Anxiety

[Chu]

I took Raz home the other day, and on the way up to his apartment, I smelled something that really put me on edge. I didn't say anything, but he only hinted toward it without saying what it was. After I questioned him, he rushed us upstairs and wouldn't answer until we went back down and left the building, when the scent was gone.

I was becoming extremely worried between the smell - which, I knew was causing the anxiety, but couldn't explain why - and his behavior. I was almost near tears when we arrived at the front gate, and he finally told me that it smelled like a dentist office does. I broke down into a small anxiety attack, frozen for a bit while he tried to gather my attention to stop it. When I finally came to he told me not to worry and waved me off. But when I got back into the car, I was shaking and it was hard to keep from crying.

Anxiety attacks aren't odd for me - I have them in a large, moving group of people and whenever I see stuffed animals or worse yet, animal heads. It's just that those two things are the only things that triggered such attacks in me before. Yes, I am afraid of the dentist, but it only made me cry and ramble about the fear, rather than giving me a full attack.

Who else has attacks like this? I find it odd, still, that I couldn't even place the smell yet it triggered an anxiety attack, albeit a short one. I still don't know why it smelled like a dentist's office; I can't explain what one smells like because I haven't been to one in so long. But the facts that it triggered that response, he said it smelled like one, and I'm deathly afraid of the dentist can't be a coincidence.

[Maeve]

Well, our sense of smell is said to be the first to develop, and the one the most linked with memory. That's why stores during the Christmas season put up little scented thing that smell like apple pie and cinnamon and such. Most people associated that kind of scents with their youth, when they use to come home from school and their mom or grandma had baked something good... Makes them all happy without being too obvious, and then they spend more. Though, in your case, it's kind of the other way around... Some smell reminds you bad memories and fears, and trigger your emotional response.

I don't get anxiety attack, or at least they are very small, too small to be called like that. I tend to keep everything inside anyway, and only let it out when I'm alone... Though I do get tired a lot when I'm around too many people (stores right before Christmas, important event, etc.), but it's probably just because the noises and things... <.<

[Chu]

Really? Hm, I'll have to ask my psychology teacher about that. I knew that it was related to memory (obviously) but not that it's the biggest sense related to it.

Mmm, that's probably over stimulation.

[Jurinjo]

I've never had a full anxiety attack, maybe some chest pains and trembling hands/knees but that's the most really. And I can't think of where cause I dno't put myself in situations for me to have one. Like I got a low tolerance for horrors so I make sure I stay away from them.

Also I think I'm confusing panic and anxiety attack but I'm too lazy to look up the difference.

As for linking smells and memories I link the smell of burnings things to the feeling of home. Which is a good thing. ^_^ The reason why is when I moved out to a rural area of my state we burned all the wood and stuff lying around our yard. So I LOVE the smell of something burning so much, I get all happy and want to squeal.

[Maeve]

@ Chu -> Might not be a 100% accurate, since I wrote this from memory, but I think it's because it's the first sense to develop or the first to be active, something like that anyway (for mammals at least). It's probably because of some biologic reason I forgot, but smells are often use to differentiate an important thing, its mom for a young animal for example, since a lot of mammals are born blind and deaf (or almost). Or it might be because scents are chemicals and therefore can trigger a chemical response faster (release of adrenaline or some neuro-chemical things), because they are analyzed more quickly than waves (sight, sound). Not sure of that though...

Yeah, maybe. That or I'm just too sensitive to other people... <.<

@ Jurinjo -> Gah, I love the smell of burned wood! Reminds me of a warm fire during the wintertime. So good!

[Urboros]

hm, smells not trigger anxiety attacks for me

I do get them mostly when I'm scared and out of my element. I start the 'what if' thought pattern and then its all down hill from there. I've managed to control them somewhat, but its started an unsavory habbit of picking at myself, calms me down yes but is quite gross. I should carry some putty so I can mess with it, doing thins with my habnds, mindless tasks calm me down of course anything pine scent also does that.

:/
yes maeve scent is one of the first senses to develop.

[Jurinjo]

@Maeve: wow that was very scientifically founded...even though you didn't site sources ;p yay burned wood! x3

@Urboros: Pine Scent. interesting. Is it the artificial pine scent? I don't mind it but it's not all that great to me (just preferable to any citrus scent). I like the smell of actual pine tree. Way back when I was little my grandpa cut down a lot of pine trees in his back yard and they were stacked next to the drive way. Me and my brother would jump from one log to the next playing some kind of game. It was fun. ^_^ I also tasted the sap one time....minty.

[Urboros]

no the real scent the artifical stuff is over powering and gives me headaches. oh and I forgot the smell of damp earth right after it rains, very soothing.

@jurinjo- oh that sounds like it was fun spending time with family doing some hard labor, or just goofing off.

[Jurinjo]

@Urboros: Understandable, the artificial stuff doesn't exactly smell the same either. And um....eww! The smell of damp Earth is not soothing. Or the air either...I never actually bent over and smelled the ground if that's what I gotta do. xD;;

Fun? I wouldn't call that fun...but sure what other time do I do anything with my family? (other than watch tv shows) Was a kid then so goofed off a lot. xD I did pick up a few twigs though.

[Iregyura]

I don't think I've had them before...But I have been super-worried and shocked sometimes...So I think one time was probably when my friend smoking, because I was like, "What are you doing?!" and he was like, "Smoking." Then I probably was like, "That's bad!" and then...super-worry mode and trying to steal his cigarettes and throwing him away and then running away and then all of a sudden stop and explain to him and then going like, "I'm going to tell your mom." and then do some more extremely random things. I don't know why I did it, but that's what I did. Looking back, I wonder why I really did all that...Plus, he usually never does bad stuff...So yup. I think the another one was the time where that guy had to carry me to the hospital because I was also kind of in shock you know...Well because I guess it hurt a ton...Now I'm super careful about everything...I guess except my math tests...
So they're not anxiety attacks, especially the first one, but the second example is a real thing where I should be worried...Closer to an anxiety attack then the first example, but not quite... (Sorry if this is totally unrelated, but I thought that I might share these as well...)

[Urboros]

@jurinjo- sure just being there was helping I do alot of hard labor with the family and I can tell you working with everyone even if they're too young to do much is batter then working alone. plus you can see what the kids have gotten into.

eh damp earth is nice, to me but it could be because I'm in florida and rain means usually a cool off time rather then baking alive time.