Hi Teri, you’re dealing with so much right now! That brings on an huge amount of underlying stress. Even if you’re cool as a cucumber and not prone to anxiety, it’s possible to have panic attacks. During my cancer treatments, locally and at Mayo, all of my oncology teams asked often if I felt panicky or needed anything for stress. It’s that common!

I used to have panic attacks when I was in my 30s…oye, that was 40 years ago…cringe. Anyway, I still remember clearly how awful they were, coming out of nowhere! They were terrifying. I went through bio-feedback training which helped immensely and I’ve never had a repeat.

There are a number of techniques you can try if you feel one coming on such as a grounding exercise:
This is my favorite… To help ground yourself back in reality during a panic attack, find the following items in the room:
5 things you can see
4 things you can touch
3 things you can hear
2 things you can smell
1 thing you can taste

However, worrying that you might have a panic attack during treatments such as a long MRI or wearing a mask for radiation, that exercise may not be enough. It takes practice and you need results sooner. From my experience, ask your doctor for a prescription for lorazapam (Ativan). It’s a mild anti-anxiety med and works great for claustrophobic situations and only taken for the procedure. I frequently have 3 hour MRIs where my head is secured, so I understand your feeling with the radiation mask. While the MRI no longer bothers me, I still need the Ativan because I can’t hold that still for 3 hours.
I think it may help you too. What do you think about asking for an anti-anxiety medication?