I've lost about 10 pounds in the past few months dealing with anxiety and panic attacks..anxiety and panic attacks are not new to me, i'm 25 and i've been dealing with this since the age of 19....now i want to gain them back but it's so hard..has anyone been in my shoes? what did you do?...i weight now maybe 95 pounds and i'm about 5'6. I've always been thin, but at 110 pounds I was happy with how I looked..now people tell me i look sick when I don't want to and it gets me more sad..I just want to get better and it gets me even more frustrated/nervous/anxious and when I get nervous I can't eat...my family wants to take me to a nutritionist...any advice??? It's the worse feeling when my anxiety gets to me and it hits my stomach first, nothing seems appealing and nothing will go down.

I just talked to my naturopath today about gaining weight. He's given me lots of oils such as fish oils, and protein shakes.

Thank you so much for your advice. It's funny my boyfriend takes those things on a regular basis and he eats a lot of fish anyway...so I guess I have to make a greater effort too. Thank you!

to maya\prozac or similar often helps a lot for anxiety and panic attacks
do you have problems swallowing, if so liquid foods are easier

I take Lexapro and I'm ok with it, but it's when I get anxious I do have a hard time swallowing because it feels like my stomach won't accept anything. I do try to have more liquid foods but people tell me that's not good because I will get my stomach use to just that and it will constantly be small and not expand in order to get it use to more food. I sometimes look at food and can't see it go down, maybe it's all mental but I don't like the feeling, and the weight I've lost is so hard to gain. My fast metabolism doesn't help so it's even harder.

I've decided to finally see a nutritionist..I'm calling tomorrow to make an appointment..

I've also been told I don't drink enough fluids which is so true, I had maybe 1 cup of gingerale all day.

Any advise on anxiety and how it affects your stomach..when I feel anxious I can't see food, does this happen to anyone else?

Medications (Lexapro) is great, but have you tried doing some therapy? I'm thinking if you're still battling some anxiety on medication that therapy might actually really help you. It did me.

I do so see my psychiatrist every 2 weeks, but each session is about 20 minutes long, last week he rushed me out of there in 10 minutes so i don't really like that. He just asks me how my 2 weeks went and writes down my prescription or tells me I did good and I'm out of there. I feel good having heard that from him, but it really hasn't solved anything, not that I'm going to him for a solution, but for some assistance at least to guide me in a direction, tell me what I should do to get better, you know? My boyfriend and father both told me to go for a second opinion, I think I should, I don't know.

Hi! Look for a licensed therapist. They should have a MA or M.Ed, with their LPC, too. That is someone who has a Master's degree in Counseling, but it is primarily about the counseling. Their are university programs in counseling who have interns who need the internship hours who will see you for lower cost, if that is any issue. A Ph.d in counseling or psychology will see you for therapy but their extra education is mostly in theory, methods, and research. For that you may pay an extra $75 an hour, if you are private pay. The psychiatrist in today's world of managed care is more about filling out the 'scripts, and less about therapy. That may be why he rushed you out. They serve the purpose of a medical doctor who hands you a prescription.

Texanne,,,thanks for your advice....it's great.

I decided to take the plunge and weight myself...sadly but true I'm down to 91.5 pounds. I've decided to go see a nutritionist, but you have to have an eating disorder such as anorexia or bulemia or diabetes for my insurance to cover the costs.. I'm not anorexic even though people might look at me and think so, but it's the anxiety that got the best of me. Now I can't allow myself to lose anymore weight. My boyfriend has come up with basically a life changing chart that I will try to follow in order to get the needed amount of calories per day. I'm scared of trying and not succeeding or not gaining it..I guess my anxiety now is my weight. Has anyone lost this much weight because of anxiety or depression? I'm so sad about this, I feel disgusting.

Ok so here's the update...after a few stomach exams bc of my weight loss, I'm fine, just of course anxious as all heck and about 94 lbs....I was switched almost 2 weeks ago from Lexapro to Effexor because my dad takes Effexor and they say what usually works for one family member works for another, but I can't sleep at night I'm so awake and at work I'm exhaused.

Anyway, I've also decided to go for Cognitive Therapy not just for the weight loss but the "what if's" the anxiety, panic attack, the questioning and bad memories of past issues:confused: ...anyone gone for this type of therapy? Some feedback please!!!

I know exactly how you feel, I've had anxiety and panic attacks for 6 years and all of a sudden last year I lost 30 lbs in three months! I'm a really thin person, I've always been thin, so this was a dangerous drop in weight. I went to my doctor and she told me to start eating a lot of high fat (good fat) snacks throughout the day and lots of protein. It totally worked and I gained back 20 of the thirty and that's been good enough for me. It did take 5 months, though for the weight to get back on. Good Luck!:wave:

if you want to gain weight, i would suggest working out with some weights and eating more protein. the working out will build muscle, the activity will make you hungry, and the protein will add bulk (good weight). good luck!:D

Thanks so much for the advice. I've started to do a bit of exercise and have noticed that I am more hungry after.

Jax21 what kind of food did you eat, give me a few examples because that's exactly what I need and I'm so proud of you...

Kalalu, I will take your advice also, I guess I just have to learn more about the right foods to eat and protein. I like to snack but maybe I'm not going about it the smartest way.

Thank you all for the great advice...if you have anymore, please let me know.