Depression, Anxiety and Paranoia
Hi, I've been suffering depression for 3 years now and I'm not sure if I'm really okay. I'm not sure about the symptoms of an anxiety attack or the difference with it and a panic attack. Lately, I've been feeling on the edge like my stomach is always churning and my hands get cold. When I have an attack (not sure if it's panic or anxiety) my train of thought smashes and goes into a repeat cycle like a broken record and my breathing becomes terrible. I get dizzy and nearly unconscious. I'm also pretty paranoid with my friends who know me. I feel like they're constantly wearing fake smiles and saying lies. Is that normal with depression? I hope I made sense. Please help me.
@persistentWillow4292 Hi sweetheart! Take a few deep, soothing breaths to get that oxygen flowing into your brain and through your veins into those cold hands. Things are going to be okay.
Depression is a fluidly changing beast. It often mimics or slips under the barricades between itself and other diagnosable conditions.
In some levels in the depressive process, lines can easily blur that lead you to experience panic attacks and generalized anxiety. Some people are whammied when their depressions develop psychotic features; meaning, that those people can experience feelings of paranoia, persecution, and in rare situations, develop delusional belief systems or hallucinations.
Whether or not these issues are what is at play here for you, I am not qualified to say. I would highly suggest you find someone with the professional chops to help you tackle this life roadblock, and get you back on track. Maybe you already have someone working with you that is capable of assisting-- counsellor, therapist, psych doc/nurse, etc. Only by voicing your concerns and advocating for your needs to be happy, healthy, and stable will you find a way back to the you you would like to be.
I wish you a speedy resolution to your concerns!