who has had a nervous breakdown?
 

What is it? Whats it like? How long can it last?

Thanks , I dont know what happened to me yesterday....Panic attack maybe...almost quit my job. had to go home early, 5 shots of Vodka and a cigar later I wasnt shaking anymore, but i was still wired. Wife looked worried. I dont drink much (light weight) and 5 shots would generally put me on the floor, out cold.

I feel better today, but i dont like what happened yesterday.
Boss called me in for a talk, dont know what its about..but i can guess.

and some how, I dont care. Dont get me wrong, I need this job, and i am good at it, but....

my mother in-law had one after her 7th kid. Electro shock, drugs, shrinks, etc. At that point she refused to cook or do house work and the first 7 raised the next 3.

35yrs later with only her and her husband she still hasn't done any house work and "gets even" with her husband by remodeling the living room with $20,000 [est] living room window decorations, custom furniture, etc any time they argue. Sometimes it could happen every 3 months.

it's called "Fear"... your underlying mood governs how your involuntary nervous system reacts. you probably feared the worst when your boss called you in for a meeting and you freaked out...
this has happened to me many times at work..shaky hands, nervous feelings in my stomach, can't think straight. it's terrible.
believe it or not, this might have to do with your childhood, you might see your boss as the "father figure" you were afraid when you were young.

I had one about 5 years ago. Mine is a little different than what is described above.

I had had my wisdom teeth pulled on Good Friday. Monday-Friday the following week I was in a DB2 class. I am normally a quick learner and absorb information easily. The whole next week, as the week went on, I felt more and more behind and more and more paranoid. By Thursday, I was ready to run out of the class screaming. I was sweating, my heart was racing. Thursday night, I thought about what was going on (I was having anxiety both at and away from work). I never take my work home (mentally or physically), so this was highly unusual. I thought about what was different this week. I got to thinking about the prescriptions I was on: an antibiotic, an anti-inflammatory, and a pain killer. I'd had the specific steroid (anti-inflammatory) before, I'd had Vicodin before. I'd never had the anti-biotic I was prescribed before. I stopped taking it immediately. I felt better the next day.

Rodeo must have had one.

No, I haven't heard any stories of lawyers in the northeast going on shooting rampages.

Maybe he's waiting for the Republican convention in '08?

I'm scheduling one for a couple weeks from now.

Len, I'm guessing that business has not turned around?

Don't want hijack this thread, but no.

FWIW I have a buddy that had panic attacks every couple of weeks for a few years. I forget what medication he ended up with but it cured him. After that he was able to cheat on his wife without the annoying attacks afterwards:D

panic attack happened hours before the request for meeting....
Meeting was because i was on a concall with a customer and I said a few things the customer did not want to hear. My manager was on that call.

I really didnt say anything really really wrong...just not quite right.

We talked things over and he understands why things went the way they did. He smoothed things over with the customer and its back to business.

What he wants from me is to be more mindful and tactful of what i say. Kind of like DE, being smooth and holding the line will get you farther and faster.

Now I just gotta continue to calm down.

I've had my share- started when I was about 20. Thing is, I didn't even know what it was or identify it. I let it get to the point of debilitation around the age of 24. If someone cut me off or was rude or I screwed something up, my heart rate would FIRE up, and I would get 'shaky' as you describe, and I can tell you what I have learned.

When you are stressed/depressed enough, your body reacts PHYSICALLY. When that happens, it freaks you out mentally even more. It cycles into horror. You body reacts in a fight-or-flight fashion- adrenaline pumping, heart racing, maybe sweating, etc. So, you can have somebody say you made an error on a report, and your body reacts like a lion jumped out of the bushes. If not addressed, it will take its toll on your body. You'll feel sore, you can't relax, maybe you can't sleep.

I am a dumbass, and let it run like this until I wanted to shut myself in a room and never come out. This is not a solution though, as you don't feel better.

My recommendation is to take stock of things NOW, before they can get worse. They can get WAY worse. Remove as much stress as possible from your life, and manage what remains. Exercise is the single strongest anti-stress thing you can do, more powerful than any meds that are available. Even going for walks can help a lot. But get in control now.

Also- it will likely be a lifelong thing. Nothing to worry about, it just means that you have to be more conscious about things than the average person. I still catch myself occasionally, and because we know whats up now, its not nearly such a big deal.

Get your wife on board, I did that and it helps.

Your central nervous system reacts to your mood. these are the involuntary nerves at work. a person who has a nervous illness is very sensitized, reacts to normal things in ways that are irrational.

just like rammstein said about being criticized about small things... or for me, sometime just waiting in line at the post office can trigger anxiety, create feelings of uneasiness or uncertainty.

it is curable, however. you have to realize that it can't cause your body harm, you have to accept it, face it, and let it get past you.
i've suffered with anxiety , triggered by events, like being asked to go in for a meeting with the boss or just meetings in general, being paranoid about what others are saying and how I am "perceived"..just someone looking at me during a meeting triggers it. and being afraid of those physical feelings makes it even worse.

supposedly your thoughts create feeling. body feelings don't just come from nowhere. if you can analyze and write down your thoughts, that's a starting point.

Somebody who says this SERIOUSLY understands the problem. Well said.

right, in medical terms, this is called second fear

btw, i stronly recommend this book: Hope and Help for your Nerves
it changed my life.

I have not had one but I have known several folks who have. Everyone deals with it differently. Some find the bottle, others find God. Some worked through it and became better people while others are still messed up. It is different for everyone.

I can offer no words of advise only my sympathy and understanding for your discomfort. I hope you find strength in knowing that there are many folks in this world who are very willing to help and even more people sharing your pain and finding how to feel better.

Stay strong and know that you have a bunch of P-car freaks thinking about you!

I have.

I'm one of those folks who seem exceedingly calm. Very relaxed, or so it appears. In reality, the calm thing is a facade. It is learned. It is just not feasible for me to exhibit my anxiety in my daily life. It is NOT helpful. I occasionally have those small panic attack things where you feel like you're not getting enough air. But as I say, all that is quite manageable.

Then one day a couple of years ago, I was in a situation where someone important to me......bailed. Abandoned me, basically. I didn't really know how or why this person's presence was important to me. Still don't. That person is gone now. But when I was trying to deal with that, I got to the point where I had to go see a trusted friend and just let him make decisions for me. We went to see a doctor. Eventually I went to another doctor. And then another. There was Zanax and there were a couple of other medications. Ultimately, I saw a doctor that realized I needed meds to simply SHUT MY MIND DOWN. Kind of a re-booting, thing. Valium. That's what worked. A week or two of that, and I was back on my feet. Everything's been fine since.

I'm on my 19th Nervous Breakdown...

I am the exact opposite. People who know me at work would probably describe me as "intense". The thing is, I get all of my frustration out the moment I have it, and I don't save it up. I say what I think, and I move on. I might even be championing the thing I criticized in the next meeting. When it is not appropriate to get it out at the moment, I find another outlet, THAT DAY. I bike to a small town 25 miles away. I spend an hour at the range. I take a fast, winding drive around Lake Bloomington. I start an involved project at home. My "intense" exterior often hides a very calm, very at peace interior.

Hey Lubby what about those little "Happy Pills" U take, what are they for?

Did your father ever perfect sealing wax?

Panic attack = aniexty

Panic Attacks are a warning signal that there is a serious disconnect from what is going on with U emotionaly and the situation your in. As in being in a loveless marriage and Pretending like it is allright. Your heart is telling you one thng and your head another. when the situation becomes unbearable bang a panic attack. The idea is to listen to the attack and find out whats bothering U and the attacks will cease. Of course U might realize the situation U are in is making U unhappy and some changes are needed. Thats why I see drugs as merely papering over the situation to the point where you never find resolution and become dependent on the drugs to see you through...aka A JUNKIE...However I do see drugs as a means of keeping oneself funtional while one discovers the root causes of why the attacks are occuring.

All these problems are real and serious to those going through them. Probably shouldn't be used for amusement purposes...

Is a nervous breakdown different from depression? I am guessing it's the physical symptoms...
What some of you, like Supreman, describe is similar to what I went through. There was no physical reaction to speak of, just a massive amount of confusion. It is as if there are millions of thoughts racing through your head and all mixed up so you can't follow any one of them - like stiring a bowl of spaghetti and trying to find an end. I got given Fluoxetine (prosac) which seems to slowly slow things down to a point where you can process thoughts effectively, what you described as a re-boot I guess.

Now I try to avoid getting stressed. Sure I still care about things and worry about them but I try to limit my visible reactions or just shrug some things off. The problem is that I think I appear as being way too laid back now. My boss has passed the odd comment about not appearing involved, but that isn't really the case as I'm just trying to stay calm so I don't have to go through the whole experience that I went through before. I am starting to get the hang of balancing the inner 'cool' with the appearance of being concerned. It's all about appearance and perceptions.

Lifes a funny old game isn't it?

I think life as a whole is one long break down. You start off as a kid playing and laughing, following your nose into all kinds of adventures and getting into a little trouble now and then. Testing the waters, so to speak. Then adulthood and responsibility. Conform and produce. You get older and the young guns push their way past. Attitude everywhere.

*****, who doesn't have their real bad days where you cover your head and disappear? I haven't made it to work yet today; didn't make it yesterday either. Wednesday was that bad.

I'd say get the F*** out of your job before it consumes you and it's too late to learn a new trick. Nothing is worth more than your health and happiness.

I am about as emotional as a stump. Of course, living for years with a manic-depressive (who has since passed away) had a lot to do with my demeanor.

I understand. Intensity is easy. Like falling off a log. But it doesn't work. Certainly not in my business. Making mountains out of molehills is a recipe for labor relations disaster. Shooting off at the mouth is fun, but not effective. I have an ex-wife who still has not learned this. Also, shooting off at the mouth before you have thought things through cause you to change your position frequently. Shifting my story would end my reputation of reliability. When I make a statement or decision, people know that any bank in town will cash it.

Making molehills out of mountains. That's my job.

Plus.....it is just too draining to let my emotions spank me around during the day. I learned a long time ago that I have to be calm to be effective. I can remember getting so mad (often in fistfights) that I "saw red." My vision went away and all I could see was the color red.

Everyone knows I am intense. It is not apparently immediately, but people are often warned "Don't underestimate Jim. Don't assume he's not aggressive, just because he seems calm."

Of course, you guys know me as the soft-spoken guy who's afraid to rock the boat so he agrees with everyone's conclusions.:D

medication
psychotherarpy
diet and exercise

repeat #2 and #3, hopefully #1 is temporary.

Anxiety attacks can be debilitating, as can other neuroses. You need to treat it. The whole "tough guy" approach will only make things worse down the road for yourself...and more importantly...worse for your family. You will start doing things you don't realize to screw up your marriage and kids.

Yes. It is utter confusion. Inability to evaluate. It is as though all the neurons in your brain are firing every second. The best you can do is to sit down and ask someone to help you. The Valium was for the purpose of stopping the electrical storm in my brain. It took a week or two, but it worked.

Fluoxetine is a disaster for me. I used various forms of speed as a youth, but was never as anxious as when I took one or two Prosacs. The worst part is that it took two or three days to come back down. Most vicious speed I have ever experienced. That drug is NOT for me. Again, I seem very calm, but anxiety is definitely my problem.

+1... I would also make sure you are getting enough sleep, this can also make the problem worse if you're not getting enough (sleep!).

You also need to go about it one step at a time, and realize that you can't "fix it" overnight. My doctor likened it to a car stuck in the ditch... the harder you push the gas pedal the further you get stuck. Meditation and biofeedback are also helpful to many with similar issues. Note that if you stay "tense" in a "fight or flight" situation too long (basically all the time) the body stops functioning in many ways, and starts to see what is "normal" differently. Your body then can start to do some strange things as it tries to cope.

Regarding meds, there's all different kinds, some have stronger effects, reactions, and side effects on different people. If you end up on meds, try to use the lowest dosage that gets the job done, or "takes the edge off". If done well with the right kind, you may not feel "medicated". If you don't like how you feel, stop them, notify your doctor, and try something else.

Stress and its components can truly shorten your life...

Eric

Supe, same story with me and SSRIs. Zoloft nearly snapped me in two. Xanax took the edge off things and made life tolerable. But I tolerate diazepam derivatives really well, and am good at dosing myself. I prefer to control it rather than using a CR formulation.

But without therapy and other changes, the meds are just a holding pattern.

Don't get me wrong. I choose my battles. I let the little things go. No point in making "mountains out of molehills". But if something is a big deal, I don't let it go. I don't let it silently eat at me. I get resolution. I don't let other people delegate and delegate and delegate without making a decision. My reactions are not knee-jerk. I will often sit silent in a meeting while I think over the repercussions of something. I have a well-reasoned position before I open my mouth. If a decision is bad, I say so. But I also say why and what I think the right decision is and why. If I have an opinion on something, no one is at a loss for where I stand.

i got similar problems now, been overworked structurally for 5 years straight, always sucked it up , kept chugging away... and boozed alot to just calm the nerves...

got sick last year, panick attacks at first, then liver problems, so no more booze for me, quit smoking as a result, but still not back in shape

we only now got new recruits, and boss expects me to stop beeing stressed, right now because "it's fixed now" eeh, no it's not, things don't recuperate over night....

as for wodka .. wrong drink for the job... wodka will keep you wired, it does not calm the nerves , it'll waken them up even more...

try wodka with tooth ache...
and then try scotch the other day... you'll notice soon enough which one works, and it ain't wodka...

you have the unfortunate drawback , that you're in the US
and i think employers can cut you off more easely for not performing

whereas i'm in Europe, and if the boss wears me out, the boss is accountable...burnout here is considered an illness, and they cannot fire anybody for beeing sick, especially not if it's work related

but it's still no cakewalk... makes you doubt yourself and everything you stand for...

Never underestimate the power to imitate a neurotransmitter!

Milt, we all have those days...but a line from the cult flick "Pool Hall Junkies" comes to mind. Rod Steiger (sp?) in his final role. A character said he was having a bad day. Steiger: "Every day is a good day. Just try missing one."

Interesting. One of the most amusing things about my professional style is I'm the kid who says "Hey! The King is nekkid!" You should see the looks on some faces when folks are dancing around the truth that nobody will admit or recognize. I speed meetings up that way. And like you, when it's time to say something or do something or make a decision, then it's time.

Good for you that you say why a decision is bad, and point to a better alternative. Most folks stop right after the criticism part. I should just make a sign that says "Okay...what do you suggest?" to save myself the vocal effort.

Yo Lubby YA Listening...and this just ain't for Lubby.

There is NO REASON for anybody here to continue to suffer with Panic Attacks. They are just a warning that something is amiss with yourself, and that U gotta get back in touch with yourself. All U have to do is ask yurself Why did I have one or Whats causing me to feel this way. Start to talk about it and sooner or later out of the primordial soup of your subconscience the answer will pop up. Once U realize what it is, it is like a losd being taken off your shoulders..it like U bin carrying around an extra sack of cement on your backs...

Mother on the other hand thinks anybody who suffers from Panic Attacks is weak and can be exploited. That on the evolutionary scale of thngs the weak are merely food for the strong. That life is tough and U gotta suck it up to survive and ther is no time for this feely touchy stuff."Ohhh I can't cope cause I'm having a Panic Attack...." BS. "Get your life in order" is Mothers directive, "your not fit to play with the big boys until U do."

TABS,
Life is filled with many variables. Not everything can fit into a neat equation.

i agree with this

my panick attacks did go away once i quit smoking, went rock bottom with the stress at work, turned the volume down a few notches there and decided my targa was to much of a POS to keep trying to get it right, and sold it

i'm still not 100% , but i'm not laying awake at night with the jitters no more