The Day My World Came Crashing Down

I had been taking my medication (Norvasc and Niacin) and checking my bp day and night without incidence for about a week. Life was good, very good until it began to crumble.

My kids, a friend of my daughter, and I had a field trip scheduled to visit a museum in the next town up, about one and a half hours away. The kids were so excited as this would be their last opportunity to go to this particular museum because it was only for children up to the age of thirteen. As I mentioned this place was in the next town, a town that I have driven to many times in the past. I haven’t mentioned before that I am a bit anxious when it comes to driving far from home, not spastic mind you, just a bit on edge. I usually car pool with friends to take the edge off; that morning my car pooling friend called at the last minute to tell me that she would have to meet me there, that her plans had changed and she was taking more kids than she had originally planned. I felt a pang of panic, but figured I’ve done this many times and I’d be fine. So, the kids and I set off to enjoy our last trip to this museum.

About ten minutes into the trip; we were about to get on the highway, I began to feel weird. I started to feel nauseous and tingly. I looked at my daughter in the rear view and told her, “I don’t feel very well.” She responded with “Mom, just take a deep breath, I know how you get about driving and we’ve done this before, you’ll be fine.” My daughter, my best pal! I said to myself, ok, you can do this. We continued on our journey. About twenty minutes into the trip, I was still nauseous, tingly and now my leg was shaking uncontrollably and my heart felt like it was going to jump out of my chest. I was sweating and dizzy and I could literally feel the tingly sensation creeping up my arms, legs, back and even up my neck toward my head. I was beginning to freak out a bit (ok, more than just a bit). I quickly began to turn the car around (not in the middle of the highway, mind you; I found an exit fast). I told the kids that mommy wasn’t feeling well at all, that I didn’t know what was going on and that we wouldn’t be able to go to the museum. They were worried about me, and crushed at the same time because they would be missing out on the last opportunity to visit a museum that they loved so much. I just kept telling myself, drive…just get home before you hurl or pass out, or both.

We arrived home safely albeit with some very disappointed kids. I told them to just let me lie down for a while. I thought maybe I didn’t eat enough that morning because we were in an excited rush to get going. I downed a granola bar and went to lie down. As I was laying there in bed trying my best to relax, I thought; I need to make this up to the kids somehow. I got my computer and looked up the nearest movie. I apologized for not being able to go to the museum and tried to placate them with a visit to the movie theater instead. We piled into the SUV once more and headed to the movies.

About ten minutes into the trip, the same feelings came back. I didn’t know what was happening to me. I told myself, just get to the movie theater and everything will be fine. Well, it wasn’t. By the time I got to the movies, I was shaking all over, ready to hurl and I was scared. Nothing, and I mean nothing had ever happened to me like this before. I called my husband at work, which was about 40 minutes from the theater. I explained what was going on (by this time my facial muscles were getting rigid and I was having a hard time talking), my husband said he was leaving work immediately to come get us. Later, I would find out that he sped the whole way to the theater trying to drive through tears of worry. Meanwhile, we made it into the movie theater, the kids were getting their popcorn and drinks and I was lying on a bench with my legs propped up against a movie poster advertising the latest movie release. Believe me I was a sight, not that all the people starring was a tip off or anything. My daughter’s friend called her mom as well and told me that she was on the way too.

At this point I could feel the beginnings of fainting, you know when things start to close in on you and get black? I looked to my ds, eleven at the time and asked him to go over to the nice lady at the desk and have her call 911. Can you imagine!!! I had to ask one of my dear gems to call 911 because at that moment I thought I was literally going to die right in front of them. I have never been so frightened in my life. I kept praying “Please, God, please do not let me die in front of my children.” I can only imagine what my children were feeling at the time; my dd was on the phone relaying between my husband and me minute by minute updates until he arrived.

The EMT’s got to the theater, checked me out only to deduce that I was having what they called an anxiety attack. My heart was racing and my bp was elevated and I was hyperventilating. They had me do various things to get my heart to beat normally and told me that I needed to see a doctor about anxiety and possibly be put on medication for it. They of course asked me if I had ever experienced anything like this in my life, and my response was…NEVER.

My husband finally, after what seemed like a lifetime, arrived at the theater. My dd's girlfriend’s mother had come as well and took the girls home with her. We left my car at the theater and my husband drove us home. On the ride home, I called the cardiologist on her cell. I relayed to her what was happening and asked if the medication she had put me on could be the culprit. She said that she didn’t think so, but to schedule an appointment with her. After hanging up with her I could only describe the way I was feeling as “hitting the wall” you know, when runners are running in a marathon and they just kind of collapse from exhaustion (there is a technical reason for this, but I can't remember it right now)? I felt like I weighed a ton and that I could sleep for days. My body had been working so hard I felt like a limp rag. I fell asleep in the car on the way home.

When I got home at about 2:30pm, I crawled into bed and slept until the next morning hoping, dreaming that this was all just a flukish kind of nightmare that I was going to wake up from feeling fine. Unfortunately, it was more like a nightmare that was just at the beginning stages.