Any others have anxiety disorders or panic attacks....

[smtotwo]

What I thought was my asthma acting up, has actually turned out to be anxiety attacks.

I went to the doctor when neither my fast acting or advair were working.

So now I;m taking Zoloft.  This all began after psychomommy reported my son to social servies so it makes sense.

How do you deal with it?

[Kitty C.]

DS's dad had them, so bad at one point I actually thought he was having a heart attack, since he was showing EVERY classic symptom.

About the only thing I can tell you is that you need to recognize the signs and signals that can start them and find some relaxation techniques to get thru them, if you can't remove yourself from the situation.  DS's dad was a constant worry-wart, even waking me up in the middle of the night worrying about something.  Meds will help, but just the symptoms, not the cause.  And the only way to KEEP them from happening is to find out what triggers them and how your body reacts. A therapist who specializes in this would be a big help and could possibly get you to the point where you could get off the meds, too

Good luck and let us know how you're doing!

[MixedBag]

I used to get totally nautious every time I drove to WV to pick up my son.  I was fine during the first 9 1/2 hours of the drive, but dang it that stupid tunnel that goes from VA to WV across the state line and that's when it hit me and I was still about 3 hours away from my destination.  

Over time, that has totally gone away.

Practice.....(makes perfect, right).....

Fake-wife is aggressive in your face type of person.  She THINKS she's protecting her family, but she really makes a fool of herself and just doesn't realize it.

Last spring, I found myself in the position where I had to take Michael to his BMX races during our weekends together.  It was the "first" social event or public place where fake-wife would be along with my EX#2, their son and their daughter, and Michael and of course a dozen other folks who basically knew "them" and not me.  By October, I had done this several times and funny how her presence doesn't bother me a bit.  None of them bother me (mainly because it never fails, they make fools of themselves -- even this past October, I could give you another example of how they made fools of themselves.)....and so over time and with practice, it's not a nauseating experience for me anymore.

[joni]

I want to recommend a great book that others on this board recommended me to when I was at a low.  Take the time to read it.  It will really help you to  focus on yourself to take better care of yourself.  It's a quick read.

The Four Agreement by
http://www.miguelruiz.com/agreements.html


Good Luck

[dsm]

It takes a whole lot of patience to be in a step parent role.  You get hit from all sides - from the kid(s), from your DH, from the ex, and even from your own kids.  There is never enough time or money to do what you should or want to do.  Somehow what you (as a stepmom) want gets pushed to the back burner at every turn.

All this eats away at you and at what you thought was a strong person.  And you see just how small you are in the big picture.

Pillows come into play because there is nothing better than to grab a big fluffy pillow and scream at the top of your lungs into it!  Or punch the living daylights out of it - throw it at the couch and it won't break (neither the pillow nor the couch!) - shove it in a corner and it won't crumble.

Prayers are so important to keep everything in perspective and to allow yourself to be able to give it up to the Big Guy to handle it for you.  It is such a relief to throw your hands up and say 'Okay, Okay, I get it - I don't have all the answers!!!!'   Also helps to secure your personal boundaries - get them set and stick to them!

I had a run with Zoloft last summer/fall dealing with Post Partum Depression.  It was okay for me - are you also talking with a counselor?
==============================================================================

dsm - 34
DH - 37
SD - 15
LO - 8
BB - 17 months
------------------
2 Cheap Entertainment cats - Snoop & Dagger - 5 years and counting.....

[onedaddy]

This whole system is such a disaster.  Poor DH he has been going through hell.  All he wants is to see he kids every other weekend and speak to them on his phone line once a day as the decree states.  But BM and SF are crazy, starting making insane allegations all over the place, even having him arrested 2x.  Now we were forced to fight for custody.
Understandably we are both above the anxiety boiling point.  I am 7 1/2 months pregnant so I am tring my best to deal until after the baby is born but DH is taking Lexapro and it's working wonderfully, he has absolutely no side effects.  
Also be careful DH was taking Prozac, and then Zanax and it came up and bit him in the a$$.  BM used it to get her petition for supervised visitation for DH through.  She said he suffers severe OCD and doesn't take his meds so the kids are being subjected to sick rituals.  
I know, insane!  A year later DH has gone through unbearable embarrassments and we are still fighting these ridiculous allegations.

[dsm]

It didn't cause me any problems, but at the same time I didn't see a huge difference either, but others around me did.  So I don't know what to say about how it works or doesn't work.  The counseling is probably what did the best for me and it helped me to get myself focused on what I need to be and let DH handle SD and the crap that gets dished out there.
==============================================================================

dsm - 34
DH - 37
SD - 15
LO - 8
BB - 17 months
------------------
2 Cheap Entertainment cats - Snoop & Dagger - 5 years and counting.....

[smtotwo]

and I can better deal with the psychomommy's exploits.  

Saturday starts family and individual counselingfor myself DH and ds and ss's.


ANd I got a little laugh from my 13 yr old the other day....

DH and I were talking about the zoloft and I asked my son if he thought I was any less crabby lately.

He thought about it for a minute then said  in a dead serious voice

"Well, umm your not any MORE crabby"   I thougth it was a very diplomatic answer.

[4honor]

But switched doctors and he nailed it. Anxiety attacks.

They are worse when I don't sleep and they hit me usually in the middle of my sleep. Catch 22.

The answer was a mild anti-anxiety medication that hleps me go to sleep and stay asleep. It's called Trazadone and I have been on it for about 6 months. It is working and the attacks, are usuallly under control (except for yesterday when a guy threatened me. I am an insurance claims adjuster.)  Sorry got distracted.

[smtotwo]

he asked what I thought was triggering the attacks.  When I explained what the psychomommy had been up to and told him that we start family counseling on saturday, He said  I'm not sure YOUR family is the one that needs the counseling!

Felt good to have someone else confirm that I'm really not the crazy one!