What Is It Like To Experience Panic Attacks?
If you’ve never had panic attacks before, it might be a frightening experience to you for the first time you have one. We all get a panic attack now and then, either regularly or just occasionally. One can have a panic attack thousand times, yet every time one gets a feeling of helplessness, fear and anxiety. You might have heard of panic attacks by the name of anxiety attacks. It is not unusual to experience panic attacks and not even realize it. It is not always easy to diagnose panic attacks because they can very a lot from person to person. It helps to know what a panic attack feels like, because then you can deal with it right away.
At times people get panic attacks without a warning and these can last from a few minutes to a full hour or even more. A person can have a sudden sense of fear or dread coming out of nowhere, and this is usually a major symptom. Our system is protecting itselfy by pumping adrenaline in our body, in response to a real or not real fear or danger we experience. The symptoms of panic start when the body has too much adrenaline. Some of the symptoms we might feel are fast heart beat, fear of danger, sense of dread, abdominal pain, shaking, fast and irregular breathing, nausea, diarrhea or frequent urination. Distancing themselves from people and surroundings can also happen.
An individual suffering from a panic attack might rightfully think he has a more serious condition due to the symptoms being quite similar to each other. Just by being aware of what a panic attack feels like will give you ammunition in helping yourself and getting temporary relief.
Avoiding talking about panic attacks often results in not being able to seek appropriate help. When people are embarrassed about their condition, they do this thinking that it’s all in their head. When an individual is afraid of having a panic attack, they will experience one anyway because of the fear their body has about having a sudden panic attack. It is not uncommon for individuals to know ahead of time when a panic attack is about to happen, as there are certain warning signs that will tell them about it.
Several common symptoms of panic attack are described below:
- Pains in the chest.
- Heart beating irregularly or fast.
- Lightheadedness or dizziness.
- Having problems breathing.
- Feeling numb and tingling in the hands.
- Hot or cold flushes.
- Terror.
- Extreme nervousness or shyness.
A person having a panic attack might also feel that death is a step away or that they have no more control over their surroundings. It is sad to see that there are so many people with panic attacks that don’t visit a health care practitioner to get help. Counseling, therapy, medication help in many cases with panic attacks. There are times when panic attack have no apparent reason, but they should not be taken lightly as they might also point to something more severe, like stress, a past injury or a serious illness. These reasons are just some of the ones that should bring a person suffering from panic attacks seek help, as it is very stressful and painful.
Are you interested in learning the signs and symptoms of panic attacks, how to control panic attacks or how to use the zung self rating scale? Check out our site to learn these answers, plus much more.
Related posts:
- What Causes Panic Attacks In People?
- How can you tell if you have an anxiety/panic disorder?
- What Does A Panic Attack Feel Like?
- Recognizing Panic Attacks
- Understanding the Reasons Behind Anxiety Disorder
Tagged with: anxiety • anxiety attacks • anxiety disorder • mental health • panic attacks • panic disorder
Filed under: Panic attacks and anxiety general
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