Crete- June 2010

Myself, on some rocks with dashing replica Chanel glasses

Continuing on with big things I have done to overcome my anxiety just a little after a year on from my first ever flight, which was to New York (previous post) in the summer of 2010 I got the courage to do it all again. In between this time I had finished my exams at Secondary School and was just finishing up my first year of college. For me, at this stage things had improved, my anxiety attacks only come about when I was attempting new things, I just had nerves, nothing too over powering like I was experiencing the year before. So this could be why I felt like I could do this trip.

It was me and my boyfriend who went, we only went for 5 days as we couldn't really afford a whole week- being students and all that! This holiday for me was a big milestone, it was the first time I had been away from my parents, first time I had been on a sunny holiday abroad and only the second time I had flown. 

Throughout our days in Crete we did the normal touristy things, going to water parks, sitting on the beach, going out for drinks in the evening, it was a very enjoyable holiday. An for me this was me really fighting my anxiety, as throughout the holiday I had no attacks, none, for 5 days, in a foreign country, away from home- needless to say I was amazed, proud of myself and grateful to my boyfriend and family for supporting me throughout this time.

Could I really have beat this? Am I clear? Am I free? I really felt it, it felt great to be out enjoying myself with not a care in the world, I felt somewhat 'normal'. 

Be sure to become a follower via bloglovin'! I'm going to be doing more posts like this in the next upcoming weeks. (It may seem like a travel blog for now, but I just want to stress the fact that big fears are achievable!)

Panic Attacks and Panic Disorder

There is another string to the bow of anxiety and that is panic attacks and panic disorder. Some people are lucky and don't suffer with any, or either or. But they are all different from one another. You can see my post on anxiety and GAD here.

What is a panic attack?

If you ever have a panic attack, you will know about it, they are unmistakable. All of a sudden, you feel your body heat up, your heart pounds while your breathing gets heavier and harder, your senses heighten and everything is just going over and over in your head. You feel like it's heart attack, this thing is taking over your body, you feel as though you might die. 

No, no you won't die. In this moment your heart is better so fast, it's not really possible. It's all in your mind, that's what all of this is. A panic attack is your body going into overdrive. They are horrible, horrible things but they won't kill you. 

Common symptoms when having a panic attack include;

• Sweating
• Shaking
• A feeling of choking
• Dizziness or feeling faint
• Pins and needles
• Hot or cold flushes
• Feeling sick

What is panic disorder?

Panic disorder is where someone will have reoccurring panic attacks, mostly when it relates to something that has already happened, the person will feel a sense of worry. For example, if your shopping and you get stuck in the lift and have a panic attack. You will also connect this when doing the activity again, so it will cause panic or you may choose to not even do it again because the sense of anxiety there is so strong that you can't even entertain the idea. You will try and avoid the situation again.

My thing tends to be if I've had a panic attack in a certain situation before, then I will avoid it, I won't want to do it because my brain will then associate it with being bad and something that I shouldn't do because bad things will happen. It's silly, because I know my brain is being silly but when the sense of panic is so strong. You believe.