What’s your anxiety attack like?

I just wanted to compare anxiety attacks. My anxiety attacks are almost always related to the beginnings of a relationship with a guy. It always happens when I overthink if they actually are interested in me, the first time they get frustrated with me, or any other reason for me to start thinking “they’re gonna leave, they don’t like me, etc.” I’ve also had them just from incredible feelings of being alone, or being in a chaotic crowded area with nobody I deeply trust by me.

When it starts, if I’m standing or moving I feel dizzy and disoriented, and disconnected from everything around me. That Anxiety I usually can push down and under control. If it’s from overthinking, I don’t really feel much but the anxiety and paranoia slowly rising, but I go totally quiet, sometimes mid sentence. Someone can speak to me and touch me, and I’m aware but I can’t react. That phase passes on and next I’m hyperventilating and crying and pulling my hair, and either I just ride it out for several minutes, or I rely on the person with me to know how to stop it. I’ve never myself been able to stop my anxiety attack, even with careful instruction from a therapist. I need someone to hug me and hold me and stay calm and I’ll slowly stop as I feel comfort from that person.

I currently am able to live a life without anxiety attacks or medication! I give most of the credit to the fact that I have a dog now. I’ve always been big on animal companionship. Years previously though, I had a friend who seemed very receptive of my anxiety. He could tell when it was coming on before even I felt it coming! That’s actually how we became friends, he could tell I was really stressed at a pep rally, so he rubbed my back to keep me calm till it was over. And he was a stranger!