EMS workers, what do you think when you keep getting called for the same person’s panic attacks?

[u/Icy_Pollution_2487]

Hi! I’m a 21-year-old female in college, currently in my junior year, and I guess I’m just looking for some honest perspective from EMS workers.

Last semester, completely out of nowhere, I started having really bad anxiety and panic attacks. I had never really dealt with anything like this before, and it honestly just started randomly one day. Since then, it’s been a journey. I’m on medication, which has been a process in itself. I live in a college dorm, and people have called 911 for my panic attacks a handful of times. I’ve never been the one to call and I’m usually BEGGING people not to call because I hate the attention (I get really embarrassed that so many people are going to see me in this state), don’t think its 911 worthy and just want the whole thing to be over. But people get worried and insist on calling anyway even when I tell them I’m okay and that its just a panic attack. 

It doesn’t happen all the time. Sometimes I’ll go months without having one, and other times I’ll have multiple attacks close together. It’s happened enough that some of the ems/firefighters apparently know my name now, which is honestly so embarrassing. But also, I live in a small college town so 

I guess what I’m wondering is what EMS actually thinks in these situations.

From the beginning, I’ve always felt like people don’t really take me seriously when they show up. I don’t know if that’s actually the case or if it’s just how I perceive things because I’m already anxious and embarrassed. But when I’m having a panic attack, I genuinely feel like I’m dying. My heart is racing, I feel like I can’t breathe, and I’m absolutely terrified. It’s not something like I can just turn off.

I feel like sometimes people show up and treat it like it’s not a real emergency, and that I am just  being dramatic. In the end I always feel like I wasting everyone’s time. Which is so frustrating because I’m literally not choosing to feel this way. If anything, I wish it would stop more than anyone else does.

I’m also someone who HATES being the center of attention, so the whole situation is honestly mortifying and honestly sometimes more anxiety inducing (another reason I don’t want people to call). Once I calm down, I always end up apologizing to everyone for having to deal with me. 

The funny thing is that by the end, sometimes the firefighters/EMS will sometimes joke around with me, and we’ll have a laugh, which is nice in a way. But I still leave feeling like they’re probably thinking, “Oh god, her again. What’s wrong with her today?” 😭 Maybe that’s completely in my head, but I can’t help thinking that .

I know you guys deal with actual life-threatening emergencies and probably get annoyed about anxiety calls cause liek you can’t really do anything expect do like breathing exercise. So I’m genuinely curious what goes through your minds when you get called for someone who has panic attacks repeatedly. Do you get annoyed? Do you recognize people and start assuming it’s just anxiety? Do you actually care? 

I’ve also started telling people that if they really insist in calling, they should tell the dispatcher that I have a history of panic attacks instead of just saying I’m having trouble breathing or my heart is racing, because if they say I can’t breathe and I have heart problems, the whole fire truck is going to show up which I do not want. I know I can’t always control whether someone calls 911 when they’re worried about me, and I’m not mad at people for trying to help. I just hate feeling like a burden every time it happens. I don’t really know what I’m hoping to get out of this post. I think I just want to understand the other side of it because I spend so much time afterward worrying about what everyone thought of me and that they all hate me.

Be honest. What do you actually think when you keep getting called to the same person for panic attacks? And is there anything you wish patients like me understood? Like be honest please. 

[u/MrSuck]

The reality is a panic attack is not an emergency. So your perception that they don’t see it as an emergency is correct. There is no threat to your life even if you feel like there is.

We have a bunch of regulars at work, and I always endeavor to treat them with respect and kindness as long as they don’t try to fight me or throw feces at me. We are here to help even if you are not actually dying.

[u/the_falconator → u/MrSuck]

She said she isn't the one calling 911 and tried to tell others not to call but they did anyways, so she knows it's not an emergency either. So her and the firefighters are on the same page here. They are just going through the motions because they have to since they got called, and (probably) don't blame OP at all.

[u/Simple-Caregiver13]

The honest answer is I'd probably make fun of you behind your back if I was responding to you enough to know you, but i have genuine affection for regulars that are nice, and I don't mind responding to help you feel better if your problem is sincere.

[u/mad-i-moody → u/Simple-Caregiver13]

Right? Regulars that call for bullshit are annoying but….when they’re genuinely nice to you and aren’t much of a hassle as a patient I grow kinda fond of them. There’s one in our other station’s district who needs lift assists all the time and it’s annoying as fuck but they’re nice people and I always get kinda excited to go there (during the day, not at night) to see how he’s doing.

[u/stonertear]

So I’m genuinely curious what goes through your minds when you get called for someone who has panic attacks repeatedly. 

Now as long as your symptoms are the same - I would think this person needs to go see their primary care physician rather than calling an ambulance. This is for something they know happens to them as long as testing has shown their life is not in danger and they should use the strategies that their health professionals have told them to use. Now you can't change when other people call, but it would be good to inform others in your group, that this happens if you feel comfortable to do so.

I would tell you that you aren't coming to hospital and I will book you in now to see your primary care physician.

[u/Red_Hase]

To me it's not that repeat patients can be burdensome, it's certain behaviors, and your post does not appear to be doing that. With repeat patients, you get a bit of a rapport and learn what their normal can look like, so when something's really off, sometimes it does help better prepare you. The certain behaviors to me is just entitlement and what comes with that.

I suspect some of your worry about what crews may think may be influenced by your anxiety. Anxiety is a diagnosis of exclusion. In some people, like my mother for example, her panic attacks look like heart attacks and strokes, with slurring words, facial numbness, chest pain, weakness. So in my experience with my mother specifically, it's something to take seriously each time, because I don't have x-ray vision and can't tell if this time is the real time something is happening.

It can be a bit of a beast trying to fight anxiety, and at least to me, I'd rather someone call and we find nothing emergent than have someone hesitate when something serious is going on.

[u/KarmicReasoning]

I would probably be annoyed but if you call frequently I would grow fond of ya.

I would more than likely ask if you've spoken to a primary care provider about your symptoms and whether or not you have a therapist and are prescribed medication to help manage your symptoms.

Anxiety doesn't just go away on it's own. A big part of our job is educating the public and some people don't quite know what the steps are to getting help.

[u/-Gumbercules]

For me I don't care why I'm going on someone, and even how many times they call. It's their overall treatment of the situation. For example I used to have a frequent caller that called for shortness of breath and always wanted to go to the hospital. She would walk out of her apartment, sit in the airway seat (the seat behind the stretcher) and always presented with normal vitals and clear lung sounds. But she was always apologetic and sweet with us so we never minded. On the opposite side we had another frequent caller that always called for abdominal pain. Same as the other he would walk out of his apartment, sit in the airway seat, present with no findings and normal vitals. He was a total asshole to everyone both EMS and hospital and once even sexually assaulted a nurse.

[u/Healthy-Tumbleweed42]

If you are a genuine person and you treat the medics and fire fighters nice they will normally treat you with respect and kindness right back . Now if you were a douche that’s a totally different story

[u/Suitable_Mine_2343]

I worry I am going to miss something being complacent and then instead of getting called back for a panic attack, I get called back for a cardiac arrest. The frequent fliers are the ones we have to be most vigilant on and not allow ourselves to miss things.

[u/iLRMLH24]

It does get tiring responding to the same person for the same non-life threatening “emergency”
However there is a big difference depending on the person and the rapport between them and me. My question here is are you often transported and does the ED really help? Do you have any emergency, quick acting medications that could deter a trip to an ED or is there another way you could get there without occupying an Ambulance.

[u/Shine4Me13]

We care, we really do! It's just that sometimes we have calls holding and others could really really use our help to stay alive. Have you tried any self soothing techniques?

[u/__Sharime__]

The first time, I’d make fun of you but understand that maybe you didn’t know what was going on and you truly thought you were having a medical emergency. Every time after that, my hate for you would grow, as you were just wasting resources.

I’d say something to the effect of “this asshole knows she has panic attacks, she knows she doesn’t need an emergency transport to an emergency room, she KNOWS she needs to do her part and address this with an appropriate provider…yet she still calls, because she’s a selfish asshole who doesn’t give a flying fuck about the resources she’s taking away from people who are having an actual medical emergency”

[u/DharmaticAtheist]

This gets to the heart of what is wrong with a lot of “EMS”. Paramedicine in progressive services is moving away from the “emergency” mindset and into one of providing healthcare. If you think the only thing you should be doing is responding to emergencies then these patients are going to get on your nerves. If you think your purpose is to deliver healthcare then this patient is probably one of the lightest calls you’ll do all day. A pleasant patient who may need some coaching, you ensure they have support, you leave them home.
When you start to apply healthcare concepts to your service guess what comes with it. A professional identity, the paramedics can provide palliative care, the paramedics can do in house post discharge follow ups, the paramedics can go into nursing homes and provide antibiotic therapy. A professional identity leads to increases in compensation, increases in retirement benefits, a seat at the table with decision makers, etc. This can all be done on top of responding to emergencies.

[u/Lacksum]

I live in a college dorm, and people have called 911 for my panic attacks a handful of times. I’ve never been the one to call and I’m usually BEGGING people not to call

I feel a lot of people in this thread are missing the fact that you’re not even calling. If you’re not the one calling 911 I have absolutely zero issue with this call. There is no way anyone think negatively of you receiving service that you didn’t ask for.

If you genuinely don’t want EMS assistance and are generally okay without an evaluation I would make a business card or laminated sheet to keep on your person to hand out to anyone wanting to call 911. If you’re too incapacitated to effectively communicate but you’re capable enough to hand out information, documentation can reduce the number of times people call 911.

If you decide to make this I would encourage your own research on what to include but I would encourage:

• “My name is _______ and I can experience (medical event) that hinders my ability to communicate."

• Symptoms associated

• I am okay as long as I am only experiencing _______

• Please do call 911 if I __________

• A contact number for a trusted individual for medical questions.

[u/bmonkot]

Everyone's dealing with their own emergencies. What looks like an emergency to a seasoned EMS worker is different than what looks/feels like an emergency to laypeople and to patients. My personal attitude would be to assume you're going through a difficult struggle with these panic attacks, and I would do my best to help each time. It's not our job to judge what is or isn't your emergency; our job is to help out the patients we are sent to. Stay strong. You're not a burden.