Hi there,
I’m a 47 year old dad and pharmacist, and I believe I’m suffering from pseudopheochromocytoma. I brought it up to my PCP but he dismissed it saying he’d never heard of that and it likely was not a real thing. Nothing against the guy, he’s helped me in other areas but just pretty dismissive on this problem which is plaguing my life. I did have a traumatic childhood due to an illness that kept me out of school for a long time at which point i had panic attacks. However, I was able to identify and overcome panic and anxiety disorder and lead a normal life until recently. These episodes differ than my history of panic disorder both in onset, symptoms, and presentation. Granted, i do get anxiety or panic in response to an episode. I get one episode roughly every 3-4 months, completely out of the blue, i can tell right away by sensation that it’s happening, my blood pressure instantly jumps by about 30-40 points, with waves of adrenaline or peaks which feel life threatening in the moment. I take clonidine as my rescue drug, but I’m also on an antidepressant and beta blocker. Clonidine seems to help the most but it doesn’t prevent and takes a bit to work… maybe shortens the episode. I used to go to the ER every time and it’s still hard not to when it occurs. Just looking for support and any guidance, tips, meds, advice, coping skills. I get severe depression and anxiety in the weeks following an episode