Join us as we delve into the anxious and panicky sides to Jen and Mita. We took a little detour to share some of our background "diagnonsense" and why anxiety and panic disorders can look so different from one person to the next. A lot of times, people use the terms as adjectives or descriptors for what they are feeling. This is usually what we call anxiety or panic attacks. According to healthline.com, "Panic attacks and anxiety attacks are not the same. Though these terms are often used interchangeably, only panic attacks are identified in the DSM-5. Anxiety and panic attacks have similar symptoms, causes, and risk factors. But panic attacks tend to be more intense and are often accompanied by more severe physical symptoms. You should contact a healthcare professional if anxiety- or panic-related symptoms are affecting your everyday life."
Things tend to get tricky when you start to have an anxiety or panic disorder. According to vistapineshealth.com, "Anxiety disorders are among the most common types of mental health issues in the United States, along with depression. Each year, anxiety disorders affect about 40 million adults, accounting for more than 18 percent of the population. Most anxiety disorders are treatable, but less than 37 percent of the people who need treatment receive it. In some cases, anxiety disorders can cause panic attacks that can manifest in psychological and physical symptoms. A panic disorder isn’t separate from anxiety. It’s a form of anxiety disorder that’s characterized by panic attacks. A panic attack is a sudden onset of at least four of a dozen or so possible symptoms, which include:
Heart palpitations
Sweating
Chest pains
Trembling
Shortness of breath
Nausea
Chills
Numbness
Dizziness
Fear of losing control
Fear of detachment
Fear of impending death."
So, basically, it's all really intertwined but confusing to diagnose and differentiate. Hopefully, we don't add to the confusion and can help you understand US better.
We start off the podcast with our usual mental and physical health check in. Mita sent Jen a get well gift to encourage her to push the fluids. Here I am being a goof, covering up the roots that need to be dyed as soon as Covid vacates my body. Thank you for thinking of me, Mita.... You are a sweetheart ♥
Mita discusses her Generalized Anxiety and Social Anxiety during her childhood. She has pushed through and utilized exposure therapies and now it has manifested more of doctor anxiety and running out of energy. Work in progress.
I dive into the early years of where the anxiety began. Being a nervous kiddo, I now have agoraphobia and panic disorder where I am mostly home bound. Oddly enough, I do NOT suffer with social anxiety. I love people and I yearn to be around them. It is more of the fear of escape and safe zones. I get into some family history and how I try really hard for history not to repeat itself.
The word YET is important. "I'm not there yet, but I hope to be, someday" -Jen
We also discuss how medication can cause symptoms of anxiety and how important it is to LISTEN to your body. Things like birth control pills and steroids can cause significant side effects that can lead to depression, suicide ideation, anxiety plus more. Please speak to your physician if you have ANY questions or concerns.
*Please note: I had an experience with a medication some years back that felt "off". I sent this medication to the FDA and filed a side effect/medication concern. Although I was told "By law, generic drug products must contain the identical amounts of the same active drug ingredient as the brand name product. Drug products evaluated as "therapeutically equivalent" can be expected to have equal effect and no difference when substituted for the brand name product." (hhs.gov). There was definitely something wrong with this batch. I was never told what the problem was, but I made sure to document it, so if others were feeling similar effects, maybe something could be done to prevent devastation.*
Anxiety and depression are NOT the same thing. We discuss how sometimes doctors like to take these disorders and diagnose them interchangeably. This is a loaded episode, so join in the conversation. We are breaking it down and will continue this discussion next week. See you there. Big love, Jennifer xoxox
Websites to dive deeper into the places we visited to do our research:
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