How to Cope with a Panic Attack
As you lay your head down on the pillow you cannot get your problems and woes out of your mind. Your thoughts are racing and your head is far from clear. You try to calm down but you feel severe heart palpitations. In fact, these palpitations are so strong you worry that you may be experiencing a heart attack. While you are not having a heart attack, you are experiencing a very severe problem: you are having a panic attack.
All of us have our stresses and problems that we have to handle. This is all quite easy to comprehend. But at times we have problems that we cannot so easily handle in our everyday lives. Many times the stress from certain problems is overwhelming. This starts showing clearly as stress and anxiety attain the panic attack stage, and this level of stress and anxiety can be harmful to your well being and health.
Definition of Panic Attack
How does one truly identify a panic attack and what is it? First a panic attack is a disorder of the mind that is caused by severe anxiety. A person’s first sign of the disorder is an urgent feeling of either panic or fear. Many times these types of attacks can come up with no warning, and do not need to necessarily be having anything trigger them.
Usually the duration of these attacks is about 10 minutes. But some can last longer going on for as long as 30 minutes, which intensifies the psychological and mental effects for them. But the short attacks can be just as frightening and cruel to the mind. What is super scary though is that a large amount of people are not even aware that they are having any panic attacks when they are going through them. This makes it vital to understand how to recognize the symptoms.
The Symptoms of the Panic Attack
The symptoms of panic are next to impossible to miss. There will be an amazing sense of panic that will overcome the individual. One may have an incredibly difficult time breathing and severe heart palpitations or chest pains. This can further lead to hot flashes or nausea. Obviously, these symptoms are hardly minor as they can truly make the individual feel as if a fatality could be imminent.
While there are no easy solutions to any anxiety disorder, the first basic step one must take during a panic attack is to calm down and slowly gain control of one’s breathing. Taking a few long and deep breaths can help greatly in this regard. As soon as one’s body restores to a level of relative calm, the worst will have ended. Of course, it still necessary to seek professional help for treatment of the condition.
Searching for Professional Advice
The first step here is seeking a proper evaluation from a mental health care professional. Preferably, this professional will be a board certified psychiatrist. Since there are many forms of anxiety disorder, a qualified professional can ascertain which exact anxiety disorder the individual is suffering from.
After the diagnosis is made then the correct treatment can be prescribed. This usually includes counseling, therapy, prescription medications, or all three of these used together. There are many methods of treatment that work successfully on this condition. This means, that the problems of coping with the panic attack, can be alleviated and the condition will not have to be suffered with any longer.
