My grandma is getting anxiety attacks and she has high blood pressure. How can I calm her?

I think maybe she needs to be seeing her Pastor rather than an MD.

You are struggling with a tough situation because it involves both physical and emotional issues. I can relate to what you are saying due my life long issues with anxiety and my devout beliefs as a Christian. Regarding your grandmother's issues: I would work on the anxiety issues with a psychiatrist or your internist, if possible. There a medications intended for panic attacks as well as others that can be used daily, if needed. You are protecting your grandmother's health if you reduce her panic attacks and anxiety instead of hurting it with more medication. I try to control mine without medication but it sounds like I am much younger than your grandmother and possibly more open to learning new skills. Regarding her panic attacks when dwelling on religion, I would suggest that you join her in a daily Bible study that can be very brief. Start by going to a bookstore that can sell you an UPLIFTING and POSITIVE devotion book. Tell them why you need it. My grocery store has a whole rack of books like this. Provide your grandmother and yourself with spiral notebooks that become your prayer journals and your journals to record special verses. Introduce all of this by asking your grandmother to help you learn to derive comfort from the Bible. Gently and verbally turn her away from the negative or record the negatives in her notebook under things to pray about. There are so many positive sites that provide daily devotions through the web, too.
The changes won't happen overnight, but daily practice for just a few minutes (ten or 15) may give your grandmother a great deal of peace. I hope all of this gets better for both of you. Your grandmother is blessed to have someone who cares about her. :) Rebecca

I myself use Ativan infrequently for anxiety (I'm 46). It is fast acting (within 5-10 minutes) and does not stay in your system. Antidepressants usually need to be taken for 2 weeks for them to begin to take effect. Many people are skittish about using drugs for mental illness; however, if you were suffering diabetes you would never withhold insulin would you? If you had pain from cancer would you withhold morphine? Prescription drugs are only tools that can be used when appropriate and as needed. Don't write them off unnecessarily.

I would also suggest limiting cable TV and radio broadcasts, especially the news (which agitates ME and I'm not elderly). Instead, use DVDs and audio tapes that you know you can screen for content. Movies, music and radio shows that were popular when she was young may help soothe her nerves and stimulate positive memories.

Pastoral or other counseling is always a good idea for all of us during challenging times; however, as we approach our own deaths and we have unresolved issues, this can manifest in a variety of ways. Perhaps there is something troubling her from her past or she is simply adjusting to aging, physical decline and the spiritual concerns that go with it. Find someone soon so she can begin to do the talk therapy she needs to come to terms with whatever is troubling her.

Hope this helps...best wishes
Elaine T.

You may also need to examine your grandmother's diet. I deal with my own anxiety, panic etc. and one of the underlying causes was low blood sugar. Make sure your grandmother is eating meals with protein (an egg or a piece of meat the size of her palm) every three to four hours. Have her drink chamomile tea with meals, and give her gatorade or make your own electrolyte drink (just google the recipe) it's simple ratios of salt, sugar, lemon juice and water. When seniors take medications, especially to control blood pressure, their electrolyte levels get messed up and this can trigger huge amounts of anxiety. Additionally, try putting her on an herbal supplement called rhodiola. Do a web search for its benefits. Briefly, though, rhodiola will stimulate and balance her adrenals and hormones, and it acts as a natural antianxiety/antidepressant. All of these things are very inexpensive and have little to no side effects. Don't forget to take care of yourself too...it's harder to help others when your own tank is running low! Hugs and good luck.

I really believe an internist or other doctor who understands the needs of geriatric patients should be advising you ASAP. Call your doctor's office and explain the situation as needing immediate attention or take your grandmother to a good ER during her next panic attack. The problem with not treating panic attacks is that they can have a very negative impact on high blood pressure. Can you control a great deal of the media your grandmother sees? It is frightening at times. Please stay in touch. Rebecca

I am so glad you are answering everyone's posts. It really helps to have the information. From what you are saying, the medication seems to be the issue. I am not a doctor and hesitate to comment on medication, but I have a specific medication for serious panic attacks which started after I spent a year nursing my Dad who passed away. I have always thought Ativan was a daily medication. Start with a geriatric doctor if you can but go to your regular doctor if you cannot. Summarize what you are saying to us in writing and give it to the doctor before your visit. The fixation on the Bible may be something she really needs to talk out with someone, but people of her generation often revere their Bibles and have been taught to write pertinent verses for memory purposes. I think a different focus on the Bible, a prayer partner (someone her age if you cannot be it), and perhaps the positive devotion approach I mentioned earlier may help. Most libraries have wonderful DVDs and VHS copies of important stories in the Bible. They can be useful for helping her look at Biblical events differently. She may also be comparing the book of Revelation to the world's events which can be frightening. If nothing else works, you may need a counselor for her. There are many Christian counselors that might see her for free or for a very small fee. Does your grandmother interact with many people? Don't give up. We will keep answering as long as you want us to. Rebecca

I agree with the one that suggested a Pastor, but since your grandmother won't go to a church maybe she will call a prayer line. Ask her if she would like to call someplace and ask for prayer. There are several preachers on TV that she might follow if you show her the programing. Let it be her choice. Medicine might help for a short time (I have been on antidepressants so I know) but in the long run only Godly counsel will help. She needs to be able to confess her sin to someone that she can trust not to share it or to help her see that she is in right standing with God. Feeling alienated by anyone brings anxiety. Probably it is something minor but in her mind it is big. Sometimes the meds I took made me more angry or anxious. I found that prayer helped me and now I do not take any of the 5 meds I was on. One, Zanax is very dangerous for me. My psychiatrist (the new one) told me to stop taking it. That along with prayer enabled me to get off all the meds. Please ask Grandma if she wants to have prayer and let her tell you whom she wants to have prayer with. I will pray for her. I hope you will consider my experience and also my Mother was on a med that made her have nightmares. Stopped the med and she stopped having them. Everything cannot be fixed by medicine. Medicine is good for certain things and when we find that doesn't work, many people turn to the Lord and He heals them.

I am so glad that you recognized this last night. I want to share one of the first lessons I learned as a caregiver. Our roles don't totally alter, but we do have to take charge at times and become the adult. This is just an opinion, but your grandmother needs to see a doctor even if she doesn't want to and argues with you. Tell your doctor's office politely that you must see the doctor and need to be worked in immediately due to your grandmother's behaviors. Describe them just like you have to us. Call a taxi and get your grandmother there. Someone is not listening to you. Your grandmother's blood pressure is just going higher when she is agitated ,and I know you must be upset, too. Take charge and go for it! You can change this for all of you. My brother has been a doctor for 35 years ,but he knows that he is working for his patients and their families. Don't let doctors and nurses push you around; YOU are in charge. Best wishes! I will be praying for both of you.

I took my grandma to the ER and she is in the hospital. I couldn't get her calmed down on my own. The doctor ran tests and xrays, and they looked ok. He put her on a new blood pressure med called Cardizem and is giving her Haldol again (which I worry about). She has only been on the new med for a few days so I'm not sure how it will affect her. It seems to make her drowsy. The Haldol, (which I have heard is dangerous for the elderly) makes her drowsy also. She has been on Haldol before, and got head and hand shakes or tremors. I would like to get her back off this drug as soon as she feels better, but the doctors seem to think it's necessary. The doctors aren't sure if her anxiety or confusion is temporary or the early signs of dementia.

A lot of good advise......mine is from my own personal experience (my dad is 94 and currently taking anti-depressant and I inherited his anxiety issues)
My dad has been a priest most of his life......prayer is great but many times anxiety and depression are physiological and not psychological and simply require meds to address. I think Haldol is a little over the top for an elderly person). I have had reason to look into this and know that Ativan, when taken properly, is designed to relieve anxiety. I personally didn't get great results from it....but I'm not even close to 94. It also has a tendency to lower blood pressure so that should be monitored. It usually lasts from 8-10 hours and has a shorter half life than say, Xanax. A good geriatric doc will know what to do.