Can panic attacks be part of PPD?

[Panicked]

Hi I am new here. I am a mom to a beautiful 11 1/2 m.o. girl. I have been struggling with panic attacks for close to 6 months now. My doctor first put me on Ativan .25 mg per attack as needed. When I took it I did not like the way it made me have a "don't care" attitude. I also started Lexapro 5mg and took it 3 nights. The first night I had the typical side effects sick to my tummy, spacy, light headed. Well last night I found myself in the ER with a heart rate of 140 accompanied with tremors. Needless to say I will not be taking Lexapro again. I was just wondering if there is something more natural for panic attacks. I am not a big fan of prescription meds not to mention the cost seeing that insurance does not cover hardly anything. I am slighly depressed but it is more the panic attacks bothering me. My doc said it was Generalized Anxiety Disorder. I was always thinking that this pain or that pain was from some serious illness and I was always thinking that the worst was going to happen.: Can anyone relate? I am unsure of what to do. I am also still bfing my daughter too.

[L&IsMama]

Have you tried Rescue Remedy? Its totally natural and safe with BFing. They also have a few remedies for panic,etc. They are sold at the health food store. And they really do work. Here's their website HTH. And yes,I can totally relate. .
Oh,and I would definately not take the Lexapro again,either.

[lactivist]

I have been challenged with depression a good part of my life and during pregnancy and postpartum I tend to add panic attacks to the equation. I second the Rescue Remedy suggestion and I would add that you can put it in every glass of water you drink throughout the day for a balancing effect. The thing that has helped me more than anything is to add a pretty high amount of Essential Fatty Acid's into my supplement routine. Fish Oil works best for me but there are many different blends so a different one might work better for somone else. If I take at least 4 grams of fish oil a day I don't have the spiraling thoughts and I don't get panic attacks. I also can stop them within twenty four hours of taking it if I have been lax on it. During hard times I have taken up to 9 grams a day and I really believe that it has saved my life. I can't take meds as almost all of them have too many side effects and I can't tolerate them at all. I hope you find some relief.
Wendi

[BurgundyElephant]

I need to start taking my fish oil again, Lactivist. Thanks for the reminder.

I second the Rescue Remedy. It really does work.

Tonight was a hard night. I feel like I'm pulling more than my share of the weight around here and I'm going nuts.

[maylea_moon]

YES!! When I was suffering through PPD it was way, way more panic/anxiety than actual depression. Rescue Remedy works for me when I have very mild anxiety but just doesn't cut it for intense anxiety so I went on medication. Just remember, medication does not make you weak. If you need it in order to feel like you can take care of your child then it can be a positive thing. Also keep in mind that it can take a few weeks for medications to kick in.

As far as natural remedies go, Flax Seed Oil has worked the best for me.

[Panicked]

My thing with the meds is the side effects that scare me. I did not like the way Lexapro caused tremors for me. Although I could tell a difference in my thinking patterns after a few doses. And I have alraedy experienced some anxiety today. A new medecine just makes me really nervous. I cannot afford too many trips to the ER. I think I may try the Flaxseed Oil and maybe look up a cognitive behavorial therapist. At least if I could re-train my thoughts then there should not be a return of symptoms after getting off the meds. Do you get the Flaxseed oil from a health supply store? And thanks for all the feeedback!

April

[mamaofthree]

I too had horrible panic attacks after dc#4 was born. No real depression, but horrible panic attacks. I did pretty good with the Rescue Remedy, but I also talked to a therapist. And that helped a whole lot. It only took a few visits but she taught me a few tricks to help calm myself before I got really bad. Good luck mama!

H

[Panicked]

So on the Rescue Remedy web site it confused me a little. The way to order, it is you just put a 1 in the box of all the components that are listed in the section describing the product? It seems that several people have used this and say it helps them some. I am going to start a few sessions of therapy and try the Rescue Remedy and oils if needed. I am just ready for a change and ready to get back to loving life instead od dreading the simple homemaking tasks. I think ny DH is tired of seeing the house in aray but I just put my efforts into caring for our DD. It gets hard and overwhelming at times. I am glad I found this site. It helps to talk about stuff with people that have been there before.

April

[stayathomecristi]

Just want to chime in with my experience.

Mega-doses of Omega 3's, 6's and 9's are helping me to keep my head above water right now as far as the depression goes.

R/R tends to take the edge off if I'm starting a panic attack, but I find that it's not quite enough. If it's just starting and I catch it right away sometimes it works.

What I've found is that the homeopathic remedy Aconite is what really stops a panic attack when it starts. You may want to look at that as well as the other flower remedies.

Hope this helps,
C

[Panicked]

What is Aconite? I cannot find something on the internet that describes it.

[BurgundyElephant]

Here's their order site for RR - http://www.directlyfromnature.com/RescueRemedy.htm (I got there by clicking buy now on this site http://www.bachflower.com/rescue_remedy.htm and then Rescue Remedy on the left.)

I use the Aconite from Hylands, just because that's what I can get here. http://www.hylands.com Here is a description of Aconite - http://elixirs.com/newsletter.htm#16. I use it for when my kids get sick fast with a high fever. Good to know I can try it for a panic attack, too.

[Panicked]

Thank you for that link. I am going to be doing some more reading on homeopathy. I do not know much at all about it and find it interesting. I went ahead and ordered some of the RR. I figure with all the recomendations it will not hurt to try. One question I have is has anyone taken the RR while being on an anti-derpessant? I know there are lots of over the counter and herbal treatments you are not supposed to take with anti depressants.

[maylea_moon]

Originally Posted by Panicked

Thank you for that link. I am going to be doing some more reading on homeopathy. I do not know much at all about it and find it interesting. I went ahead and ordered some of the RR. I figure with all the recomendations it will not hurt to try. One question I have is has anyone taken the RR while being on an anti-derpessant? I know there are lots of over the counter and herbal treatments you are not supposed to take with anti depressants.

Yep, I took RR while on Paxil.

[stayathomecristi]

Yup--RR is safe to take.

Boiron also has aconite. I don't have a link for you right now. Will try to come back later, but I'm sure that if you put boiron in your web browser you will find them. A lot of health food stores carry that brand.

[tansyflower]

rescue remedy did not work for me, my anxiety was seriously intense. 5HTP did...it is all natural, basically seratonin (something your body produces but is often depleted during pregnancy). You can get it at the health food store in capsule form

[Panicked]

Thank you for all of your help. I am going to try RR first then move on to another natural remedy, that I have not decided for sure which one yet since it seems there is not one that works for all of you. I also talked to my chiro back in my old hometown and he told me that a mis-aligned spine can cause anxiety/depression. So I think I am going to look for a new chiro to visit because I know for sure I have spinal alignment issues. I will keep you all posted.

[pyzia]

can you take rr while bf?????

[Panicked]

Originally Posted by pyzia

can you take rr while bf?????

I was told by a few people on here that they took it while bfing. I got my bottle yesterday and it helped me today. I also started fish oil last night. I want to think it has helped some already, or today has been one of my better days. I am bfing as well.

April

[PerennialMom]

Yes, you can take RR while nursing and pregnant. Great for birth too.

I'm sorry you're having a hard time. I struggled with PPD until about 3 months ago. I had great success with a Krill Oil supplement suggested by my midwife. She said she has had great success with her moms that go off anti-depressants during their pregnancies. I HIGHLY recommend that. Also, Wish Garden Herbs makes a tincture called Emotional Ally. I combined Krill Oil with Emotinional Ally, then RR for tense moments. It really helped a lot.

[peypeymama]

Hugs

My sister's Dr. told her that she had Postpartum Anxiety Disorder. She had attacks where she was afraid for her DC. She couldn't drive, she was afraid of choking hazards, she was petrified of SIDS, etc. I'm assuming it's as common as PPD. I wonder why her Doc would call it PAD and yours called it General?

She would ditto the Rescue Remedy and Fish Oil. Hope you feel a little better soon, and get some sunshine too... if you have any!