Same problem. I have this aside from crazy scary thoughts. At least I know that I can get help. It is also very comforting to know that people can deal with this problem.Thank You very much for sharing!
-Vasiliska
HELP - Is it possible to just STOP breathing, scared to death.
This is freaking AWESOME!!!!.. Thank you all for your advice and your stories. I have been dealing with these feelings for approx 3 months or so now. I honestly thought that I had some sort of brain tumor because I felt that I was going to stop breathing. Its so great to know that others are feeling the same way. I have had 2 pulmonologist breathing test, 1 extensive outpatient breathing test, 1 EKG, numerous oxygen finger test done, 5 lung xrays and 1 lung cat scan. And nothing was found. My lungs are operating properly. These thoughts just entered into my mind and I can't seem to shake them. I am so happy to know that I am not alone. I am going to take the advice of the others on this forum and practice the breathing techniques... This should help.. Thanks again.. 
Yes, thank you all. I am a female in my late twenties (like C.F.), so now I feel like I'm not alone. I went online a few times over the past year to research this... once I felt better and once I felt worse! Let's keep this post going to give one another comfort.
Suffering off and on with anxiety/depression/scary thoughts since I was 10 years old, this has by far been the worst of the obsessions and bad feelings. The anxiety it produces in too much at times, and I get physically sick (i.e. irritable bowel symptoms) when I allow it to develop into anxiety. The ironic thing is that the anxiety CAUSES my focus to be on breathing in the first place! Why do we torment ourselves like this?
This one is harder to shake than many 'scary thoughts' such as hurting others, etc., because this is one of those you have a harder time escaping because it is within you. I assume people who focus on other bodily functions have the same feelings, but I would rather obsess over something completely involuntary instead of something I actually have some control over! I'm therefore fearful that I will try to force myself to stop breathing!
I am also afraid I will just continue to obsess over it and go crazy. I like what someone else said about 'getting bored of the fear'. This is actually what has happened to me in past experiences with this fear/obsession.
One thing that has helped me (just now as well since I started to get a panic attack as I was writing this)... StressCenter website has some tips on what to do with anxiety: say to yourself at the first instance of anxiety 'I may not like the situation, but I accept it... I accept that I am anxious'. If you have trouble believing those words, say 'I accept that I'm having trouble accepting my anxiety'.
Please respond so I know I'm not alone.
Suffering off and on with anxiety/depression/scary thoughts since I was 10 years old, this has by far been the worst of the obsessions and bad feelings. The anxiety it produces in too much at times, and I get physically sick (i.e. irritable bowel symptoms) when I allow it to develop into anxiety. The ironic thing is that the anxiety CAUSES my focus to be on breathing in the first place! Why do we torment ourselves like this?
This one is harder to shake than many 'scary thoughts' such as hurting others, etc., because this is one of those you have a harder time escaping because it is within you. I assume people who focus on other bodily functions have the same feelings, but I would rather obsess over something completely involuntary instead of something I actually have some control over! I'm therefore fearful that I will try to force myself to stop breathing!
I am also afraid I will just continue to obsess over it and go crazy. I like what someone else said about 'getting bored of the fear'. This is actually what has happened to me in past experiences with this fear/obsession.
One thing that has helped me (just now as well since I started to get a panic attack as I was writing this)... StressCenter website has some tips on what to do with anxiety: say to yourself at the first instance of anxiety 'I may not like the situation, but I accept it... I accept that I am anxious'. If you have trouble believing those words, say 'I accept that I'm having trouble accepting my anxiety'.
Please respond so I know I'm not alone.
wow this is a great find. i thought i was going crazy from this thought about breathing. at the minute its constant in my head all day and i just want to sleep and not wake up its driving me up the wall. every time i think of it its like am i going to stop breathing now or in a minutes time or in a few seconds i dont know how to stop it. im lost at what to do i know there is no escape and the only escape is the end then no more worry.
Hi Paul,
I found another forum that wasn't based on this subject, but another person who was active there had been through the same exact thing. His words gave me temporary comfort as I worked past this. I get this 'fear' almost every time anxiety begins to creep up again. The good news is: THIS IS ONLY A THOUGHT! This is actually an extremely common 'fear' among anxiety sufferers, and there is a reason for this...
We are control freaks. It is in our personalities to want to be in control. When we start to feel anxious and begin the anxiety cycle that Lucinda talks about, our bodies respond to the adrenaline chemical by very temporarily slowing down some processes (digestive and breathing). It's not harmful, just uncomfortable. So, as we are feeling anxious, we immediately (and usually subconciously) look for the source of these feelings. Since our breathing may have slightly changed as part of the chemical process from the release of adrenaline, AND because we are SOOOO sensitive to everything around and within us, we take notice of this. This all happens very rapidly, and before you know it, you become obsessed with breathing.
This is not harmful. You will not lose control or stop. It is anxiety and nothing else. You are not alone and the feelings will pass. I recommend you buy the book 'From Panic to Power', which is only a couple of dollars on sites like Amazon. Lucinda wrote it years ago but it gives me a lot of comfort. In some sentances she talks about this same fear, but my biggest takeaway from this book and the Stress program has been that all of our 'fears', although they may seem different, are all unrational and simply our creative way of finding something to blame our anxiety and/or depression on.
I recommend you sign up for notifications to this particular discussion so you can get instant email notificiation when people respond. This has helped me a lot in various forums!
-K
I found another forum that wasn't based on this subject, but another person who was active there had been through the same exact thing. His words gave me temporary comfort as I worked past this. I get this 'fear' almost every time anxiety begins to creep up again. The good news is: THIS IS ONLY A THOUGHT! This is actually an extremely common 'fear' among anxiety sufferers, and there is a reason for this...
We are control freaks. It is in our personalities to want to be in control. When we start to feel anxious and begin the anxiety cycle that Lucinda talks about, our bodies respond to the adrenaline chemical by very temporarily slowing down some processes (digestive and breathing). It's not harmful, just uncomfortable. So, as we are feeling anxious, we immediately (and usually subconciously) look for the source of these feelings. Since our breathing may have slightly changed as part of the chemical process from the release of adrenaline, AND because we are SOOOO sensitive to everything around and within us, we take notice of this. This all happens very rapidly, and before you know it, you become obsessed with breathing.
This is not harmful. You will not lose control or stop. It is anxiety and nothing else. You are not alone and the feelings will pass. I recommend you buy the book 'From Panic to Power', which is only a couple of dollars on sites like Amazon. Lucinda wrote it years ago but it gives me a lot of comfort. In some sentances she talks about this same fear, but my biggest takeaway from this book and the Stress program has been that all of our 'fears', although they may seem different, are all unrational and simply our creative way of finding something to blame our anxiety and/or depression on.
I recommend you sign up for notifications to this particular discussion so you can get instant email notificiation when people respond. This has helped me a lot in various forums!
-K
thanks for your reply. its seems to be every time i get anxiety or anxious i start to be come obsessed about my breathing and constantly worry. i dont know if its my fear of desth or the things i am trying to hide from like the outside world and the dreaded panic attack. i am conviced that if i walk outside i will either float into the sky or have a panic attack or die or collaps or just be abandoned and left. i am trying to beat my phobia and panic but i am finding it extremely hard on my own as i find it much easier just to stay in the house avoiding everything and just sleeping. it didnt help with my doctor taking my anxiety meds away namely trifluoperazine and has put me on sertraline 150mg wish hasnt had any effect yet. i just dont know what to do
Hi Paul,
I understand exactly what you are feeling. When I was going through a rough patch of anxiety this past summer, all I wanted to do was sleep. It was so weird because I typically have SO much energy and love to run and work out. But it seemed like the more I slept, the more I wanted to sleep! Sleep became an escape from the anxiety.
The thing you need to do is practice coping skills. You need to allow yourself to feel anxious and force yourself to say and think positive statements. These aren't idealistic things that aren't true... instead, these are things that ARE true that you just temporarily are not letting yourself believe. I keep a notebook of such statements and make myself write and repeat them when fear and anxiety begin to take over.
Some statements are as follows:
-My mind and body are strong and capable. I am feeling horrible things right now, but these feelings will pass.
-My body knows how to take care of itself. These feelings are my body's way of trying to fight off the silly things I am telling myself.
-It's ok to feel strange and loopy. This is not harmful, just uncomfortable.
-No matter what bad thoughts I feed myself, my body is strong and knows what to do. The desire to sleep is my body's defense mechanism as I get through this difficult time.
I carry these statements around with me and KEEP forcing myself to read them. These things are true, and if you repeat them enough you will begin to snap back to reality. You have been very brave so far simply by searching for this particular topic in this forum. I remember that being a very difficult step for me... I felt so hopeless and so afraid to face this fear. What I have learned is that my fears are just my mind trying to blame anxious feelings on SOMETHING. We are so good at torturing ourselves for no reason!
Have you gone through Lucinda's program? I did a few years ago, then did it again about a year later because I hadn't been continuing with my skills. Now I keep two of the CDs that help me the most in my car (lesson 10 and 14) and listen to them occasionally to make sure I am keeping my stress levels in check.
You are not the only one who has felt like this, and there is hope. I encourage you to keep writing about it... you can even set up a private discussion if you'd like to share personal things and don't want it to be discoverable to others.
-K
I understand exactly what you are feeling. When I was going through a rough patch of anxiety this past summer, all I wanted to do was sleep. It was so weird because I typically have SO much energy and love to run and work out. But it seemed like the more I slept, the more I wanted to sleep! Sleep became an escape from the anxiety.
The thing you need to do is practice coping skills. You need to allow yourself to feel anxious and force yourself to say and think positive statements. These aren't idealistic things that aren't true... instead, these are things that ARE true that you just temporarily are not letting yourself believe. I keep a notebook of such statements and make myself write and repeat them when fear and anxiety begin to take over.
Some statements are as follows:
-My mind and body are strong and capable. I am feeling horrible things right now, but these feelings will pass.
-My body knows how to take care of itself. These feelings are my body's way of trying to fight off the silly things I am telling myself.
-It's ok to feel strange and loopy. This is not harmful, just uncomfortable.
-No matter what bad thoughts I feed myself, my body is strong and knows what to do. The desire to sleep is my body's defense mechanism as I get through this difficult time.
I carry these statements around with me and KEEP forcing myself to read them. These things are true, and if you repeat them enough you will begin to snap back to reality. You have been very brave so far simply by searching for this particular topic in this forum. I remember that being a very difficult step for me... I felt so hopeless and so afraid to face this fear. What I have learned is that my fears are just my mind trying to blame anxious feelings on SOMETHING. We are so good at torturing ourselves for no reason!
Have you gone through Lucinda's program? I did a few years ago, then did it again about a year later because I hadn't been continuing with my skills. Now I keep two of the CDs that help me the most in my car (lesson 10 and 14) and listen to them occasionally to make sure I am keeping my stress levels in check.
You are not the only one who has felt like this, and there is hope. I encourage you to keep writing about it... you can even set up a private discussion if you'd like to share personal things and don't want it to be discoverable to others.
-K
i would much rather try to expose my thoughts as much as i can to get them out of my head. yes i felt like you that sleep is the only escape from anxiety and i have thoughts and feelings that death is the only way out. and yes i was searching for ways to stop breathing and this came back so i had a read. last year the end of february i saw a so called therapist who said he had 30 years experience so i listened to what he said and at the time i had hit the very bottom after going through alcohol abuse and damaging my liver i tried something that i never ever thought i would do and it was to try end it. i asked the therapist if i solved the phobia everything else would go away so i began going outside for the first time in 14 years. i was high for a few months enough time to pass my driving test and move into my own place. i had never ever lived alone and wanted to escape my family and my surroundings. i thought this was a good idea at the time and thought i was finally recovered until panic came back and anxiety started to overcome my everyday life. i tried asking the doctor for help, i tried online cbt type stuff, i put my name down for cbt but i wont be seen until maybe may next year. i put my name down for counselling and i am suppose to start next friday and i am supposed to see a psychiatrist this month. i got told all lies that yes my fears would dimminish and i could be anxiety free and what has happened i am back to square one with no support no anxiety meds and some therapist who just wants me to cough up £50 to tell me how his day went and then at the end of the session a 3 minute exercise. i feel as if i am going to end up like one of the people you read about that have went crazy and did crazy things and then killed himself. i wish i was someone totally different who could stand up for himself be confident and have a job, a family, friends and be able to visit places abroad instead of living a hell on earth.
You have clearly been through quite a lot. No wonder you are feeling so much anxiety.
Let me just begin with saying that since you have a fear of going crazy and doing 'crazy' things, that is a actually a GOOD sign. The fact that these thoughts make you feel very uncomfortable means you are distracting yourself with them, and they are not things you actually want to do.
It is very hard to find a therapist you can trust and who is compatible with you. Some just don't understand anxiety and depression, and ESPECIALLY don't understand what obsessive thinking and debilitating fear really feels like. Please don't get discouraged. There are millions of people throughout the world feeling the same things you do. Some are able to find help sooner than others, and it's healthy that you are reaching out and trying to get on the path to normalcy.
Have you tried the program StressCenter offers? I don't want to refer to specific lessons or topics if you will have no idea what I'm referring to. This program helped me WAY more than any therapist ever could.
Let me just begin with saying that since you have a fear of going crazy and doing 'crazy' things, that is a actually a GOOD sign. The fact that these thoughts make you feel very uncomfortable means you are distracting yourself with them, and they are not things you actually want to do.
It is very hard to find a therapist you can trust and who is compatible with you. Some just don't understand anxiety and depression, and ESPECIALLY don't understand what obsessive thinking and debilitating fear really feels like. Please don't get discouraged. There are millions of people throughout the world feeling the same things you do. Some are able to find help sooner than others, and it's healthy that you are reaching out and trying to get on the path to normalcy.
Have you tried the program StressCenter offers? I don't want to refer to specific lessons or topics if you will have no idea what I'm referring to. This program helped me WAY more than any therapist ever could.
Slimjim saying HI. Just wanted to see if you woulld like to take a peek at my latest webcomic? If so let me know what you think.
Thanx.
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Thanx.
[url=http://madamexinc.smackjeeves....cs/1029786/mx-inc-1/]http://madamexinc.smackjeeves....cs/1029786/mx-inc-1/[/url] I'm a recent graduate of the program and I just wanted to show those of you what this program has allowed me to do in ways I never thought was possible. It's allowed me to unlock some major creative juices and it can do the same for you guys as well.