Panic Attacks

[pennyboy43a]

Here is the story.

I was with a trainer. I got a panic attack and was unable to drive for a while so I asked the trainer to drive. He said he would have to call into safety. Well I was left in ND at a Flying J. Well I was not going to go drive again but I was hired on with a company about to go with a trainer and got a panic attack. I have been on SSI for this. I really want to drive a truck but am I useless? I would like to go on panic attack pills but am unsure if I would be able to drive for a company? can anyone help on this?

[GMAN]

I think the best thing to do is face what it is that makes you panic. There are a lot of medications which professional drivers are prohibited from taking. If you know the name of the medication, we might be able to advise you.

[pennyboy43a]

I am mostly affraid of getting left again! Since I will have to go with a trainer. Like last time I was going to go with a company trainer he yelled because I stoped on the breaks a little to hard he said "GEEZES F***IN" Dont stop on the breaks so hard he yelled it and I just lost it and got out of the truck we were at the terminal yet! but I am to leave this weekend with a company trainer and am affraid to ask if they would let me take meds as I could use a job!

Would the doc office know what meds to put me on if I tell him I have a CDL????

[Random_Facts]

Hes cussing you out? thats not really training you now is it? you hit the brakes a little to hard no big deal, we all have been there make a little mistake fix it, but yelling thats just dumb. That's not training thats the "trainer" going crazy. They need calm understanding people lol. But thats just my 2 cents.

[Zandalli Moon]

I've been at the SNI academy for about a week. I came in as an experienced driver but got paired up today with to rookies in a truck with a trainer. These two people started off terribly...jerking, grinding, stomping on the brakes, over-revving the engine, etc. Our trainer never raised his voice, never belittled them or got on them for doing things inaccurately...instead he worked them through each situation and by the end of the day, two drivers that had been giving me whiplash in the morning were actually do a fair job for 1st day driver. You definitely had a bad trainer experience. You can look into meds if you like but perhaps what you really need is a professional trainer that actually knows how to bring the best out of new drivers.

[ken_o]

what you need is a phsycologist get ovet it step up and be a man. imagine what would happen if theyr were to be a draft again and you were sent to boot camp would you break down like a little girl.
im simpathetic for u , me i would just seem to get pissed off and more pissed off then get violent. different strokes for different folks but dont quit you being abandoned at a truck stop is a whole other issue
ssi is bs get a job

[Sealord]

I'm interested in knowing what company's trainer left you at a truckstop. You can get a list of meds from the FMCSA website and see if your medication is on that.
I'm leaning toward Ken_o's position of your taking charge of yourself. Ya know some are cut out to be drivers and some aren't. What's your Plan B other than drawing SSI? BOL

[BanditsCousin]

Sounds like you are under a lot of pressure about trucking. I had a panic attack once while driving my automobile at 19 and was scraed as hell that I was having a heart attack.

Tell the next company you'd like to watch for a day or so until you got comfortable.

The last thing the recruiter will have to worry about is "why did that driver leave?" when you are upfront about how you feel. I can't believe you got left in ND, thats crazy. The trainer did the right thing about alerting safety though, IMO. However, I think safety should be called on him for making a person drive during a panic attack He put you and his safety in jeopardy on that one

[shyykatt]

No kiddin'- that dude shoulda' been fired- what a jerk.

[pennyboy43a]

Hello. I think I will just suck it up and be a good guy and get out there and getr done!!! I just dont want to get left again LOL

[shyykatt]

BOL to ya' :wink:

[Gorrillasnot]

I use to have panic attacks in my teens and early 20's. I tried all the meds from xanax to Prozac and everything in between. None of them worked very well for me and most caused me to have side affects ranging from impotence to extreme rage.
I finally came to the realization that meds wasn't going to work for me.
I then found out I could control my panic attacks by doing something to occupy my mind. In my case the moment I felt an attack coming on I'd pick up the guitar and start thrashing. Soon after the uneasy feeling would go away.
Also for me anyways there wasn't anything I could pinpoint that caused an attack to come on. Sometimes it would happen when I'd be watching TV, or right before going to bed. Pretty much just anytime.

I've known 2 people that died fairly young. 1 was a guy that died at 44 and the other was a lady that died at 62. Both suffered from panic attacks and took tons of panic/anti depressant meds. Both were also afraid to try anything other then meds to control their attacks. Could just be coincidence, but I personally think the long term health affects of uncontrolled panic attacks and an overload of meds took a toll on their health.

What I'm trying to get at here is there is no magic pill for panic attacks, at least I never found one that worked for me.

My advice is to find another company and hopefully you'll get a decent trainer who is understanding and patient. But before that try to find something you can do to control your panic attacks. For example if you don't abuse guitars maybe try a handheld video game, count to yourself, read, sing, etc. try whatever you can think of until you find something that works for you.

best of luck to ya

[Frogman]

Here is the story.

I was with a trainer. I got a panic attack and was unable to drive for a while so I asked the trainer to drive. He said he would have to call into safety. Well I was left in ND at a Flying J. Well I was not going to go drive again but I was hired on with a company about to go with a trainer and got a panic attack. I have been on SSI for this. I really want to drive a truck but am I useless? I would like to go on panic attack pills but am unsure if I would be able to drive for a company? can anyone help on this?

Simple answer: Yes, at the moment, you are totally useless as a driver.

You have no business driving until you get this totally under control. Left undiagnosed and untreated, it is only a matter of time before you kill yourself or others.

I don't know . . . maybe I'm missing something here . . . .

You're having panic attacks that are so debilitating that you can't drive, but yet, you want to continue driving . . . and then you're coming here asking for medical advice?

Why? (First question.)

Second question . . . forget your trainer problem . . . who's your doctor? Why aren't you talking to him? Why didn't you have this discussion with whoever signed off on your DOT physical?

You should be under care of a psychiatrist or at least a psychologist who works with an M.D. and can prescribe appropriate medication.

"Panic attacks" are usually just a symptom of an underlying problem . . . most likely a panic disorder, but could also be an anxiety disorder.

They're not necessarily an indication that you have a mental disease. A very common cause could be extreme levels of stress.

The true panic attack, which it sounds like you had, is an extreme fight-or-flight response triggered by a huge release of adrenaline in your body. It's as if you walk into your bathroom at home and suddenly encounter a man-eating tiger ready to rip your guts out.

Only . . . there's no tiger. There's no apparent "cause" for you to feel the instant panic. It just comes out of nowhere.

Some of the dangerous things that might happen to you include extreme dizziness, trembling and shaking, hyperventilation, a total loss of cognitive ability and what's called "loud internal dialogue." In other words, you're so busy focusing on the panic attack that you stop paying attention to what's happening around you.

I don't think that you are permanently disqualified from ever driving. But so what if you are? Truck driving sucks anyway, from what everyone says your immediate concern should be to free yourself from panic attacks.

That's no way to live.

With the right treatment and therapy you can "fix" or at least "control" the problem and probably will be able to drive.

Just not right now. Park it and see a doctor!

REMEMBER: The one thing we do know for sure about panic attacks is that left untreated (or if the underlying issues remain unresolved) they will get worse!

[terrylamar]

Thank you. I felt the same way, I was just too lazy to type all that out.

[flatbedder]

I think what you need is a phsycologist get ovet it step up and be a man. imagine what would happen if theyr were to be a draft again and you were sent to boot camp would you break down like a little girl.
im simpathetic for u , me i would just seem to get pissed off and more pissed off then get violent. different strokes for different folks but dont quit you being abandoned at a truck stop is a whole other issue
ssi is bs get a job


I had a problem with panic attacks also. Unless youve had them you have absolutely no idea what it is like and they are basically uncontrolable. It's not just that easy to "Be a man" when these happen and it has nothing to do with "breaking down like a little girl". I hope you never have to experience a bout with panic attacks, cuz I guarantee you'll change your tune if you do

[ken_o]

their is no such thing as panic attacks i will only concede the possibility of an anxiety attack. if this so called panic attack is uncontrollable then you yourself have no reason to be behind the wheel of an 80k pound missile.
no one said it was that easy but its time to step up to the plate and be the man that you were born to be.
very few people deserve to be on ssi and a lame excuse of a panic attack is a perfect example.
its always easier for this individual to step back and continue to be a quit er and keep collecting ssi then the alternative ,being a productive member of society instead of living off the sweat of everyone Else's back.
you never heard of panic attacks in the 50s 40s what did they do tuff it out.

[Frogman]

Here is the story.

I was with a trainer. I got a panic attack and was unable to drive for a while so I asked the trainer to drive. He said he would have to call into safety. Well I was left in ND at a Flying J. Well I was not going to go drive again but I was hired on with a company about to go with a trainer and got a panic attack. I have been on SSI for this. I really want to drive a truck but am I useless? I would like to go on panic attack pills but am unsure if I would be able to drive for a company? can anyone help on this?

One last thing . . . I checked with my wife, who's the smart one in the family and a counselor.

She asked me to point out to you that driving is often associated with very severe panic attacks. They're not sure why . . . combination of enclosed spaces, long periods of sitting, stress of driving, aggression by other motorists, pent up aggression and anger of your own, etc, etc.

Point is . . . suffering panic attacks while driving is extremely common.

[hamboner]

their is no such thing as panic attacks i will only concede the possibility of an anxiety attack. if this so called panic attack is uncontrollable then you yourself have no reason to be behind the wheel of an 80k pound missile.
no one said it was that easy but its time to step up to the plate and be the man that you were born to be.
very few people deserve to be on ssi and a lame excuse of a panic attack is a perfect example.
its always easier for this individual to step back and continue to be a quit er and keep collecting ssi then the alternative ,being a productive member of society instead of living off the sweat of everyone Else's back.
you never heard of panic attacks in the 50s 40s what did they do tuff it out.

WRONG!!! Panic attacks are very common, in fact I have successfully been treated for them. My panic attacks were a side effect of my anxiety/major depression disorder. Panic anxiety is actually the worst thing in the world to deal with. If you haven't ever experienced it I could not begin to tell you how disabbling it is to a person. It is sometimes considered Agrophobia, when you can no longer leave comfortable surroundings in fear of having a panic attack.

Thankfully, my anxiety/panic dissorder has been treated, but I am still fighting a major battle with depression. So far it has brought me to the lowest point in my life, but I keep getting out of bed hoping that there will be someway to break out of it!

I was fired from a good job, because they would not cooperate with my treatment. I have lost good friends because I hardly, if ever get out of my house. And Lastly, most people dont understand what its like to go through this and dont realize what a battle everyday is.

Even though I feel like **** all the time, I wake up everyday and look at myself and tell myself that I am gonna fight this depression until I win.

[ken_o]

so what u you are saying is, if your nervous and your hrt rate and bp rise your having a panic attack nice of our society to give this a fancy name when you just dont have the capability to cope. when in reality what you are is an introvert personality type which is suited for truck driving. not a disorder. taking any kind of medication wont help to overcome your social fears,only changing the way your brain naturally functions.
instead of working things outforyourself your takeing the easy way out like i described in the previous post.

[ken_o]

this all reminds me of some good analogy's
people/children r starving whats your problem again?
how many people in German prison camps committed suicide during ww2,
you've all failed to answer the main question why weren't people raving mad earlier in America's timeline cuz they didn't get their medication.
answer; they learned to deal with sht. people now r whining,fed by the meds and the unqualified head docs shoving such down their throats.
take this pill you'll be happy now.