Panic Attack

Panic Attacks

With millions of people who suffer regularly from panic attacks and severe anxiety, one would think that this phenomenon would be more widely publicized. But for one reason or another, panic attacks do not get the publicity they should. When you think about how common it is accompanied by how little it is talked about, it is entirely possible that you could have panic attacks regularly and not even know that that is what is happening to you.

The symptoms of a panic attack vary slighly from one person to the next, but generally speaking, a panic attack is marked by an extremely overwhelming fearful feeling, often during situations that would not normally warrant those feelings. This feeling of fear and panic is usually joined up with increased heart rate, dizzyness, disorientation, and can even cause some people to hyperventilate. In most cases, panic is a normal event that occurs under circumstances that would warrant panicking, such as anticipating a car accident that is imminent, or when a person is about to be attacked by someone. On the other hand, there are also instances where the panic attack becomes something of abnormal psychology - when a person has no real reason to panic.

Being subjected regularly to situations that cause stress and anxiety can sometimes affect the mind, leaving a person to overreact and panic when it is unnecessary to do so. Making the distinction between normal and abnormal panic responses can be difficult for the average person to do, so if you are unsure about how serious your panic attacks are, you should talk to your doctor about your symptoms and let them evaluate you.

If you do suffer from panic attacks, you have options. If your doctor does not deem your attacks severe enough to warrant treatment, there are things you can do on your own to help aleviate some of the symptoms. Reducing stress and avoiding stressful situations as much as possible can be helpful in reducing the frequency in mild panic attacks. It is also important to develop a relaxation technique that you can employ during those stressful situations to help calm yourself down before you even have the attack.

Since panic attacks can sometime lead to fears and phobias, it may be a good idea to try facing your fears. Say, for example, that you develop a fear of snakes and you live in an area where snakes are prevalent. Instead of resigning yourself to having to hide indoors all the time, work with a professional to wean yourself out of the fear by working with tame snakes. Once you come to realize that your fears are irrational, they will go away.

If your doctor diagnoses you with a bonafide disorder, there is still hope. There have been various medications developed to treat those with chronic and severe panic attacks, and are usually prescribed alongside counseling for maximum benefit.