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Anyone here claustrophobic?

I'm not so much claustrophobic as much as i hate being completely out of control. For example, being in the very back of a plane with 180 people blocking me from getting out and there is not escape. OR my wife driving the car.
 
I used to be terrified of heights, which doesn't really go with being a bridge inspector. I'm still scared but I force myself to go where I need to and do what I need to. For whatever reason this quotes stuck in my mind and has gotten me through a couple sticky situations, laser eye surgery, climbing off a 100' manlift on a barge that's rocking into a bridge pier, etc...:flipoff2:

I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.
 
Just pretend your being waddled by your mother. :flipoff2:


I only get that way when I'm unfamiliar (caving) or stuck. Haven't caved in a long ass time though. It's terrifying in the moment. All I can think about when that feeling comes over me is..... Fuck man this ain't helping.

Hope I never get that shit in general situations. It would suck.
 
Boss said:
Just pretend your being waddled by your mother. :flipoff2:
All I can think about when that feeling comes over me is..... Fuck man this ain't helping.
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Oh I tell myself those things. I try to reason with myself but apparently my brain wants to argue with me and appears to be winning :mad3:
 
I am now. Didn't used to be. I was rolled up in a wrestling mat in high school and I have been pooched out a torpedo tube. Not happy about either experience but not claustrophobic. Since I have retired from the military I have become extremely claustrophobic. Nothing happened I can think of that would have induced claustrophobia, it just happened. Almost tore a MRI machine apart before the lady even left the room. That was the first hint that something was amiss. Can't even crawl under a truck if it touches my chest.I went to check something under my sons a few years back and I felt the frame on my chest and I fucking lost it. It is a wonder I didn't tear up the asphalt getting out of there.I tried to ride in the back of a passenger van and ended up body surfing over everyone else to get out of there. I had to sit by the door to feel ok about it. Haven't flown since I retired so i don't know if I can do that. Probably have to OD on valium to be sure.
 
I've helped a number of people with Claustrophobia. Sometimes there is a reason (like Add getting rolled up in a rug as a kid), sometimes there is a reason we can't remember (suppressed memory) and sometimes there is no reason; everyone is different. I'm not a psychotherapist (psycho-the-rapist) or whatever; I'm use Neuro-Linguistic-Programming techniques which has a handful of "tricks" (one of the tenants of NLP is "do what works") that work well with phobias of all kinds not to mention other trauma related issues (PTSD).

I had a small business, but it is tough to start a homeopathic / alternative business like that for a few reasons: the techniques work, so the client has no need of return visits (unlike a therapist that will milk a client for months or years); people aren't willing to tell their friends (as they don't want to admit they had an issue and went to see a therapist); people aren't looking for you online because they don't know this type of treatment even exists. Long story short, I went back to a "regular job" to get the bills paid.

As such, I help people out from time to time and do not expect payment. I'm happy to just help people; IMO, they should teach NLP in high-school because there is no reason a person should have to live life with a phobia or traumatic experience hanging over their head everyday. if you're interested PM me, I'll give you my phone # and we'll setup a time to have a conversation. I typically prefer to work face to face, but have helped people over the phone before.
 
Things like the MRI machine doesn't bother me. I know I can get out so I close my eyes and nap. I got skittish when I had Lasik surgery but again forced myself to sit still. As long as I know it's temporary, I am ok. Usually I am fine flying but occasionally get anxious if it starts getting too warm. My worst experience was a few years ago doing a winter wheeling overnight trip in Canada. 3 ft of snow, camping in tents. I crawled into my newly purchased mummy bag with the narrow feet while wearing long underwear and socks ....... that caught constantly. I couldn't move. I couldn't do it. I grabbed my bag and slept upright in the Jeep using my bag as a blanket. The second night I didn't even attempt the tent, just went straight to the Jeep.
 
Raygoddamn said:
Thanks. That's good information.

Doc only prescribed 15 pills. I was supposed to use them before flying last March but the trip got cancelled because of Covid. The bottle has sat full until last night.
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Exact same thing I got too. "15 pills in emergencies only". Which turned into a bottle a week.

I wish you luck and I hope it works for you
 
Raygoddamn said:
What's L7?
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ADD’s jail cell!!!!

Look up Jordan Peterson withdrawal from benzoz if you need more info on the addictive nature..... western medicine couldn’t even help him.... had to go to Russia!!!! Fucked his life up good!!!!! All because doctors and their $$$ driven addictions to prescribing!!!!
 
I also can't be around a lot of people. Like will lose my shit and go into a panic attack. It really has limited where I go and what I can do. Right before xmas I had to go to the grocery store and as soon as I pulled into the parking lot, I knew every fucking body within 20 miles was in there and the anxiety kicked it. I use the pull up fishing masks to appease the democrats and then put my air pods in and kept my sunglasses on. For some reason, that made a world of difference. Fucking weird but it did.
 
Claustrophobia, eh minor.

Flying, yep. I freak out on the plane. I'm the guy screaming during take off.

Heights, no issue at all.

Open water, fuck that. You want me to die? Throw me in a lake. I flat out go into panic mode scrambling to get out. I've had people jump in after me because I release all the air out of my lungs to sink and just get it over with. Its that bad.
 
I have moderate claustrophobia where tight crowds and spaces just freak me out.

I can do semi empty elevators, but always stand by the door and get out if it gets too crowded. Flying is a struggle and I typically just stare out the window from wheels up to wheels down, and fly 1st class so I can get off sooner. I cannot get myself to access the crawl space under our house. I even close my eyes on certain tight scenes on TV.

At least all of this social distancing somewhat makes going out easier.....
 
Ditto for constricted. I'm fine on planes, elevators, hell I'll play Dracula in a coffin, but the one time I needed an MRI is was a complete shit show. I'm pretty big in the chest and shoulders and they never told me I'd be like stuck. Fuck that.

Also not afraid of heights but sure as shit afraid of falling :laughing:. Don't do sketchy ladders like I used to.

ETA - know what makes it worse? Being with my son. Put me on top of a cliff, I'm fine up to about a foot away. If he's with me, I start to feel panic anywhere close to the edge. That's got to be some primordial shit right there.
 
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poncho62 said:
Yes....and don't like heights much either. Been to Grand Canyon, if you look out it's fine, looking down is another story.
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I was hugging the rocks, my wife was sitting dangling her feet over the edge looking down at the river.

Moab wasn't kind to me. :eek:
 
Yes, but its situational. I'm fine on planes and stuff, but not crawl spaces or anywhere I feel like I might get stuck permanently, especially if it's a situation where I can't breathe.

Was never bad until I went to a new dentist last year. Broke my nose a few years ago and can't breathe out of it as well as I used to. Was having a tooth filled and she had me damn near upside down in the chair with some big rubber isolating thing in my mouth and I flat out couldn't breathe. Asked her to stop and told her why twice and she acted like a **** about it the second time. Tried again and I had to stop and she tries holding me down in the chair while bitching. She stopped long enough for me to tell her to stop before I have a panic attack. Nope, she wouldn't and then went off the deep end after I actually had a panic attack and didn't give her a choice in letting me out the chair. Ended up going off on her over it and stormed out. Her two assistants came running out apologizing and ended up making sure I got refunded. I get anxious as shit if I can't breathe now.
 
The third deck of my screen boxes. In order to change the bottom deck screens you can take the 2 decks above them off then think really skinny to shimmy your way to the bottom. Other way is to suck it in and slide in on your back on the bottom screen. You need to make it about 4’ squeezing under 3 big shaker shaft tubes. I don’t get to nervous but think if I get stuck Im gonna be here a while lol.
 
RusM said:
I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.
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Muad'Dib! :smokin:
 
I'm ok with crawl spaces. Fine with heights. Caves, and pipes freak me out. I have to consciously stop my thought process and refocus if the thought of being in a culvert occurs to me.
 
Raygoddamn said:
What's L7?
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A horrible funk tune; a la Rick James. :laughing:

But seriously, any time I feel confined in any situation I want to bust out. The affect of "the psychological effect" is more the demon than the physical for me. Meaning it can reside or manifest itself in an environment that isn't, claustrophobic. The potential psych effect can be calmed by reverting to a bad song... until I have to act that is.

But culverts can fuck off.
 
Think it's pretty typical to be fearful of confined spaces which constrict movement, that's survival instinct that almost everyone should have. I get a little nervous working under a vehicle on jack stands if it's just barely big enough for me to fit.

Otherwise, mental problems are REALLY tough to combat...it's not something you can just convince yourself out of. I've found the best way is to ease into the situations, do things that make yourself a bit uncomfortable but not so bad that you have a full panic attack. After each one, make sure you consciously acknowledge that you survived it. Repeat until you can get over it. Good experiences are the best way to get past a bad experience.
 
Anybody remember the scene from the film "Tank Girl"? The character got pushed into a long tube & got stuck, passed out...

I saw the movie on VHS years ago but remember that part like yesterday :eek:

I think controlled breathing right down to the vagus nerve helps-
 
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Motorcharge said:
10 years ago probably. Or if I was 10 years older I guess.
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:flipoff2:
 
Anything that restricts my movement freaks me out. Its gotten much worse over the years. MRI's are probably the worst thing for me because I have no control over getting out of there. I am a chubby 6'2" with wide shoulders. Last MRI I did was the skinny tube model. I had to take a second Lorazepam, cover my eyes with a towel, and listen to music to get through it. If you listen to metal, the noise those MRI's make is kind of a cool accompaniment.
 
BDK said:
Anything that restricts my movement freaks me out. Its gotten much worse over the years. MRI's are probably the worst thing for me because I have no control over getting out of there. I am a chubby 6'2" with wide shoulders. Last MRI I did was the skinny tube model. I had to take a second Lorazepam, cover my eyes with a towel, and listen to music to get through it. If you listen to metal, the noise those MRI's make is kind of a cool accompaniment.
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Yeah, War Pigs kinda matched my experience there too. My first time for an MRI is when I found that small spaces don't work for me, second time, I was blaring War Pigs and Maiden, like I was a tail gunner blaring .50s in a B-25 .

:laughing:
 
Raygoddamn said:
The thing that frustrates me about it all is that it's a sudden affliction out of nowhere and I can't seem to do anything about it. What happened to me? I tell my myself that everything's ok and there's nothing to be afraid of. I know the elevator doors are going open. I know the car wash will run it's cycle and the overhead door will open allowing me to drive out. But my mind isn't believing what I'm telling it.
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Not sure about claustrophobia, but 3 friends (all now recovering alkys) started having panic attacks. All very reasoned, logical men. All onset mid 30's to 40's. One of them while still drinking, and it's what prompted him to get sober, the other 2 years after sobriety. My best friend, the most reasoned person I know and highly intelligent, is afflicted the worst of the 3. He is working through it over the last year, but sudden onset and no idea where it came from. Like, not able to drive over that bridge, or not able to stand up and walk to the front of the room when it's required. Super pissed at himself, logically, you know better, nothing bad is going to happen. As soon as it is gone, just angry and disappointed in himself that he couldn't reason it away. Feels like an irrational woman for letting it happen. Feeling trapped or having a feeling of impending doom is the most common between the 3 of them, not just tight spaces. None of them really hang out with each other or know the other is going through it. I found it odd that that many people were going through that very similar thing. I don't envy those that it happens to, because no matter how much I could tell myself to say "I'm smarter than that, I could stop it," seeing guys that I know very well and have for 25 years not able to stop it makes me wonder wtf triggers it and if there is a way to get in front of it.
Ditto on the Benzo drugs. Pusher man probably gets a kickback if he hooks another customer.
 
I am but I have been since I was young. I do remember being rolled up in a rug by my brother, may have caused it but idk. I can do an elevator and a mri but just the description of being on the plane made me uneasy.
I almost got stuck twice while working on a boat, I seriously think I would have hurt myself if I didn't get out. One of them I was leaning through a bathroom cabinet reaching down into the bilge of our sailboat, V shape to it, hanging by my kneecaps head down I could barely reach the bottom. I popped my knees over the edge and slid down in the cone wedge straight up and down. No one was around, I managed a contorted(shaft in the way) one handed push up to get my knees back in place.
 
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