Anxiety about going to a concert... please help?!

Anxiety about going to a concert... please help?

I'm a 16 yr old kid, and my friend and I got tickets to a show at Madison Square Garden this July. It's a sold out show and its my favorite band, not to mention a once in a lifetime reunion concert. I really want to go, but I keep getting really nervous thinking about it to the point where I'm thinking about giving up the ticket.

I live in the Philly suburbs and I've never been to New York before, not to mention the fact that my parents won't be with me and the concert (they'll be at dinner somewhere in the city.)

My friend is not too supportive with this kind of stuff, and i do have a history of anxiety/panic attacks. I get very nauseous and short of breath.

I don't want to miss the concert, but I don't know If I can go without freaking out and looking stupid in front of my friend.

Can someone please help me, the concert is only 2 weeks away!

I hope that your parents have gotten you professional help for your anxiety attacks. It is imperative that you address this issue without being ashamed of it. There are medications that can help you (many of them) and they have very few minor side effects. Please don't delay. I spent my childhood avoiding so many things because of my anxiety attacks. No one was sympathetic because they didn't understand them. I spent most of my young life avoiding things that I was afraid would trigger a panic attack. This led to depression in my adult life and almost destroyed my life entirely. If you go to the Miami New Times website and search "The Last Temptation of George Petrie" you can read about my downward spiral. I finally went to a therapist who put me on Prozac and Xanax. The Prozac (while developed for depression can also alleviate anxiety attacks). The xanax was for times when I felt I needed a little extra help with what you have which is called "anticipatory anxiety". My life has turned around and I wish I could have enjoyed my childhood more if people only recognized that I have a very common problem with brain chemistry. Don't forget, if you had diabetes or another organic disease people would be understanding and you wouldn't hesitate to get professional help. The same is true with this. It is a very very common problem that people don't want to talk about and it needs to be treated before it takes over your entire life. Best wishes to you and enjoy the concert.