Jeff, a 28-year-old male who enjoys social activities and politics, currently working in sales

My first panic attack
"I get like a buzzing in my ear. My ears will start ringing. You have to kind of pull yourself together."

Photo does not depict an actual XANAX XR patient.

"I was motivated; I felt successful; I felt very confident in myself, very social, very inspired, very interested in politics. I always wanted to be in politics.

I was sitting-eating dinner with a banker-and in the contracting business. The business wasn't going too well, so there was some pressure on me. And as I was eating, my ears popped. I felt very dizzy, couldn't eat anymore-had to get up and excuse myself. I had all the symptoms. I couldn't breathe. So I excused myself to the rest room and came back and couldn't hardly remember anything we had talked about. I mean, it was very frightening.

I get like a buzzing in my ear. My ears will start ringing. You have to kind of pull yourself together. You don't know where you are. You start hyperventilating—you're losing the oxygen to your brain. You're real lightheaded. Your chest just feels like it's being crushed. You get heavy chest pains.

You start sweating—sitting there in a nice cool restaurant somewhere. And this starts happening to you. You have sweat pouring off of your forehead. It will scare you. You think you're dying. You think you're just losing your mind. You don't know what to think.

So I get to the hospital, they check me out—chest X-rays...blood test—they run everything. I'm probably in there six hours. Then the doctor comes in and says, 'Son, there's nothing wrong with you. You're fine. You can go.'

I was referred to the internist from the emergency room doctor. I made the appointment, went and saw the gentleman. He asked me a lot of questions. He gave me an examination-no blood work or anything like that-this is just an examination in his room. He said all this is rather common. When he was asking me about my personal life, I was telling him it was pretty unstable at this point. And he said, 'Well, that's the problem—it's your emotions. You need to just find another job.'"

The downward spiral
"The correct diagnosis meant everything. I think the correct diagnosis can save lives."

"If I was diagnosed in the beginning from the first panic attack—or from the first emergency room visit—my life would be totally different. I lost two years of my life. I wouldn't fly anymore. I wouldn't drive long distances, so I missed two Christmases. I missed two Thanksgivings, which are very big in our family, because it's a reunion. I didn't see my family for two years. I quit associating with my friends that I had had for a lifetime.

The suicide rate of agoraphobics and panic attack individuals is very high. You lose all self-worth—desire. And when the desire is gone, then it's usually 'give-up time.' If a person doesn't have that flame going, then there's no reason to live. So you become depressed. I mean, you get clinically depressed.

The correct diagnosis meant everything. I think the correct diagnosis can save lives."

Note: Individual results may vary.

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