Since I was somewhere around 16, I would have these little episodes hit me out of nowhere and never knew what they were or why I had them. I've been dx with GAD, but I know this is something else. What I'm not sure is if it would be classified under some sort of anxiety label. That's where you guys come in! I would love opinions on what this could be. Let me explain....

The first time it happened, it freaked me out. I was about 16 and was laying in my bed getting ready to fall asleep. All of a sudden this wave of fear came over me. I had never felt anything like it before...absolute pure unadulterated fear. The fear was so intense that I was convinced that there was someone in the corner waiting to murder me the second I fell asleep. An axe murderer in my room. Now the logic in my head told me that no one was in the corner, but the fear was so intense that I couldn't even look to prove the feeling wrong. I can't remember how long it lasted, but I ended up falling asleep from exhaustion.

I didn't think it could get any worse than that episode until a few years ago. I had been helping this woman with her kids while she was getting a nasty divorce. She had just gotten this house and a bunch of people were painting the inside of the house. I decided to pull an all-nighter and paint after everyone left. This time another wave of intense fear came over me out of nowhere. This time I couldn't shake the feeling that her ex-husband was going to come to the house and blow it up. I fought the feeling for about 15 minutes (felt like forever), but the fear got so strong that I had to get into my car, drive across the street, and sit in a parking lot watching the house. It was about 30-45 minutes before I calmed down enough to go back to the house (still very afraid). The rest of the night I was extremely on edge and the slightest noise would make me freak out. I couldn't lie down to sleep until after the sun rose. Worst fear I have ever felt in my life.

I've had a few other episodes like these and a bunch of minor ones. I have no clue what to call them. Since I know I have anxiety issues, I've always wondered if these episodes could be related or if there is something else screwed up with my brain.

Anyone else have stuff like this happen and know what I should call it?

I decided that the next time I see my pdoc I was going to ask him about this, but I really wanted to get an idea of what it is that I'm experiencing. I won't see him for a few months. Any ideas?