First panic attack at the age of 71!

Thank you all. I think my defenses were down in what I expected would bed a familiar supportive environment and I had not realised how high they have been over the past couple of years....

I agree with other posters re the Covid situation. I'm a born optimist but I'm totally fed up with being bombarded with negative messages, e.g. the planet's doomed, Covid is making a comeback, there'll be food shortages etc. I nearly had a panic attack the other day and burst out that "life was passing me by".
I've decided to stop watching negative news channels and am in the process of booking next year's holidays. Look after yourself, you've done really well, I've a friend who wont go out for a coffee in a local cafe for fear of catching Covid. It's so sad.

Yes seadragon what an epic journey you did do well. I think your near panic attack is down to what we have been through with covid. I have just returned from holiday involving rented house and two hotels at various points I felt really worried and panicky about how to deal with the changes of place, not me at all. Take care of yourself and go slowly for now.

You did wonderfully well on your trip away so please don't be hard on yourself, the past 18 months has made us all feel more vunerable. I think isolation, the worry for ourselves, families & friends, the constant negativity in the media has had more impact than we realise. I have mainly driven locally with only a few hour long journeys since the first lockdown, yesterday I made a longish trip on the motorway (been before many times) and at one point I realised I was getting very tense, mainly on the very hilly bits I had to actively force myself to take deep breaths to calm myself. Previously I have driven miles and miles up & down the country, with the family and often on my own five or six hours at a time so like you not sure what it was that made me feel panicky.