Marijuana and panic attacks

Bitchy1 · Newbie Joined: 02 Jan 2008 Posts: 1

I realize that not everyone has the same reaction to marijuana. Recently, my friends and I were smoking marijuana and I've smoked every single day for the past 5 or 6 months, well we finished smoking and I came back inside to watch some television and all the sudden I could feel my heart racing, and my tongue went numb it felt like I was going to pass out. I had flashes of hot and cold. I couldn't stay still, I had unvoluntary spasms. I honestly felt as if I were going to die. However, I wasn't going to go to the hospital and explain that I had smoked and this was the reason that I felt like this. Can anyone tell me if for one, does marijuana ever go bad, and two is it possible that I was having a panic attack. I've smoked two other times since that incident, the last time I took one or two hits off of a joint where normally I can smoke two and three and I had the exact same feeling all over again. Is it panic attacks or the pot?

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I am 19 years old and have been smoking MJ for about 3 years now on and off; within the past year I've begun experiencing mild to severe anxiety attacks like you desribed. The experiences I've seen described on this forum essentially sum up the experience; it begins with tingling and numbness of the extremities followed by nervousness spiraling into an intense and undeniable fear.

I've heard people say it feels as if someone is "sitting on your chest" which I find very true... my chest becomes extremely sensitive and breathing hurts while sitting down or standing still brings on physical pain. I pace uncontrollably and in the worst incident I've ever I experienced I made the horrible decision to go outside for a cigarette during this period; as I was pacing down a sidewalk dragging off my cig I was suddenly flooded with a fear of death (inspired by leaves falling off a tree) and this is where I entered a personal hell.

My extremities immediately felt dead numb and I felt a pain like needles traveling up the skin from my hands and feet into my chest and back. My muscles began tremoring all over and I felt like my heart was being crushed suddenly as if it were inside a closing iron maiden; a powerful pressure then built up and my vision began turning white as the pain became unbearable and traveled up my spine into my skull; I heard a pop and knew I was about to lose consciousness...

I immediately broke into a full sprint to try to reach my house and literally wondering if I was going to make it or if it would matter if I did. The white pain began pulsing slower and settled into a pain which rippled across my heart back and forth along with a sense of impending doom... my heartbeat was racing but felt extremely irregular and I started crying and freaking everyone out; I was shivering and tremoring and couldn't stay warm. I had them call an ambulance and the pain continued there though the staff pretty much just blew me off since my vitals were fine... they kept assuring me I was fine but I was scared shitless. They wound up giving me some anti-anxiety medicine and sending me on my way. Needless to say I don't smoke weed anymore but I believe my problems started when I stopped taking Lexapro...

Marijuana and panic attacks

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