I'm almost 37 weeks pregnant and a first-time mom. I have a history of anxiety & depression from way before pregnancy. During most of my pregnancy, my depression & anxiety had been better than usual for me. Lately, though, I'm getting very anxious about labor & delivery and having some mild panic attacks as a result. The bad thing is the panicky feelings last most of the day. It's terrible because I don't have any meds to take for panic attacks any more (I hadn't had one since before becoming pregnant). I stopped seeing my psychiatrist in 2005 when I was able to wean off antidepressants, and my family doc had been prescribing me Xanax on an as-needed basis for panic attacks (I'd generally have one every 3-4 weeks pre-preg. while TTC). My OB is out of town this week, but if it gets bad, I'll have to call and ask if I can have something because this really sucks! I'm going on to my third day feeling this way.

I don't know what to do to calm myself down, I feel so keyed up lately, and I have been careful about having no caffeine because that makes the panicky feelings much worse. Someone on another board suggested trying chamomile tea, is that safe while pregnant? Every time I think of labor & delivery, it really makes the panic worse, and now I worry I'm going to have one giant panic attack going into actual labor, which anyone who has experienced these knows they are horrible. I don't know why so suddenly I'm terrified of labor & delivery; women have been doing this since humankind began and until modern times without pain relief too. I think it's scary for me when things happen with your body that are out of your control.

I have tried walking & exercise, relaxing baths, listening to calming music, nothing seems to be helping. I wish I could just relax about it and not worry so much.