I had my first panic attack in August 2010. I didn't know what it was at first. I thought for sure I was about to have a seizure, something I've never had before either. I've learned to recognize when one is coming on and ways to help keep me grounded. Last night was a totally new experience. I've never had a panic attack wake me up before. I woke up at 3 AM feeling sick and then the shakiness, whirling, and jitters started to hit. This was a big one because I had the feeling of about to have a seizure again. I almost went to wake up my daughter so she could call an ambulance. I've developed a problem with low blood sugar so at first I thought it was that. I ate a Starburst to see if that'd help. When that didn't do anything I knew it was time to ground myself. I've learned that the best way to keep myself grounded and in the now is to distract myself.
I had a friend I would text and he'd distract me. He was really good at it too. All I had to do was text him and let him know I feel a panic attack coming on and he'd say something silly or off the wall to make me laugh and things would start to calm down. With the loss of that friend, which is hard to deal with by itself, I've had to find new ways to distract myself. I'll normally log into my Facebook account but at 3 AM there wasn't much going on. Between Facebook and TV I was able to calm down and eventually go back to sleep, but not until after 4 AM.
I keep hoping these panic attacks will go away as mysteriously as they appeared but sadly I don't see that happening. I just need to not think about it too much because that brings them on, and learn ways to ground myself and focus so I can get through them.
