Emotions

Don’t Panic Attack

Treatments for Panic Disorders

Sudden fear of unexplained impending danger can hinder normal activities.

Recognize Symptoms

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Panic attacks are sympto­matic of a serious medical condition. Left untreated, they can hinder a person from doing everyday activi­ties. These attacks evoke the feeling of sudden intense fear with many other symptoms. Like most sick­nesses, the sooner you treat it, the easier it will be to resolve.

If you suspect you are suffering from this condi­tion, identify the symptoms and discover various cures available for these attacks. As you see from the following list, anxiety disorders can differ from depression.

Anxiety Symptoms [1]
  • Smothering sensations and shortness of breath
  • Racing heart, slow heartbeat, palpitations
  • Chest Pain
  • Lump in throat & difficulty swallowing
  • Skin losing color (blanching)
  • Sweating
  • Shaking or shivering (visibly or internally)
  • Neck & shoulder pain & numbness in the face or head
  • Rapid gastric emptying
  • Indigestion, heartburn, constipation, and diarrhea
  • Symptoms of urinary tract infection
  • Skin rashes
  • Weakness in arms & tingling in the hands or feet
  • Electric shock feeling anywhere in the body
  • Dry mouth
  • Insomnia
  • Nightmares
  • Fears of going mad or losing control
  • Increased depression & suicidal feelings
  • Aggression
  • Flu-like symptoms
  • Distorted vision
  • Disturbed hearing
  • Hormone problems
  • Headaches & feelings of having a tight band around the head
  • Sore eyes
  • Agoraphobia
  • Hallucinations
  • Creeping or pins and needles sensations in the skin (paresthesia)
  • Increased sensitivity to light, sound, touch, and smell
  • Hyperactivity
  • Dramatic increase in sexual feelings
  • Pain in the face or jaw that resembles a toothache
  • Derealisation and depersonalization

When attacks are not severe, you might treat them on your own with home remedies. These are pretty simple but require patience and dedication to be effective. To cure these attacks, you need to practice breathing exercises and relaxing activities. Doing these two simple things during an attack will help suppress the symptoms. Avoid smoking and drinking beverages with caffeine. These can trigger attacks.

You may seek professional help for your peace of mind. Knowing that someone is there to assist you improves this condition. You will likely go through cognitive behavioral therapy. This focuses on sessions where you train to brush away the feeling of fear you get from these attacks.

Another possible treatment is exposure therapy. This method helps by placing you in similar scenarios that trigger an attack. The goal is to help you deal with the experience and learn to live with it.

Treatment is also done by combining both therapy and medica­tion. In general, there are two kinds of medica­tion treat­ments—anti­depressants and benzo­diazepines. The latter is more addicting, so it is more dangerous. Most doctors prescribe anti­depressants. The downside to it is that it takes a little longer for it to take effect.

There are also natural tech­niques avail­able for curing panic attacks. These tech­niques are usually created by those who have suffered from panic and anxiety as well.

Knowing the available treat­ments will help you find the one that suits you the best. Remember that not all treat­ments work as well for everyone. It is still important to counter the effects and prevent attacks from happening.

Anxiety or Panic?

The terms anxiety attacks and panic attacks are often used inter­change­ably to mean the same thing. In this sense, the difference is purely a matter of seman­tics. But from a clinical perspec­tive, panic and anxiety have different features. [2,3]

People who panic believe the “panic attack” they experi­ence means that some­thing is physi­cally wrong with them. People with social anxiety disorder do not believe that their anxiety correlates to a medical or physical illness or disease. [3]

Does it seem that this article is written about you? Mental health issues should be taken seriously. Not all require life-long treat­ment. Seek the advice of a skilled profes­sional to get on the road to recovery, particu­larly when your ability to per­form usual activities is hindered.

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To support the writing of useful articles about emotions, ClinicalPosters sells human anatomy charts, scientific posters, and other products online. You may sponsor specific articles or remit a small donation.

ClinicalPosters sells human anatomy charts, scientific posters, and other products online to offset expense of the writing useful articles about emotions. Slide extra posters into DeuPair Frames without removing from the wall.

ClinicalPosters sells human anatomy charts, scientific posters, and other products online. You may remit a small donation.

You can support the writing of useful articles about emotions by sponsoring specific articles or remitting a small donation. Visible content is optimized for device size.

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