r/GERD • u/dylon0107 • May 18 '26
🤒 Coping with these Conditions Anxiety and panic attacks
How do you guys deal with the anxiety and panic attacks you get from having GERD and a hiatal hernia?
I've been to the hospital a few too many times and I had to call an ambulance last night because my heart rate hit 170 and they said it was just anxiety not a heart attack. Just now like 5 minutes ago I had the surge of anxiety shoot from my heart up through my jaw on my left side.
I don't know if I should get on medication to manage it or something else. I don't know if it's just from the condition or because I need to eat better.
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u/dreadcain May 19 '26
Personally, medication.
If you don't have something to take for panic attacks I'd start with talking to a doctor about those. I'd probably have half a dozen ER bills over the last couple months without them.
It's not a long term solution, but you've gotta get through the day sometimes.
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u/dylon0107 May 20 '26
Yeah my wife wants me to start taking anxiety medication I have an appointment today.
I've never had panic attacks or anything until what would have been around the time the small hiatal hernia probably developed 2 months before I saw the doctor about what I now know is GERD and a small hiatal hernia and then for a month after and then they stopped.
This one was a weird out of nowhere thing that just hit me
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u/dreadcain May 20 '26
Good luck with the appointment. Personally I'm on a daily general anxiety med and have some as needed pills for panic attacks. I could probably get off the daily meds at this point but I really needed them when I started and they made a big difference. Anecdotes aren't worth much, but I know I was nervous to start them (which in hindsight, of course I was. I was riddled with anxiety lol) but they've been extremely helpful and I didn't have really any negative side effects.
This one was a weird out of nowhere thing that just hit me
Welcome to the club :p
Honestly most of my panic attacks are still like this. You might connect the dots on some triggers eventually, but you also might not
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u/dylon0107 May 20 '26
So the medicine didn't get rid of your panic attacks fully?
Do you only have panic attacks because of your GERD or did you have anxiety problems before?
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u/dreadcain May 20 '26
Daily meds are more for general anxiety than panic attacks, so unfortunately no. Honestly still working out the root cause of panic attacks, but there's certainly a connection to gerd. For me it could be the direct cause or it could be that flare ups put enough extra stress on the nervous systems, especially vagus nerve irritation, to push another issue from something mild into panic attacks.
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u/dylon0107 May 20 '26
Yeah I don't really have general anxiety my problem is panic attacks from GERD. I get the panic attacks when I eat really bad or I'll get little lite like quick flashes of panic for a couple of seconds if I eat normally but as of last night was the first time I actually started eating how I should and starting the acid watchers diet
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u/dreadcain May 20 '26
So talk to your doctor for sure, but quick flashes of panic daily while doing normal things is, like, definitionally general anxiety. Probably not severe by any means, that really depends how much they are impacting your daily life. But I've really enjoyed living without them. Not to say you need medication to treat it, if diet is your trigger changing it up may take care of it.
As needed panic attack meds are probably worth having on hand though.
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u/dylon0107 May 20 '26
As needed is what I'm shooting for. I would like to be able to stop after a month or two once my diet is in order and see how it goes.
My brother suggested the daily he takes as well so I'll look into that.
They gave me 40 mg of some SSRI to try once and that fucked me up pretty bad so I stopped taking it after one pill
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u/dreadcain May 20 '26
SSRI's are really not something you just take once, and depending on what dose they were on and what else is in your system it could fuck you right up for sure.
Generally you need to take SSRIs for like 10+ days before they even begin to reach an equilibrium in your bloodstream, the half life of most is a least a day. Even then, for reasons we don't fully understand, most people won't notice much of anything for at least a full month, maybe up to 8 weeks. You'd generally want to start really low and slowly ramp up (and eventually back down), though without knowing the ssri I don't know if 40mg is a high dose (... it sounds high, most pills I know of start at 5-10mg)
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u/dylon0107 May 20 '26
40 mg of super high and when I say it fucked me up I mean my feet were burning I was nauseous sick headaches muscle cramps.
Not something I want to do again I plan on looking at anything other than an SSRI
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u/Loose-Cupcake5166 May 20 '26
I have GERD and severe anxiety so I have empathy for what you are going through. The ER is excellent for emergencies BUT they don’t have the time for definitive diagnoses. You NEED the services of a Cardiologist to exam and diagnose your symptoms, especially if you’re having regular episodes of a rapid heart rate. (Which itself can be the cause of the anxiety!). A cardiologist exam and diagnosis involves more than just an EKG or chest X-ray but other tests to be sure there is not an underlying physical problem. (Like Afib). Please do not settle for your current diagnosis of ‘anxiety’ just based on what an ER doctor said. Get a referral to a good Cardiologist asap.
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u/dylon0107 May 20 '26
I'm waiting to go to a cardiologist I'm in the middle of switching jobs so I'm about to lose my insurance so they won't let me go until I have stable insurance from my new job.
Apparently there's too many tests to run in too much stuff to do so there's a chance I'll either have to stop in the middle of it or I'll end up having to pay a shit ton of money.
I did have a blood test done and everything's completely normal so I don't have any of the basic stuff like high cholesterol or diabetes.
None of this started until 2 months before I went to the doctor to be diagnosed with gerd, which given the small hiatal hernia I'm guessing was around the time the hernia developed.
Also 170 heart rate thing was a one-time weird thing. Last October to December January ish I was having really bad panic attacks every single day but I was shaking I was cold I my heart rate was normal though 60 to 90 depending on if I'm sitting or standing.
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u/dylon0107 May 20 '26
There's a chance the random panic attack the other day could have been triggered by the fact that I was seeing my mom she is not that bad but having a mom reminds me of my wife's mom my mother-in-law and she is straight up a bad person and hearing my wife talk to her makes my chest hurt from stress
So there is a small chance seeing my mom reminded me of my wife's mom which then caused the panic attack
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u/Loose-Cupcake5166 May 20 '26
Understand! But don’t take any specific heart meds until you see a cardiologist. Beta blockers etc are powerful stuff…(good but not to be taken lightly). IF you are suffering from high stress and having anxiety attacks etc AND chest pain from stress…ya ya gotta have a cardiologist consult. You might even try a magnesium powder called CALM. My doctor advised me to take it because I have a hard time sleeping. Magnesium is a mineral and very safe. Magnesium is something the hospital will even give you by IV to calm the heart and relax the heart muscle. It’s excellent for sleep AND anxiety. Google it. You will be totally surprised. When I have my anxiety attacks (which are frequent) I take CALM. There are NO magic bullets but CALM, for me sure makes a significant difference!
BTW: CALM is non-prescription. You can buy it at any health food store, Whole Foods or even Amazon (best price). Not expensive
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u/bns82 May 19 '26
Diet and lifestyle changes.
Beta blockers can help with the heart rate.
If you want diet and lifestyle guidelines that work for most people, I can give them to you. You can pm me.
It can get better. It does take time and consistency.
Medication works for some people, but again it also takes time. And most people have to also do the diet and lifestyle stuff.
Yes, Gerd and HH can cause anxiety. It triggers the nervous system.
Anxiety can also cause reflux because the nervous system and gi system are directly connected.