A steel band tightening around the chest, a bit of fast breathing, tingling in the extremeities, lasting a few hours. Anxiety attack?

Sounds like it.

OR

Could be cardiac in nature.

What else are you feeling?

When I have an anxiety attack I feel like I have ice water in my veins, I break out in a sweat, I'm shaky, and have extreme vertigo. I have a rapid heart beat but I have never felt like I have a tight band around my chest.

You were obviously feeling this was over 2 hours ago. How do you feel now? Anxiety/Panic attacks usually last 5 mins to 1/2 an hour. If you still have this tightening sensation you might want to head on to the hospital. Hope you're alright.

Sounds like a poor diet, too: too much sugar, caffeine, salt. Been there.

How about an update...now you got me worried.

Update?

Hm.

To tell the truth I am under a wee bit of stress around here. This past week has been "interesting" in a bad sense.

For instance one Niece is in LA, making web-site pornography - a new career. That led to Danny being in fits of anger and depression and other not so nice things that lead to his actually vomiting several times out of 'nerves'. We found out though not so nice way, somebody sending a link to the site with some "witty" words about or niece.

Of course now we are hard a work keeping that from Grandpa who is having heart pains and is beyond medical help - any shock, any surprise can kill him. While the Father of the Niece is a well know web-porn surfer - well we can hardly wait until he stumbles across that web site (Actually the same "movie" is on three web sites bettering he odds). Saturday we went down there to see her and try to talk her out of this path, I was driving over the speed limit (try 80-85 MPH Anyone who knows me knows that I am a stickler when it comes to speed limits and would not usually drive so fast), meet her roommate who has needle tracks that far outstripped any when I was using – both arms.

Danny has been crying, and I don’t know what to do to heal the hurt.

The Nephew has been a burden, staying with us and then yesterday he went back out and started tweaking at a clean and sober household (we do not know where he got the drugs) He terrorized those that were there, threatening, screaming profanities, pretty much being an unlikable fellow. Last week he was completely unbearable to be around, he also has other issues which make him extremely annoying, he has a potty mouth, is lewd and doesn't understand the word "STOP", teasing me, my lover and my dog - Teasing and tormenting my dog to the point where whenever he walks by she growls and the hackles raise up - not matter how nice he is to her now.

The Punk Kid (My new affectionate label for him) is vicious, merciless and loves to verbally attack and abuse people. In my humble an non-professional opinion just based on what I have seen, he is a sociopath, having no sense of guilt or remorse and he enjoys harming people, finding their “weak points” and tormenting them. Not just us but everybody at meetings that we have taken him to have been attacked, I have had several fresh out of prison, bad attitude types come up to me and tell me to do “something” about my nephew or they will hand him back to me in a body bag. Yes, he is that bad.

Finances took a hard hit, the parents are having (forced through eviction) to move - being close to their eighties and the nieces having pretty much burnt the bridges there for them, well they can't just pack and leave themselves. The Nieces, having lived with them for years pretty much did their terrorizing of the retirement community causing the trailer park to file eviction notice.

My truck is sputtering and limping along and we only have $4.98 in the bank account to "fix" that. I lost a tree last week - A huge limb fell, fortunately away from the trailer (Thank God) but the rest of the box elder started leaning over the trailer - We spent a clean $1000.00 for that (that financial hard hit)

I re-injured my knee, its locking and popping. My doctor can't see me until November third - Oh joy, If he has to redo the surgery then I will be incapacitated for Thanksgiving. Thank God it is the Left knee (which can I assume take one more arthroscopic surgery.

Um let’s see what else is on my plate? Oh there is more, that is just the tip of the iceberg.

Actually I have been getting “chest pains” for about a year now. The last two times Danny’s dad went to hospital, the time Danny was seriously looking at being one of the unlucky on the Lay-off list, and another time whose story is to appalling for me to publicly announce (considering what I have announced so far you get a good idea that it has to be really bad). During those times the pains were minor, but this time it hit far harder and lasted a wee bit longer than usual.

Well I am not surprised you are having pains after having to deal with all that! The next thing that will happen is you will start vomiting what looks like "coffee grounds"

Dave, I know as much as you would like to be able to, you just can't bear the weight of everyone's troubles. There comes a time when we have to learn to let go and let the chips fall where they may. It sounds harsh but there is only so much one person can be concerned with. Your health and your finances should take precedence. The Niece and the Nephew will have to learn to live without your input for the time being.

I am sorry to hear about all that is going on. And I know you are a smart fella who will find a way to turn this around. I'm here for you when you want to talk.

David,

First of all, I am so sorry you and your family have had such a rough time recently. I am sorry your nieces have been so bad that your parents have to move... do they have a place they can go?

About the "Punk Kid" and the Porno niece, I think you know by now that if someone doesn't want to change their behavior, they won't.

If your nephew gets into trouble by the other recovering addicts, well he made his bed and now has sleep in it.

I thought from your descriptions that your knee may have been injured yet or reinjured. I will tell you that recovery is fairly easy after surgery that has adequately repaired damage. So your holiday shouldn't be totally shot.

As for your Chest pain.... stress will increase risk of heart attacks, so the fact you are feeling chest pain would make me worry more than the knee pain.

Can you see if your doctor will give you a Cardiac Stress Test?

I really feel you need to be a bit more aggressive pursuing the basis of this chest pressure/pain.

Change their behavior: The Niece we knew was lost to us for a while. The Nephew claimed he wanted to clean up his act and rebuilt his life – we took him in to help him in that since he appeared to not like rehab. We sincerely wish to help these kids when they want it, the Other Niece has been cleaning up her act, has gotten a job and an apartment - is trying to do the right things.

His return here yesterday, tweaking, was not pleasant - Screaming, shouting and finally fists. A call to the sheriffs, then finally his packing up and going. He blew any chance of staying longer when he did this stuff in front of the landlord who told me that he will not have that stuff going on.

At the same time that the bomb was blowing up here, my Other Niece (the one not in porno) called, crying and scared because two of her "friends" where outside her apartment trying to break in to steal from her. Apparently they too were "tweaking" (on drugs). So here I am trying to negotiate with the Nephew, while telling my niece to call the police. My landlord standing at the head of the driveway watching me, every time I said “call the police” to my niece, the nephew charges screaming at me – the landlord was not amused.

My suspicions of the Nephew and his desires was true (My angst report in Life and Living), last week he really got fresh with me (this is an understatement) when Danny spent the night in the City (once a month he has to go in real early and spends the night before at a co-workers house) and I calmly and quietly explained that that was a no go situation – which I think triggered the latest built up to crises, in retrospect I can see that his behavior, is instigation and petty cruelties started mounting shortly there after. Part of the ranting in his tweaking yesterday was along the lines that I did not love him, and that he wouldn’t do anything for me when Danny dies – as if Danny was on his deathbed right now.

Under Lifestyles I expressed my concern about helping him because he had anattraction toward me. This is the out come of that.
I have just slept 12 hours - solid, not a single wake up, not even when Danny got up for work. Last week was bad, this week appears to be getting worse. If this continues I dread next week – Actually next week is packing week at the parent’s another one of those “fun” things I look forward too like I would look forward to root canal without pain relief.

Yes the parents just now found a place to go, but now the talk is getting a loan and then buying a house in a few months – Two moves? I don’t think Danny’s dad’s heart can take one, let alone two.

January is my Yearly Tune-up, where I get all of the fluids checked, gauges and pumps and what not tested (Physical) so I will mention it with the doctor then. November I see the Orthopedist and deal with that knee.

David, my prayers are with you. It sounds totally like The Nephew isn't really interested in Rehab at all. I am sorry he hit on you.

Wow, your landlord must be pretty unhappy with all the dramatics. Maybe things will settle down a bit now.

Keep us updated on how tings are going with you. If you need to talk, you know my email.

Audrey