Breath... BREATH!

[DDazza]

Hi there everyone. Great forum here.
Just spent the best part of a couple of hours reading the forum on breathing related anxieties.
I've suffered on & off for the best part of ten years but today,  for me has been THE worst day for breathing. I've literally wanted to curl up & die.
My anxiety isn't triggered by anything, I literally become conscious of my breathing & then the day is ruined.
The feeling for me is that I can't draw enough air, can't inflate my lungs enough.
I've had a the checks at the doctors & everything's just fine.
I also know I'm doing it all wrong,  sucking in air using my chest to the point of bursting.
Today has been so bad, since 1st thing this morning, that I've made my head so fuzzy breathing too much.
I was medicated for a while 8 years or so ago with anti depressants which made the condition a little more manageable but I was only on them for a matter of months.
This time, a week ago my doctor suggest I try propranolol, a beta blocker, which in my opinion has made it worse so I'm going to wean off those in the next couple of days.
I also have a mental health appointment next week so hopefully I can get some therapy & give cognitive therapy a try.
It's time to try & stop this now. It's affecting my job, I'm leaving early due to anxiety & missing training I need to be doing because I can't handle being stuck in a room.
My chest hurts from sucking in copious amounts of air each day. Driving is a nightmare & the only thing successfully getting me to sleep is shots of alcohol.
I'm glad I found this forum & am amazed at the amount of people that suffer exactly the same thing.
Tomorrow is never a better day when you finally get to sleep hoping that it will be :-(

[DDazza]

Today is a better day. I woke up this morning with the same feeling of dread that doesn't usually surface until later in the day. Not a good start I thought.
I've kept my head & hands busy with some housework this morning, taking my mind of my breathing. In between while resting I've practised diaphragmatic breathing, which I was directed to while browsing online last night.
It does seem to help provided that I don't slip into my old way of sucking as much air into my chest as I can.
I have a family meal out later which I am slightly anxious about, but it's not broke through yet.
A slightly better day indeed. Yesterday I was ready to throw in the towel.
Work tomorrow which I'm sure I'll start to get anxious about later this evening.
I know alcohol isn't the answer & only make things worse but in the evening it can be the best thing to settle my mind when I settle down.
Thank you all for taking the time to read about my problems.

[midlauren]

Hey there, I have been having trouble with anxiety and breathing a lot also and I like to use herbal remedies for a mucus cleansing diet and also hydrotherapy (hot/cold shower alternate) hope this helps. Remember to drink plenty of water!