Death anxiety

My anxiety actually started because of the same racing heart thing. I was 23 or 24 when it first happened and have had anxiety off and on since then and it always revolves around me thinking my heart is racing even if it isn't.

Hi Sarah my anxiety is majorly about aspects of my health and I also suffer with fear of death..i think a lot of the time that I am ill make ridiculous amounts of doctors apps n always assume the worse..i have started cbt therapy..changed my diet and also began to exercise and although I am no where near where I need to be mentally it has definayely helped me have a somewhat clear mind set at times which is a start x

May I ask what triggered the panic attacks? For me, there is always a reason why I get them. I lose my breath or think I am going crazy in my mind...start shaking. Are you on any new medicine?  We all have a fear of death... and leaving our loved ones...that is normal. I believe that their is an after-life. That we are always on a journey ...and being together on this earth is just one part of the journey. We all have a soul...and it goes to the other world/afterlife/Heaven..... when our earthly body dies. What helped me is seeing a psychiatrist... my panic attacks were getting worse and worse... I was put on low dose xanax and zoloft... it helped me realize that my fears/worries/anxiety was all for naught. It was exhausting & unhealthy. The panic went away and so did the overwhelming fears that came with it xx 

I get the same fears, I had counselling for it and found it stemmed from childhood trauma.

While I was about 6/7 I was scared of the sun exploding, trying to be reassuring my dad said "don't worry, we will all be dead long before that anyway". The realisation of that at such a young age made my brain lock it away and never develop a proper coping strategy, like a normal mind would. Thus whenever I'm reminded of death, my mind freaks out...

Long story I know (sorry!) But maybe you had a similar experience?

Ps. I'm also on sertraline 100mg, while this doesn't take the panic attacks away, it definitely makes them less severe.

I often feel as if I can't breathe, I get a feeling like my throat feels tight and dry and when I try to breathe I can't and then my anxiety starts up, I fear dying from my anxiety symptoms, I too get anxiety if my heart rate goes up and sometimes I feel as if it isn't beating right.

I understand completely...you are NOT alone!!! You are also NOT crazy and this is most likely just your anxiety playing its lovely little game with you. I think that your first step should be to get checked out by your doctor to rule out anything if you haven't already. Assuming you have and all your tests are normal, you need to start treating the anxiety. Therapy and medications are the only thing that works for me. Find a psychiatrist/psychologist and talk to them. Tell them all your symptoms, ask all your questions, voice your concerns, talk to them about your treatment options whether that is medication or therapy or both. Remember you are the only one that has to live in your body and has to feel what you feel. Therapy will help you deal with your fear of death, accepting that we all die one day and coming to terms with that is part of the therapy, it ain't easy but you can do it!!! Hang in there and good luck!!!