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I have noticed that these symptoms are at there worst when I have had sleep deprivation, too much coffee, have not exercised, and have had to much sugar/sodium/cholesterol. Here is what I intend to do over the next month to get my heart and brain completely healthy again and if you have these light headed feelings of fainting and death, you should join me in doing these:
1. Quit coffee. If you can give up coffee, do so. It is by far the largest factor. Caffeine can mess with you mentally, emotionally, and most of all physically which is a big deal when we feel this way!
2. Drink lots of water. Not because you enjoy it, or because you are being cheap at a restaurant, but because humans need pure water to thrive. Down it on a daily basis instead of coffee, soda, and gatorade.
Your body will love you for doing this and treat you kindly! Your car would not appreciate syrup over the correct fuel would it? Do you think your heart does?
3. Sleep. Get some! Get on a regular sleep schedule. Dont stay up all night, or survive only getting 4 or 5 hours, get on a schedule where you go to bed at the same time every night, and get up the same time in the morning, but if you feel exhausted, ad more time, or get better sleeping materials - bed, mattress, pajamas.
4. Exercise. Exercise strengthens your cardio system. A key factor in lightheadedness is hardened veins from too much fat and cholesterol, and lack of heart strength. Exercising even 30 minutes 3 days a week can help prevent this and all you have to do is take a nice 30 minute walk. Or, jog, or dance, or take the stairs on a daily basis. Whatever gets you moving. Over the past year and a half I have lost and maintained a 110 pound weight loss. However, I have not kept up with exercising, which is causing me to notice my unhealthy cardio system more and more even though I am not gaining weight, I am not being healthy. Exercise and simple stretching will relive you of back pain as well people!!!!
5. Diet. Try to eat healthier, you know, as always, but the key factors are written above and the doing them alone will change your life literally. Quality of life is something we all need to work on, me included!
Go for success!View Thread
god bless you... keep fighting.... and you'll feel betterView Thread
Many people suffering from Panic Disorder try to control and/or reduce the uncomfortable symptoms (increased heart rate, sweating, dizziness, lightheadedness, depersonalization, etc.) through creative strategies including but not limited to cold showers, alcohol/drugs, breathing, distraction, medication, avoidance of caffeine, talking on the phone, significant other, etc. All these techniques appear to be effective short-term but in actuality only maintain and even increase the panic long term. These techniques are called safety-seeking behaviors. They provide a false sense of comfort and are used as a crutch to reduce anxiety. The reason they are so harmful is because the individual attributes the decrease of anxiety to these external forces rather than relying on themselves. This trains the body/brain to believe that they are not strong or capable enough to overcome the panic symptoms on there own which feeds the anxiety, making it worst. They are not giving themselves the opportunity to take credit for reducing the anxiety but rather become more dependent on the safety behaviors
Avoidance of situations to control panic usually starts small but quickly escalates to becoming debilitating where the person's world because smaller and smaller. Vacations, traveling, elevators, movie theaters, malls, driving, etc., are just some examples of situations that are avoided. The ability to convince and make excuses/justifications to oneself and to others becomes almost automatic. Without treatment a person can become more and more confined by the panic. Sometimes, the only place to feel "safe" is at home which is known as agoraphobia.
One way to reduce panic symptoms is to let go of the control. The harder a person fights having a panic attack, the more likely he or she becomes anxious. The paradox of panic is the more a person tries to control it, the less control he or she actually has over it and only when they are able to let go of that control do they actually gain it. The control is usually the underlying issue when it comes to panic disorder and the most difficult to treat, but through Cognitive Behavioral Therapy it becomes significantly easier.
Viktoriya Abramova
Clinical Director
Anxiety Treatment Clinic
754-444-2694
Galleria Professional Building
915 Middle River Drive, Suite 320,
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304
www.AnxietyTreatmentClinic.comView Thread
Also, you should reduce your intake of the 3 primary stressors:
-sugar
-alcohol
-caffeine.
You don't have to quit taking these. (I love coffee!) Just try to cut back a bit and your anxiety levels will drop.View Thread
"Recognizing and avoiding words,
actions and attitudes that could
bring undesirable consequences."
Here are some simple things to remember to help you
demonstrate discretion in every day life.
Choose your words carefully
Practice good manners
Listen to criticism
Don't make fun of others
Turn down an invitation to do wrong
View Thread
Just wanted to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year!!!! 2013, is our year of Healing. Lets claim it!!!View Thread
Just wanted to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year!!!! 2013, is our year of Healing. Lets claim it!!!View Thread
While doing some research on the brain I came across some very important information. I really believe that one way to gain control over your life is to simply become informed about every aspect of it. The key is to dig deep, because the more you dig the more informative you become; and everybody knows that knowledge is strength.
Well anyway, I came across a word called AMYGDALA. The amygdala, which makes up a part of the brain, is said to be the main region of the brain that is linked to fear and anxiety. As sources would have it, it is believed that thoughts of fear, paranoia, and/or depression-etc., has to do with the fact that there is an imbalance/over activity of the amygdala. This imbalance and/or over activity of the amygdala is due to a zinc definciency.
So, the question is, how can this be fixed? It is suggested that herbal supplements as such as Kava Kava, Siberian ginseng, licorice, and/or valerian root can help reduce an over active amygdala.
I hope that this bit of information is helpful to someone. I would encourage everyone to do further research on the brain, and the herbal supplements as well. Let's try to get to the root of our problem.View Thread
We made it through another day! Although it may have been a struggle, a challenge, and painful to get through; we made IT Let's give GOD thanks for allowing us to make it through yet another day, and let's thank Him even more for tomorrow!!View Thread
Just a few words of Inspiration: There is nothing to hard for us to conquer. Although the battle may seem hard, we can be confident in knowing that in the end we will in fact WIN!!!!! Never Give Up!!!!View Thread
Last night, while at home all alone, I started to feel my anxiety coming on. It didn't really catch me off guard, because I am learning to monitor my anxiety- i.e., what/who may be causing it, when/where it occurs. I've noticed that my anxiety mostly occurs when I am alone, and when I am not actively taking a part in something. Last night when it occured, one of the ways that I alleviated my anxiety was by singing my little heart out. I sung a little gospel, a little r & b, and some Christmas songs. Sometimes just by taking small steps to combat your anxiety can make a world of difference. It's all about refocusing the mind on something else.View Thread
With each day that GOD gives us, lets view it as a day of opportunity
to begin to embrace self in all forms. Today is the day of new beginnings!!! There is absolutely nothing to be afraid of....we are on our healing journey!!!! Let us all embrace today!!!!View Thread
In order to be and remain empowered, I would encourage everyone to just continue to tell your stories. Not only will giving your testimonies serve as a source of personal strength for yourselves, but they will in fact strengthen the community as a whole.View Thread
In order to be and remain empowered, I would encourage everyone to just continue to tell your stories. Not only will giving your testimonies serve as a source of personal strength for yourselves, but they will in fact strengthen the community as a whole.View Thread
To all my sisters and brothers in the community, I don't really have any tips to give today. However, I just wanted to give all of you WORDS OF POWER: BRAVE, CONFIDENT, STRONG, AND BEAUTIFUL- We are all of these things and much more!!!! Let us all begin to believe in the POWER of SELF!!!!View Thread
For the most part, I am always thinking of ways in which to keep my anxiety under control. For instance, I practice the art of prayer, writing, and on some occasions, I even place myself into my own indivdualized world. In my world, it is exactly the way that I want for it to be. I am totally running the show, and everything in my world is according to the way that I perceive it.
In my world I am married to a wonderful man, I have a nice big house in the valley, and I am singing on stage to a crowd of millions. There is some thing quite freeing and therapeutic in creating your own world. For many of us who suffers from anxiety one of the causes is that we find it somewhat difficult in dealing with the way the world is setup; but when in fact we sometimes create our own world- keeping it in logical perspective of course, we are somehow strengthened to cope with the world before us.View Thread
Just like prayer, I have found that writing about my anxieties allows me to think logically about things, even when my mind wants to go into overactive/reactive mode. When I write about my concerns, fears, and/or worries regarding life, my mind freely surrenders itself to the words being written on paper, and before I know it I am feeling a whole lot better about my circumstances.
I would encourage all of my sisters and brothers in this community to write......write......., and then write some more. By all means, jot down any and all thoughts about any and all things that concerns you. I would also suggest always keeping a pen and paper close by, because believe me, it would be just like having a close friend around.View Thread
My bouts with anxiety- specifically the tasks of trying to face them head on, has in many instances swept me into a whirlwind of emotions. For a great deal of my life, I have either lived it in doubt or uncontrollable fear. But it was when I discovered the power of prayer that my life begin to change. I too in the past have taken medication, and have even taken part in some therapy. And let me just say, that both of these resources were very necessay solutions in dealing with my anxiety; but I found that what helped me most of all was when I prayed to GOD.
I encourage everyone who may be dealing with the pain of anxiety and anxiety disorders to just stay in constant communication with GOD. And with whatever methods that you are taking to counteract anxiety, please include prayer as way to also fight.
Everyday for me is still an ongoing challenge, but I know that nothing is ever done in vain. And so once again, I encourage everyone in this community to discover the power of prayer. Prayer really HELPS!!!!!View Thread
I had some rough Effexor withdrawel and like each of you, I was in a very bad place. After having been on 150mg per day of Effexor XR for the better part of 12 years, I finally decided it was high time to stop. I weaned off as per my MD's instructions, over a period of about 6 weeks. Sure enough, after the final 37.5 mg, the withdrawal started.
I had daily "brain shivers." That is, when I turned my head, it felt like my head was turning in delayed waves, even after I completed the motion of the turn. This was, for me, the worst of the symptoms. I also had the "crying for no reason" symptoms and the "quick to anger" symptoms as well. I really feared that this would go on for months or even years.
Now I don't mean to be preachy, but I really believe that without the careful nutrition and exercise that I am about to outline, my success may not have happened, period. So I cannot say whether you will have success at all if you choose a different diet and exercise plan.
As a point of reference for the quantities that I am outlining, I am a male, 48 years old, about 5'8, 165lbs. I did the following and within about three weeks, I began to feel normal again. It has been two months now and I am feeling fine.
First, NO sugar, period. I love sweets and I love sugar. No sugar. That means no soda as well - drink water, a lot of water. You are flushing serious toxins out of your body, you don't need to add more crap like sugar to the problem.
Exercise every day, at least until you beat this withdrawal. I did a lot of elliptical exercise to get my heart rate up. It made me feel better and it lessened the "brain shivers"--my worst symptom. So walk fast, or run, or do whatever you can to get your heart rate up. At least 20 minutes worth.
Nutrition:
Every morning - Take a daily Detox supplement from a quality health food or supplement store. They will help you select it. This will pull the residual Effexor from your cells and allow you to excrete it.
Take strong Omega 3 capsules (fish oil), I used 1200 mg gel caps. I took four in the morning (and three more in the afternoon). Buy quality supplements from a quality health food store, again, they will help you select.
I also took 20,000 ml. Vitamin D3 drops. Again, get a quality product (in olive oil if possible).
Take a quality mulit-vitamin.
VERY IMPORTANT: This next step is what I personally believe was the main ingredient that made the withdrawal symptoms start to fade, and then completely fade: Fresh Ginger.
Put fresh Ginger root in a smoothie. That is, in a blender add 8 oz Almond or Coconut Milk (find it next to regular milk at the grocery store). Add fresh strawberries and blueberries or whatever HEALTHY ingredients you like so that it tastes good. Next, grate about two tablespoons (yes, a lot) of fresh ginger and add this to the blender. I truly believe that it is the Ginger which is the secret! It really made the "Brain Shivers" fade and then stop.
Afternoon - I took three more capsules of fish oil and three capsules of Ginger Root (you find this in the vitamin section). Eat healthy for lunch, period.
Dinner - Primarily, Eat Salmon, it is VERY high in Omega 3s, which you need a ton of right now. For sides, eat fresh vegetables. No junk food!
This worked for me and I am thankfully feeling fine now. But make no mistake, your body and mind are at war right now, so you MUST bite the bullet and do the hard work to beat your Effexor withdrawal.
Best of luck and God bless!
Rob P.View Thread
I am so happy to read other comments. Â I have been on anti-depressants for about 25 years and effexsor probably the last 20 years. Â I started with 225 mg. and went down gradually to 75 mgs which I have been on for about 2 years. Â [br>
I wanted to go off because I am in a better place so with my psychiatrist this is how I did it. Â I took 37.5 mg. for about a month, then cut those in 1/2 and took 1/2 for about two weeks and then took the 1/2 pills every other day for two weeks.[br>
I have been completely off for about 1 week or more and I still have some nausea, some anxiety and fear at times and I am going in to see my primary doc today to talk about it. Â That is one powerful drug and I don't want it to control me but I hope and pray I can get feeling better soon.View Thread
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