Injury--panic--asthma

[run it, ride it]

Tulip, I think you're right. I need to ask MY doctor. Not my dad, who also happens to be a family physician My dad is convinced that a preventative inhaler is all I need and brings home samples whenever I decide to go back on the stuff. I've never really discussed it with my own physician (his colleague. Small town. Boy does it ever get awkward sometimes!).

Tuckerville, a panic attack is more than likely what occurred. I -am- very aware of my processes and feelings. I have to be. I have S.A.D. that causes severe anxiety, paranoia and depression in the winter. Usually exercise focuses and calms me, and it IS all uphill after Daylight Savings, but it's still a process. I still slip back into the chrysallis before emerging light and vibrant for the summer. The past few years have been especially rough, I realize now because I was working nights and living in a basement.

I'm a little sick of counsellors fishing for reasons I might not be feeling up to par, convinced it was all just stress from school (hah! School was about the only thing keeping me focused in one piece!) when after a few cycles I figured it out, and it turns out I just needed some sunlight! This year I put a lot of preparation into understanding and handling the S.A.D. without medication. Lightbox, social support network, journals, etc. It has not been easy.

Handling that with the injury on top of it, parents way south sailing for eight months, death in the family, problems with roommates, numerous career changes, the usual 'I have a BA--now what?!' crisis--the fact that I am now having such intense reactions about an injury seems silly after I calmly dealt with all the rest!

Time I know is key. After I ran varsity X-C and track, I couldn't mentally bring myself to run for a year straight. That's why I started biking. I'd get out there and start -training,- -comparing- myself to the times I was running as a high performance athlete. It was two years before I could handle running with a stopwatch or track how far I'd gone!

Strange enough, I've been riding my horses and coaching lessons without fear. Haven't come off, yet, and when I come close to being thrown, the last thing on my mind is my clavicle. I did have one panic attack with my horse in the summer when I had a badly sprained ankle on top of the broken clavicle. One of those he spooks, I get scared because I don't have a foot to bail on, he gets scared that I got scared because I never get scared, I get more scared because his scaredness has escalated--until we were both just one quivering mess of sweat and tears. But that was pretty isolated!

Ladies, thank you so far for the reassurance and stories of similar experience. I know I'll get fit, I do...

[sgtiger]

((((((RiRi))))))

Like others have mentioned it could have been a panic attack. I used to get those - not fun. But also keep in mind that stress & anxiety can make asthma symptoms worse or come on more frequently. If it does turn out to be the asthma, then it's probably a good idea to keep an inhaler with you. If you're caught out without the inhaler, caffeine can help unless contraindicated. The Double Espresso flavor of Clif Shots has 100*mg of caffeine, so maybe carry one of those with you or whatever other caffeine delivery vehicle of your choosing.(My son likes Coke, but he is very rarely allowed to have it any other time.) I'm also concerned that your clavicle re-fractured after having 7 mos. to heal. I recommend taking a calcium supplement that also contains vitamin D, magnesium, and zinc. Did your doc do a bone density test after your clavicle re-fractured? If not it may be a good idea to request one.

ETA: I'm not a physician nor have I ever played one on TV. The above are just recommendations based on my experiences. YMMV

[maillotpois]

Big hug to you. That's no fun at all. I totally get the vulnerability you feel about the shoulder - that second break was just so fluke-y!

I had a similar throat closing up experience - right after I started riding again last year after being off the bike for 6 months from the pulmonary emboli I had. I did a ride with DH and friends, who were all stronger than I was/am. We got on a rolly road into a headwind, and I just fell off the back and watched them get farther and farther away. I could feel my throat starting to close up as if I were going to start crying, and I just had to back off the speed, not look at them, and do deep slow breathing to keep myself from starting to hyperventilate. Like my thing, yours "may" be in your head. But a rescue inhaler couldn't hurt.

The story about the horse mutual escalating panic attacks gave me a good chuckle. Been there! (In my case, augmented by the Arabian factor. )

[Duck on Wheels]

((((R-i-R-i)))) You will, eventually, train your way out of this. I have EI-asthma as do both my kids. When we're in shape, we don't notice it because we've built up enough heart and lung capacity. If we're out of shape, then we do. Especially during periods of harder (re)training, and especially if it's cold. When I'm in more than usually lousy shape, I also experience asthma after a bad cold. Asthma can also be triggered, or worsened, by tension, or so it's said. And I'm pretty sure that asthma can *cause* tension! (Who wouldn't panic when they suddenly can't take a deep breath?) So everything you're saying makes sense to me. Including going to a physician other than your father this once. Most physicians will avoid treating close family if possible, since it's harder for them to be fully objective when dealing with someone they feel really close to. If you need a way to explain this diplomatically to your Dad, maybe you can tell him that an objective outsider's second opinion might be just what you need to calm down and follow his advice. When the asthma's under control you'll be better able to work on all the other stuff -- regaining H&L capacity, rebuilding muscle, and rebuilding confidence. Rebuilding bone will take care of itself the whole time anyway. Just don't pull any more endo's, ok?

[run it, ride it]

The story about the horse mutual escalating panic attacks gave me a good chuckle. Been there! (In my case, augmented by the Arabian factor. )

Hah! I was also on an Arabian! I'm pretty sure the whole thing started with a killer squirrel or poisonous plastic bag. Maybe even a shadow monster from the Dark World (with TEETH). You know how it is!

See second link in signature for pictures, if you like!

[sgtiger]

....whole thing started with a killer squirrel or poisonous plastic bag. Maybe even a shadow monster from the Dark World (with TEETH). You know how it is!

The image of that is..... well, LOL!

See second link in signature for pictures, if you like!

She's a beauty. I like the painting of him and you. Did a friend paint that for you?

[maillotpois]

Oh lovely! Mine was dun. They're just a little "off". Or else it's that they're always on. You can never be too careful - who knows when that garbage can on the side of the street is going to come alive.....

[SuperRunt]

You should look into the possibility that you have vocal cord dysfunction! I have that in combination with asthma, and it can be scary! It's essentially cramping of the vocal cords. Problem is; when your vocal cords contract, they close your air way. This condition can get worse with tension in your neck/shoulder, stress/anxiety and post nasal drip. I don't know about the snot, but it sounds like you have plenty of muscle tension going on!

I first got help at National Jewish Hospital in Denver. They specialize in breathing disorders. They have something called the Lung Line that you can call. They might be able to give you some tips on who to see in your area.

Good news is: It's pretty easy to fix! I met with a speech therapist a couple of times who taught me some breathing techniques. Breathing out through pursed lips forces the vocal cords apart and makes it easier to breathe in too.

At Natl. Jewish they said a lot of their patients would come there as a last resort, when nobody else could help them with their asthma. And then it would turn out that they had VCD! This would sometimes be the only reason for their breathing problems. Other times it was something they had in addition to asthma, but since the air way was partially shut most of the time they couldn't even get the meds down in the lungs.

I'm going on and on here. This might not even be what you problem is If you (or a doctor) think this what's going on, feel free to PM me if you want to know more about what has worked for me.

I just googled this, and found this article:
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/2007-...function_x.htm