they do that with Paxil and a few others as well. For that matter, they often treat bipolar people with anti-epilepsy meds...
I'll stop rambling now. :)
-amy