# Do crowded noisy places bring on attacks?



## 18059

I have found certain places tend to bring on my attacks the ibs and anxiety, like childrens places or busy stores like walmart where it is very loud, I also have a hard time when things are suddenly shoved in my face I had a very bad ear infection that caused servere dizzines and vertigo, ever since then the noise and things to close to my face suddenly bring on a major attack.went to a basketball game last night and the loud speakers and the noise made me want to leave by half time. my husband was not pleased. I have found now i let him go on his own alot as i hate to be such a party pooper and want to leave or i get really sick.also can't handle getting to hot. it is from my medicine.


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## 17176

i sometimes hate being in busy places as it can bring on a panic attack, i totally sympathise with you bigmama


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## 20358

I don't like being in crowds. It gives me a very insecure feelings. It will bring on a panic attack.


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## hope*

I will get up very early to go to places as soon as they open so i know they will be empty.I was food shopping in Tesco's at 6.30 in the morning the other day


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## 14514

Definitely. They say that being in places that are 'stuffy' bring on panic attacks, and I find being in a crowded place gets me very often.


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## 17176

hello and welcome MS


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## 15631

My issues are mostly focused on how far I am from my house...because if I don't feel well I want to go home. I used to do alot of things like go to theme parks, long drives with friends, a drive to San Diego was nothing only in August. Well...now when I go anywhere my stomach starts to act up and I get dizzy. I keep thinking I'm just psyching myself out. I'll skip eating and still have these problems. It sucks being stuck at home...or even only going places that aren't too far from home







.


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## 15497

Of course, the crowded place made me feel uncomfortable and think of the way to escape from the situation. I should better learn to cope with this kind of feeling.


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## 15558

Sometimes when you have these feelings you think you are crazy. I'm glad to hear I'm not alone. It never fails if I have to go to one of the kids plays or whatever and I feel "boxed in" I can count on getting issues with my stomach. I started on Effexor hopefully it will make a difference and I can have a life without worry. Here's hoping!


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## 17417

I have found the same thing even before i was dianosed with IBS. ever since i can remember, as much as i love shopping, it makes me feel bad. i usually get hot and then have to sit down and feel really faint, then there is the D. walmart and malls is where i have the most problems. restaurants, arenas, family gatherings are usually fine. i think it has something to do with all the colors, signs, sounds, bright lights. its alot to take in and i have always been very sensitive to any stimulus so this just puts my body into overdrive trying to compute and comphrehend all that is going on around me at the time. i think that it is the body's way of reacting to sensory overload and i probably common even to people without IBS. everyone has a different basic arousal level and some people can tolerant, screen, and tune out (or into) the things that dont matter (or do matter).


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## 17176

Hello and welcome all new members







shelly i am on effexor and its made a real big difference to my life


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## 18059

BOY i'm so jealous you can take effexor I loved it I felt the best I ever had on it, but it raised my blood pressure to much and now i take pamalor and I don't feel that much better, but I don't get as down or stressed out.I had a major aniexty attack last year at the 4th of July fire works at the beach, I freaked out and started to run from my family into the crowd and they almost lost me there. and It also was the worst time in my life driving there and back I had a total of 8 attacks and it is only an hour and a half drive. I have a great job but sometimes screaming babies get me really upset. I work in 9 differnt grocery stores doing the magazines and stuff it is a perfect job for ibs cause i can go when i want I just have to have it scanned that day I can take a bathroom break whenever I want and sit and relax in between stores if I'm stressed.


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## 20307

wal-mart gets me- so does regular malls, with all the twisting and walking and turning around in stores.. its worse when those salespeople pressure me to buy things and i feel suffocated. i try to only use outdoor malls, walk really slow, take reeeeally deep breaths, and not to avert my eyes from place to place too much. its a pain.times two.


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## 18059

ok, what is it about walmart?it seems to be a big trigger for alot of people.i have to take 2 klonipin just to get in the store and then if it is crowed i have to leave or get very sick.i try to shop very early or late at night.that does help.I use to go to all sorts of places school field trips the beach and the fair. now i get sick just thinking about it.the mall will set me off escpcially the second floor. or if i can;t find what i'm looking for.my kids and husband set me off alot lately i cry alot now.i do the fred meyers stores and they are getting to be as noisy and frantic as walmart so am starting to have a hard time with them which is not good as it is my job.


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## Sandeera

Wal-Mart is bad on me to. I think it is any place I have to spend money, cause now the grocery store is starting to bother me.


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## 15341

Sometimes, especially parties or something like that where there is a lot of noise or loud music or large social gatherings. I havent yet had a full on attack BUT it certainly can make me feel pretty rough the majority of the time. i have had a few thoughts on this and wondered if it is the fear/worry of actually having an attack in such a situation being away from the "safety net" of my home that is actually causing the problem. I also get similar feelings when i visit friends houses or now and again when i am in town, shopping or just doing every day things.


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## 14706

I've had anxiety disorder for five years now and I'm only 16







. It's made me miss out on a lot of things. I'm doing 100 times better thanks to my anti-depressant though







. I used to not be able to leave the house hardly at all. I'd go to school and then home, that was it. I lost all of my friends too. Any place that I was either unfamiliar with or that was crowded would bring on a panic attack. My heart would beat really fast, I'd get sweaty...but worst of all super DIZY. I couldn't focus my eyes and I'd have to sit or lie down. It's one of the worst feelings. I'm so happy to have it under control now. I can go to parties and malls and recently concerts







. I send out so much love to you other people suffering because living with anxiety is such a downer.


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## 13639

I am the same way, I am pretty much a shut in. I have my home business, my daughter in home school and my husband has to take me shopping most of the time so that I do not have to drive. Malls are out, amusement parks are out, large crowded stores are out, this is the most crippling disorder that I know of, young, youngish people unable to do normal things because of sickness or fear of sickness. Will anyone ever be able to really help us?


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## 22161

I hate crowded places too! If i'm in that situation the first thing i do is spot the loo! I have no intenetion of using it cuz i could be stuck there for an hour but it helps with the "my home toilet is miles away" feeling! I get panicked because i think it will take ages to battle through the crowds to escape! If i do go to places like this e.g. Gigs, i stand near the door or close to the loos, i find this helps to calm my nerves till something happens to distract me.


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## 18059

well i went to the new wallmart they built out here and it was amazing the difference in the stores, this one had subdued lighting and was not as crowded and not as noisy i spent 2and half hours there with two teenage girls and was fine,buttttt i went to the old walmart and lasted about half an hour it was to noisy loud and crowded also too bright.so it set me off and i came home and went to bed.


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## 13647

I don't know if it has so much to do with the fact that its noisy, but probably more of the crowded part bothers me. I don't like being in a place where I feel like all eyes are on me, and if I need to leave, everyone will notice.Andrea


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## 20556

Dear Friends:Two things:First of all, I sympathesize completely! I almost passed out from panic one time at Mass when I was in the middle of a pew. I was so scared that a D attack was imminent. (It wasn't). That was YEARS ago. Every since, I have to stand in the back of the Church by the rest room through the entire Mass.2nd - When my older son was younger, he was having terrible anxiety attacks. The psychiatrist said that fluorescent lighting can bring them on. It's some sort of stimulus through the eye, etc. He was the only kid that hated going to Toys R Us!!!!!!!!!Heaven help us all!


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## Tiss

Amen to flourescent lighting. It makes me feel really weird and things don't look 'real' to me which causes me great distress. Who came up with that kind of lighting anyway


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## 22388

I sometimes get that way on the subway. I don't get it at Walmart or big stores but I DO get it at the grocery store. Especially if I am waiting in a long line. I don't know something about the place makes me dizzy and annoyed. I have started tapering off of Effexor because it has made my blood pressure go sky high. But it has helped my with my anxiety. I also take Remeron which is like a miracle drug for me. I sleep like a baby with that stuff.


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## Jannybitt

Hi to everyone and welcome to all the new people on here!







I read all the posts, and it definitely shows you're not alone!! But, there are ways that can help these panic attacks and such. I've read how it all makes you feel, but can any of you post what you've done to make yourself better. Because there are alot of ways. Effexor is just one of a ton out there!! It doesn't mean all of them would raise blood pressure. Antidepressants/anti-anxiety medications, therapy of all sorts are out there and can give you a quality of life that it sounds like you all want. There were so many posts with alot of the same feelings, so I thought I would try and make it a general post to all.







So, take what relates to you here or what you like and leave the rest behind, because everything on these boards are suggestions.







I take Ativan for anxiety. I am on Cymbalta which helps my IBS and also my wellbeing, because depression runs in my family. My anxiety would always run the highest before I was going on a vacation, or one of my family members was going away. I hope you all find something on here that helps! Sometimes life is a beach







and other times it's a ...... well, you know!!


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## 22811

There's got to be a link because I have the same problem. When I'm at home in my easy chair, on my couch, or snuggled in my bed, there's really no IBS pain. But as soon as I try to go out to eat, shopping or to work or anywhere else but home, the IBS kicks in. It's got to be a mental thing. I'm wondering if it's just the physical activity and not necessarily the noise, although noise increases anxiety and stress for me so maybe that's it.


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## 21185

Gosh, I find my tolerance level for crowds shortening.If I go to Fred Meyer and do a grocery run. I can't wait to get back home because of the noise, people . . . everything just starts to make me angry. Mentally, I have to be prepared if it's a party or get together as I usually feel anxious.Can totally relate.


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## jms1963

I can relate too ...I'm getting to the point where I'd just rather stay home. People, bright lights, loud noises just annoy the heck out of me. After about an hour anywhere I'm ready to head out, which doesn't go over well with the family.


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## 18179

I'm like you, don't like crowded places.Recently my mother bought us tickets to take my son to Disney on Ice. She was excited about getting 4th row seats. All I was thinking was how many stairs and people were between us and the washroom. I felt dizzy when I looked up at the lights and when the booming voice came on I had to put my head down and breathe deeply. I spent most of the time in the back row and the washroom even though I didn't really need to be in the washroom.And yeah, Walmart has some weird effect on me too. Maybe that is some cosmic force telling people not to shop at Walmart.







I ran out of anxiety pills but am going back for a new prescription this week. I only had 1 month worth so I couldn't tell if they were working or not. I did feel sick the first couple of weeks on them but I heard that is normal.Anyway, you're not alone!! Try to go out when less people are around early in the morning or later at night.


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