Panic Disorder or not? (caregiver stress)

[cots]

I've now become a caregiver.

My mom's been diagnosed with Panic Disorder + Major Depression and we're all suffering because of it.

She has symptoms such as heart palpitations, shortness of breath, dizziness, headaches, blurry vision, etc etc. We went to the ER tons of times but all the doctors said she was fine. Did ECG, CT scan, LOTS of blood tests, holter monitoring, MRI etc and the reports came back negative.

To date she's seen about 10 doctors, taken LOTS of heart medications (none worked), BP medications (none worked), and is currently on Lexapro + Xanax and one BP medication (not working either). Nothing seems to be working and her complaints are not ending.

Right now we're beginning to suspect that it may be something else and not something psychosomatic that's causing this.

I'm sick of this! No doctor is giving us a proper answer to why this is happening! They're all "nothing is wrong. You may be discharged" and that's it! The only diagnosis we got right now is Panic Disorder but really! the SSRIs should work shouldn't they? But her heart is still pounding and she's still dizzy. WHY?! Is there a physical explanation to this? I'm extremely tired and stressed out!

 

[Walker]

Hi there, I'm sorry you're having a hard time with the medical community right now. Sitting by watching your loved ones not feeling well while they get blown off sucks. I understand completely. None of us are really able to know whether she's having a physical issue or a psych issue (or a combination of the two!) but certainly you guys are gonna keep trying until you find something out. I just wanted to drop you a note and say I "get it" & understand. It's so frustrating when you think you, or someone else, needs help but you just can't get anyone to HEAR YOU. I really hope they find out what's up with your mom quick. Let us know how it's going.

 

[JmpMster]

Medicine- particular as concerns mental health will never be able to give an exact answer. Panic disorders / ptsd , things that come about because one person reacts a certain way to something that 20 other people could experience and have no reaction to make it impossible to determine causes. SSRI's are the typical first try to fix- but take 6-8 weeks before fully effective (not sure how long ) and different people react differently to different drugs the same as they react differently to different situations.

If the Doctors are running all the tests and cannot find a physical cause that is what is left. I would recommend you ask to be referred to a specialist Cardiologist if think is heart / or whatever type you believe may be relevant to further reassure self all has been checked on the physical end but if it is panic attacks than just meds or the first med (or several) may not work. It may require counseling and or both and for extended periods to fix - if it were simple to fix there would not be hundreds of members of here suffering from them for months or even years. I would recommend patience so as not to add more stress, and not burning bridges where you decide a Doctor is not doing there job even if they are the best in the area because the results are not coming as fast as you would like.

It is very hard to accept and hard to watch somebody go through, so looking for some real life support groups the hospital may know of may be helpful both in support and in getting ideas of what doctors in the area are the best in treating this type of thing.

 

[brightlight]

Hi Cots
It's looking like your in this for the long haul, you need start your caregiving with yourself, depression tries to take down anyone it comes into contact with, you need to step back a little bit, you are stressed and that's understandable after hearing a diagnosis, (been there done that and went into a headspin) but in the face of this uncertainty that could be ongoing for a while, you need to focus on you own physical and mental health first, your Mom is getting all the help she needs, and as NYJ says it's trial and error with mental health and meds. Take care of yourself.
Love and Light
P