Overwhelming fear of seizures

Hi guys,

I'm scared to death about developing or sometimes having these muscle spasms and them developing into full-blown seizures. I'm catastrophising, I know, but can anyone suggest anything which can help me to stay calm during my taper and not think about seizures? I try really hard with distractions and exercise, but the lingering fear is still there. I'm very scared of the possiblility of seizures. I have had hylephobia (fear of seizure) before my benzo use, which funnily enough contributed to my benzo overuse. How do I overcome this fear and allow things to happen? I've been asked many times why am I so scared of seizures.

 

To be honest, it's because I've seen others go through it, and been in frightening scenarios myself, from a young age. A man had a bad one at the Paradise Bus Interchange (North East of Adelaide) and I was 15 back then. A man, I suspect high on Ice, had a bad one. Talking one minute, out cold the next. Then a former workmate of mine had one too. It's scary!!!

 

Thanks,

Dave.

I was the same and still am a little, i worked with people who had epilepsy and i think this has contributed! Ive even been reassured this is very unlikely to happen on my dose! Still i worry. I was actually  told seizures are rare unless you are epileptic  and that this is actually a fear of many benzo sufferers... you are not alone. Try not focus on it because wirst case and i only say worst case can you change it if one were to happen? Im guessing not so try not look so far in to thing's. Looking at what your on id say your really safe, i really understand this doesn't change your thoughts but maybe slight reassurance. I was on 150mg of serax and it never happened. Xx take care

I was the same and still am a little, i worked with people who had epilepsy and i think this has contributed! Ive even been reassured this is very unlikely to happen on my dose! Still i worry. I was actually  told seizures are rare unless you are epileptic  and that this is actually a fear of many benzo sufferers... you are not alone. Try not focus on it because wirst case and i only say worst case can you change it if one were to happen? Im guessing not so try not look so far in to thing's. Looking at what your on id say your really safe, i really understand this doesn't change your thoughts but maybe slight reassurance. I was on 150mg of serax and it never happened. Xx take care

Thanks Zzub92. It's just a fleeting thought. The reason I was placed on benzos to begin with was to alleviate epilepsy anxiety. I get out of body experiences, leg jerks and the sweats. It may just be anxiety because it comes and goes, and at times I had this before going on the benzo. The anxiety was mild before benzos, but it feels bloody scary now. The anxious feeling is almost as if my body is plugged into an amplifier and the benzo has jammed it on full bore and you can't switch it back or switch it off.

Best wishes,

Dave. x

Yeppp i get it and my main issue is i know stress can sometimes cause seizures but i have accepted the electrical pulse feel like you said is body zapz for me while withdrawing.

 

The benzos are so awful! Best wishes on your dose.i hope to be down there one day still fighting

Yeppp i get it and my main issue is i know stress can sometimes cause seizures but i have accepted the electrical pulse feel like you said is body zapz for me while withdrawing.

 

The benzos are so awful! Best wishes on your dose.i hope to be down there one day still fighting

Thanks Zzub92!

I have only ever taken 7.5mg Valium and no more than that, even when I reinstated from my rapid taper.

I hate to be the barer of bad news, but the w/ds are nothing short of fkn unbearable anywhere below 5mg. You're better off doing a really really slow taper from then onwards. I'm doing 8% of my dose every 14 days, and nothing more. Don't reinstate either. Once I'm free of my 8% fortnightly taper, down the toilet the Devil's Little Sweethearts (Valium's) go. Then the sheer hell begins. But I will be finally free of Big Pharma and med free! 

Dave. x

 

I'm so sorry you're going through this. I've had such a horrible fear about my bp - which has terribly impacted my health - during this benzo mess that I've tried different modalities - had regular therapy, EMDR, CBT, was working on DNRS, a neural retraining system (which caused more anxiety, so I had to quit it), and they didn't do anything much at all. I recently went to a hypnosis guy, and I came away with an audio and an exercise to do to get the parasympathetic nerves to override the sympathetic nerves. Maybe it would benefit you, too. I don't know.

 

I know these thought patterns come from the benzos, and it's hard to get rid of them because they keep looping over and over again, creating awful fear in our minds. Before the thought has becomes a phobia (like it has for me),  try this exercise:

 

When you detect a bodily reaction, tension, anywhere - do the One Full Breath Technique. Take a deep breath, hold it for 5 seconds, exhale slowly and completely, dropping your shoulders, and squeezing all the air out with your stomach muscles. Squeeze out the butterflies. Then let the air pop back in by relaxing the stomach muscles. Breathing lower in your abdomen a few times like that will help condition your body to stay physically relaxed in stressful situations. Repeat it often.

 

I've just started doing it, so I can't vouch for it. But I'm going to continue to do it and see what happens. Maybe it will calm me down when faced with having my bp taken.

I'm so sorry you're going through this. I've had such a horrible fear about my bp - which has terribly impacted my health - during this benzo mess that I've tried different modalities - had regular therapy, EMDR, CBT, was working on DNRS, a neural retraining system (which caused more anxiety, so I had to quit it), and they didn't do anything much at all. I recently went to a hypnosis guy, and I came away with an audio and an exercise to do to get the parasympathetic nerves to override the sympathetic nerves. Maybe it would benefit you, too. I don't know.

 

I know these thought patterns come from the benzos, and it's hard to get rid of them because they keep looping over and over again, creating awful fear in our minds. Before the thought has becomes a phobia (like it has for me),  try this exercise:

 

When you detect a bodily reaction, tension, anywhere - do the One Full Breath Technique. Take a deep breath, hold it for 5 seconds, exhale slowly and completely, dropping your shoulders, and squeezing all the air out with your stomach muscles. Squeeze out the butterflies. Then let the air pop back in by relaxing the stomach muscles. Breathing lower in your abdomen a few times like that will help condition your body to stay physically relaxed in stressful situations. Repeat it often.

 

I've just started doing it, so I can't vouch for it. But I'm going to continue to do it and see what happens. Maybe it will calm me down when faced with having my bp taken.

Thanks Terry, I will try the deep breathing technique for sure! 

I have a frog fountain and a couple of relaxation CDs which I bought years ago, so I will listen to these nightly and see how it goes in reducing my anxiety. The frog fountain has running water as a pump, which is very relaxing. Also, my psychologist suggested lavender infusions for my room e.g. incense. Might try that too.

Dave.

Oh, good! I'm feeling that it's helping me. I forgot to say that when you exhale, purse your lips. Be sure to do this exercise often.

 

Focusing one’s breath is an effective way to encourage the body to relax. When practicing diaphragmatic breathing, the stomach, rather than the chest, moves with each breath, expanding while inhaling and contracting while exhaling.  Deliberately paying attention to each breath serves to distract and quiet the mind.

 

How Does It Help?

There are many advantages to learning diaphragmatic breathing. The technique:

 

Lowers heart rate and blood pressure

Decreases muscle tension

Increases blood oxygenation

Brings warmth to the hands and feet

Increases energy and motivation

Improves concentration

Strengthens the immune system

Reduces stress hormones

Activates the body’s relaxation response (and reverses the stress response)

Can be easily implemented, requiring no medication or cost

For those suffering from GI symptoms, diaphragmatic breathing offers specific benefits: Activating the diaphragm creates a gentle massaging action felt by internal organs like the intestines and stomach, which can reduce abdominal pain, urgency, bloating and constipation. While diaphragmatic breathing, you are facilitating the activation of the parasympathetic system, which can be thought of as the relaxation response of the body or the “rest and digest” state. Diaphragmatic breathing can help in specific GI-related situations:

 

Diarrhea and urgency: Diaphragmatic breathing can help calm the digestive track and ease those moments of panic (i.e. “I MUST get to the bathroom immediately!”).

Constipation: Diaphragmatic breathing can be used while sitting on the toilet attempting to have a bowel movement to calm and massage the system. The result may be a more complete bowel movement.

Crowman, if you get dizzy at all, I would sit while doing the exercise. I still get dizzy, and I did it while standing up, which caused me to feel lightheaded.